During perimenopause, your body produces less progesterone. Here’s a look at why this happens and how your changing hormone levels can impact your day-to-day life.
Perimenopause is the transitional period leading up to menopause, lasting anywhere from a couple of years to a decade. It usually begins in a woman’s late 30s or early 40s, but the timeline can vary from person to person.
During perimenopause, your body experiences biological shifts. You reach the end of your menstrual cycles, period, ovulation , and reproductive years, and then, once you’ve gone 12 months without a period, you enter menopause.
These shifts are largely driven by hormonal changes, including significant changes to two key reproductive hormones: progesterone and estrogen.
Here’s what you need to know about progesterone during perimenopause, including what exactly happens to progesterone levels during this transition, and how that can impact your body and your life,
What is progesterone? To understand progesterone during perimenopause, it’s useful to start with a reminder about progesterone’s role in your body.
Along with estrogen, progesterone is one of the central reproductive hormones. Progesterone regulates your menstrual cycle and is crucial to pregnancy . This hormone is mainly produced by the ovaries and the corpus luteum, a temporary gland created during ovulation.
Progesterone plays a key role in your menstrual cycle, supporting:
If pregnancy occurs, progesterone is necessary for:
Implantation of the embryo Development of the embryo Preventing miscarriage and maintaining the pregnancy Preparing for milk production and breastfeeding (or chestfeeding) However, progesterone is not just a reproductive hormone—it also regulates functions outside of the reproductive system. For example, progesterone affects your:
Mood Energy level Thyroid function Because progesterone affects various functions within your body, when progesterone levels change, you might experience symptoms in multiple areas.
Progesterone during perimenopause So, what happens with progesterone during perimenopause? With the onset of perimenopause, your progesterone levels start to decline.
As you get older, your ovulation and menstrual cycle become less regular, and the number of eggs in your ovaries decreases. These changes in your ovaries and ovulation mean that your body produces less progesterone.
With less progesterone production, levels of this hormone decrease. The decline isn’t necessarily steady: instead, your progesterone will likely fluctuate from cycle to cycle.
At the same time, your body is also producing less estrogen—though not necessarily in the same proportions. This means that the balance between your progesterone and estrogen gets thrown out of whack.
>>MORE: What is a Hormonal Imbalance?
Taken together, the decline, fluctuation, and unstable balance with estrogen make it difficult for progesterone to continue regulating body functions as usual. This can lead to physical and emotional symptoms.
Low progesterone perimenopause symptoms Changes in progesterone levels are part of the totally normal biological process that leads you to the also-totally-normal menopausal phase of your life.
While the changes are natural, the physical symptoms they may cause can be unwelcome, uncomfortable, and even horrible . (Although some people may not experience many symptoms at all!)
Some of the more common symptoms of declining progesterone levels include:
Irregular and/or heavy periods : With lower progesterone, your periods will likely come more irregularly, sometimes skipping cycles altogether. And, since your uterine lining will be less stable , the periods you do get may be heavier.Mood swings and depressive symptoms : Lower progesterone and the newly-unstable balance with estrogen can make your mood fluctuate and trigger depressive emotions , like feelings of sadness, anxiety , loss of interest, or irritability. This may sound similar to premenstrual syndrome (PMS), but during perimenopause, it’s common to experience these mood symptoms throughout your cycle – not just in the lead up to your period.Fatigue and lethargy : As progesterone levels decline, you may feel tired or just generally low-energy. You may also experience sleep disturbances, like having a hard time falling or staying asleep, which can lead to increased fatigue, as well.Low libido : Progesterone (and estrogen) also helps regulate your sex drive and arousal. When progesterone falls, it can lower your libido and make you less interested in sexual activity.Breast tenderness: Low levels of progesterone coupled with high levels of estrogen can cause changes or swelling in breast tissue, including fibrocystic breasts (noncancerous lumps) or breast hypertrophy (overgrowth of dense, heavy breast tissue). This can lead to breast tenderness, breast pain, and general discomfort.Keep in mind that you may experience other perimenopause symptoms, including symptoms more closely related to changing estrogen levels , like hot flashes, vaginal dryness, lower bone density, and brain fog .
Progesterone during perimenopause: the bottom line Progesterone is one of the key reproductive hormones. During perimenopause, as your body undergoes major biological shifts in preparation for menopause, your progesterone levels fluctuate and decline.
Changing progesterone is at the root of perimenopause symptoms like irregular or heavy periods, mood swings, fatigue, and decreased libido. While some people may not experience any symptoms, others may be completely overwhelmed by the changes happening in their body.
If you’re having trouble with the effects of perimenopausal hormone changes, you can talk with your doctor about symptom management. Treatment aims to supplement your hormone levels to help relieve symptoms. Options for lower progesterone include progesterone supplements and combination hormone therapy.
Even though the symptoms from changing progesterone levels can be uncomfortable, understanding what’s happening in your body can help you take the right next steps for you.
