Around the uterus in fourteen days: the luteal phase

@mcg1102 Love this post and everything I’ve read by its author to date.

Just a quick question re short luteal phase- typically 7-9 days- would this mean that even a fertilised egg wouldn’t have a chance to implant before getting washed out with a period? How can you lengthen a luteal phase? Any help appreciated- going on 6 months ttc.
 
@mcg1102 Is the presence of progesterone symptoms in the luteal please an indicator of a normal estrogen-progesterone balance? Or, is the lack of progesterone symptoms an indication that progesterone levels aren’t high enough and there could be an imbalance between the two?

I’ve seen breast tenderness listed as a progesterone symptom as well as an “estrogen dominance” symptom, along with other PMS symptoms like bloating, moodiness, etc. So I’m confused: What should we really be feeling in the luteal phase? Is it bad to feel those PMS symptoms? Is it better to have very little symptoms leading up to your period?

I’m also curious how temps fit into this: when progesterone levels rise, is that what causes BBT to increase?
 
@mamaoftwo Overall, symptoms or lack thereof aren't really an indication of anything -- it's possible either to have or not have subjective symptoms in the environment of healthy progesterone levels. There's no real "should" for what you feel, and it's fine to have whatever set of symptoms you have. These symptoms are not directly reflective of either progesterone or estrogen levels, and they don't tell you whether the cycle will be successful.

The term "estrogen dominance" is used more in the context of non-medical information about the cycle -- it's normal for estrogen levels to be high, even during the luteal phase, and there's not really evidence that "estrogen dominance" is an actual unique problem. I find it exceedingly suspect that most sources talking about estrogen dominance will list symptoms that are plainly attributable to progesterone levels -- for example, when I was taking progesterone for a fully medicated embryo transfer cycle, I had tender breasts and other symptoms that many of these sources would claim are due to estrogen dominance, but I had bloodwork to confirm that my estrogen and progesterone levels were as expected for the transfer. For the most part, I think most sources that talk about "estrogen dominance" are just trying to convince you there's something wrong with you.

When progesterone levels rise, this is what causes BBT to shift. It's a bit of a backwards mechanism: the rise in progesterone causes temps not to fall as far overnight, which appears as a shift in the chart when you take your temperature at the same time each day. But it's not actually raising your core temperature throughout the day, it's just not allowing it to fall as far overnight.
 
@mcg1102 So cramping during the luteal phase can just be from the rise of progesterone and not related to implantation? Also how does a very short cycle affect this process?
 
@scoutermommy Pretty much every symptom in the luteal phase is just a symptom of progesterone, and therefore will happen in ovulatory cycles regardless of whether they end in success.

There’s not really much of a change here for short cycles — this is all relative to ovulation, and development doesn’t happen faster for embryos in a short cycle vs. a long one.
 
@mcg1102 Thank you so much for typing out this post! It’s so helpful and reassuring to me with a shorter Luteal phase of 9 days… the right embryo will implant 🌱
 
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