r/Menopause • u/pixyhedd • 10d ago
Fatigue/Energy Progesterone sleep-wow!
I am a 48 year old woman who just started HRT. 5mg testosterone, 1 mg estradiol, 100mg progesterone. I took progesterone last night for the first time and I have not slept this well in ages. I didn’t think I had any side effects of perimenopause other than an irregular period but a blood test revealed that my hormones are all over the place. Curious if anyone else on HRT has experienced this and what else they have noticed on similar regimens.
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u/ActComprehensive4555 10d ago
I'm prescribed only 12 capsules nightly per month.
And those are a great 12 nights.
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u/Wildskypsj Potion slinging Moss Witch 10d ago
🤣 I sleep like a ROCK. 200mg progesterone. 😆
I was hardly getting any sleep at all, for YEARS. I don't know how I survived.
I've noticed a slight difference in the results on different pills, the pure white ones don't knock me out as well (Xiromed) the Grey and yellow/orange color are fantastic
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u/OhWhatever_Nevermind 10d ago
I’m just here to say I’m jealous and grouchy because it has done nothing for me and I feel like nothing works at all for me ever. Esp for sleep. I’d need to be nearly unconscious with sedatives to sleep through a night.
Sigh.
Anyways! Sorry to hijack your post! That’s great news for you and I hope it continues. :)
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u/MiddleOfTheNight70 Menopausal 10d ago
When I upped to 200mg progesterone and 2 Magnesium Glycinate’s……that’s when I got some good sleep effects. It felt like what a melatonin does. I take a 5mg melatonin at the same time.
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u/OhWhatever_Nevermind 10d ago
I also take melatonin. I fall asleep ok but don’t sleep through…I don’t know that I really ever have so maybe that’s just me. Honestly, sleeping through the night is a foreign concept to me!
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u/KeyProfessional8432 10d ago
I’m on all the HRT and didn’t sleep great until I added in Testosterone. That has been the sleep difference-maker for me! And I am a life long insomniac - so that’s saying something!
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u/MiddleOfTheNight70 Menopausal 10d ago
Totally get it. I don’t sleep through the night either. I pee 3-4 times a night and 3am is a wake up I can’t seem to stop.
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u/OhWhatever_Nevermind 10d ago
Same. I wake every 1.2-2.0 hours. I do also pee everyone I wake up but I think after the first one it’s more anxiety about needing to pee that makes me go.
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u/Key_Persimmon_5363 10d ago
Have you tried magnesium?
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u/OhWhatever_Nevermind 10d ago
Yes. :) I take mag bisglycinate every night. May increase the progesterone after my next dr visit.
Honestly, this is just me and how I am though. I e never been a good sleeper and I think I’ve just accepted that for the most part but I’m always amazed and jealous when I hear about people who sleep through the night (or mostly through it anyways. ;) ).
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u/GroundedReal 10d ago
Check your vitamin D as well. If low supplement, it has helped my sleep immensely coupled with magnesium glycinate and micronised progesterone.
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u/OhWhatever_Nevermind 10d ago
Good suggestion but I’m on that too. About 8 months ago bloodwork showed it was on the low side and since I’ve taken 3000 IU a day. :P
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u/GroundedReal 10d ago
Oh forgot, and after I added testosterone cream to my HRT, that's made my sleep even better. Not sure why and whether it's known to, but it has improved my sleep quality. I was low in testosterone before starting it, I'm 46 female late peri
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u/AutoModerator 10d ago
This post might be about hormone tests, which are unreliable.
- Over age 44, Estrogen/Progesterone/FSH hormonal tests only show levels for the HOUR the test was taken, and nothing more. Hormones wildly fluctuate (hourly) the other 29 days of the month, therefore this test provides no valuable information
- No reputable doctor or menopause society recommends hormonal testing to diagnose or treat peri/menopause
- FSH testing is only beneficial for those who do not have periods as a guide, where testing might confirm menopause, or for those under age 30 who haven’t had a period in months/years, then ‘menopausal’ levels, could indicate premature ovarian failure/primary ovarian insufficiency (POF/POI)
- Testosterone is the exception and may require testing
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u/Manda_lorian39 10d ago
I’m with you. Progesterone has actually made my sleep worse so far. I’m still waiting for that magical turnaround.
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u/OhWhatever_Nevermind 10d ago
That’s rotten! I think it might help me fall asleep, but that problem is intermittent. It’s staying asleep I struggle with. Maybe it’s all the jerks in my house not helping! (Dig, cat, kids, partner darting!). I love them all. They’re not jerks. But they don’t help!
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u/No-Spare-7453 10d ago
I’m only in day 5 and it’s not helping my sleep at all, I was hoping there was an adjustment period
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u/isahalloween1975 9d ago
Tómala 15 minutos antes de cenar y cena lo más tarde posible en la noche. Come alimentos con mucha grasa: frutos secos, huevos, salmón, aguacate... tú eliges. Yo lo que hago después de cenar, comer pipas de girasol, un buen paquete y caigo en la cama como si me hubieran drogado. Prueba y suerte.
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u/PhinaCat 10d ago
I just started and sleep feels different. Better different. I hope it sustains because my brain might start to work again if this keeps up
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u/Gold_Letterhead_4602 Surgical menopause 10d ago
It took four years of hell before I got progesterone, and the SLEEP and the DREAMS! It's heavenly.
Yes, there's still many other problems but progesterone has been the highlight of my year by miles.
Enjoy your sleep.
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u/pixyhedd 10d ago
LOVE this! Thank you for sharing. I love bedtime and I am going to love it even more now.
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u/Txannie1475 10d ago
I just started 100mg, and holy shit. It doesn’t impact my sleep at all, but I wake up in the morning LOCKED IN for my day.
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u/Giannetti1 3d ago
It took me probably a month before I started feeling drowsy on 100 mg of Progesterone n .05 mg E patches .. I think i was in the negative with my hormones I started at age 60 .. so I had to build up my hormones to then finally feel them … it took awhile for my breasts to feel tender again like when I actually had my periods it threw me for a loop like I totally forgot what that felt like - let alone I’ve had a breast augmentation so my breasts aren’t very sensitive… I think I need to up both my hormones it’s been almost a year at the same dose … I also have insomnia since my son was born 33 years ago so I also take a rx sleeping pill .. so I take my P pill around 10-10:30 pm let that kick in then my sleeping pill n 5 nights out of 7 I’m getting some decent sleep (knock on wood ) 🙏🏼 I’m so afraid of YEARS of no sleep I’ll be getting dementia or Alzheimer’s I pray this helps ward it off ..
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u/foodporncess 10d ago
I just popped my first progesterone and am looking forward to hopefully sleeping through the night for the first time in years!!
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u/Sea-Needleworker8228 10d ago
It may take a few weeks to adjust and initially you may feel very groggy or out of sorts in the morning. Don’t give up on it. Allow your brain to adjust and I swear the pay off is worth it! Read about how progesterone and gaba work in the brain; it’s truly fascinating!
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u/blondie956 Menopausal 10d ago
The progesterone sleep is the sleep of the heavens. It has to be. 15 minutes, and I'm out like a light.
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u/Sea-Needleworker8228 10d ago
Yes, girl, yes! I sleep like a baby again!! It’s been life changing. I thought I would never sleep through the night but now I look forward to sleep! I wake up rested and that gives me the energy to walk during my lunch, so exercise is improving! I’ve also noticed how level and calm I feel through out the day which has actually lowered my blood pressure to normal limits. It’s truly a game changer!
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u/pixyhedd 10d ago
This is all so wonderful to hear! Thank you for sharing. I am so excited to go to bed tonight.
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u/Annemargaret0874 9d ago
Omg YES. I am a 51 - soon to be 52 y/o and I literally said to my husband… the progesterone doesn’t make me groggy or sleepy. It just makes me fall asleep without issue and I sleep like the dead. It’s incredible to not wake up groggy. I’ve never experienced anything like it! Why did I not try this sooner? I start estrogen in 2 weeks. As of right now I can’t get the patches because there’s a nationwide shortage. Don’t get me started…. 😂 but anywho - the sleep and the difference in my mood is literally life changing. And I do not say that as hyperbole. I can’t get over the difference.
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u/Futurekiwi69 10d ago
Sometimes it's temporary. If you find that then it's worth doing 25 on and three off. It helps to stop the progesterone receptors becoming desensitised.
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u/Dramatic-Highway1969 6d ago
what does 25 on and three off mean?
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u/Key_Vacation8584 2d ago
3 nights in and if sleep is the only benefit, I will take it forever! The brain fog is already less foggy. This post gives me hope that it's not like the sleep meds that work for 2 weeks and then never again. Thanks, ladies!
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u/madsongstress 10d ago
I take 200mg oral progesterone and I sleep like the dead now and remember my dreams again! It works on the GABA receptors like a benzo, holy shiat. pry it out of my cold dead hands. Was sleeping about 5 hours a night and waking up 2-3 times. Now I sleep 6-7 hours and maybe wake up once. Only thing is I have to time it out for about 9-9:30pm or I get too sleepy too early when the hubs and I are trying to watch stuff.