6 Red Flags of Low Progesterone & How to Fix It!

It’s not normal headaches, mood swings, anxiety, or weight gain every single month before your period. While it’s easy to think this way because these symptoms have been normalized, all of these symptoms can be signs of low progesterone.

Progesterone is often a forgotten-about hormone – especially is your goal isn’t pregnancy. If you want a symptom-free cycle you need to balance progesterone.

Progesterone is for more than Fertility

Contrary to what you have been taught, progesterone is so much more than your fertility hormone. Yes, optimal levels are required for fertility and gestation, but it does so much more than that.

Progesterone works to balance and regulate estrogen . It is also involved in metabolic function, insulin regulation, mood, and serotonin production, just to name a few.

I like to call progesterone our “pro-gestation” hormone because it is only released after ovulation and its role is to tell the uterine lining to remain thick and even get thicker to help support the successful implantation of a fertilized egg.

Here is the thing – if you are not ovulating, you are not producing progesterone. Which means that more women are struggling with low progesterone than they realized. Because progesterone production and ovulation are impacted by:

?? Hormonal birth control

?? Chronic stress

?? Nutrient deficiencies

?? Lymphatic system function

??? Under eating

Oh, and did I say chronic stress? Because this one is HUGE. Progesterone is a precursor hormone to cortisol, so when you are stressed (even if you are ovulating) your body will steal from your progesterone to make cortisol.

Without progesterone to stabilize estrogen and counterbalance its effects, the impacts on your body can be frustrating.

Tell-Tell Signs You Are Struggling with Low Progesterone

These are the biggest red flags ?? that you might be living with low progesterone. If you want to uncover exactly what your hormones are telling you, I recommend starting with my FREE Hormone Assessment which will outline what your symptoms are telling you and give you a customized blueprint strategy to take action.

?? You have brown/rust colored spotting and flow during your period.

Brown and rust colored flow or spotting before your period is indicative of low progesterone. Remember, its role is to keep the uterine lining thick enough for implantation. When levels are low, the uterine lining does not remain thick as it should leading to spotting because the endothelial tissues cannot be maintained.

?? You struggle with painful and debilitating headaches and migraines.

Headaches and PMS migraines are caused because progesterone influences pain receptors and vasodilation in the body. Progesterone works to balance estrogen, when its levels are low it can lead to increased dilation of blood vessels and shifts in pain perception.

↘? You struggle to lose weight.

Progesterone allows our body to metabolize fat to burn it for energy. When levels are low compared to estrogen, your body goes into fat storage. Progesterone is also a diuretic, so low progesterone increases water retention and weight gain from inflammation.

?? You struggle with intense anxiety, mood swings, and PMS.

Progesterone levels directly impact serotonin, your calm and happy hormones. Healthy levels of progesterone increase overall serotonin levels and receptor functions for serotonin. So when levels are low, you start to feel all the feels.

?? You struggle with fertility and conception.

You need progesterone, your “pro-gestation” hormone to keep the uterine lining thick enough to support healthy implantation and gestation. When levels are low, the environment of the uterine lining is not adequate to support healthy conception, which can lead to loss.

?? You struggle with falling asleep and staying asleep.

Progesterone’s calming effect is essential for quality sleep. When levels are low and anxiety is naturally higher, this can impact your natural cortisol and melatonin production levels making it both harder to fall asleep and stay asleep.

You don’t have to let low progesterone symptoms control your life!

You can take control of your symptoms. By supporting the systems that regulate progesterone production you can take back control of your symptoms. And even better, when you know exactly how to support them, you can continue to support them for life.

Which is how you truly live symptom-free and how you kiss your anxiety, PMS, and bloating goodbye!

5 Strategies to Implement Today that Will Transform Your Progesterone Levels in Weeks:

1. Choose foods rich in Vitamin E like pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds, and peanut butter to help boost progesterone levels. Vitamin E is one of the most common nutrient deficiencies and is essential for its production. In fact, eating Vitamin E-rich foods has been shown to increase progesterone levels by 67% in the luteal phase .
2. Vitamin D is a steroid hormone and nutrient that directly influences progesterone production. Adequate levels of Vitamin D can increase progesterone levels. It also has progesterone-like activities to help fill gaps. It can be hard to get in diet or sunlight alone, so I recommend supplementing with 1000-5000 IU levels daily (be careful of over supplementing as there is a toxicity level). This is my go-to Vitamin D as it contains vitamin K which increases bioavailability and absorption.
3. Magnesium is an essential nutrient because it helps to stimulate healthy ovulation by boosting FSH and LH – which is essential for progesterone. Because without ovulation, you cannot increase progesterone levels. Most women are deficient in magnesium as chronic stress increases magnesium loss. Choosing foods like spinach, dark chocolate, or nuts and seeds can give a boost. I also recommend supplementing with a high-quality multi-type magnesium like this one here .
4. Chronic stress is the number one depleter of progesterone. The number one cause of chronic stress in our bodies is undereating. This triggers a famine state and your body spikes cortisol production, which can influence both progesterone and ovulation. Moving through a cycle-synced reverse diet will help to gradually increase your total energy intake while ensuring that it is perfectly timed with your body’s metabolic shifts across cycle phases. This helps to turn the famine alarm off and give your body what it needs to thrive.
5. Sometimes, it is not the case of low progesterone but poor delivery of progesterone to its receptors. Progesterone is carried to its receptors via the lymphatic system. Lymphatic clogging can slow this transport. The best way to improve lymphatic function is with cyclical strength training 2x a week . It focuses on adapting the intensity and type of strength training to match your hormones without adding more stress.

Ready to Unlock Pain-FREE Periods Every Month?

Are you ready for a future with pain-free periods ??, no more bloating ??, effortless weight loss ?, and boundless energy ?? – all without sacrificing your favorite things? ??????

If YES then kickstart your journey with a FREE discovery call ?? to discuss your goals and get tailored strategies to focus on.

Or if you are ready to start your hormone balance journey, enroll in one of my Hormone Balance Coaching Programs for tailored support.

Tasha is an Integrative Clinical Nutritionist, B.S., CPT, Pilates Instructor, and Founder of Happy Hormone Health. She has coached 2000 women in reclaiming their energy, living symptom-free and transforming their health through hormone balance nutrition. Start your hormone balance journey with her free hormone assessment.?