[SarahSchilling]

Just thought I should post this. Today I was prescribed estradiol and spiro, and on my way out, my doctor told me to watch out for leg pains or shortness of breath, as these could be signs of my blood thickening and that this could put me at risk for blood clots.

I myself had issues with shortness of breath on PM about a year ago, and I know numerous others have complained of leg pain from taking it. Although phytoestrogens and synthetics are different substances chemically, the effects on the body seem to be similar enough for me to ponder if these symptoms and related risks could be shared between the two as well.

I thought it would be a good idea to share this, since many people are taking PM without any doctor supervision (trust me, I don't blame you...I did so for a year and then unsupervised synthetics for another year ), and they may not take these symptoms seriously, moreso the leg pains than the shortness of breath. It's hard not to take the latter seriously. I don't mean to alarm anyone, truly. It's just so frustrating to not know why you're having negative side effects if you ever happen to experience them.

Happy growing and best of health to you all!

[KhloeM]

OMG i'm having shortness of breath, I thought I had anemia or a tyroid problem. I'm gonna get tested this week!
Already teste for diabetes and I don't have it.
I've never had shortness of breath started 2 weeks ago, and it comes and goes. I think i have anemia because of other symptons like hair loss, exaustion,etc.
I've been taking pm since august last year, and never had any problem...
I have no idea what's wrong with me, I'm scared.

[SarahSchilling]

OMG i'm having shortness of breath, I thought I had anemia or a tyroid problem. I'm gonna get tested this week!
Already teste for diabetes and I don't have it.
I've never had shortness of breath started 2 weeks ago, and it comes and goes. I think i have anemia because of other symptons like hair loss, exaustion,etc.
I've been taking pm since august last year, and never had any problem...
I have no idea what's wrong with me, I'm scared.

I took PM for a year before my shortness of breath issues started. I was SO scared, that's why I posted this in hopes I could help someone else experiencing the same level of absolute terror. I went to the doctor at the time, told him about the PM/SP, and he was completely useless in finding the source of my issues. It was awful.

Apparently, its a symptom of blood thickening. Here's a link with several foods that can thin the blood that may help. http://www.healtharticles101.com/top-10-...ick-blood/

Also, I had some issues with thinning hair and fatigue myself around that time, and when I had testing done my vit D was low...so maybe try a D3 supplement for that. My doctor says most people today have a deficiency. Not as sure about this one as the blood thickening though. Your hair loss/fatigue could be unrelated to vit D levels.

Didn't think anyone was going to respond to this. I hope my post was helpful. I know how scary shortness of breath can be. Sorry you're having issues with it. At the time, I just stopped taking pm for a month or so....started back and the shortness of breath returned. so then moved on to synthetics with no issues. Looking back though, I think some blood thinning foods could've helped.

Also, avoid too much vitamin K. It's found in leafy green vegetables like spinach, cabbage, stuff like that. It's a blood thickener, so high levels of it would make the shortness of breath worse. ( and I thought I was eating healthy at the time! lol)

Good luck! If you're getting tested maybe give vit D levels a look? and blood platelet count/size? If you're like me, lung function and O2 levels will be normal.

[KhloeM]

OMG i'm having shortness of breath, I thought I had anemia or a tyroid problem. I'm gonna get tested this week!
Already teste for diabetes and I don't have it.
I've never had shortness of breath started 2 weeks ago, and it comes and goes. I think i have anemia because of other symptons like hair loss, exaustion,etc.
I've been taking pm since august last year, and never had any problem...
I have no idea what's wrong with me, I'm scared.

I took PM for a year before my shortness of breath issues started. I was SO scared, that's why I posted this in hopes I could help someone else experiencing the same level of absolute terror. I went to the doctor at the time, told him about the PM/SP, and he was completely useless in finding the source of my issues. It was awful.

Apparently, its a symptom of blood thickening. Here's a link with several foods that can thin the blood that may help. http://www.healtharticles101.com/top-10-...ick-blood/

Also, I had some issues with thinning hair and fatigue myself around that time, and when I had testing done my vit D was low...so maybe try a D3 supplement for that. My doctor says most people today have a deficiency. Not as sure about this one as the blood thickening though. Your hair loss/fatigue could be unrelated to vit D levels.

Didn't think anyone was going to respond to this. I hope my post was helpful. I know how scary shortness of breath can be. Sorry you're having issues with it. At the time, I just stopped taking pm for a month or so....started back and the shortness of breath returned. so then moved on to synthetics with no issues. Looking back though, I think some blood thinning foods could've helped.

Also, avoid too much vitamin K. It's found in leafy green vegetables like spinach, cabbage, stuff like that. It's a blood thickener, so high levels of it would make the shortness of breath worse. ( and I thought I was eating healthy at the time! lol)

Good luck! If you're getting tested maybe give vit D levels a look? and blood platelet count/size? If you're like me, lung function and O2 levels will be normal.

OMG THANK THANK THANK THANK YOU.
I have no idea what I have, went to the hospital on saturday and got tested for diabetes and it's not!!! Doctor said I have anxiety, BS.

I can't believe you had the same symptons.
I feel like I CAN'T breath properly, I feel that my nose, my mouth, my hand tingle somethings for long period of times. I feel weak, even though I'm having 8+ hours of sleep at night. I can't focus on ANYTHING, and I lost half of the hair on my head! I'm just SO SCARED.
I wonder If have a tyroid problem, anemia, or I don't know something. I'm scared I might have to get off PM.
Not sure about my D levels, I do take a multivitamin but I barely go out in the sun! What do you mean by synthetics?
I'm gonnas ask then to test my vitamin D levels and blood platelet count/size!!!
THANK YOU, PLEASE KEEP IN TOUCH!

[SarahSchilling]

The doc tried to tell me it was anxiety related as well. Which...I did have anxiety, but only as a result of not being able to breathe!

When i said synthetics I was referring to HRT (estradiol plus a pharma anti-androgen), without a prescription at the time. I'm a bio-male though.

Anyways, the only thing I found that helped with my shortness of breath attacks, was to take a washrag and soak it in cold water. Then breath through it, and remain calm. They always pass and panicking makes it so much worse, although doing so is understandable.

For whatever reason breathing cooler air seemed to help. During really bad ones I'd wrap an ice cube in a clean sock and breathe through that....and also wipe it on my chest to cool everything down.

If your testing all comes back normal, and foods to thin blood don't do the trick, then quitting PM for awhile is the thing to do. Tingling body parts are often a sign that they aren't getting enough blood....and thick blood hinders proper circulation. Poor circulation could also explain your hair loss and fatigue. If this is what's going on, then you're not going to get much growth from PM anyways.

Perhaps in addition to the blood thinning foods, you could add something to improve circulation to your program. I've read cayenne pepper is great for that. Don't forget to avoid foods high in vitamin K as well.

Good luck! I'm sure you will get past this, even if you have to quit PM. There are other things you could take to enhance breast growth. Try not to freak out too much! I've been there, and I know its easier said than done, but it'll be ok.

Oh, and you're more than welcome. I seriously thought I was going to die back then, and no one could give me any answers, so I'm very happy to help someone having similar side effects.

[KhloeM]

OMG SO MANY THING MAKES SENSE NOW.
I've had some growth over those months with PM, but nothing spetacular (mostly swelling). The benefits I looooove and saw the most were my SKIN and my FULL LIPS, and I felt generally better about myself. What really gave me growth was a breast cream. Still Pm made my breasts look so much fuller. But the cream alone did that. In your opinion, can I quit PM and start using the cream? I'm quitting PM today, that's the only way to find out. What's funny is that over the last 2 weeks I had an increase of shortness of breath, but I wasn't taking anything over these last weeks, I got back on PM only 3 days ago.
Thank you so much, you're being so helpful... I mean, the way you describe it, it's exactly what I feel. I'm not anxious, but I did get anxious on saturday after not being able to breath for so long! I don't think it's a coincidence here. Yes I may be anemic as well or maybe I do have a tyroid problem, but PM has got to be related to this, also I feel like tyroid problems show more symptons. Also I did a quick research here and found some posts about shortness of breath and PM, including yours, it makes sense. I did research for like 5 months or more before I started on PM, but I had no idea about all of this.
Another thing worth mentioning: back in january I wasn't taking PM because I was on vacation and my hair started growing and it was full, there was lots of new hairs coming in. Then I get back, and 2 months later I have half of the amount of hair. I also didn't experience anything. Coincidence? Now I'm starting to think it's PM. And since you mentioned I wouldn't have much growth anyway if that was the case, then I think this is it for me.
I would say my major symptons at this moment are: shortness of breath, INSANE hairloss, the skin on my forehead is different VERY dry and flaky, tingleness in my hands, nose, lips, arm sometimes. Also I had severe eyebrow hairloss!!! But it grew back already, but it happened more than once. I almost cried today after washing my hair, I had such beautiful and thick hair only a few months ago

You are an angel, If you didn't tell me this I would keep taking PM, it would probably take months to find out what was causing all of these symptons, I wouldn't connect to PM since I'm taking since august/2013 and only had benefits, silly me. Tomorrow I'll be doing the blood tests and next week I'll come back and report it. I'm much calmer now because I think i finally now what i "HAVE". I believe when you say I'll be fine
THANK YOU FOR OPENING MY EYES for something that could potentially harm me! GOD bless you! I can't thank you enough...

[KhloeM]

Found this article, I have probably half of the symptons
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/drugi...82922.html


ALSO, found out that too much calcium can cause shortness of breath. I've been taking a calcium citrate with vitamin D from Swanson brand everyday (630mg), could that also be another factor? :O

http://www.medsfacts.com/study-CALCIUM%2...SPNOEA.php

http://treato.com/Calcium+Citrate,Shortn...reath/?a=s

[KhloeM]

GOD, so many things make sense now. I highlighted the symptons I have

Estrogen dominance

Estrogen dominance is a term first coined by Dr. John Lee, M.D., to describe a condition where there is too much estrogen relative to progesterone, compared to an optimal ratio.

Estrogen dominance may be caused by an excess of estrogen, a progesterone deficiency, or both. In today's world, we are exposed to an excess of estrogens in the foods we eat and the lotions and potions we put on our bodies. It is important to locate and eliminate or at least reduce the sources of excess estrogen in our environment. Estrogen dominance can be corrected in part by dietary modifications and even some lifestyle changes.

Estrogen dominance symptoms and associated conditions (as noted in What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause by John Lee, M.D.):

Acceleration of the aging process
Allergy symptoms, including asthma, hives, rashes, sinus congestion
Autoimmune disorders such as lupus erythematosis and thyroiditis, and possibly Sjogren's disease
Breast cancer
Breast tenderness
Cervical dysplasia
Cold hands and feet as a symptom of thyroid dysfunction
Copper excess
Decreased sex drive
Depression with anxiety or agitation
Dry eyes
Early onset of menstruation
Endometrial (uterine) cancer
Fat gain, especially around the abdomen, hips, and thighs
Fatigue
Fibrocystic breasts
Foggy thinking
Gallbladder disease
Hair loss
Headaches
Hypoglycemia
Increased blood clotting (increasing risk of strokes)
Infertility
Irregular menstrual periods
Irritability
Insomnia
Magnesium deficiency
Memory loss
Mood swings
Osteoporosis
PMS (I cry TOO MUCH, not normal)
Polycystic ovaries
Premenopausal bone loss
Prostate cancer (men can be estrogen-dominant too)
Sluggish metabolism
Thyroid dysfunction mimicking hypothyroidism
Uterine cancer
Uterine fibroids
Water retention, bloating
Zinc deficiency < THIS. If I don't take zinc my nails just refuse to grow. I feel better when I'm taking zinc.


That's it, goodbye PM. You were good and bad to me.

[SarahSchilling]

That's interesting, because at the time I thought it could be my thyroid, anemia, or estrogen dominance. I had my thyroid tested, but it wasn't far outside of the normal range, and applying progesterone cream didn't stop the shortness of breath attacks either. Blood testing ruled out anemia.

So eventually I hesitantly quit taking PM, and things cleared up. When I tried to resume the PM, shortness of breath returned. Only now, a year later, after hearing my doctor warn of shortness of breath being a sign of thick blood and an increased risk for blood clots did I think to link the two. So I'm far from certain that this is your issue. Either way, though....I am fairly certain dropping the PM will help.

Oh, and just something I noticed.. I also had the dry flaky scalp on the crown of my head, where the hair was thinning. My hair loss wasn't as extreme as yours sounds to be, though. Poor thing

It will get better.

As for the calcium, I don't think that's enough to cause shortness of breath, or tons of people taking it would have the symptom. I think a mixture of blood thickening and possibly E dominance is probably it.

[KhloeM]

My God, I'm like 99% sure now!!! AND I FINALLY WENT TO THE LAB AND DID MY BLOOD TEST! The results will come out next wednesday.
Actually my hair it has been through phases where it would fall a lot and then grow again, but never like this. Maybe PM was affecting my hair for a long time? Also my eyebrows, ever since I started taking 22mg of zinc everynight again they grew back. They would also go through phases, I was so sure I had hypotirodism, but those were the only symptons back then. Right now I don't even feel tired, i just feel like I can't breath properly.
I'm off PM and calcium, just to make sure. We'll see if it gets better.

Also another question: If my results come out and my tyroid is off or something, should I go to the doctor and take the medication? Or just I just wait like you did? Because I really don't want to take anything else D: and I know the doctor won't believe that PM did this to me. He probably won't even know what it is.

I also forgot to mention something huge: I take birth control (Belara). That could make things much worst. I feel so silly I haven't been able to connect all the dots. You did that for me!

Thank you for your support.
God bless you