Lara Briden - The Period Revolutionary
Leading the change to better periods
Body-identical menopausal hormone therapy uses hormones that are exactly identical to human hormones. It is safer than other types of hormone replacement, both in terms of cardiovascular risk and breast cancer risk. Examples include transdermal estradiol patches and oral micronized progesterone.
According to a Lancet review paper, menstrual migraines are more severe than migraines at other times of the cycle.
Possible drivers of menstrual migraines include estrogen withdrawal at the end of the cycle plus an estrogen-dependent release of prostaglandins and histamine. Body-identical progesterone may help to shelter the brain from estrogen withdrawal and reduce the frequency and intensity of menstrual migraines.
Body-identical or bioidentical progesterone is a viable treatment for women’s health conditions such as PCOS, PMDD, migraines, endometriosis, adenomyosis, and perimenopause.
Progesterone is called oral micronized progesterone and requires a doctor’s prescription. Brand names include PrometriumⓇ, UtrogestanⓇ, TevaⓇ, and FamenitaⓇ, depending on your country. Alternatively, progesterone cream is available over-the-counter in some countries and can help with mild symptoms but is generally not as effective as capsules.
Here’s what you need to know.
There’s a lot more to treating premenstrual mood symptoms than just calcium, the pill, and SSRI antidepressants. Alternative strategies for premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) include iodine, magnesium, vitamin B6, vitex (chaste tree), progesterone, and a natural antihistamine approach.
It’s time to bring progesterone into the conversation about women’s health. That’s according to Canadian endocrinology professor Jerilynn Prior in her paper “Women’s reproductive system as balanced estradiol and progesterone actions—a revolutionary, paradigm-shifting concept in women’s health.” In the paper, Professor Prior makes the case that historically there has been a “cultural over-emphasis on estrogen” while “progesterone tends to be ignored or associated with negative effects.”