Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Estrodiol and Related Hormones

A woman's menstrual cycle is usually about 28-35 days, but not all of us actually are between those days. I will be talking about progesterone and how it affects pregnancy. I have a friend that has been trying to get pregnant for over a year. She went to the doctor and the doctor informed her that she was not ovulating. They told her menstrual cycles were irregular thus she was not ovulating. The doctor ordered her provera to regulate her menses, then ordered her to come back for blood work to check her progesterone level. After her blood work the results came back and her progesterone level was at 0.5, the norm being around 10. The doctor then explained that her follicles were not getting big. She explained that the follicles in the ovaries are suppose to get bigger and then burst, releasing the egg. So her doctor then prescribed her Clomid, which is a fertility pill to help a woman ovulate.

Progesterone does not only affect trying to get pregnant but also staying pregnant. Many women have miscarriages because of low progesterone levels.

Low progesterone levels in the female body has many symptoms. They are the following:

Low progesterone symptoms:

The problem with progesterone imbalances is the symptoms typically mimic those of other disorders. Besides infertility and pregnancy loss, low progesterone symptoms can include:
Mood swings
Depression
Insomnia
Appetite changes
Weight changes
Irritability
Lack of concentration
Anxiety
Fatigue
Frequent menstruation
Irregular menstruation
Low sex drive
Migraines
PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome)
Vaginal dryness
Painful intercourse


Causes of low progesterone:

Low progesterone levels can be caused by several known factors or unknown factors.  Due to the complexity of hormones, some women may have no difficulty getting pregnant but for some reason, the placenta does not create the proper levels when it should.  Researchers believe that high levels of stress, poor nutrition and lack of exercise can contribute to low progesterone levels. Certain medications can also interfere with the body’s ability to produce progesterone.


Info provided from justmommies.com


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3 comments:

  1. lisaOctober 23, 2012 at 7:31 AM

    Ellie, your blog was amazing, I learned so much even with things that I had no idea could have have affected pregnancies, I mean there were some that I had already knew effected pregnancies but I didn't know a few of things you listed could have. The video was especially knowledgeable, I really enjoyed it and it looked like you really took the time to find a good video for people to understand. Again great job I learned a lot.

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  2. Jeanette RodriguezOctober 23, 2012 at 8:38 PM

    My best friend has been trying to have a get pregnant for 8 years now. She got pregnant once but unfortunately miscarried. We, from time to time, discuss and question what they could possibly do to increase their odds of getting pregnant. They have tried many different things. It has been very difficult for her and her husband. That was a good video and good information. I will probably share this information with her. I wonder if there is any correlation with miscarrigae and progesterone, I think the video metioned that. Great post, keep them coming!

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  3. Stevan ArteagaOctober 23, 2012 at 9:59 PM

    I think this explains my sister's situation. She and my brother-in-law had been trying to have a baby for a while. She got pregnant a couple of years ago, but she miscarried. It turned out that she had a hormonal imbalance, which I now assume was progesterone. After that, she went was on fertility meds and now she's almost 8 months pregnant. Thanks for teaching me something!

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