Not Pre-Menopausal but have hormone imbalance

CBC435

So, I have a wonderful doctor and she discovered that low progesterone can be a culprit for young women and cause weight gain. Although, I don't want to reveal too much as to why I dropped but she has prescribed bioidentical progesterone and phentermine. I just started the prog. about a month ago and have lost 12 pounds and still taking the phentermine for 1 more month. Not sure if it's the prog. helping me drop the weight or the phentermine or both. I am only 26 and turning 27 in a few weeks. I would love feedback with those who are on compounded progesterone/phentermine and around my age. I have now lost 22 pounds since January 2, 2014! Just curious to know how long you were on the progesterone and how much weight you have lost. My doctor mentioned it is a fat burner and supposed to ramp up my metabolism. So anyone with any experience, please let me know!

cafeaulait7

It's probably the phentermine. That's not a hormone and my gyno would never prescribe it, lol.

I take Prometrium (bio-identical) and really do think many women need higher progesterone levels. It's a common problem in women who have PCOS, endometriosis and really bad cramping, etc. Unopposed estrogen can make many issues worse, and there may even be cancer risks from it. It does not help lose weight. It can increase appetite, AAMOF, but I've never noticed that with Prometrium. I had it bad with the synthetic version! I was ravenous like when I have to be on a steroid pack.

CBC435

Well, I was solely on phentermine for January and lost 10 pounds on that. My progesterone is naturally compounded and is a bioidentical pill and I had to go to a compounded pharmacy. I do not have PCOS, PMS, or endometreosis. I have hard a hard time losing weight for the past 3 years and am a fitness instructor and gained close to 20 pounds in 2 years with clean eating and exercising 5-6 times a week. I am not taking any synthetics and have read awful things about them. So I want to find someone who is taking what I am taking and not the synthetic version.

CBC435

I should also add that I'm only taking 30 mg Phentermine and 50 mg Progesterone. So my dose for phentermine is relatively lower than the standard 37.5 people are prescribed.

cafeaulait7

Ah, nope. Prometrium is bio-identical, but it's not compounded for an individual. It's FDA-approved and available as a regularly prescribed medicine, but I take it because it's bio-identical and the micronized form. I don't like the synthetics either.

CBC435

Correct and my progesterone is compounded for an individual. Again, I am 26 years old and not pre-menopausal and looking for people in their late 20's and early 30's to weigh in!

cafeaulait7

I don't know how many women of any age are on vanity hormones, but yeah good luck with that and finding the right folks to respond.

Edit: I'm not close to menopause, either (never before the mid-50's in my family), and my hormone imbalance is one I've had since puberty, btw.

CBC435

Vanity hormones? Uh okay whatever that means. I have found some younger individuals including some friends of mine and want to see what other successes are for younger individuals on these hormones. Not trying to be offensive about your age but I am far from my 40's and want to hear other stories.
There are people my age who have these struggles and wouldn't call it "vanity". This is strictly done by an award winning doctor in my area and has had many successes with aid in weight loss.

CBC435

And again- my hormone levels dropped 3 years ago due to a personal situation and my levels were fine before.

cafeaulait7

I'll go on and apologize for calling them vanity hormones for you, because I don't know enough about what situation you are in that you are taking them. I'm sorry. And I'm sorry for taking your title too literally for your needs (I'm 40-something but not worrying about menopause any yet).

And bump for you for other input. I do hope you get the kind of responses you'd like.

CBC435

First off, I am on these hormones because my progesterone levels dropped drastically and especially for my age. No doctor could give me an answer and I kept gaining weight even though I ate a strict clean diet and worked out 5-6 times a week for 1-2 hours each time. All of the forums and topics I have found are women who are 40+ and are pre-menopausal or in menopause. There are women like me out there who have this issue and I hope they find this post. Again, I have met two thus far that are 26 and 31 that are dealing with the issues I am having. The phentermine is to kick start my weight loss but progesterone for younger women is used as a fat burner and to bring the levels back up. I don't know anyone who takes hormones for vanity and frankly, I was very offended by that because it is a serious problem and there are many doctors that disregard this issue and move along to the next patient. I did not say you were in menopause but you are 15 years+ older than I am and I want to find those who are close to my age or early thirties.

JoanneC1216

Reading this, I wonder if my daughter is having hormone problems. She eats great and works out almost daily but has been gaining lately.

She's 23 and was put on the pill to hopefully regulate her periods and hormones.

What kind of testing is done for a hormone imbalance? I was once told that those tests were not reliable.

CBC435

Reading this, I wonder if my daughter is having hormone problems. She eats great and works out almost daily but has been gaining lately.

She's 23 and was put on the pill to hopefully regulate her periods and hormones.

What kind of testing is done for a hormone imbalance? I was once told that those tests were not reliable.

Hi JoanneC1216- I have been on the pill off and on for the past 7 years. Of course, birth control is high in estrogen (synthetic most of the time) and can add on the pounds. However, there could be an imbalance somewhere. I had a series of blood tests and I'm not talking two tubes- I'm talking 10-12 tubes of blood in a period of two days. You really have to do some research for doctors in your area. Again, my doctor is known for aiding those with hormone imbalance. She was very thorough on my test results and even finding that my iron levels were low which could be the culprit of me having zero to no energy throughout the day. So, I would say it's worth a shot for your daughter and I read your other post on another forum and something you may want to get information about as well. And it looks like you can't take hormones but I'm sure there are alternatives or suggestions on what you may be able to do. It really is all about finding the right PCP because I have been to 7+ and finally found one that understood what was going on and didn't rule it as PCOS, thyroid issues, or PMS. Again, I never thought being 26 would mean I have hormone imbalance but I think many people go on being untreated and/or misdiagnosed. Let me know if you want anymore information and I will try to help where I can!

cafeaulait7

First off, I am on these hormones because my progesterone levels dropped drastically and especially for my age. No doctor could give me an answer and I kept gaining weight even though I ate a strict clean diet and worked out 5-6 times a week for 1-2 hours each time. All of the forums and topics I have found are women who are 40+ and are pre-menopausal or in menopause. There are women like me out there who have this issue and I hope they find this post. Again, I have met two thus far that are 26 and 31 that are dealing with the issues I am having. The phentermine is to kick start my weight loss but progesterone for younger women is used as a fat burner and to bring the levels back up. I don't know anyone who takes hormones for vanity and frankly, I was very offended by that because it is a serious problem and there are many doctors that disregard this issue and move along to the next patient. I did not say you were in menopause but you are 15 years+ older than I am and I want to find those who are close to my age or early thirties.

I was being nice and keep trying to back out of the thread, but you keep arguing with me. I apologize again for using that word. I really am apologizing, I promise. I don't mean to be rude if I don't respond to any further response. Good luck, really

JoanneC1216

Reading this, I wonder if my daughter is having hormone problems. She eats great and works out almost daily but has been gaining lately.

She's 23 and was put on the pill to hopefully regulate her periods and hormones.

What kind of testing is done for a hormone imbalance? I was once told that those tests were not reliable.

Hi JoanneC1216- I have been on the pill off and on for the past 7 years. Of course, birth control is high in estrogen (synthetic most of the time) and can add on the pounds. However, there could be an imbalance somewhere. I had a series of blood tests and I'm not talking two tubes- I'm talking 10-12 tubes of blood in a period of two days. You really have to do some research for doctors in your area. Again, my doctor is known for aiding those with hormone imbalance. She was very thorough on my test results and even finding that my iron levels were low which could be the culprit of me having zero to no energy throughout the day. So, I would say it's worth a shot for your daughter and I read your other post on another forum and something you may want to get information about as well. And it looks like you can't take hormones but I'm sure there are alternatives or suggestions on what you may be able to do. It really is all about finding the right PCP because I have been to 7+ and finally found one that understood what was going on and didn't rule it as PCOS, thyroid issues, or PMS. Again, I never thought being 26 would mean I have hormone imbalance but I think many people go on being untreated and/or misdiagnosed. Let me know if you want anymore information and I will try to help where I can!

I really appreciate this. She is 23 and going through major depression due to weight gain. I will have her start with her gyn then her primary physician.

Again, thank you!!

CBC435

Reading this, I wonder if my daughter is having hormone problems. She eats great and works out almost daily but has been gaining lately.

She's 23 and was put on the pill to hopefully regulate her periods and hormones.

What kind of testing is done for a hormone imbalance? I was once told that those tests were not reliable.

Hi JoanneC1216- I have been on the pill off and on for the past 7 years. Of course, birth control is high in estrogen (synthetic most of the time) and can add on the pounds. However, there could be an imbalance somewhere. I had a series of blood tests and I'm not talking two tubes- I'm talking 10-12 tubes of blood in a period of two days. You really have to do some research for doctors in your area. Again, my doctor is known for aiding those with hormone imbalance. She was very thorough on my test results and even finding that my iron levels were low which could be the culprit of me having zero to no energy throughout the day. So, I would say it's worth a shot for your daughter and I read your other post on another forum and something you may want to get information about as well. And it looks like you can't take hormones but I'm sure there are alternatives or suggestions on what you may be able to do. It really is all about finding the right PCP because I have been to 7+ and finally found one that understood what was going on and didn't rule it as PCOS, thyroid issues, or PMS. Again, I never thought being 26 would mean I have hormone imbalance but I think many people go on being untreated and/or misdiagnosed. Let me know if you want anymore information and I will try to help where I can!

I really appreciate this. She is 23 and going through major depression due to weight gain. I will have her start with her gyn then her primary physician.

Again, thank you!!

Also, low progesterone can cause depression too!! There's so much we don't know about our hormones and how to make them function properly again. Sending my well wishes to you and your daughter! xo

LLAKE62

Congratulations on your weight loss! That's fantastic. I'm not in the same boat as you, because I just turned 52, and I'm probably having some "life" issues. But I wanted to learn more, because my daughter, who if active and eats fairly clean, has a lot of trouble losing weight. It's hard for her because, even with my recent, current, weight struggles (and I will figure this thing out!), I have a much lower body fat that she - so it doesn't seem fair, I'm sure. She's 32, but has experienced this challenge since her mid to late 20s. What made you get your initial tests, and what kind of dr. Helped you to find the right kind of balance for your treatments. Thanks

CBC435

Congratulations on your weight loss! That's fantastic. I'm not in the same boat as you, because I just turned 52, and I'm probably having some "life" issues. But I wanted to learn more, because my daughter, who if active and eats fairly clean, has a lot of trouble losing weight. It's hard for her because, even with my recent, current, weight struggles (and I will figure this thing out!), I have a much lower body fat that she - so it doesn't seem fair, I'm sure. She's 32, but has experienced this challenge since her mid to late 20s. What made you get your initial tests, and what kind of dr. Helped you to find the right kind of balance for your treatments. Thanks

LLAKE62- Thank you for reaching out and I am so sorry to hear about your daughter. I started getting suspicious about my weight problem over a year ago. I am very active and typically a clean eater so I know weight should be coming off for me in general because I never had a problem with weight loss in the past. So, I really began to eat clean and I'm a Zumba instructor so I would be teaching 3-5 classes a week + attending other classes as well and during this strict time period, I gained 10lbs. Did not make sense to me whatsoever. I then met with my OB and I expressed my concern and was thinking it was the birth control pill I was on so we changed pills and he put me on metformin because he thought I could have a slight form of PCOS. Took the metformin for about 2 months and ate as clean as I could and worked out non-stop. Gained ANOTHER 10lbs and I was at a loss. He told me to also get a second opinion from a primary care physician and maybe they could do more testing for me instead of a thyroid and PCOS test. I took my time with this since my insurance was changing and blah blah blah BUT did my research on a wonderful PCP and she was booked months out so I had to wait until the end of December to meet with her. My initial checkup was a physical and I discussed all the information above and she wanted to do some hormone testing because she said it sounded like there was an imbalance somewhere. She did review all my labs including the blood and ultrasounds I did with my OB and agreed with his findings as well but ruled out the PCOS. So, they took a LOT of blood for testing and even had to go back a week later and give more just to confirm her findings. It was found that my progesterone levels were at an extreme low and my estrogen was beyond high. She says this can happen in mid 20 year olds + and there's some answers she gave me as to why this may have happened. It's a personal matter so I would rather not reveal it here but I will say because I was on birth control the estrogen was pumping at an all time high in my system. She put me on phentermine after the first meeting to get my metabolism moving again and give me some weight loss before I started on the hormones. After one month from our meeting and another office visit, I started on a compounded progesterone at 25 mg per night. She told me I could take up to 8 pills a night but to play with what made me "feel" good (energy, sleep aid, etc). I decided two worked best for me and this past month, the compound pharmacy made a 50mg pill for me so now I take one every night. We are hoping my levels get balanced by the summer time but it could take longer. You really have to find a doctor who specializes in hormones and it can be a primary care physician and possibly an OB-GYN. It really depends on where you live and reviews are everything. I was referred to her through a friend and she knew what she was talking about. The progesterone is also the hormone that is a fat "blaster" as she calls it so when you are balanced, you can lose weight by eating right and working out but when you are "blocked' it can't function on its own. So I would talk to her and get a little bit more information on what your daughter is experiencing day to day. It could also be PCOS and a good friend of mine has it and also went on phentermine + metformin and has lost 60 lbs and continued to lose weight post phentermine. She is still on metformin but does not take it religiously. Let me know if you have any other questions and good luck to you both!

Chrissyl156

Hello, I was reading your post and I am 31 years old and can relate to you! I been battling weight loss for about 3 years now! I had a throid issue, but just went to see a hormone doctor who so far seems to be great to get everything checked and she also just started me in progesterone capsules 100mg. My levels were extremely low and also my adrenals! I also just started taking phentermine 30 mg... I was reading your post and it gave me some hope! Although I research and some people say how progesterone causes weight gain?! I exercise constantly and eat right and every 2-3 hours consistently but nothen seems to work! I don't want to give up but maybe the progesterone will help me... If you don't mind how long did it take u to see results with weight loss after you started the progesterone and what kind of workouts do you do?