Why I won’t recommend Primal Queen.
For those of you who come across this and are having an unpleasant reaction after started PQ, please know you are not alone. Nor are you a bad person for asking questions about reactions, side effects, or “does ____ get better/go away?” Some in here will say it didn’t happen to them so you must be the issue or you have to give it time to work. Depending on the severity and your comfort, these blanket answers are more harmful than uplifting. I have had some unpleasant reactions since starts PQ. If they didn’t happen to you, then yay. If it did, I am sorry. Some of these suck! While some side effects are getting better, some are still messing with me. Here is my experience with PQ.
Week 1: I started my first dose, 2 pills, on a Saturday. By Monday night I was uncomfortably boated. So much that if it was not a dress or an elastic waist band it was not being worn. Sadly for me I was leaving for a seven hour road trip the next morning. By hour 4, I was ready to yeet my bra out of the car window on 75. It felt so tight, as if it was cutting off circulation to my brain. All of the vacation photos have me looking 20 lbs heavier due to the bloat. It is in my midsection and face. Also something that started on that ride was me becoming so car sick I was begging my friend to pull over so I could get out of the car. Dramamine was taken and I was better the rest of the ride. That hasn’t happened to me since my first road trip to Memphis from Jacksonville when I was six. Thinking I was fine after we got to our destination, I realized the motion sickness was not isolated to moving vehicles. While I worked on my iPad that night and the next day, scrolling was making me nauseous. Working was not an option for a few days. At least it wasn’t necessary, just me not wanting to be behind on things while I was away. While one vacation, I have had the worst dry mouth. Drinking all the time, water or a Powerade, but my mouth is like the Sahara. Something else that is new is why am I so hungry now? The first day I noticed it I had eggs along with a yogurt parfait (fruit, granola, and sliced almonds) around 9a. By 11a I was starving. Not hungry. Starving. Light headed and jittery starving. You would think I hadn’t eaten in a week. So much so I was contemplating buying a $7 small bag of off brand chips at the gift shop of the place we were touring. Thank god we were almost done so we could go grab lunch. That was the best burger ever! The morning of us coming home I took two Dramamine to prepare for the seven hour drive home. By hour four I was nauseous from the car ride and my sunglasses felt as if they were squeezing my brain. Yay… I have more energy which is a plus. The need to pick up an energy drink in the morning is no longer there. At least I got one of the good effects.
Week 2: Last week I was experiencing headaches a few days in a row. At the time, I thought it was me on vacation, not on a normal sleep schedule and motion sickness in the car. Here it is 4-5 days after I first noticed the headaches and they are still lingering. They are not so bad they take me out for the day, but this is not the norm for me. Headaches are not something I have regularly. As of last week, I have upped my water intake due to dry mouth. Every day I bring a 40 oz cup with me to stay hydrated. Usually I fill the cup 2-3 times a day to stay hydrated. Since starting PQ, I am filling and drinking 4-6 of the cups. That doesn’t seem to help with my dry mouth at all, which only started after taking PQ. Sad to say there is a new side effect which is my head/scalp has become sensitive to how I wear my hair. For work and Florida Summers putting all of my hair in a bun or braid is part of my morning routine. Since starting PQ, even a loose side braid causes too much tension. All day I am battling with putting my hair up just to take it back down. Bloating is better as in it is non existent in the morning but it gets worse as the day goes on. It is most evident in the evenings which makes falling asleep difficult. Rocking a baby to sleep is not fun when I am now having to close my eyes while I pray he falls asleep quickly so the nausea coming from rocking doesn’t make me sick. I cannot read books at this time because reading on my Kindle or iPad (my preferred way to read) makes me nauseous as well. Yay for audiobooks. Having more energy is good, but now I cannot fall asleep at a normal time. My body is so wired that I am up until midnight or later when I woke up at 6/6:30a (when I take both pills) to start the day. That needs to end. I am up at normal time for me, but my eyes and brain are tired which I start to feel around 9p. While it feels like my body is up and fine, my brain is in a sleep haze while my eyes are burning from being awake for so long.
Week 3: Here I am, three weeks later taking two pills every morning. Hungry, awake but not sleeping enough, not as much nausea as long as I drive, no recreational reading, or rocking for too long because the baby is fighting sleep. Why am I still so hungry? Having a dinner of steak, pork chops, lamb, or salmon is enough protein. When the social media moderators in here tells you “some women experience hunger after starting PQ, but you shouldn’t so you need to change...” do not let her gaslight you into thinking this is a you issue. It is a side effect. It is an issue. Moderators should not tell you to ignore any adverse side effects while waiting for your levels to even out which they have to time line for. Especially if the only answer to said side effects is “everyone is different.” Dude. I know we are all different. That is why I ask so anyone feeling the same has any insight to it getting better or not. My snack for the week was guacamole with pita chips or veggies. So that helped some instead of being jittery from hunger all day. I said “some” because at the end of the day, around 9p-10p, the need to eat is still strong. The painful bloating is gone now, but it is still there by dinner time then seems to get worse if I eat dinner. With the cravings, skipping is not an option. After a few bites I am left uncomfortable. Unfortunately I feel bigger now. My work clothes fit differently which is a sign of my body changing. When it’s time for bed, my stomach feels like it is being pushed on as well. So something is off. I will wait to weight myself at the end of the month to see if it is only bloat or weight gain that is the cause. It isn’t just my stomach either. My ankles are swollen, as well as my hands and wrists. By mid day I need to take off my rings and adjust my watch to a larger size. Most days I wear T-shirts for work. All of the neck openings are too constricting. Many days I think of grabbing my scissors to cut a slit in the neck opening so I can breathe easier. My scalp is still sensitive which is giving me mild headaches daily. One day was a beach day where I wore a hat. Within an hour of being out here the hat felt so tight that I could not wear it anymore. Thankfully I have an umbrella for my chair. It didn’t help while cooling off in the water, but at least the pressure feeling was gone.
Week 4: Nope. Who needs another week of taking something that is making me feel this bad? If it works for you, yay. That is so awesome and I am happy you found something that makes you feel better in a good life change way. If it does not, babe, I am sorry. First off, you are not alone. Do not think this is a you thing. This just isn’t for us. Whether you stopped at two weeks or six months, if it doesn’t work for you do not think you are the issue. Not everything will be beneficial to everyone. For me this was a no go.
One week off PQ-My sleep schedule is still a mess, but at least I am not waking up sweaty with my covers thrown off. The food cravings are mostly gone, but I find myself eating bigger meals. That in turn has me feeling stuffed so that is a work in progress. My bloating is gone. Finally! Unfortunately, the three weeks of hunger cravings helped me gain 6 lbs. Fabulous. As for energy, I do not need an energy drink or coffee in the mornings so maybe yay for PQ helping me not reaching for one before walking out the door. I do wonder if this will be temporary or permanent. My headaches are gone, no more nausea, and the scalp sensitivity is gone as well. While on PQ, I was extremely irritable. It was strange as that is not my go reaction to conflict or inconvenience. That seems to be less of an issue, but I can feel the signs of me becoming irritated so I am having to step away to collect myself to prevent it from getting worse. Hopefully that will be a thing of the past soon.
One month off of PQ and I am almost back to me. All of the adverse side effects I was experiencing are either gone or just a whisper of what it was. My sleep pattern is still a little off, but much better. By that, I mean I am waking up once a night which is new for me. Luckily it isn’t so bad that I am up for long periods of time or has me tired in the mornings. That seems to be the worst of what is lingering. The next most notable is my weight gain from being on PQ for three weeks. That is a work in progress which I know will take time and effort to be rid of. What makes me happy is the want to eat large meals/bigger portions and snack frequently has faded to almost nonexistent. Wonderful! Feeling bloated and stuffed everyday due to the cravings I was having from PQ was not fun. Being on PQ even messed with my cycle as well, prompting me to take a few pregnancy tests since my period was almost three weeks late when I am like clockwork.
In my personal experience and what I have seen, the moderators only answers are extremely scripted to gaslight consumers into believing they are the issue for not taking PQ correctly or giving it time to for their bodies to adjust. Funny how they cannot give a direct answer as to how long that could take, with answers ranging from two weeks to six months for the same side effects. Yes, they are correct that everyone reacts differently to new meds/supplements. What is concerning is responding with a blanket statement which gives off the impression that PQ and moderators will only acknowledge good side effects in the FB group while they try to squash anyone not raving about the product.
For those that use the reason “why not try it since they have a money back guarantee?” That guarantee is not for a full refund. It is only for your last order and you are responsible for return shipping. That I have emails to PQ stating as much. If the unused product does not make it to PQ, they will not refund you either. So, say someone uses the product for three months with a monthly subscription before deciding that it is not for them. Only the last order is refunded after they pay for return shipping, not three months worth.
So in short, I will not recommend this product. If someone asks about it I will share my adverse side effects so that know it is not all good. People need to know the bad as well. Hiding it from the public, or blaming someone for not having a raving experience with a product is just bad behavior and bad business.