Lady Woes w/ my WOE - HaYwIrE hOrMoNeS


(Jackie Blue) #1

Hi! I’m hoping some ladies with more Keto and hormone issue experience can give me some guidance.

Hubby and I have been doing Keto for 6 wks now.
He has about 50# to lose,
I have maybe 20#.
The real attraction for me is the anti-inflammatory benefit and increased stamina/energy.
Hubby basically just cut carbs and sugar out and doesn’t worry ablout counting macros and is losing weight effortlessly.
I am being super strict, counting macros, blood test every morning and every evening, moderate exercise, gave up caffeine when I went Keto, homemade clean food recipes, etc… and I haven’t lost an ounce.
I have noticed a tremendous increase in energy, reduction in inflammatory pain, incredibly vivid and lucid dreams and increased mental focus, tho.

Contrary to everything Keto, fasting seems to make my Keto numbers drop, so i’m Holding off on trying to do more than skipping breakfast so far.

So here’s my main issue: I am 47 and just barely starting to flirt with perimenopause. Like we haven’t made it to first base or anything yet, just barely held hands a time or two. I was due for my special
Lady time right after starting Keto. It was 25 or so days late and I had insane hot flashes. Like 5th circle of hell hot flashes. And I never had any before. Then I got my period and it never stopped. It’s been 14 days straight now. It’s not terrible, but the fatigue, sore, tender breasts and achy back and joints are crushing my Keto high. I feel bloaty and sluggish and my Keto numbers now seem to have dipped from a twice daily reading of 1.5ish to 0.5 no matter how long i’ve delayed eating or what time of day I test.
I finally went to see my lady parts Dr. today. She knows nothing about the effects of Keto on hormones and is already going to defcon 5 due to my geriatric Vag status. I thought I was going in to talk and learn about what diet can do to hormones, but I got a uterine biopsy, bloodwork to check hormone levels, a prescription for progesterone pills for 10 days and have to have an ultrasound next week.
I think it’s pretty unlikely that I have reproductive cancer, fibroids, endometriosis, polyps or nodules that just popped up when I started Keto, but what do I know?
Do more experienced Keto women know if this is just something that Keto can do to some women of a certain age?
I picked up the prescription for the progesterone pills but the list of potential side effects really has me wavering. My flow isn’t heavy at all, but it’s definitely steady and increasing slightly. The Dr. says I really need the pills to stop it. Anybody else menstruated this long on / due to Keto and had it taper off on its own?

Guess what happens the day you stop the pills:
You get a period!!
So, it could all be for nothing and could just start all over again if this is just what Keto does to me.

My final big question: are there just some ppl that Keto isn’t right for? I felt great for about 3 weeks there, but right from day 1, I haven’t gotten the benefits or had it work for me like it is supposed to. Ketosis starts to fade when I fast, i haven’t lost weight, my hormones are going wonky… any advice/experiences/resources appreciated!


(Allie) #2

Relax, it’ll happen. It’s infuriatingly much easier for men as their hormones are stable whereas ours are constantly up and down. Sounds like you’re doing things right and are well on the way to start losing the fat, already with positive improvements such as the increased energy.

Keto balances hormones, it starts happening from day one and may take a few months to balance properly but it does happen. While your body is sorting itself out and adjusting to the changes, you can get some really weird symptoms but they ease with time.

I’m no expert but to me it seems counter intuitive to artificially mess with hormones that are naturally trying to rebalance themselves.


(MelissaH) #3

Sorry your going through all this… you’ll have to let us know how your lab work turns out. When I started keto in August it messed with my hormones and time of the month as well. I think Allie is right that it just takes time for things to balance out. Another member here turned me on to an app called Myflo. It’s an interactive app that helps you understand your menstrual cycle, etc. It’s very interesting.


If your metabolism is messed up due to hormones it will take time but try changing some things up.


(Michelle) #4

Oh your posts are so fun to read!

The first three months of keto I had crazy periods. 18-21 day cycles. I’m 43 and we are reckless and Catholic so I was scared to let hubby touch me. I kept on with Keto and, five months in, I’ve had normal cycles for two months. I think that the diet blows through your body fat so quickly that the fat dumps its estrogen (you have estrogen in fat cells). Your uterus doesn’t know if the estrogen surge is coming from your ovaries or what, it just knows that the surge means to shed its lining. Then a week or two later your ovary might decide to do its monthly thing and BAM! another period. So you’re likely getting anovulatory cycles in the midst of your ovulating cycles. This explains why some post menopausal women have experienced some bleeding. Their ovaries aren’t coming out of happy hibernation. Their fat cells are talking to the uterus.


(Diane) #5

In addition to any hormones that are released into the rest of your body when you are burning energy out of your fat cells, the increased fat in your diet has an effect on your hormones.

Increased dietary fat (especially saturated fat and cholesterol) are needed by so many of our body systems that when we finally provide enough in our diets, a lot of healing and rebalancing happens. I was nearly menopausal when starting keto (approaching the 6 month mark since my last period). Within the first week, I started a full on period. Every time I’ve fasted for more than 3 days, I get another period. One was very light but lasted for somewhere between 3-4 weeks. Women’s keto journeys seem to be more complicated than men’s due to the naturally cyclical nature of our hormone fluxuations.

I wish you well! Keep us updated as to how you’re doing.


(Jessica) #6

I’m 39 and my cycles went crazy, too. In fact, there’s a big huge thread about it. I’ll see if I can find it and link it for you. But yeah. Long, light periods have by my new normal. I’m happy to say it seems to have finally leveled out, and people tend to tell that story. Body goes nuts, then figures out you’re not trying to kill it and it chills out.


(Jessica) #7

(Jackie Blue) #8

Oh, so you also have 5 or so kids? You know what they call ppl who chart their cycles and take their basal temps and all that: Parents! Bwahaha!

If we had tried keto back when we were still charting and pulling the goalie as birth control, we’d probably have 12 kids instead of 5!


(Jackie Blue) #9

This makes perfect sense. I wish I’d read it before the Dr. chomped a hunk of my uterus out, but better late than never!
This also explains why the prisoners have been so sore I could barely get them in a bra for the last cpl of weeks. I’ve got enough fat stores in my
Mams after nursing kids for 13.5 yrs straight to feed a small ketogenic nation.


(Jackie Blue) #10

I agree. I didn’t take the pills and the neverending cycle seems to be fading away already. I’m sure my real period will start tmrw now. Lol


(Michelle) #11

Well we have three here thanks to PCOS, and will meet the other five in heaven. It probably explains our recklessness - we haven’t really cared if we got pregnant the past 20 years of marriage, but we’re at that point where being in our 60s with teenagers doesn’t sound as sweet as being in our 40s with a newborn.


(Jackie Blue) #12

So, basically like hubby for the first decade of our marriage…