Has anyone had any success from cycling herbs? Would there be any benefit to doing this? What do you think, any suggestions welcome?
Another thing, if you're on the pill do you have a proper cycle with changing levels of LH / FSH?
And do the endogenous estrogen and progesterone levels change?
Hi allisue
no, you don't have a cycle when on regular bcp. The hormones in those pills are far more potent than the ones that naturally occur in the body and in the usual amounts used they shut down your natural ovarian hormone production. Only some low-dosed progestin only pills don't affect your cycle like that and work by thickening the endometrium so that sperm will not be able to move through freely. But you would have to take it at exactly the same hour every day for it to work.
In comparison: you're still safe if you miss regular bcp for either one day (20 mcg ethinylestradiol or lower) or up to two days (30-35 mcg ethinylestradiol).
http://www.who.int/reproductivehealth/pu...6index/en/
Some bcp are cyclic which means that they have varying amounts of hormones which kind of mimic the female cycle. But I don't think they have any advantage over the normal bcp.
Some people on here actually do cycle herbs. Most of them are PM users. They only take PM from day 1 to 14 of their cycle. The reason is that PM contains very potent phytoestrogens and if you continue to take it throughout the whole cycle it can delay your period. It also has been said that using different phytoestrogens from time to time could prevent you from stalling. Either way it's probably good to stop all phytoestrogens for one or two days during midcycle for ovulation to occur.
Hope that helps