Research

I've been doing some research on the Fertility Friends message boards to see what I can do to up my progesterone. I've seen a lot of mention of Vitex, which I am in the process of researching more.

I found this:
http://www.chinese-herbs.org/vitex/vitex-and-women-infertility.html

Vitex and Women Infertility: The Miracle Herb

Quite few people live their lives just to enjoy living. Many more are sure one of our main tasks here is to produce the new life. Therefore, they all want to have babies, but not all succeed.

In the estimated 50% of cases couples cannot have children because of the female infertility. The most common problems in women, which lead to the impossibility to get pregnant, are Ovulatory disorders. Most often they are caused by hormonal imbalances in women. The Ovulatory Disorders include: - Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (a condition, when follicles don’t develop properly and an egg cannot mature. This is caused by the imbalance of luteinizing hormone, leading to the excessive production of estrogen. The disease manifests itself through heavy and/or irregular periods.) - Hyperprolactinemia (the excessive production of prolactin by the pituitary gland, resulting in irregular or no ovulation) - Hypothalamic Amenorrhea (a condition of irregular or no ovulation due to the imbalance of the hypothalamus gland work)

Nature is wise – it has remedies against the majority of human diseases, but we are sometimes not smart enough to notice them and use properly. One of the nature’s creations, which help overcome female infertility, is Vitex.

This plant has the ability to regulate human hormonal levels. The extract from the fruit, containing flavonoids, iridoid glycosides, and terpenoids, affects the activity of the pituitary gland, forcing it to produce more luteinizing hormone, which results in the increased production of progesterone. Larger doses of it are necessary to achieve normal and regular ovulation, which, as a result, helps become pregnant. Irregular ovulatory function can be restored by Vitex, since it can prolong the luteal phases.

Vitex also keeps prolactin levels in check, decreasing them if they are mildly elevated. (Prolactin is necessary for milk production during the breastfeeding, but it inhibits ovulation.)

Vitex can also be helpful after discontinuing the use of birth pills to restore normal ovulation.

The extract of the plant has no immediate effect, but multiple trials show that some women, whose infertility is associated with hormonal imbalances, can get pregnant after 3 months of treatment with Vitex preparations (1.8 ml per day of the fluid extract or 35-40 mg of encapsulated powdered plant.) However, the usual treatment period is from 12 to 18 months.

There also exists information, which suggests that Vitex can work increasing hormonal levels in those women, who lack them, and decreasing them in those, who suffer from their excessive amounts. This makes Vitex a kind of a miracle herb, which knows what is better for a woman’s body and can work like an experienced doctor to make the weaker sex happier.

I think this is definately something to look into and possibly try. I just wonder what the effects of taking it with clomid are. Off to do more research....