Progesterone Symptoms: What to Expect Throughout Your Cycle

1. Menstrual phase progesterone symptoms

As mentioned, your progesterone levels drop at the end of one menstrual cycle, leading into a new cycle. This progesterone dip triggers your body to shed the uterine lining (what comes out during menstruation).

Research shows that this time of shedding triggers an inflammatory response in the body. This causes the release of prostaglandins, which cause cramps and pelvic pain.

After the initial release of prostaglandins, menstrual symptoms tend to become less intense. This is why the first 2 days of your period are usually the most painful (ugh!).

The most common progesterone symptoms during menstruation include:

• Vaginal bleeding
• Cramps
• Fatigue
• Mood changes

2. Follicular phase and ovulation

After your period, you enter the mid-follicular phase. Progesterone levels stay low during this window between menstruation and ovulation.

Meanwhile, estrogen levels are rising. This boost in estrogen supports your maturing ovarian follicles ahead of ovulation time.

Any symptoms you notice during this time of your cycle are a result of your rising estrogen levels, not your baseline progesterone levels.

Once you release an egg, progesterone levels begin to rise. But on the day of ovulation, these levels are usually low. And they're unlikely to cause any noticeable progesterone symptoms yet.

Know more : Your Guide to Follicular Phase Symptoms

3. Luteal phase progesterone symptoms

The exact symptoms you experience will shift whether you’re in the early or late luteal phase. Here’s a comparison of symptoms of rise in progesterone vs. fall in progesterone during this cycle phase:

As progesterone levels rise and peak, you're likely to notice lots of symptoms. Below are some of the most common progesterone symptoms in the early and late uteal phase.

Mood changes

When progesterone becomes metabolized, it turns into allopregnanolone. This metabolite enhances GABA-A receptor activity in the brain helping to support calming brain signals and anti-anxiety effects.

Here are common early luteal phase symptoms: :

• A sense of emotional stability
• A sense of calm
• More able to feel relaxed
• Reduced stress responses
• Better overall mood (for some people)

As the corpus luteum breaks down before menstruation, your rapidly falling progesterone decreases GABA receptor activity. This can have a big impact on your emotional sensitivity.

Symptoms of low progesterone in the late luteal phase include:

• Mood swings
• Anxiety and irritability
• PMS (premenstrual syndrome)
• PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) - more on what PMDD is at the end of this section!

Research shows that nearly 60-70% of women notice some degree of mood changes prior to menstruation. And these mood-related symptoms typically pop up about 5 - 7 days before your period.

So if you find yourself feeling less like yourself towards the end of your cycle, you’re not alone!

Sleep changes

Allopregnanolone, the progesterone metabolite we talked about above, can also have a sedative effect on the body.

In the early luteal phase, this can lead to drowsiness or increased sleepiness during daytime hours. It can also temporarily allow you the joy of better sleep quality overnight!

But once progesterone begins dropping in the late luteal phase, that sedative effect wears off. This causes you to have restless/disturbed sleep or difficulty falling asleep.

Body temperature

When progesterone levels rise in the early luteal phase, it causes your basal body temperature to increase. This may have you feeling warmer than usual if you’re sensitive to these internal temperature changes. The exact increase is about 0.5 to 1 degree Fahrenheit.

Dropping progesterone means your basal body temperature goes back down to baseline. This means you may notice a slight drop in temperature in the days leading up to your period in the late luteal phase.

Know more : Basal Body Temperature for Fertility Tracking: Reliable or Not?

Breast symptoms

When progesterone levels are higher in the early luteal phase the alveolar cells in your breast become enlarged. This then leads to increased fluid retention in your breasts, causing you to feel:

• Swelling
• Breast tenderness or soreness
• Breast heaviness

In the late luteal phase, as the progesterone levels begin to decline, you can expect to feel a peak in breast tenderness just before a new menstrual cycle. This is followed up by a relief of breast symptoms after your period begins.

Uterine symptoms

High progesterone levels help the implantation process in two very important ways.

First, it thickens your uterine lining to create a more welcoming environment for the fertilized egg to nestle into. Second, it reduces the frequency of uterine contractions, ensuring that the embryo stays put.

These effects on the uterus can cause you to feel: mild bloating or a feeling of heaviness in your pelvic area.

Changes in cervical mucus

When progesterone is high, it increases the mucus lining of your cervix. So at this time you’ll notice thick, opaque, sticky mucus. This creates a sort of barrier that supports your immune system from bacteria that could potentially harm the growing embryo. It also keeps sperm out.

This may cause you to notice:

Reduced cervical mucus and vaginal discharge

Discharge that’s thicker, stickier, and more opaque

Know More : What Does Your Cervical Mucus Tell You About Your Body?

Digestion and stomach troubles

Increased progesterone in the early luteal phase leads to a relaxing of the muscles in your digestive tract. This can slow down digestion and can cause bloating and constipation.

As progesterone levels decline, your digestive processes will resume their normal activity. This often leads to a sense of relief from bloating and constipation and changes in your bowel movements.

Changes in fluid retention

Increased progesterone affects your renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS). This is the system responsible for regulating your water retention, sodium balance, and body weight.

In the early luteal phase, the impact on your RAAS causes two notorious symptoms of high progesterone

• Increased water retention
• A feeling of “puffiness” in your feet, hands, or face.

Premenstrual hormonal shifts in the late luteal phase also affect how fluid is distributed and stored throughout your body. This may cause you to experience heightened bloating in the days before your period. Not for too long though!

Once your new cycle begins, you’ll see a gradual decrease in bloating and puffiness.

Acne and skin changes

When your progesterone levels fluctuate alongside other hormonal changes, it can impact your skin. The exact skin symptoms experienced vary from woman to woman. But in general, you may notice acne breakouts or heightened skin issues when your progesterone levels peak.

This is why skin triggers and acne breakouts are most common in the week before your period. Once your period begins, these skin changes usually begin to clear up.

Slowed metabolism

When progesterone is rising, in the early luteal phase there is a slight increase in metabolic rate. This can lead you to experience increased appetite and mild fatigue.

As your cycle winds down and sex hormones are all back to baseline, this means you may experience low energy or even lethargy.

Changes in sex drive

Your sex drive is greatly impacted by hormonal changes! When estradiol (a type of estrogen) is high, you are likely to feel more aroused. When progesterone is high in the peak of your luteal phase, sexual desire goes down.

In the late luteal phase, it’s common to have ups and downs with your sex drive.

What is PMDD, and how to know if you have it?

Feeling worried about the severity of your PMS symptoms? Let’s look more closely at what PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) is and how it’s diagnosed.

Studies tells us that about 3-8 percent of women around the world experience PMDD. Researchers believe it’s linked to changes in brain sensitivity caused by fluctuating hormones. While much is still unknown with PMDD, it seems to only occur in ovulatory cycles.

To be diagnosed with PMDD, you’ll need to track your symptoms under the supervision of a healthcare professional. Often this is with your gynecologist or even a psychiatrist.

Here are the symptoms that PMDD sufferers may experience:

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Mood swings
• Intense irritability
• Lethargy
• Difficulty concentrating
• Intense physical symptoms like bloating and breast pain

Sounds like symptoms of PMS, right? So, what’s the major difference with PMDD? With PMDD, symptoms tend to be so severe that they consistently disrupt your daily activity.

If you think you may have PMDD, it’s important to check in with your healthcare provider or a licensed therapist. They can guide you on the steps to take.

Depending on your situation, treatment for PMDD could include:

• Lifestyle changes
• Therapy
• Certain medications
• Changes to your hormonal birth control

Whether you have PMDD or typical PMS symptoms, there’s hopeful news.

In many cases, PMS-related symptoms can be improved with some lifestyle tweaks. More on these next!