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On a healing path...

by Adina
(California)

Hi friends!
I am 37 years old, married with three children.
The dramatic part of my story starts about two and a half years ago when I stopped eating sugar and started eating a vary balanced diet. (Trim Healthy Mama). I lost some of my stubborn belly weight right away, and in my healing from a sugar addiction I found I had a vitamin D deficiency and I was deficient in progesterone as well. I saw a doctor who prescribed bio-identical progesterone cream and Vit. D 5000IU. I was also testing out my need for testosterone, as I have no sex drive.
I almost no time at all I was unexpectedly pregnant. I was shocked and sad (but happy for new life). I knew that this would be a difficult pregnancy. I had miscarried 3 babies between my first and second child. I notified my doctor and she increased my progesterone to 200mg daily to prevent miscarriage.
I had a pretty great pregnancy, with very ideal weight gain and a perfect labor and delivery.
When my baby turned about 2 months old I began having some very serious depression symptoms. They became worse, and even though I was still using 200mg of progesterone and Vit. D I was not healing. I had suicidal thoughts and sought out the help of a therapist. My doctor wanted to prescribe anti-depressants, so I tried one with a horrible outcome. I struggled with strange symptoms on top of my depression, little painful bumps all over my legs, rear and backs of my arms. Pain and nausea in my stomach and some mild anxiety attacks. Slowly... slowly I got somewhat better.
Each time my baby dropped one nursing a day I relapsed a little and then became stronger and felt better.
Now my baby is one year old and weaned and I'm still feeling low. I'm not myself.
I'm hoping to learn more about bio-identical hormones and supplements that I might be deficient in to keep healing and become the woman I know I am inside.

Thanks for reading.

Comments for On a healing path...

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Mar 28, 2016
 On a healing path...
by: RJ

Hello Adina!
Go onto Wray's homepage and in the search bar type in Post Natal Depression (PND) and read what comes up. Wray suffered from this terribly. You can read her story from the drop down menu above that states "A personal testimony". I would guess the product you are or were on probably has lots of chemicals in it. Are you taking progesterone currently, testosterone, estrogen? I would guess you are going to need a high dose of progesterone only to help you out. Remember about testosterone that we make more testosterone each month during our cycles than most men do and that testosterone converts to estrogen in us. Wray has never advised to take either of them...only progesterone. Our bodies will make estrogen in our fat cells until we die and if that isn't enough we are inundated each day with the air we breath, products we apply and food and water we ingest that are full of estrogen mimics. You may need to take progesterone for some months before you find relief. I am 50 years old and have been on 300-1,000mg a day, non-stop for the last four years. High Omega 3's, good level of D3 (70-80 area level...not 50, like most doctors suggest), good gut health(probiotic..100 billioin cfu's a day...fermented foods), chamomille, chlorella, rhodiola rosea, light therapy, GABA all are just a few things that can help with depression. You have come to the right place for help. Read Wray's site...wealth of information on it. Type in a problem you are having in the search bar and read...there is so much there to read. I cannot think of a subject that Wray has not touched on LOL and she has the research to back it up if you are in doubt with what she recommends. You will be able to decide for yourself. Hang in there! Have faith and lots of patience, but know there is help out there for you. Just ask us! God Bless! RJ
Mar 29, 2016
 On a healing path...
by: Wray

Hi RJ You do say the kindest, most wonderful things! I find your continued support a great blessing. I'm sure Joy does too, there's only so much we can do to help people, and having someone like you who chips in is most definitely heaven sent! Many blessings, take care Wray
Mar 29, 2016
 On a healing path...
by: RJ

Wray, I have said so, so many times and I cannot repeat it enough...you are an angel sent from The Lord above for we women who suffer from these ills. Thank you so much for your caring, time and research. Many women have no idea how much time it takes to do all of this. Quick answers to quick fixes and that just isn't out there, as I well know. A women locally had a radical hysterectomy for the same ills you help so many with, a couple weeks ago and the surgeon knicked her intestine and missed it. She died that night from going septic. My heart goes out to her and her family....if only she would have found you. I understand if it's cancer but not for the other ailments that like to present themselves in our female organs. Take care of yourself! Almost lost every one of my cabbage and cauliflower seedlings. Put them outside and forgot about them LOL. All are shriveled now so I am hopeful I didn't lose them and they will regenerate. Just a forgetful mind...something this 500mg a day just cannot bring back LOL. Hope you are digging too! Say hello to Joy for me also! God Bless! RJ
Mar 29, 2016
 Thanks for the help!
by: Adina

Thank you RJ for your excellent help. I am currently taking 200mg of progesterone daily. And I still have a cycle, so I try to stop for a day or two to allow the period to be complete. I feel pretty horrible after a period, just depressed and slow.
My current level of Vit D in my body is 63. But I take no B vitamins because I deal with nausea almost daily and the last time I took B vitamins I just threw them up. I've been reading about 5-HTP and tryptophan. And wondering if I should try and add these supplements to help me.
I'm pretty sure I can't convince my doctor to increase my progesterone, but I could try.
Thank you for directing me to all the precious information on this website. It's like a gold mine. I will be reading for a long time.
Thanks again for your help!
Mar 30, 2016
 On a healing path...
by: Wray

Hi RJ Well what can I say, except repeat myself, you are heaven sent! And that poor woman, I'm shocked, yes accidents can happen, but you have to be so careful when it comes to a human. And her family, it's all so unnecessary, unless as you say for cancer. I do hope your poor seedlings recover, I've done that too! Take care and bless you Wray
Mar 30, 2016
 On a healing path...
by: RJ

Hello Adina!
I did take those supplements for a short time, but then I read Ray Peat's site and quit. I have not gone back to research any further on them. You might not like what I am going to say...but it's time to take your health into your own hands, ignore your doctor, and get a good natural progesterone cream. Natpro is out of stock right now, but until it's in, because it is the best out there, buy another line and increase to 300mg and see what happens. You may need even more than that. Your depression is hormonal related, thus the severe state you get into after your cycle. Are you taking any other hormones or is it just progesterone only? I cannot tell you if you should or shouldn't cease using the cream for a few days. The only time I have done it is when I have ran out of product and that causes me so many ills and that may be what is happening with you also. You get your progesterone level up only to stop and it decreases. Progesterone we apply stays in our bodies about 13 hours. The B family bothers me also. Try taking it and then immediately afterwards eat a meal high in fat. That helps me. There is a new book out by Dr. Kelly Brogan, A Mind of Your Own. She a wonderful doctor who goes against our traditional "Dr. Whitecoat". I have not read it, thankfully, I am not plagued with depression, but I would trust what she has to say kellybroganmd.com I have also just begun reading Dr. Sara Gottfried's book The Hormone Reset Diet. Cannot tell you a thing about it right now, as I have just begun reading. There is a light down that tunnel. But I would increase that progesterone. Dr. Dalton, who helped Wray, had postpartum depressed women on upwards of 3,000mg a day and had great success with that dosage. Don't be afraid to try. When we go to Dr. Whitecoat and they prescribe a pill for an ill we take it without thinking it may not help us, but at least we gave it a try. Remember your doctor is helping many other people and if you do not fit the in-the-box case, they tell you they can't help you and you are left out-of-the-box. The doctors don't live with us, they do not know the day-to-day trouble we have trying to cope with our ills. They can be sympathetic but that's where it ends. They are there to prescribe a remedy to help ease our symptom, not cure our symptom. Have faith! God Bless! RJ

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