[Loretta]

Here's an update!
As it turns out, I'm trash at staying consistent with supplements :/ but I've been 90% on it, and have been using the progesterone cream daily. I'm on my third cycle since starting the program and have not increased the herbs yet. My work picked up in the busy season and I'm feeling swamped all around. Because I haven't been totally on top of it, I haven't been wanting to post (I do wonder how common that is with members here). Still, some things have changed, and I thought I'd give a report: 

• My extra-bad PMS didn't change much the first cycle, but drastically reduced the second. I still had a couple of very bad days, but really only 2, as opposed to on-and-off about every day for 10 days before my next period began. 
  
• I normally experience swelling in the luteal phase, but with the herbs it was extra. I'm a little skeptical of measuring (pretty different depending on how much the tape mushes me or how high the back of it is since I have really big upper back muscles, not sure how to keep it consistent), so I'm going more by feel and pictures now. My boobs go back to normal a day after I start bleeding, and are fairly deflated by the end of bleeding, and that all has been the same. 
  
• No observable changes in skin or body hair, have kept the saw palmetto at 320mg/day. 
  
• My period pain is still on the severe end, but the last two cycles it was more manageable and not debilitating (especially last month). Still trying to figure out correlations for this, it's kinda all over the place. 
  
• My weight has inched up a 3lb average. Still trying to eat consistently and continuously more than I'm comfortable with (kinda sucks, but I know I gotta be doing it with strength training as well). 
  

I'm upping the doses this cycle, though I'm a few days late. This follicular phase I'll be taking 1200mg of fenugreek (600mg increase) 320mg of SP (same), and 1/8tsp of PC (stays constant for follicular). Luteal phase will be 1200mg of fenugreek, 320mg of SP, and 1/2tsp of PC (1/4tsp increase). 

Honestly, I'm mostly stoked about my fight/response not being jacked through the roof while crying uncontrollably with no hope for the future every other day for half the month. I'm hoping that's the progesterone cream beginning to work. I'm still hesitant to add a phytoestrogen. But, with low herb doses so far and raising progesterone levels, I haven't caused any noticeable harm, and feel pretty good.