Natural Progesterone and Fertility

Natural Progesterone, Female Infertility & Pregnancy

The proper amount of natural progesterone is crucial to a woman who is trying to become pregnant. Natural Progesterone prepares the uterine wall for implantation of the fertilized egg. Without adequate progesterone, the egg will be expelled. Natural Progesterone treatment can also help to induce fertility when there appears to be ovulatory dysfunction.

· Progesterone makes Possible the Survival of the Fertilized Egg
· Maintains the Secretory Endometrium which Feeds the Ovum & Resultant Embryo
· Progesterone Surge at Ovulation is the Source of Libido or sex drive.

Before you begin the expensive and often unsuccessful process of working with a fertility clinic, we recommend that you read Dr. Lee's first book, "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause", which will give you a detailed look at how your hormones work.

Dr. Lee had a number of patients in his practice who had been unable to conceive. For two to four months he had them use natural progesterone from days 5 to 26 in the cycle (stopping on day 26 to bring on menstruation). Using the progesterone prior to ovulation effectively suppressed ovulation. After a few months of this, he had them stop progesterone use. If you still have follicles left, they seem to respond to a few months of suppression with enthusiasm -- the successful maturation and release of an egg. His patients, some of whom had been trying to conceive for years, had very good luck conceiving with this method.

Because progesterone is essential to prevent the premature shedding of the supportive secretory endometrium, a significant drop in progesterone levels or blockade of progesterone receptor sites during the first 10 - 12 weeks of pregnancy may result in the loss of the embryo (miscarriage).

Women with a history of miscarriage should begin using progesterone cream as soon as they know they have ovulated, to supplement their own progesterone and offset any environmental estrogen effects. (Using progesterone before ovulation can create a hormonal signal that tells the brain not to ovulate).

If you want to be pregnant and you're using progesterone cream, it's very important to keep using progesterone cream until you find out whether you're pregnant. (You can take a pregnancy test a few days after your period would normally be due.) The sudden drop in progesterone levels created if you stop using the cream can cause what is, in effect, an abortion, by bringing on menstruation.
Note: The addition of large amounts progesterone after a possible miscarriage might prevent the natural expulsion of the foetus endangering the life of the mother. If a problem is suspected see your health practitioner.

If you find out that you are not pregnant, stop taking the progesterone on day 28 of your cycle or whenever the last day of your cycle normally occurs. If you are pregnant, keep using the progesterone every day in normal doses. It's fine to use it throughout your pregnancy, and it's important not to stop it suddenly until your third trimester when the placenta is making so much that it won't notice if there's a drop of 15 to 30 mg a day.
Research by British hormone researcher Katherina Dalton, M.D., indicates that babies born to mothers who used natural progesterone during pregnancy are normal--and, in fact, are larger, calmer, and smarter. Also in her 1968 study she found that none of the women receiving antenatal progesterone experienced toxemia during the pregnancy. In her control group, more than half experienced toxemia. Used from conception to delivery, applied primarily to abdomen, breast, low back, and upper thighs progesterone will tend to prevent the skin from stretching. The cream is also useful for post partum depression which many women experience after childbirth.
Adolescent Use Of Progesterone
 The general health of girls between the ages of nine and thirteen can be adversely affected by low estrogen levels. When females start to menstruate they often experience emotional outbursts, erratic behavior, excessive talking or non-communicative, sporadic irritability, obsessive eating of sweets, and generally non-cooperative. It is important that that a good diet is maintained. One with plenty of raw organic vegetables is preferred. A good calcium and magnesium supplement (from plant sources - not clam shells) can be helpful. The use of natural progesterone has been seen to alleviate most of the symptoms with a high level of wellness with few or no PMS complaints. (Among other things progesterone is used by the body in the creation of estrogen and also sensitizes estrogen receptors consequentially increasing natural estrogen levels.)
Natural Family Planning
 Women are blindly using birth control pills or getting their tubes tied without thinking about the long term affects of their choices. It just doesn't make sense when there is a natural option - natural family planning. One of the effects of an elevated progesterone level is an increase in body temperature. Through the use of a basal thermometer women can accurately monitor their temperature which indicates a rise in progesterone (about a 0.4 degrees Fahrenheit increase) and a fall of progesterone, triggering menstruation, corresponding to a decrease in temperature. The Couple to Couple League has used this information along with mucus and cervical indicators as a viable means of birth control. When desired the same information can be used to increase the likelihood of pregnancy. For more information get a copy of "The Art of Natural Family Planning" published by the Couple to Couple League.
Birth control Pills - a few facts
 Most oral contraceptives are a combination of synthetic estrogen and progestins (e.g. the "combined pill"). The Pill does its job by suspending the normal menstrual cycle. The bleeding which occurs each month is actually "withdrawal bleeding", caused by stopping the pill for seven days of the cycle. The known problems associated with the pill are an increased risk of coronary artery disease, breast cancer and high blood pressure. Its side effects include nausea, vomiting, headaches, breast tenderness, weight increases, changes in sex drive, depression, blood clots and increased incidence of vaginitis. Women with epilepsy, migraine asthma or heart disease are warned that they could have a worsening of their condition. Nancy Beckman in her book Menopause ? A Positive Approach Using Natural Therapies points out that "Women on the Pill have a greater tendency to liver dysfunction and allergies."
The Pill is often prescribed to regulate a woman's cycle. But if it suspends a woman's normal cycle ? and creates withdrawal bleeding instead of a true menstruation, one wonders what is the point of such "therapy"? Dr. Lee found natural progesterone to be useful for women with irregular cycles, without overriding the body's natural cycle by using hormonal mimics that create an illusion of well?being or normality.