Natural Progesterone Cream Shutdown FAQs
Recap – The purpose of this program is: (NPC Shutdown Overview – Click to start at the beginning.)
- The purpose of the NPC Shutdown is to cleanse the major organs
- The NPC Shutdown provides tips for healthier eating to support the efforts for a healthier baby; before and after conception, pregnancy and birth.
- The purpose of the NPC Shutdown is to restore the ovaries, endometriosis and luteal phase defects etc.
- The NPC Shutdown is designed to help you to lose weight
- Lastly the NPC Shutdown mentors you in a healthier way of life; for every stage.
Shutdown FAQ about Progesterone Cream during and after the cleanse:
Q: How do I use the Progesterone Cream during shutdown?
A: Natural Progesterone Cream may be used as a safe way to overshadow estrogen and to shutoff ovulation during this time. If you have cysts and/or PCOS which are inhibiting ovulation, this method is highly recommended by Dr. Lee and others, noted in the field of hormonal health and women’s issues. If you do not have cysts, anovulation or long cycles and will not be using Cycle Balance or Happy PMS Cream you may skip this section. We believe it is best to use the cream during this time.
Q: Is progesterone cream a contraceptive?
A: It is important to understand that progesterone cream is not normally a contraceptive when used from ovulation until mensus but when you use it earlier in the cycle it will override estrogen. This is a healthy way to shut off ovulation without drugs. Timing in the cycle is the key.
Q: Can pregnancy happen during this time? A: We have several testimonies of women who have begun shutdown with the progesterone cream and then became pregnant that cycle. The reason for this is that until then their bodies did not have a rest from a steady estrogen dominance and therefore there was not an LH surge to promote ovulation. When progesterone cream was used it was just enough to balance the estrogen and they conceived. You will see a common scenario explained in the article “Is progesterone just a bandaid?”.
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Q: Will I always have to use progesterone cream?
A: You might consider using progesterone cream until hormonal balance is achieved during the luteal phase (after ovulation). though progesterone cream is safe to use even well into your senior years. Don’t think of progesterone cream as a band-aid but rather to use to make up for what is, for most, impossible to attain in hormonal health in the industrial world. Definitely, use it while you are making your body healthy enough for a successful start; especially if you were to be low in progesterone at this time.
Q: Will it help me if I were to become pregnant during the shutdown?
A: Progesterone cream provides a safeguard until your luteal phase is strengthened and lengthened and will also produce enough progesterone for gestation. The most common cause for miscarriage is hormonal imbalance due to low progesterone so should you become pregnant during the shutdown you would be providing that healthy assurance.
Q: It is really necessary to do a shutdown if I am infertile.
A: Many women will decide not to shutdown completely but do cleansing herbs. We discourage this. It is our opinion that these three months can often encourage fertility on and that the three months be seen as a positive, proactive move, not going backwards. It is surprising how many women drag their feet about doing it but then are happy they took the time to strengthen and help their body. The healthier feeling and then healthier pregnancy is then part of the joy.
Q: Are there other reasons for the NCP Shutdown?
A: It is also a positive thing to take time from TTC to strengthen your marriage and get healthy at the same time. Both the men and women have an opportunity to just enjoy each other and feel good about it all when the NPC Shutdown is over.
Q: How much progesterone cream is needed?
A: The amount to be used is between 15 and 20mg twice per day from day 5 to day 26 of cycle. Do this for the first month and then only once a day after that. Allow the period to come and then restart on day 5 again. Not to belabor this but to be sure. That means with Cycle Balance progesterone cream month 1 you would use 7 squirts twice per day. With Happy PMS Cream you would use a 1″ strip twice a day. In months 2 and 3 just use the normal dose of 7 squirts of Cycle Balance Progesterone Cream and 1″ strip of Happy PMS Cream per day.
Q: What if I am overweight, will I need more?
A: If you are overweight you will need more. Consider that these amounts as well. This is because hormones progesterone cream. There are no exact guidelines about how much progesterone cream is used for those overweight but since estrogen is stored in fat cells our rule of thumb has always been to consider what your ideal weight should be and double the amount of cream for every 50-100 lbs overweight. You will feel the difference as you find your own level. Write to us for any clarification on this. It is not as simple as telling you how much cream per pound.
Q: How much progesterone cream will I need to purchase for the NPC Shutdown?
A: This shutdown is based on 1000 mg per 2 oz jar of progesterone cream. Cycle Balance Cream has 500mg per oz and so you will need 6 bottles or jars for the 3 months. You can purchase this at discount by buying it together. For Happy PMS Cream it is close to the same amount but you would use a little less per month but Happy PMS Cream costs a little more. This means they will both cost about the same for the 3 months.
Q: What happens if my cycle starts before day 26?
A: If your cycle should end before day 26 simply begin counting to day 5 and begin again. This may happen to many because of short luteal phases. That means that you have not been producing enough progesterone in your eggs for some time and therefore you have been operating on estrogen overshadowing the progesterone and your cycle may have seemed longer. The correct amount of progesterone will begin to right things. Often times one finds that with the supplementation the cycles are shorter because your body is getting progesterone to oppose the estrogen. This is just enough for those who are very estrogen dominant to oppose the estrogen and cause break through bleeding.
Q: What happens if I don’t start my period and day 5 comes around again?
A: If you do NOT bleed right away, count 7 days off the cream and give your body a rest from progesterone; only with this scenario count 7 days and start again on the progesterone cream. This would give you 3 weeks on and one week off each of the 3 months; trying to stay with your body’s cycle as much as possible.
Q: What happens if I get pregnant during the shutdown?
A: If for any reason you find yourself pregnant during this time DO NOT go off the cream abruptly. Just continue on the cream until at least 12-16 weeks when you can wean SLOWLY off if you would like. It IS recommended however, by Dr. Lee (and we have used progesterone cream in our pregnancies as well as our infertile women for their pregnancies) that you stay on progesterone cream until the end of your gestation. You can continue until the end of your pregnancy or you may wean closer to 12-16 weeks. When the body is low in progesterone and it sees a sudden dip it may interpret this as time to shed the lining. In mainline medicine doctors will often only prescribe progesterone or progestin suppositories for the first trimester but this is a sure way to cause miscarriage. Many have miscarried by going off suppositories too abruptly without knowing. Notice I said suppositories. We hear constantly of doctors who recommended a woman stop her suppositories; thinking she should have enough progesterone at that point in her pregnancy. The body can see this as the “end of cycle drop” and “shed the lining” as I said above. Instead take the safe route and continue until you are sure the placenta is fully operational and growing well. The placenta is meant to pick up on production of hormones by week 8. When you are low in progesterone and imbalanced with estrogen your body will often not produce enough to balance the growing estrogen levles and this is one of the most common gestational points for miscarriages. Your body will not have the puffed up lining of blood to nourish the placenta and hold the baby in place.
Q: How will this all help my cysts?
A: The purpose of the natural progesterone cream shutdown is to give you a break from the viscious cycle of trying to ovulate before it is ready. You will be doing two things. The first is to stop ovulation from happening. Cysts on your ovaries are from immature follicles unable to burst forth from the ovaries. A lack of a proper LH surge keeps you from properly ovulating. The follicles become trapped under the lining of the ovary. A cyst forms around the follicle trying to absorb it but it does not. Cysts would continue to form and a crust around the ovary if conditions remain the same. Ovulation becomes impossible. The idea is to shut this off so that your body can absorb the cysts. Part 2 of this is that you will be giving your body progesterone which will convert to allow you to produce better follicles. This will allow you to have better ovulations when the shutdown is complete. Your body will thank you for it.
Q: After the shutdown how will I know how much progesterone cream to use.
A: Follow your own body. You may find that you need more to offset your symptoms but the best way to tell if you have too much is if it makes you extremely tired in the day. Then you would cut back. According to Dr. Lee you will always need at least around 15-20 mg per day.
Purchase Cycle Balance and Happy PMS Cream in our store. Read our next article about how to do the rest of the cleanse.
