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Low Oestrogen?

by kim tini
(Sydney Australia)

My son was born 2.5 years ago. When i stopped breast feeding him a year ago my period returned. With it in a matter of days i had extreme anxiety, phobias, agoraphobia, deep depression with suicidal thoughts, hot flushes, night sweats, internal shaking, pulpitations, shortness of breath and the list goes on! I had no idea what was wrong with me. I did not get another period for 4 months. During this time the symptoms did not let up. I was put on antidepressants that did nothing. I wanted to die. 6 months ago i found a psychiatrist that said i had post natal depression and changed the antidepressant. I improved very very slowly. The last 3 months i have noticed a pattern through keeping a mood journal and mu period starting to come back to a 28 - 32 day cycle. This is what i have discovered. Day 1 and 2 i feel ok. Day 3 i start to go downhill with crying each day. From about day 5 till 8 i slip into a deep depression with the dark thoughts of wanting to die. From about day 8 till about day 15 i am sad and have anxiety, fear of everything and crying. Then after i ovulate i start to feel better. Almost normal with only a couple of unsteady days but nothing i cant push through. The laat couple of days of my cycle i start to feel a bit short tempered with my kids and easily annoyed and then it starts all over again! I went to a gynocologist who said that it sounds like i am not making any oestrogen in the first half of cycle. I have some natpro that i purchased about a year ago but never used it as i was such a mess emotionally i just didnt know where to start. Is there any reason to use it now? I figure i cant use it in my first part of cycle as it may make me worse???? Do you have any advice or tips please? I am in need of desperate help. Its been a year of hell. I take a good multivitamin, vitamin D, i make a drink with flax seeds in it each day and fish oil but still only mildly improved.
Thank you
Kim

Comments for Low Oestrogen?

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Nov 05, 2012
 Low Oestrogen?
by: Wray

Hi Kim I wish you written to me a year ago, it would have saved your year of hell. I do know what you are going through too, as I had PND for 4 years, slowly climbing out of the pit. I was offered AD's too, but refused these. Not because I'm strong, but because I am so against drugs of any kind, knowing most don't work and can have adverse side affects. How ironic your gynae said you are not making enough oestrogen in the first half of the cycle, and yet you feel better once you ovulate. Doesn't that say something to him?! Progesterone drops after giving birth, sending 25% of women into depression. Ranging from the baby blues to post natal psychosis which often ends with infanticide. All your symptoms indicate severely low progesterone, and normal oestrogen. The 'anxiety, phobias, agoraphobia, deep depression with suicidal thoughts, hot flushes, night sweats, internal shaking, pulpitations, shortness of breath' are caused by oestrogen. We do have a page on Anxiety, there are many nutrients which can help besides progesterone. I had agoraphobia, the suicidal thoughts, and endless crying too, plus terrible rages. Progesterone can help the Hot Flushes and night sweats too. The internal shaking is caused by low blood glucose, oestrogen disturbs the balance of our blood glucose, progesterone helps it, see here. The palpitations are again oestrogen, it causes prolongation of the QT interval, which results in palpitations, arrhythmia and Torsades de Pointes. It can also cause sudden death. Whereas progesterone shortens the QT interval, see here, here, here, here, here, here and here. This is why more women get these problems than men, they have very little oestrogen, whereas we have a great deal more. Continued below
Nov 05, 2012
 Low Oestrogen? Part 2
by: Wray

Hi Kim Finally shortness of breath is an oestrogen thing, it constricts smooth muscle, making breathing difficult. Whereas progesterone relaxes these muscles, in fact it's excellent for asthma, see here and here. And any respiratory problems in fact, see here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here. That pattern you've given me is a perfect example of oestrogen overload, progesterone deficiency. Oestrogen begins rising about days 3-4 gradually getting higher and higher. Then about 50 hours prior to ovulation it rises exponentially, dropping after ovulation. This paper gives 6 charts showing variations in the rise of oestrogen, see here. It's always been believed, and still is by everyone including the medical profession, that progesterone is only produced by the corpus luteum after ovulation. But as far back as 1930 it was thought there must be another source. This was confirmed in the 1960's, and re-confirmed in the 1980's, that there is a surge of progesterone about 50 hours prior to ovulation. Continued below
Nov 05, 2012
 Low Oestrogen? Part 3
by: Wray

Hi Kim This surge comes from the brain, see here, here, here and here. Unless there is this progesterone surge too, there is nothing to counter the oestrogen effect. This explains why many women get Migraines, seizures, palpitations, panic attacks and asthma attacks around ovulation. The same reasoning can be applied to the worsening of these problems, plus others, during progesterone withdrawal prior to bleeding. Your pattern couldn't be a more perfect fit. And you were told you needed more oestrogen?! You need progesterone, and I feel about 400mg/day, possibly more, unfortunately it is trial and error. You will also need to use it daily, through any bleeding, for at least 2-3 months. Then once stable you can begin following your cycle again. It is normal to follow a cycle if there is one, but with severe symptoms I don't hesitate to suggest using it during the follicular phase too, oestrogen production needs to be lowered substantially. Plus stopping and starting the progesterone allows oestrogen to rise again. We do have more info on our page How to use progesterone cream. Although you are not pregnant, you might like to look through the page we have on Pregnancy, and this one here too, as PND is mentioned. I would go easy on the flax seeds, although they do have beneficial affects, they are high in phytoestrogens, see here, here and here. These papers here and here, on infertility in sheep, show how a high level of phytoestrogens in food can affect the reproductive organs. Continued below
Nov 05, 2012
 Low Oestrogen? Part 4
by: Wray

Hi Kim Although you are taking vitamin D, I do hope enough. The minimum daily dose should be 5000iu's per day, although recent research indicates it should be 10,000iu's per day, see here. For more info on vitamin D levels, test kits etc see the Vitamin D Council, GrassrootsHealth and Birmingham Hospital. Blood levels should be 70-100ng/ml (175-250nmol/L) and not the 30ng/ml (75nmol/L) most labs and doctors regard as adequate. Most people in Australia have low levels because of the government policy about covering up, see here, here and here. Low vitamin D reduces the benefits of progesterone, plus causing depression, please have a test done. Finally please have your copper/zinc levels checked. High copper causes depression, aggression and psychosis. Oestrogen raises copper levels, progesterone raises zinc levels. Please consider not only increasing your vitamin D if low, but many of the nutrients listed on the anxiety page. Please don't rely solely on progesterone to get you through this. Take care Wray
Feb 09, 2013
 Migraines during ovulation
by: Anonymous

Hello. i get debilitating migraines around the time of ovulation to the time i get my period (the kind you get hospitalised for). i easily get a headache as well. I know this is due to hormonal fluctuations but im not sure if i should add oestrogen or progesterone and when. do you think this might help my situation? which one, when, and how much, are my questions. my gyn gives me progesterone to be taken on certain days but sometimes i ovulate too fast and i can't chase it. ergotamine, triptans, and NSAIDS won't touch it anymore. i am 38 years old with hashimoto's thyroiditis.
Feb 11, 2013
 Migraines during ovulation
by: Wray

Hi there It appears you're not getting the surge of progesterone which should occur 50 hours prior to ovulation. It's always been believed, and still is by everyone including the medical profession, that progesterone is only produced by the corpus luteum after ovulation. But as far back as 1930 it was thought there must be another source. This was confirmed in the 1960's, and re-confirmed in the 1980's, that there is an exponential rise of progesterone about 50 hours prior to ovulation. This surge comes from the brain, see here, here, here and here. Oestrogen also rises exponentially about 50 hours prior to ovulation. Unless there is the progesterone surge too, there is nothing to counter the oestrogen effect. This explains why many women get Migraines, seizures, palpitations, panic attacks and asthma attacks around ovulation. The same reasoning can be applied to the symptoms that occur during progesterone withdrawal prior to bleeding. It also appears your corpus luteum is not producing sufficient progesterone to counter oestrogen, which also rises mid-luteal phase. Oral progesterone is the least effective Delivery system. "The liver and gut region removed a mean of 96 per cent of the progesterone entering these tissues" see here. You could be low in vitamin D too, as this also causes migraines, and it's low in Hashi's, see here, here, here and here.
There's info about vitamin D and progesterone on the migraine link I've given above. Please have a vitamin D test done. If interested in trying progesterone, we have more info on our page How to use progesterone cream. Take care Wray

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