OK let's talk progesterone during pregnancy

[Ren]

For those who don't frequent the TTC threads: I'm 15 days past ovulation and pregnant FINALLY after over 2 years of ttc. I had a miscarriage in May and I ovulate about 1/2 the time. My morning temps are really screwy since finding out I'm prego. I met with a nurse practicioner today and told her that I was concerned about low pro. levels. She ran it by my ob and they prescribed progesterone. I walked out feeling encouraged and "safe" until I got the stuff home and read it over with my dh. HOLY COW, this stuff is scary! AND, it says right on the bottle (and I quote) "Do Not Take This Drug if you become PREGNANT". Now I understand that it's being given because there's conserns that my natural levels need help, BUT COME ON! It says that it can cause damage to the baby, especially in the first 4 months!!!!!! AHHHHHHHHHH!!!! I did a little research- you can't tell pro. levels by a chart, it needs to be threw saliva or blood test- neither of which was done to me. There is a safe natural pro. creme that is available. I'm am NOT taking this medication while pregnant. I called the pharmasist and she found that it's of the highest fisk factor for a drug in relation to the baby- not taking it, period. So, I'm calling the doc tomarrow and asking for a blood test to determine my levels then I'm ordering the creme if I need to. I will take my chances with God on this. Where I stand right now- even after 2 YEARS of trying, I'd rather have a miscarriage then take this drug. Phew, enough of the rant. . .I would like to know your opinions, experiences or thoughts about either synthetic progesterone pills or the natural progesterone creme. Thanks -ren

[jen1981]

Natural progesterone cream should be safe while you are pregnant because it is identical to the hormone your body makes. Sythetic progestin is completely different and it what they put in birth control pills. I wouldn't use it. Be sure you get a high quality cream, preferably from a local compounding company. Get specific instructions as to its use, too. I'll be praying that you get clear results and can find something that is helpful. Don't be afraid to tell the doctor what you are going to do. Some doctors don't even realize there is a difference between the real and synthetic stuff. :roll:

[JoyLynn]

Hi Crunchy. :D I had four miscarriages in a row, due to low progesterone which they didn't diagnose until I was preggo with Courtney and was on the verge of miscarrying her.

I was prescribed the Wild Mexican Yam progesterone (yes, that is a prescription and is covered by insurance) and it kept me from miscarrying a fifth time in a row. Courtney is now a very beautiful, healthy 10 year old who wouldn't be here now if I didn't push for blood work and then take that natural prescription. I'm a huge advocate of hormone testing during pregnancy when necessary. If I'd pushed for testing earlier, I wouldn't have miscarried four times.

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n256/joylynn_03/DSC00890.jpg

On the left is my #3 baby (#7 pregnancy), Courtney, who almost didn't make it. Isn't she a keeper? [cheerful] (That's her baby sister, Chloe', standing next to her [heartbeat] )

[heart] [hug] [heart]

Joy [welcomewave]

[buttercup_97140]

I too was prescribed a progesterone pill when I was pg with my second, I didn't get any blood work, as my doc thought that progesterone didn't really help, but for my own piece of mind, she gave me the script. I took it, but ended up m/c. With my third pg, I had used clomid to get pg and my progesterone leves were really high, so we didn't need any, but with this pg, my midwife checked both my hCG levels and progesterone levels because we got pg with only the Lord's help, and I had m/c both times we got pg without clomid. My levels were pretty low, so my doc prescribed vaginal suppositories of natural progesterone. I started reading up on progesterone, and found out that oral pills, not only have synthetic progesterone in them, but the body processes the progesterone so fast that your levels rise to a good level, but drop drastically very fast. With vaginal suppositories your body absorbs the progesterone at a very different rate, and therefor your body keeps it's levels up and they stay up. I had to take 50mg supps twice a day because my doc thought my levels were dropping because I was getting sooooooo cold and was getting chills in the morning, when the progesterone would have dropped off.
If I can encourage you, I would talk to your doc about getting a progesterone level and while waiting for the level, mine took two days, getting a script for vaginal supps. If you get the prefilled supps that you can get from pretty much any pharm, they are REALLY expensive, and only have about 6 days worth, but if you can swing it, it's good to have until you can get a compounding pharmacy to mix and mold supps. Some docs really do think that adding progesterone won't make a difference, but it really can. The awesome thing is that it won't keep a pregnancy going that would have m/c anyways...so you don't have to worry about that.
If you get supps, make sure you get A LOT of pads...you will leak like crazy all day...it's gross, and you have to change them a lot, and will probably still smell "girly" but it's worth it if it can help your little baby thrive!!

If you have any questions, or I was totally confusing, please feel free to PM me!

I pray your doc is willing to listen to you!
Amber

[JoyLynn]

I agree with you, Amber, that those suppositories are awesome! [thumbsup] I had to take both the oral and use suppositories at the same time, both totally natural (no synthetic at all) made at a compounding pharmacy, as well. I had to take 400 mg per day, which, at the time was twice the legal limit, because I registered no progesterone or HCG. Good call on the pads, too. :lol:

[girlsmiley]

Joy [welcomewave]

[SoapLady]

First of all, kudos to you for researching progesterone and pregnancy! It sounds like you're on the right track to a healthy pregnancy.

If what you are prescribed is natural progesterone (most common Rx is Prometrium), it is a bio-identical hormone, the same thing as in the OTC creams just a much higher dose. While a few women do have some success w/ OTC creams in pregnancy, the dosage is extremely low, usually much too low to prevent miscarriage.

It is very hard to get too much progesterone during preg. Progesterone is a precursor to other hormones like androgens. Theoretically, too much progesterone in the body will convert to other hormones, creating a hormone imbalance. But again, it would have to be massive doses. I know of women who have taken 1000 (yes, with 3 zeros) mg daily without any issues at all.

If you're concerned, you can request a blood test. Frankly it might be a good idea if you are prone toward very low progesterone levels. I'm guessing they prescribed 100-200mg, but some women need 400-800mg to get in a normal range.

I also HIGHLY recommend this website for info about progesterone and pregnancy. You can read the stories of other women and post questions. There are some extremely knowledgable folks on that board. http://lowprogesteroneinpregnancy.com/

Please keep us updated on how you are doing! It's so hard not to worry after you've experienced a loss, but we're here to support you in whatever way we can.

[Ren]

thanks ladies :) Do keep praying. I real appreciate the imput from you all. I'm trying to reach my doc. and want to get blood test taken before I go any further. I'm supposed to go tomarrow for another hcg, I'm hoping that she'll order the pro levels test for that day as well as the new hospitol she's associatated with is 25 minutes away from my gas guzzeling minivan. After reading what I did last night and just giving it to God I had a real peace about just leaving it with him until we know something concrete. Though I had to make sure my dh felt the same as me because if we do miscarry I wouldn't want him to be bitter- he feels the same, which is good. Anyway, I will totally keep you all posted. Thankyou, Thankyou, Thankyou for praying and being here=) -ren

[Ren]

oh, and joylyn- your girls are beautiful and totally worth it! Makes me want the blood work done for my own little cutey's sake! -ren

[mom n luv]

I did use prometrium as a suppository with both my boys. If you read the label it does say not to take if you are pregnant which of course freaked me out because this was what I was supposed to be taking to stay pregnant. But after further investigation I am pretty sure this applied to taking it orally. I wasn't taking it orally I was using it as a suppository.

With ds#1 I had no blood test I just didn't know any better and after 2 miscarriages I was ready to try anything.
With ds#2 I had my levels checked twice, three days apart, this was to see if my levels were increasing at the appropriate rate since they were not they put me on prometrium again but only half the dosage as the previous time.

I hope and pray that your path becomes clear to you and your doctors work with you and your concerns.

[Ren]

Please pray- I'm really frustrated after today. I have never been tested before for my levels and wouldn't have thought about it except that my temps were weird for being prego. That's all they have in my history for giving me prometrium. I was told today that I can't be tested for pro levels now that I'm prego- that should have been done before I became prego and I'm thinking- HOLY COW your giving me something that is dangerous based on MY charting and MY worry about miscarriage ALONE. I have no prior history and they can't check it now so, I'm not going to take anything and just leave it to God. I'm extremely tense right now and really need to calm down.

On a happier note cheese just about made me barf today so, I'm having some food eversions already=) -ren

[SoapLady]

Thanks for the update. I know that many of us are thinking about you. I'd say that nearly barfing is a good sign! :D The timing seems just perfect to give you the reassurance you need. God is amazingly good, isn't He?

I'm not sure whether you are still wanting to get your levels tested. If so, you may try calling another practitioner even if you don't plan to continue with them throughout the pregnancy. This is one area that is approached very differently depending on your provider. With my first pregnancy, my primary provider refused to test my levels despite persistent spotting. When I finally called another, they got me in that day for bloodwork even though the dr wasn't in. Their approach is "come in as soon as you get a positive HPT whether you have an appt or not".

[Ren]

dear soaplady- you have a very calming way of wording things as well as some good advice. Thank you=) I am being emotionally driven today and I'm trying to remember God's control but, keep having worried moments. I've been crampy today alot and I'm nearly crying because that is how I felt this da on my last miscarriage, I guess I need to take some time with God and just cry and admitt I'm scared, He already knows it anyway. I think that if I do start to spot I'll seek another opinion. It's so, tempting to take it tonight but, I just don't think it's good. I'll probably find I'm freaked for nothing and feel really silly but, after trying for sooooo long. . .anyway, I'm trying to just trust and rest in Him for tonight and tomarrow will take care of it's self. I blew it a few times with being patient over the phone trying to get some answers and some help. Anyway, night all and thankyou for praying for me whileI come a little unglued. -ren

[buttercup_97140]

Ren,
That's absolutly just plain stupid that they say you can't test progesterone after a BFP.....where did they go to medical school....Bob's house of pancakes, oh and medical degrees? Really, all I can say is...Pleeeeease! :roll:
I know it's hard to know what to do about pushing for testing, or trusting in the Lord, but remember that since the fall of man, we have illnesses that the Lord allows, but never GIVES us. He gave us wisdom in so many different areas, and he also wants us to be good stewards (ok, will I ever really learn how to spell that correctly?) of what he gives us. You may never know, but maybe he lets low progesterone happen to you, to say....let you be a witness to your doc....or other women who go through the same as you...KWIM?
When I was approaching the time that I would be far enough along to get a nuchal fold scan I felt an overwhelming need to have that test. I had it with DD and just felt like I had to pursue it....I prayed a lot about it, and it was always on my heart to push for it. Come to find out, at that scan they found Noah's Diaphragmatic hernia. I totally feel the Lord put this on my heart so that we would find out very early about Noah, so we could be prepared. Then they said it would be best to do an amnio, and we prayed long and hard about that too...and I knew there were risks, although small, for a miscarriage, and I told the Lord we had agreed, but we totally have so much time to say no, and that we wanted to do his will, not ours, and to put it on our hearts if he wanted us to cancel the test. Well we always had such peace about it, even if we had m/c Noah, we knew the Lord had blessed our decision. I trust him completly but I know that sometimes he puts things on our hearts for certain reasons, that we may never know....but he is pretty clear about things!

I just pray that you totally bring it before the Lord, along with your husband, and see if he encourages you to pursue testing. Please don't ever feel that trying to get answers, or "treatment" is wrong and not trusting in the Lord, like i said before, he blessed us with brains and doctors...although we wonder about some of them....LOL!

Hugs to you my friend, and I pray for your little peanut. May his/her journey be long and glorifying to the Lord!

Amber

[Ren]

yes pray that I'll have his glory forefront from now on cause I'm blowing it in my tense reactions with people today. I did finally talk to the nurse who is my doc.s nurse, this after trying to get my general doc. to order the test- he won't, and trying to get a second opinion which I was told I couldn't have unless I left the ob I have and seach out his opinion as a patient. After the second opinion call I sat in my bedroom and just wept. I tried my ob one last time and said, look I don't want to take this if I don't know for sure I need it but I want to if I do need it so, can we PLEASE just test (crying the whole time). The ob sent back the thought that it wouldn't matter if I did test because progesterone has never been proven to help for sure, so, I said "you mean I was prescribed this medication for my peace of mind?" The answer was yes and since I only have had one miscarriage I'm not what they concider high risk. My "peace of mind" is shot and was shot when I saw "don't take this if you become pregnant". So, this is what seems clear to me at this point: I'm not going to do anything unless I begin to bleed and then I'll ask for some suppositorys and see if that helps. If I have a miscarriage I'll just go from there. Other wise I'm just going to leave it to God. Thankyou for praying for me you all- last night I felt some of those prayers calm me down and give me clarity of thought. Much love to you -ren

[JeanineAnne]

Ren, I can be of no help with the whole progesterone thing, but I wanted to let you know that I am praying for you. Hang in there!!

[JRBL]

I debated and debated about posting, because I didn't want to add to disappointment. I experienced several early mc's and finally accepted the sep. prog. from my dr.

I finally had a successful pregnancy but, my doctor informed me afterwards that it was just a placebo.......... [whataaargghsign] I was angry, and disappointed in my doctor. Anyways... that's all I know about it. I know I didn't have anything go wrong while/after taking it. ::hugs:: Ma-dear.

[SoapLady]

It seems like there is a lot of confusion about progesterone out there even among drs. I have done some extensive research on many hormonal issues because I suffered from multiple hormone imbalances, low progesterone being one. Here's a summary of what I learned in my own study. Please understand that I am not giving anyone advice, but want to offer this for anyone who is seeking more clarity on this topic. Feel free to pm me if you want also. I understand how difficult hormonal problems and pregnancy losses can be. The site I posted earlier is also a fantastic resource for getting questions answered.

It sounds like a lot of drs are still looking at old research. It does take an amazingly long time for new info to trickle down into actual practice!! Early research on progesterone and pregnancy showed that it did not improve cases of threatened miscarriage, but that research was done with synthetic progestins--not bio-identical progesterone. (In fact, several of the studies suggest that it made matters worse because the progestins essentially "clogged" progesterone receptors, making the body's own progesterone even less usable.)

New research using natural progesterone shows that it has a dramatic effect in preventing threatened miscarriage. (It used to be assumed that genetic problems were the cause of the majority of miscarriage, but when it was actually studied, the research is showing that low progesterone is the #1 cause.) I've spoken with drs who didn't even know whether what they were prescribing me was bio-identical, let alone the differences in the med research. Since Prometrium came on the market (the only bio-identical progesterone manufactured by a major pharmaceutical company), a ton of research has come out showing it's benefits. Progestins and progesterone are NOT the same thing and do not work the same way in the body.

I hope this helps someone. It took me literally yrs to learn what was going on with me and what the medical research had to say about it. If someone else is searching for answers, I want to save them all that time and heartache.

[Ren]

Soap lady- I totally get what you are doing. . .you're posting your findings so that future on lookers will see it and maybe get some good information and I mostly concure. Though, it was prometrium that I was prescribed and both the doctor and the pharmasist said that it was a synthetic. It was marked unsafe for pregnancy on the bottle and the papers. The only source of differing opinion that I got from the "second opinion call" was that it's a drug that is intended for a different purpose that is frequently prescribed for this purpose- the inference being that the warning is only on there for those who are taking it for it's intended purpose and get pregnant while doing so. Ooch! My head hurts. After my initial reaction and after doing some research (including this post and it's responses) I'm thinking that I might even keep the subscription "just in case" I'm on the fence as to returing it and getting a vaginal suppository if and when I need it or just keeping the pills. Though, I am fairly resolved not to take anything unless it seems nessecary, which is probably a good practice for any drug or substance during pregnancy even those that are deemed safe. I am easied by the reports from you that have taken it and it has helped you. I'm on day 17 past ovulation (the same day that I started brown blood on my last miscarriage). Nothing so, far! Though, I may not be out of the woods, I'm encouraged for today. I think this has been a good post with good information shared. The only question I have is if any of you who took it noticed the same warning on your bottles? In all my searching it seems I'm the only one who got the prescription readthe warnings and freaked, so I'm wondering if any of your bottles said anything or not.

THANKYOU ALL YOU WHO HAVE BEEN PRAYING! I FEEL IT AND I"M VERY THANKFUL FOR YOU ALL!!!

[buttercup_97140]

I don't think my bottle of prometrium said not to take it while pg as a warning, but I know the literature that I received with it did, and I did m/c while on it. Personally, I don't think it would help, even if you needed it since it works against what the body is trying to do..KWIM?
The thing that gets me, is that the docs KNOW that extra progesterone won't hurt, heck, they even say it can help women who have low milk supply to have extra during pg, but most docs don't want to prescribe it...even if they think it's worthless but harmless.
I truely believe that the Lord knows each day of our lives and our children's lives, but he also knows we are "ill" from the fall of Adam and Eve and sometimes we can be blessed by him with medical intervention.
Maybe the Lord is saying no to you right now about getting progesterone, but it also could be the "god complex' of a doctor. It's so hard to know.
Have you prayed with your DH about it, asked him how far you should push it? If he thinks it's worth pursuing, I would encourage you to print out and fax or bring in literature (most recent you can find) on low progesterone levels and miscarriage and tell them you deserve to know if your body is not working right and to have treatment if that is the case. It is almost like they are refusing you treatment because they have personal beliefs against progsterone.....does that makes sense?
I hope I'm not adding fuel to the fire, because we do have to trust in the Lord when he says no to things, but you seem to really have a heavy heart about this, and that could be a "sign" from the Lord.

I wish my doc could call your doc and say "hey, what's up with you? Didn't you take the oath to help others?"

I do pray that the Lord sustains you and this baby! I also pray for comfort and peace in whatever situation happens. It may be hard, and you may feel bitter if you m/c....but the Lord knew already, and he is there with his arms wide open to comfort you! If he blesses you with this child, he will be there to celebrat this new life with you! Either way you win...and that's such a blessing!!

Ok, I need to stop posting when I have had little sleep and it's late at night...LOL I get going....I must be carrying around a soap box somewhere.... I am off to go find it! (maybe I should look under my feet! :lol: )

Amber

[SoapLady]

Ren, you are facing some really tough decisions and my thoughts and prayers are with you throughout the day. Please know that God is with you and that the child you are carrying is His child too. He loves you both. You need to do what God is leading you to do, and it sounds like that is exactly what you are doing.

I don't want to take this thread away from you or what you are going thru, but I do want to clarify some things about Prometrium. If someone is reading this and isn't interested in learning more about the whole Prometrium thing, please feel free to skip the rest of this post.

Prometrium is synthetic in that it is created in a lab (rather than taken from an actual human being). It is natural in the sense that it is bio-identical. It is chemically identical to what is in the human body. Prometrium is made from wild yams which contain substances almost chemically identical to human progesterone. The human body, however, is not capable of making the chemical change from wild yam to progesterone, but they can do it in the lab.

According to US patent laws, a natural substance cannot be patented. This is why prescription hormones are chemically different from what your body makes (other than Prometrium). There's no way to patent and make $ from a natural substance. With all the FDA research requirements, it would be a financial loss to go thru the process for a natural substance. With Prometrium, the hormone is absolutely bio-identical to natural human progesterone hormone, but they were able to patent the micro-ionization process that allows it to pass thru the liver (otherwise more than 90% of it would be destroyed before it could be used by your body).

Again, I know I'm going way off on a tangent here. I just wanted to add that in case someone is following this thread and wanting to learn more about progesterone in pregnancy.

[Ren]

no, sopalady- I had hoped you'd clarify that. I had read about the wild yam and that that was what the natural progesterone of the creams was made from and that prometrium was a synthetic that didn't match up like the wild yam did. I think the clarification is the right thing to do so that future on lookers will understand too.

buttercup- dh is on the same page as me. because we just aren't sure about the drug, not just because of the doc. but, also because of the differing points of view from different sources and that all this started because I freaked out. I think we're keeping the door open to the possibility of needing it but, not until it seems like we might loose the baby. I guess we just feel like if we loose this one, we'll be very po-active about finding out my problem. We're just waiting to see if I over-reacted because of fear and if this baby will be just fine. A weird side thing- though I've been trying to take my morning temps. God has just not allowed me to. dh either wakes me up too early or I wake up too early or whatever. Waiting and trusting God with this is the feeling of direction we have with this particular situation. I'm feeling crampy today but, this morning's devos were about abraham and sarah getting the promise of a child, now, I know that isn't God saying to me "I'm promising you this child"=) but, it reminds me that I'd been praying for a little boy for my dh and this might be the answer to that prayer. Long story as to why it's important to him but, it's not just about a dad wanting a son and it became clear to me that I needed to pray for his desire. So, I'm just letting this one go and we'll go from what happens either way.

[buttercup_97140]

You have an awesome attitude, and it so clear to see the Lord working in your life on this situation. It's so awesome to see someone needing the Lord, turn to them, and then see such an awesome response...KWIM? Praise him for you and your faith, and I thank him for giving you some comfort!!! :-D

Amber

[Ren]

soap lady and buttercup- you've been a big part of what is comforting to me- praise him for fellowship, friends, and sisters, and I hope to be as faithful with you as you've been with me. Love and hugs=) -ren

Oh and side note- called the doc for results on the hcg test results from tuesday and thursday- my numbers have doubled and are on track!!!! "It gives one reason to hope"=) -ren

[SoapLady]

[claphigh] HCG doubling is an excellent sign!!! Praise God!! [praying] How are you doing emotionally? Are you feeling more confident that this is a healthy pregnancy or are you worried about it?

[Ren]

both. . .I've felt really good at point today especially with the news of the doubling and there was this moment when I looked at em and thought "it's just time for her to be a big sis." But, I've been leaky and crampy all day (no blood=) so I've been in the bathroom all day checking to make sure there is no blood.

Prayer request- I've obstained from intimacy with dh for a while now. He's understanding but, I can tell it's getting to be time for him. I'm scared to DEATH to have sex right now- I know it won't cause a miscarriage- up here *points to head* but, I'm totally freaked out. Pray for me (and him *wink*=) -ren

[buttercup_97140]

I wanted to say that in my last post I said "It's so awesome to see someone needing the Lord, turn to them" but I meant to say turn to him.....I know it's probably pretty obvious that I mean him, but I just wanted to clarify!

Ren, I totally know what you mean about leaky....and of course it feels like AF has come, you get into there and poof...only CM! I don't know if you remember or not, but it only gets worse...LOL! And the progesterone supps were horrible! I leaked 24/7 the whole time I took them....and of course even though I knew it was the supps leaking, I always kind of "freaked" before I went to the potty!

I do want to encourage you to be intimate with your husband. God gave us sex within our marriage as a gift, just as your new child is a gift from that wonderfully special gift of sex, and the Lord actually tells us it's wrong to deny each other unless it's a very mutual thing for reasons of prayer...it's 1 Corinthians 7:5. I bring this up, because the Lord has blessed you with a child, a reward, and a way to honor him is to obey and keep your marriage healthy. I too know the panic of having sex...I actually started to bleed after sex when I was miscarrying my first baby, but the m/c had already started, and the Lord had already taken our baby, so it wasn't the sex. I encourage you to pray and give your fear of sex up to the Lord, and just enjoy your husband, and the way that the Lord gave you this new miracle!
I hope I don't sound all preachy and whatnot, I just wanted to remind you how precious your sexual relationship with your Dh is, and that the Lord commands us to have those relations, and if we obey, we won't be "punished" for it....does that make sense? I hope you find some comfort in the Lords commands.

I will definetly be praying for you in this....it's so hard to not try and do everything we think possible to "save or protect" our babies. I have def. BTDT!!

Now, go have some wonderful sex, and call me in the morning! :lol:

Amber

[Ren]

Now, go have some wonderful sex, and call me in the morning! :lol:

Amber

Thakyou Doctor Amber :lol: :lol:

We mutually obstained last night, and I'm glad as tonight I started to have some brown blood :cry: :cry: just like I did last miscarriage and I didn't have to wonder if the blood was just from sex. We bought some progesterone cream from the GNC store at the mall which is where we were when I found out. I'll give it a shot as I really can't get any other help until monday. So, I guess just pray. I'm OK, dh is OK maybe we'll have some good sex tonight since if I do miscarry it'll be a week or two before it happens again. Thank you for your prayers- I'll update when I have something to report. -ren

[davidsmommy]

:cry: [crossheld] praying for you!

[Ren]

soap lady- the link you posted here earlier wa helpful. Could you post the link you had saved in your favorites (I deleted it by mistake) for me and other in the future to reference. the link on that page took me to Dr. John Lee's page which was imformative- it also helped me locate and naturopathic physician- which may be the direction I move in this week. We'll see.

The progesterone cream is doing something- I feel like crap- the head ache is starting to clear now and so is the queezeyness. What are some of the side effects that you cream users have had? It's also listed for menopause and pms- no preganancy- what, if any, are the differences in amount and number of times it's supposed to be applied?

Thanks- ren

[SoapLady]

So sorry to hear about the spotting, Ren! I know that not worrying is hard enough. Here's a big [huddle] from all of us!

Here's the link you asked about: http://www.misdiagnosedmiscarriage.com/
I believe it started as a support and informational source for women diagnosed (or sometimes misdiagnosed as the domain name suggests) with blighted ovum. But the site is much more extensive now with forums and research articles about progesterone, spotting/bleeding, uterine issues, HCG levels, and a ton more.

I haven't taken an OTC cream, but I think the major difference between it and prescription is the dosage. You may notice some of the same side effects. The OTC dosage is much lower. I would think that more than the recommended amount may be helpful, but you would obviously want to research this further. I did a quick search and found lots of links about the use of the cream in pregnancy but nothing about dosage. Sorry! Maybe someone can tell us more.

[Ren]

here's the update I wrote out for myspace:


Well it started bad but, ended up good. It also took 2 hr.s to get through! I went in and they told me my appointment was with the OB's nurse. I lost it. I've known about pregnancy for almost 2 weeks and have yet to make verbal contact with my OB. I thought I'd be meeting her today and I had some important questions to ask her about the progesterone cream. My Hormones are CRAZY right now. I started to cry and I COULD NOT stop for about an hour. After some apologies (from me) and some understanding from the nurse, she kicked into high gear to try to find help for me. I had two different kinds of ultra sounds today and met with the mid-wife about different topics and at differnt points in the meeting. The HCG levels were great- even above normal as far as I can figure. There was a clear yoke sak though no see-able baby (fetal pole) so, when I meet with the mid-wife next week I'll get another US! That's right, I've switched to the mid-wife! YAY! which is what I wanted but, wasn't going to do because I'd already switched OB's once from that same office and I wasn't about to do it again. It was not out of anger toward my OB but, because the mid-wife is really what need I since I lean so heavily toward natural stuff in this area of my life. Everyone agreed that it was a good idea and well, YAY! Had a good appointment and now have the "doc." I feel most comfortable with! I didn't have to make a stink, God allowed the natural progression of the day to make the path clear to all, I'm an emotionally drained happy pregnant woman tonight!


Progesterone cream update- I asked if having taken it if it would have thrown off my natural hormones and she said "no". It's not enough of the hormone to do that evidently. She said it would not hurt the baby and would not hurt if I just stopped using it. She said it won't hurt and it might help (or might not) so, for my peace of mind I should keep using it. So, that's what I'm going to do for now, though I'm only using 1/2 the dose. One 1/4 tea spoon in the evening. Unless I have any other progesterone updates this will be my last post in this thread as any other updates will be off topic=) -ren

[SoapLady]

YAY!!! [claphigh] It sounds like everything worked out great!! Your faith through all of this has been such an inspiration to me. Now you can just ENJOY this pregnancy! Congrats! :D

[JoyLynn]

Hey Ren, I'm really glad things went so well and that you have some peace of mind now. [cheerful]

[lovesign]

Joy [welcomewave]

[Reneemomto5]

Fantastic update! I have been praying for you and baby. I didn't want to persuade you either way, I was on both the pills and suppositories for all of my 8 pregnancies, yes some did end in miscarriage.

[Ren]

some more on the cream- there are a few places you're supposed to apply it: face, neck, chest, breasts, under arm (meaning- arm pit=), and palms of your hands. It doesn't stink but, it does leave a long lasting pastey/ filmy feeling on your skin. I didn't like how it made my skin feel on my face, and didn't like how it affected my neck. I wasn't comfortable about going w/o deoderant and I figured I rubbed it in with my hands so that covered "palms". That left ulternating between chest and breasts, which started to make my skin feel funny, almost like it was itching or burning, like a reaction of sorts. That bothered the mid-wife and so she wants me to wean myself off it.

Just adding this experience for future reference.

[buttercup_97140]

Yuck-O about the side effects. How do you feel about weaning off of it? I will keep you and your baby in my prayers still! :D

Is that pic under your name a new one of the babe and his yolk sac? I love early baby pics....so far we have an album full of u/s pics of Noah, and I love every one of them....especially when he's just a dot! LOL

Blessings!
Amber

[breezykc2]

About the sex thing...I totally get ya and thankfully I have a wonderful hubby who was supportive of my fears and agreed not to have sex for both of our full term pregnancies and for the miscarriage we had....it's a choice, but if you choose this route together...it's not a wrong choice either! Good luck!

[Ren]

buttercup- YES!! total baby and yoke sak!!!!! SOOOOOOOO happy to see the little cashew and to see that heart beat was AWESOME! UMMM, weaning. . . well, I go back and forth. Will be happy to be done with it though, today when my symptoms weren't as strong as they have been I had the "what if" panic struggle. I think I"ll wean but keep it close by if you KWIM=) thanks for praying!

breezy- hubby is also very supportive=) wewere talking last night about our sacrifice of love for each other in sex right now. I'm trying to give in because he needs it an he's trying to not be needing it because I'm not feeling well- We're so accomidating it's sick=) -ren

[buttercup_97140]

That's awesome that you saw the h/b....it just shows how awesome God's creation is, even at that teeny, tiny stage!!

I hope all goes well with the weaning...I stopped the progesterone at 13 weeks because the placenta takes over by then, but I still was a bit weary...I liked not having to wear pads 24/7 though! :D

Just remember, not having sympts doesn't mean m/c....I have never had morning sickness really with any of my pgs....and two have/are thriving...so it can go either way, and like everything, sympts come and go.....so much fun! Haahaaa,

Amber