You can order any blood test yourself. I do all my own tests local through: http://www.anylabtestnow.com/

If you dont have one of those, google or go online. It is cheaper to do my own lab work than go through a doctor.

Ohhh that is very interesting to know!

Hopefully it works the same way in Australia. I will investigate. Thank you Stacey.

Ok Dear Aussie Mom,

When I got the book, it's 500 pages, I zipped to the 'how to use the progesterone cream' chapter, slapped on my cream and went out like a bike ride, like I told you. Again, most of the creams you order on line or in the store will have directions for use as well. You can also reach me on facebook for questions...
https://www.facebook.com/karen.sharp.35
Just send a message.

Even those doctors that will give you progesterone cream (prescription), they like to give you the pill. (Dr. Lee recommends the cream because there is less wear and tear on the liver.) See Frequently asked questions, "Wouldn't it just be easier to take the pill?"
http://www.johnleemd.com/store/faqs_progest_crm.html

And you're not considering HRT, Dear Aussie Mom, you're merely considering BHRT, biodentical hormone replacemement therapy Not many studies on it here in America 'cause that's not where the money is, but supposedly there have been some in Europe. I never bothered to research 'cause I told you where my anguish was, I was just willing to try it on myself. Oh heck, it's made from wild yams. How the heck can a wild yam hurt you, really?!!! (Just my opinion as a sufferer and nothing else.)

Again, don't forget about the diatomaceous earth, "the mud." I've come here before and mentioned progesterone, which I am betting will take you a long way towards you goal, but don't forget there is something else beyond that. Particularly when you get further into menopause, when the estrogen levels drop to that menopausal level - don't forget KarenEVP told you about something else 'cause it's important.

And about those heel spurs; Plantar Fasciitis feels like you are walking on a screw that is in the bottom of each shoe, if that's what you have. If your feet feel just hot - that could be PN 'cause I've had something similar. One time I took my shoes off and my feet were bright red. They felt hot as heck. I believed that was PN, not menopause, but who knows, you could be right and I could be wrong!

But I was teaching school and got Plantar Fasciitis really bad - no insurance at the time, so I went to Doctor Google. I found that coconut oil can relieve that... and actually, it went away. But for anyone with Plantar Fasciitis, they could try three of these a day, the brand I used
http://www.swansonvitamins.com/sourc...FSqXOgodCS4AwA
I was hardly able to walk to the mailbox, then after three days, I was out mowing the lawn! This was early 40's, long before PN. Again, this is just something I googled and tried that worked for me, no other claim to expertise here either.

When my knees became worse near this past Christmas, I started just walking instead of biking. Next thing I knew, back came the heel spurs and now I can't take coconut oil because of the PN so thank God for the mud (Diatomaceous Earth) has had the same effect!

And sounds like you're all set to get started on hormones! Never let anyone give you estrogen without progesterone. If GP wants to prescribe progesterone, he'll give you the oral pill. In my humble opinion, if you're not having menopausal insomnia, go with the over the counter cream. When they give you the oral progesterone, it only lasts the night, gone in the morning. Doc's claim it lasts 24 hours, it doesn't. He's never going to take it so he won't know. Doc's like to give you the oral progesterone because that way they are in control of the dose that you are taking, the milligrams. Dr. Lee says you should control the dose (use the cream) so that you can use the lowest amount that relieves your symptoms. Taking too much can just cause greater hormonal imbalance and more problems. You are gonna' be the one who figures out how much cream you need, not your GP.

Don't ever let anyone prescribe you estrogen without progesterone to balance it out. That is a mistake per Dr. Lee's book that I told you about. That would mean your GP doesn't know a thing about what he's doing. Go to a gynocologist at least that is friendly to hopefully bioidentical hormones and get them to give you help.

Or do what I did, just get the book and the over the counter cream!

Also if you do get the progesterone pill and it wears out by morning like I told you it will, my doctor friend told me I could still take the 1/4 teaspoon of cream in the morning, the over the counter progesterone. Your doc won't tell you that because again, they want to be the one to control the dose you take, not you, the patient, like Dr. Lee's book explains.

Most sources say you can't take the oral progesterone pill and the over the counter cream; doctors, you'll see it on websites, etc. I'm just telling you what I was told by a doctor I knew as a personal friend as I've already mentioned.

Also, if you are still perimenopausal, you may only need 1/8 tsp. of over the counter cream to start, not 1/4. If that doesn't stop your neuropathy pain or greatly reduces it, then go with 1/4.

This are just some tips to get you started.

Go back in time Aussie Mom, back before you had PN and good luck to you.

Also, want to relay one more little conversation I had with Doc George to those of you who would say, "I'm not willing to take the health risks to try hormone replacement therapy! I'll deal with my pain and stay safe!"

Guess what; if you agree with Dr. Lee's book - you're not safe anyway. At menopause, your risk for estrogen fed cancers goes up, that's because most if not all of your progesterone has drained away and left you 'estrogen dominant.'

We had a friend, Ayla, my brother's best friend's wife (from Germany). She was 40 when we went to her funeral. She had been battling breast cancer for six or seven years. After reading Dr. Lee's book - I said to Doc George, "Oh My God!!!!! She died from an estrogen fed cancer!!!!!" He said, "Happens everyday."

So don't think you're safe with your pain, that's all I'm sayin'

Once again, that is if Dr. Lee is right and Doc George and all of the other bioidentical docs and now the conventional docs that also know about progesterone and estrogen dominance. All of that is considering that you still have a uterus and ovaries... or even just ovaries still churning out estrogen... even in reduced amounts.

Think about it, who gets cancer more often, young people or old people? People whose hormones have drained away because they are older, they get most of the yucky stuff, arthritis, heart disease, God you name it, I don't have to. Just don't think you are safe because you decide against some medical treatement or another, you're just not. So I said, "What the H.E. double hockey sticks, why not try a little over the counter cream and see if it improves the light burning in my legs."

(Note again, this place brought me to manageable, and I will be forever greatful. I was scared to come here because I knew I was going to see more horror stories and I was already scared. But Mrs. D and the others, they kept answering my posts so fast and I did not feel alone. This place is a Godsend, make no mistake about it. Then again, there is a Japanese proverb, I believe it's Japanese - it's about business, I heard it in business school, "Fix the problem, not the blame." That goes for medical issues too now, methinks.)

Hey Mrs. D... Love ya'

Also, just another quick note - why be in charge of how much progesterone you use per day? Other than the fact that Doc Lee gives in his book about how hard your liver has to work if you take it orally vs. whether you take it transdermally (meaning use the over the counter progesterone cream or the progesterone cream from a compounding pharmacy)....

The other issue for me has been phytoestrogens. Phytoestrogens are plants, vegetables, nuts, etc.. that act like weak estrogen in the body. For example number one most powerful phytoestrogen 1. Flax Seeds, 2. Soy bean / milk, other products. This is "karen's order" of powerfulness... there are different types of phytoestrogens that do different things because of the different things they are composed of - feel free to google;

Soy beans, soymilk helps with mental alertness, fighting menopausal brain fog (supposedly, for some people, it did for me) but - for me soy products brought back leg nerve burning. Another hopeful benefit dashed by PN.

Flax seeds, suggested by many here, still helps with brain fog, although not as good, but acts (for me) as an anti-inflammatory and helps with the neuropathy and the arthritis. Since I can't take fish oil supplements, I go with flaxseeds and flaxseed oil, lots of it. But, I have to dab on more progesterone cream during the day because of the huge amount of phytoestrogens I am ingesting.... if I don't the hotflashes will come back. I am 'upping my estrogen', sort of, as far as phytoestrogens go, anyhow.

I also take/eat flax seeds because some say it actually fights true estrogen to take it's place in the workings of the body therefore limiting one's risk for estrogen fed breast cancer (and other estrogen fed cancers). You will find articles that say flaxseeds help (phytoestrogents) fight cancer and you will also find articles that say flaxseeds and other phytoestrogens should be limited because they help cause cancer. Hey, take your pic. Here's just one, I haven't read it fully, don't need to, already seen so many my eyes cross when they come up. Decided to go pro-flaxseed because I need it for my knees, it really did decrease my cholesterol, per a test, with numbers on it, that I could see. That was a happy day.

http://www.cancer.org/treatment/trea...erals/flaxseed

BUT, the reason you and not your GP nor your OBGYN should control the amount of progesterone you use per day is because your ingestion of phytoestrogens varies. Here's a list of common phytoestrogens, they are every darn where....


PS I also eat walnuts to get more omega 3 - can't use fish oil - and pistachios I have found have a very calming effect and nerves if something stirs them up, both phytoestrogens... (Just a list I googled, feel free to google your own list, articles abound concerning phytoestrogens)

**Flaxseed and flaxseed oil (3 x as potent as soy in some studies!)

**Soy, soy oil, soy protein isolate, tofu, textured vegetable protein, and all of it’s derivates

All beans:

*Mung beans

*Bean sprouts

*Chick peas

Peas

*Sesame, sesame seeds, and sesame oil

*Sunflower seeds

*Fennel

*Alfalfa

*Licorice

*Verbena

*Tumeric ( I told you this was a phytoestrogen already, didn't I)

*Thyme

*Red Clover

*Yucca

Cinnamon

Sunflower seeds

*Red Clover leaf and extract

Garlic

Olive Oil

Apricot (especially dried)

Prunes (dried)

Dates (dried)

Sweet Potatoes

Parsley

Thyme

Whole grains: Rye, *Oat, Barley, Millet, Wheat, Corn, Quinoa

*Most nuts:

Chestnuts

Almonds

Peanuts

Cashews

Walnuts

Hazlenuts

Pistachios

And to a somewhat lesser extent the fruits and vegetables…

Blackberries

Pomegranate

Asparagus

Winter squash

Broccoli

Green beans

Collards

Onions

And the substances…

*Hops

*Marijuana

Thanks for listening, good like and May the Force Be With you All

NOTE; the reason one phytoestrogen might affect your neuropathy positively, yet another negatively, is because there are different classes of them, google away... one class of them might work well for you, another might not. Flaxseeds and Soy beans, for example, are in two different classes. One works for me, one does not.

Wow, Karen this is great! Hope you are still around when I am ready to tackle the hormone issue. Right now I am starting another protocol, one thing at a time. But hormones and adrenal issues are next. Hope you keep in touch here!

Aussie sorry, I forgot you were not in the US, hope you have blood test labs there, it sure it helpful to be in charge of your own lab tests.

Anyone with peripheral neuropathy who is in peri-menopause should already be looking into bioidentical hormone replacement therapy.... Ayla died at 40 from breast cancer, she fought breast cancer from the age of 33... she should have probably been on progesterone cream before that, before the estrogen fed cancer got her. That was my point to doctor G. My sister, an RN, is 46 and started on the progesterone cream. Read the book, there's one specifically on peri menopause.... it can take seven years of peri menopause before actual menopause, from what Iv'e read (if that be true)... Some people have menopause early, it runs in their families, even in their thirtees. Then there's young people with bad pms that use the progesterone cream.

One thing I did was google "progesterone cream" and "discussion forums"... then you can come up with all kind of reports that regular folk who are trying it are saying. Some forums are mostly about people using it because of hysterectomies, others are about PMS, still others are about menopause. I did a lot of that.

I'm no expert on it. In fact you can compare what one bioidentical doc thinks to another bioidentical doc, and they will believe different things on similar topics. That's why I just decided to go and read what the average chick was saying. I had to just try it. I kept googling and reading and finding clues here and there; but in the end, the truth is what works for you but doesn't do you in. I don't know if I should put a LOL after that or not

I was just realizing how lucky I was that my neurologist either didn't know anything or just plain didn't do didly squat. If I had, and he would have hopped me up on various drugs and painkillers, I would have never gotten to the root of the problem. I would not be here telling you people that guess what, I can remember what it's like to be oblivious to the horrors of PN again. Lately, It's been like it was before I had it.

Be a seeker. Be a googler. Use the search feature here to lead you to clues. You have to be willing to try supplements.

Also; my friend Ayla was heavy.... all her life. The heavier you are the more estrogen your body produces. Therefore, in my humble opinion and just as a conclusion of my own research/googling, the more of a need she had for protection with Progesterone cream.

One thing I guess my neurologist had right was to tell me to get my weight down as low as possible. In his opinion, that seemed to be the 'one and only answer to PN.' That was right because the thinner you get, the less estrogen your body produces (and if you are not using progesterone cream and your progesterone is gone or nearly gone), then the less symptoms you will have from estrogen dominance... one such of those symptoms being neuropathic pain, pricking, tingling and you know all the madness. BUT, I bet my life that this doc of mine has NO CLUE that bringing weight down eases symptoms of estrogen dominance and thus is WHY bringing your weight down eases pn symptoms (a little, it ain't nothin' to write home about, trust me.. nothing compared to progersterone cream relief!).

No clue. I ain't gonna educate him either. I just wrote it on my list of stuff I take, walzted in with a big smile plastered to my face, pointed out the new progesterone cream on my list and told him to the effect of "that stuff's the bomb!!!!!" He won't believe me anyhow so why waste my breath?

Higher blood sugar makes PN worse we all know. Higher blood sugar also makes ppl fat. Fat people make more estrogen.. its the higher estrogen load IN MY HUMBLE OPINION FROM SELF EXPERIMENTATION that causes PN misery.. that and the fact that once those hormones start draining out of your body, your body just no longer processes sugar as well as it used to. Your driving reflexes are as hot either, neither is your recall, you need reading glasses, the list goes on and on.

Even if you took at look at Dr. G. cancer video I posted, he said that just reducing calories can cause other problems including muscle wasting and hormonal imbalances. So hey = it ain't just one thing, it's a symphony and you may need to adjust the tunes of several instruments...

I have lost 60 pounds and it has helped a lot of things but not my pn.

Well, I had already briefly looked into things like suzane summers books and stuff as I know I need to, so this is something on my radar. Thanks for all the helpful info you have shared Karen. If you do not come here often anymore I would love if you privately sent me a pm with your email addy so I can keep in touch with you.

Again, I am so very happy for you. It gives hope to hear your story!

Dr. Dzugen has good books also. I have Suzanne's books and others too.