Endometriosis: Progesterone Resistance (Consequences and Natural Interventions)

Finding Health

With hormonal balancing, it all comes down to receptors found inside the uterus! Progesterone may relieve pain by limiting growth and inflammation in endometriosis but a portion of patients with endometriosis and pelvic pain do not respond to treatment with hormonal replacement therapy (birth control).

Endometriosis, an estrogen dependent and chronic inflammatory disorder, which disrupts progesterone responses throughout the reproductive tract, including in the uterus.

Women with endometriosis have significantly more estrogen receptors, resulting in the suppression of progesterone receptors. This is known as ‘progesterone resistance’. There is growing evidence that progesterone resistance in endometriosis is caused by chronic inflammation and reduced progesterone receptors.

A key obstacle towards the treatment of endometriosis is in helping the uterus overcome this phenomenon by increasing progesterone receptor expression and decreasing inflammation.

While this is not talked about often it is one of the key obstacles in which we discuss what is happening and some helpful suggestions on helping balance out hormones for endometriosis.