Hi Katleen,

I have been on Progynova before. Not in the same circumstances as yourself, but during one of my IVF cycles. I had similar symptoms to you during the cycle in which I was on Progynova - particularly the anxiety and low energy levels that you mention. However I seemed to be even more sensitive again to the equivalent of your taking Duphaston - I was using Progesterone pessaries, which are pretty common to be prescribed here in Australia rather than Duphaston.

What I'm trying to get at is that the symptoms you describe are not at all uncommon for women on various types of HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy) to experience, whether for IVF, ovulation induction, cycle support etc. Some woman seem to be sensitive to oestrogen equivalents (Progynova - such as yourself) whilst other woman are sensitive to progesterone equivalents (Duphaston, Crinone, Progesterone pessaries - which I was).

I appreciate that the symptoms and side effects are really nasty and I'm sorry that you're experiencing them - I really can empathise. Do you drink a lot of water during the day? My best suggestion to counteract the side effects is to make sure you are drinking a good 2L of water a day - your body can manage the hormones to it's best capacity when you are well hydrated.

I know that there are other HRT drugs on the market that are used for thickening the lining of the uterus out there (i.e. oestrogen replacement) but I don't know anything about what they are and whether there are less side effects on them. My instinct tells me that you may find that you experience the same sort of symptoms on another drug as it is your body responding to the hormone and your sensitivity to the hormone levels in your body, rather than just the named drug itself. However, it's definitely worth speaking to your fertility specialist about the side effects you're experiencing and whether he thinks being on another form of oestrogen replacement (or even an altered dose - depending on your response to the dose you're on currently) would help.

Good luck, and I hope my experience and thoughts are helpful.

Miss C