Signs That Your Progesterone Is Low

I see a lot of women beginning to understand that perimenopause starts a lot earlier than we’ve generally been taught (yay!).

But they still aren’t getting the message of why symptoms are happening, and what to look for (boo).

The first thing that will happen to *most* women in peri is that their progesterone production will start to diminish.

Why? Well, everything from age, stress that impacts ovulation, full-on anovulatory cycles, and more.

Here are the most common symptoms that your progesterone is decreasing, way before your period actually changes:

1. Insomnia or trouble staying asleep.

You start having issues with insomnia or trouble staying asleep through the night.

While some women will have this before peri starts, most women will notice a distinct change in their sleep somewhere in their late 30s-early 40s.

Despite it feeling like your bladder is waking you up, it’s actually has more to do with progesterone and cortisol levels. Progesterone plays a major role in our sleep, so this is why we’ll start to have more issues with it as progesterone starts to decline.

**Pro tip: If you are at the point where you are ready to use bioidentical progesterone, go for the oral form. The way the liver breaks down oral progesterone means much of it converts to allapregnenolone, which for most women, will help tremendously with their sleep.**

2. Increased Anxiety.

Progesterone is also known as our “anti-anxiety” hormone, so when we start to have more generalized anxiety, it’s a good indication our P needs some support.

Also important to understand is that the body can utilize progesterone for cortisol (our stress hormone) production. So the more stress you are under in perimenopause, the wonkier your cortisol gets, and your progesterone can be depleted further.

**Pro tip: Use adaptogenic herbs to help support your adrenals to help level out your cortisol production, which can help bolster your progesterone levels.**

3. Heavy bleeding.

This is a combo high estrogen/low progesterone issue that often begins in our early-mid 40s. Suddenly, your periods get much heavier, and often longer.

If you are bleeding like a maniac during your period, progesterone support can be very useful!

4. Fibroids and cysts.

Unfortunately, fibroids and ovarian cysts, as well as fibrocystic breasts, become much more common during peri due to the high estrogen/low progesterone combination I just mentioned.

Heavy bleeding can also be a sign of fibroids or polyps, so if you are suddenly bleeding a lot heavier during your period than before, please ask your OB-GYN for a transvaginal ultrasound to rule these possibilities out.

5. Brain fog.

One of the biggest complaints of peri is the brain fog that can set in. Low progesterone alongside tons of stress can really exacerbate brain fog (this can also be an indication of lowered estrogen, too).

It’s important to know what you are looking for & why, so you know what to do about it!

We teach all this & more in our program, Perimenopause Like A Boss.

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