My Experience With Progesterone Intolerance and Withdrawal

I wanted to share my experience in case it helps anyone else searching for answers. I was prescribed oral micronized progesterone (100 mg) along with an estrogen patch. Over nine months, I developed crushing fatigue, brain fog, anxiety, depression, and eventually nausea/dry heaves and chest tightness. I didn’t realize at first that the oral progesterone was the cause.

Oral progesterone is converted in the body to a neurosteroid (allopregnanolone) that acts on the GABA-A receptors in the brain. For most women this is calming, but for about 10–20% it causes the opposite: sedation, mood changes, anxiety, and eventually nervous system destabilization. That’s what happened to me.

When I stopped the oral progesterone, I experienced what I can only describe as an “endocrine withdrawal syndrome.” For weeks I woke at 4–5 am with chest tightness, nausea, and shakes. My digestion collapsed and I lost weight. It felt like my nervous system had no brakes.

The good news is that recovery is possible, but it takes time. I’m now about 10 weeks off and while mornings are still rough, the dry heaves are gone, my sleep is lengthening, and I am slowly regaining appetite and stamina. I’ve learned that symptoms differ from woman to woman — some develop POTS-like heart symptoms, others more gut and fatigue symptoms, like me.

I share this because I never knew progesterone intolerance was even a thing until I experienced it. If anyone else is struggling after stopping HRT, know you are not alone, and that what you’re going through may be part of a recognized pattern of withdrawal and recovery