S panky,

Good with feeling better how much are you taking if you don't mind me asking.
I'm taking 3 pm I just feel tired and a little drugged out. No pain just very tired.

Over the last week, I increased to about 2,000 mg per day (powdered Ainterol). I am going to try to stay with it to see if the back pain fades.

I have started to develop intense pain in my lower back, mostly when I stand up. I do not know if it is related to PM but seems to have coincided with increasing my dosage. I am tempted to go back to lower levels but am hanging in there for now.

I think Byrony, myself and others have experienced kidney/lower back pain. The culprit may be estrogen dominance. Are you using progesterone cream? If not, it may be worth it to give it a try.

You may also want to consider seeing a doctor for this just to make sure there isn't a serious underlying health condition causing this pain.

I applied some progesterone cream, following your suggestion. I will try to post some follow up in a day or two.

On the subject of doctors, I am getting close to a crossroads, in that I am feeling a little shy about seeing my regular doctor (internist). I wish there were a clearinghouse identifying tg friendly doctors. I shouldn't pre-judge my current doctor perhaps, as I have no idea if she would be open minded or wierd about it all.

Where are you located, Spanky? There are websites that cater to TG where you can identify TG friendly support doctors in many places.

Where are you located, Spanky? There are websites that cater to TG where you can identify TG friendly support doctors in many places.

I have Googled for information and found nothing useful thus far. If I wanted an endocrinologist, it would be easy. I just want a doctor who will not beat me up about taking NBE.

spanky,

You might want to stop PM for a while. That's what I did when I originally asked this question and it relieved the pain. I went a week and a half with nothing and then gradually reintroduced the PM at 500mg per day. Each week I added another 500mg until I arrived at 1500mg daily (500 morning, afternoon and evening) and never did the pain return. My hypothesis is that your body needs time to implement the metabolic pathways to deal with what you are taking. I have no science whatsoever to go with that but in the end, the stop and restart worked for me. ...I also echo what others have said about being seen by a doctor. Pain is an indicator something is wrong and while it seems probable that PM is the cause, there's always a chance it could be something else. Suspending the PM for a while will only confirm or deny it as the cause.

Thanks, Kari Leigh. I am going to take your advice as today it is no better.

Hi Spanky,

Having just had open back surgery 2 months ago, I know a little about back pain.

Can you describe your symptoms in a little more detail?

Misty

Hi Spanky,

Having just had open back surgery 2 months ago, I know a little about back pain.

Can you describe your symptoms in a little more detail?

Misty

It is quite low in the back, and centered. The pain is only sharp when I get up out of a chair. It takes me a little time to straighten out. I have wondered if the pain is not kidney related at all, but rather is either muscular or spinal. since it is not intense at all once I am seated.

I would definitely recommend seeing a doctor. The fact that you have no pain when seated is an indication that the problem is structural. You can start with a primary care physician or look for an orthopedic specialist. A good chiropractor could also help shed some light on the issue.

A classic symptom of spinal stenosis is relief while sitting or bending over, and pain while standing, walking, or extending (arching your back). Severe stenosis would pinch the nerves in your spine and cause pain/numbness in your legs. The fact that the pain is localized to your back is actually a good thing (at least it is if your issue is indeed spinal).

It could also be muscular (your piriformis muscle). You can Google that for lots of info on how to gently stretch the muscle and eliminate the pain (if it is the cause).

Still, if the pain is manageable, give a break to the PM and see if it resolves. If it does then follow Kai Leigh's advice and see if you can work slowly back up to high dosages.

Good luck!

Misty

I would definitely recommend seeing a doctor. The fact that you have no pain when seated is an indication that the problem is structural. You can start with a primary care physician or look for an orthopedic specialist. A good chiropractor could also help shed some light on the issue.

A classic symptom of spinal stenosis is relief while sitting or bending over, and pain while standing, walking, or extending (arching your back). Severe stenosis would pinch the nerves in your spine and cause pain/numbness in your legs. The fact that the pain is localized to your back is actually a good thing (at least it is if your issue is indeed spinal).

It could also be muscular (your piriformis muscle). You can Google that for lots of info on how to gently stretch the muscle and eliminate the pain (if it is the cause).

Still, if the pain is manageable, give a break to the PM and see if it resolves. If it does then follow Kai Leigh's advice and see if you can work slowly back up to high dosages.

Good luck!

Misty

Thanks for the advice, Misty. I went a couple of days with no PM, and yesterday started taking Advil every 8 hours. It has been feeling better, with significantly less intense pain on rising from a chair. Perhaps prematurely, I just took some PM. I missed it. If pain returns, I will stop again.