question about progesterone levels..

[awenbadbunny]

is progesterorne raised before ovulation? OR does it raise during or after?

My prog was 1.1 CD20 but looks like it was tested too early. Just tried my calender assuming a 36 day cycvle (very irreg) CD33 today and it said that ovulation on CD22/3. This is all very confusing as my cycle all messed up anyway.

it is more raised after, it helps to thicken womb lining. it also replaces oestrogen within 12 hours of LH surge.

they would have tested the levels to see if you had ov'd, and if you didnt ov until cd22/23 then they did it too early.

hth

awen

Is PCOS an issue with your good self?. I ask this as this is a common cause of ovulatory problems.

If your cycles are very irregular anyway then it is also possible that you are not ovulating regularly if at all.

Progesterone is usually measured on cycle day 21 as a standard test. With a very low level on cycle day 20 like this is it likely that you did not ovulate in this particular month.

I would not have thought either that this level would have dramatically increased over the course of one or two days.

It is also possible to get more than one LH surge every month and thus a LH surge is not immediately and always followed by ovulation.

What are your LH and FSH levels like, have these been tested?

no idea what lh and fsh levels are. Yup PCOS is an issue - hence clomid. The consultant wasnt at all worried about blood results as she said it was too early in the cycle for me to have ov'd and still a chance of it happening. Just trying to work out if I may have tho around day 23. Not speaking to consultant for another week so may ask her for a another blood test as I have lots of hormonal symptoms so think something happened. Tearful, sickness (on and off), achy boobs, slippy CM (sorry if tmi), low abdo discomfort around cd24. No spotting tho.

This was a spotanous cycle (not drug induced)

Hi awen

Can relate as I have PCOS as well. Would think that your LH and FSH are out of sync - like many PCOSers you are probably producing too much LH and not enough FSH. Ideally these two hormone levels are the same.

I would certainly ask about another blood test along with an ultrasounds scan to see what the ovaries look like. You ought to be monitored closely whilst on this drug as well as it is not always suitable for all PCOS patients to take (some of them become clomid resistant). Apart from anything else if you are not closely monitored you have no way of knowing whether its working or not.

If you haven't already done so I would check out Verity's website which is UK based and has lots of information re PCOS. Its www.verity-pcos.org.uk.

Good luck next week with the consultant.

I also had the problem of them testing me too early. After two unsuccessful attempts(one where they did the wrong test and the other done too early) the doctor told me to go for a blood test when I thought it was 7 days before my period. Lo and behold, the progesterone levels were well up.

Still no luck though and 2 years later (to cut a very very long story short) I finally got an ultrasound scan which indicated PCOS.

My cycle was very irregular too.

BTW I now have an 8 month old son conceived naturally - there's always hope.