Progesterone in Pregnancy

The level of your progesterone in pregnancy rises far beyond your pre pregnancy level, which is about 1-28 ng/ml.

Progesterone is measured in nanograms per milliliter. Your doctor can test your progesterone levels and should be testing your levels throughout your pregnancy.

A low progesterone level may be a symptom of miscarriage.

Since puberty, your progesterone level
has been rising and falling in a constant monthly cycle. Progesterone and estrogen work together to create your menstruation cycle.

Progesterone is a hormone that helps your uterus become rich and able to support a pregnancy. Each month, you have been getting a boost of progesterone to prepare your uterus for a possible pregnancy.

If you don't become pregnant, your progesterone level falls, and you loose your uterine lining.

If you do become pregnant, your progesterone levels begin to rise. By your third trimester, you can have as much as 400 times the amount of progesterone as you had during pre pregnancy! Wow! That is quite a shift!

Luckily, our bodies are made to handle high amounts of progesterone.

Progesterone and Menopause

Yes, our bodies are made to handle high amounts of progesterone.

Unfortunately, our bodies are not made to handle the very low amounts of progesterone that we get during pre menopause and post menopause.

Since progesterone is mainly produced by our ovaries when we ovulate, when we stop ovulating, we stop producing much progesterone. For this reason, the level of a menopausal woman's progesterone is less than 1 ng/ml.

That low level can cause uncomfortable symptoms.

Return to Low Progesterone Level

Go From the Progesterone in Pregnancy page to the Estrogen Source Homepage.