Webinar replay: Missing the Mark on Progesterone: What Most Menopause Doctors Get Wrong
Most providers mean well. But when it comes to progesterone, they're often missing a critical piece of the puzzle, one that affects how women feel, how they sleep, how their brains function, and how their bodies age.
After the Women’s Health Initiative in 2002, menopause medicine was largely abandoned. Training programs stopped, and for years, providers were taught to avoid hormone therapy altogether. Now, as awareness rises again, we’re seeing menopause training return, but much of it is still incomplete, and in some cases, inaccurate.
Progesterone is one of the clearest examples. Many providers were trained to think of progesterone as secondary to estrogen, to believe that oral progesterone is the only effective progesterone option, or to switch women straight to a synthetic progestin if oral progesterone isn’t tolerated.
The science tells a very different story, and when medical mentors or teachers don’t fully understand the biochemistry themselves, those gaps get passed on to the next generation of clinicians, ultimately impacting the way women are cared for.
This webinar is for both providers and women:
Providers will gain clarity on the misunderstood science of progesterone, fill in training gaps, and learn insights from decades of real-world clinical practice.
Women will leave feeling informed and empowered, with the knowledge they need to make confident choices about their own care.
Join Dr. Phyllis Bronson, Carol Petersen, RPh, and host Jill Chmielewski, RN, as they shine a light on the overlooked truths about progesterone that could transform the way we care for women, not only in menopause, but throughout every stage of life.
We also address some of the most frequently asked and debated questions about progesterone, including dosing and delivery methods, progesterone “intolerance,” testing, bleeding patterns, and more.
About Phyllis Bronson, PhD
Phyllis Bronson, Ph.D., holds a doctorate in biochemistry. Her ongoing research involves studying the biological impact of molecules on mood and emotion. Dr. Bronson works with women who have hormone-based mood disorders, utilizing her original research on human identical hormones. She lives in Aspen, Colorado, and is President of Biochemical Consulting and The Biochemical Research Foundation. Dr. Bronson is the author of Moods, Emotions, and Aging: Hormones and the Mind-Body Connection, and has authored many articles, which can be found here.
About Carol Petersen, RPh, CNP
Carol Petersen is an accomplished compounding pharmacist with decades of experience helping patients improve their quality of life through bioidentical hormone replacement therapy. She graduated from the University of Wisconsin School of Pharmacy and is a Certified Nutritional Practitioner. Her passion for optimizing health and commitment to compounding is evident in her involvement with organizations including the International College of Integrated Medicine and the American College of Apothecaries, the Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M), American Pharmacists Association and the Alliance for Pharmacy Compounding.
She was also the founder and first chair for the Compounding Special Interest Group with the American Pharmacists Association. She chairs the Integrated Medicine Consortium, an umbrella group for complementary medicine organizations. She cohosts a radio program, “Take Charge of Your Health,” in the greater New York area. She is on the Medical Advisory Boards for the Centre for Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research (CeMCOR.ca) and the Institute for Bioidentical Medicine (IOBIM.org). She also writes and edits for A4M’s website www.worldhealth.net and is a co-producer of “Immortality Now” podcasts. She offers personal consultations at www.thewellnessbydesignproject.com.
Video Timestamps
00:00 Welcome and Introduction
1:28 Post-WHI: menopause training resurfaces, but progesterone is still misunderstood
3:34 Biochemistry confirms: transdermal progesterone works, but clinicians aren’t taught this
7:15 Progesterone and compounding pharmacies
8:01 Historical Studies on Progesterone: Understanding the distinction between progesterone and progestins is critical for women’s health
14:35 Progesterone’s Role in Mood and Anxiety
19:27 Progesterone Dosage and Administration
24:02 Progesterone in Pregnancy and Bone Health
29:26 Progesterone isn’t just a luteal phase hormone
39:47 Progesterone and vascular health
46:41 Progesterone, cortisol, and stress
52:24 Progesterone Intolerance and the Microbiome
1:01 Understanding estrogen-beta receptors and anti-cancer research
1:05 FSH: Markers of Menopause and Aging
1:08 Addressing hormonal issues in teenagers
1:13 The impact of birth control on young women’s mental health
1:19 Progesterone intolerance and mood disorders
1:26 Mirena IUD and oral progesterone
1:28 Addressing breast inflammation with iodine + progesterone
1:33 Closing
Links mentioned in the webiner
Bioidentical Hormones 101 by Dr. Jeffrey Dach - An incredible and well researched book with a brilliant chapter on breast cancer and HRT
The Institute of Bioidentical Medicine (IOBIM) was founded by Dr. Daved Rosensweet.
Ona’s Naturals - offers over-the-counter topical progesterone
Stress Maintenance - by Metabolic Maintenance (supports the GABA pathway)
Iodine: Why You Need It, Why You Can't Live Without It by Dr. David Brownstein