Take Hormones Once a Day in the Morning by Joseph J Collins, RN, ND 

Your body makes testosterone, progesterone, estrogens, DHEA, cortisol, thyroid hormones, etc., on a 24 hour basis. The science on this is indisputable. So, twice a day dosing is one of those things that have become common practice, even though twice a day dosing is not grounded in good science. Your hormone levels are naturally higher in the AM and lower in the evening. The drop in hormone levels at the end of the day actually signals the body that it needs to make “another batch” of hormones. The daily cycle of hormone production is described as a “circadian” rhythm – a 24 hour rhythm. 

The daily high and low values both signals the need for more hormone production, and help decrease the risk of developing hormone resistance – a situation where the cells of the body become resistant to hormone messages because the hormones do not drop as they should.

If hormone levels do not drop, and send too strong a signal – like they are yelling at the cells all the time – then the cells start to resist the hormone message. If some of these hormones are too high in the evening, they interfere with the release of night-time hormones. Elevated evening estrogens interfere with growth hormone release. So, it does not make sense to take estrogen twice a day if a woman wants her skin to stay young and healthy.

More detail and references are included on page 277 – 280 of Discover Your Menopause Type. 

And yes, some women are given progesterone at night to help them sleep. This means progesterone is being used as a sleeping agent. Does it work? Apparently it does. But using progesterone this way is counter to the design of the body because progesterone is naturally higher in the morning. There are other ways to restore healthy sleep. 

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