Hormonal Happiness
Many women come to my practice with health concerns relating to hormonal imbalances. These include
premenstrual, menopausal, and peri and post menopausal problems. The symptoms they experience run
the gambit from mood swings to fatigue, headaches, irregular bleeding, hot flushes, pain, cramps, and
insomnia. Such symptoms can be caused by various types of imbalance including estrogen or progesterone
excesses or deficiencies. A lab workup is helpful to look at hormone levels and to get an idea of what is
actually going on.
Many therapeutic options are available to treat hormonally related symptoms. Some physicians favour
replacing the deficient hormone with synthetic or natural hormone i.e. hormone replacement therapy or
HRT. However, hormonal balance is a very complex issue and simply having someone take the deficient
hormone may cause more disruption in a complex cycle and will not likely correct the reason for the
imbalance.
Personally I favour working with the body to achieve balance. HRT of any sort should be a last resort
(read the list of side effects of HRT, birth control pills and other hormone supplements – scary!).
Fortunately we have many natural therapies to help the body restore balance and vitality. These include
homeopathic remedies which can act so dramatically that some of my patients have called them miracles
in a bottle. Individualized herbal prescriptions and many nutritional products also work wonderfully to
ease hormonally mediated symptoms.
Ideally, we address the underlying causes in any particular case. Even without specific therapies most
women will improve somewhat when they begin to attend to the basics of health. These include:
Diet – eat real unprocessed whole foods, organic if available and affordable with adequate protein,
essential fatty acids, and minimal sugar and refined carbohydrates.
De-stress – Take time to breath fresh air, walk, and do something fun everyday. Take up journaling or
meditation.
Detox – A cleansing diet with liver supportive herbs and colon cleansing fibre helps your body regulate
hormone levels as the liver conjugates hormones. Also detoxing can help eliminate xeno estrogens,
pollutants which can wreak hormonal havoc in your body.
Exercise – The great balancer – Exercise promotes well-being in a number of different ways. Find a form
of exercise that suits you, ideally with both an aerobic and a strength component. Consider the gym, daily
walks, running, yoga, tai chi, sports.
For a personalized program to help you achieve hormonal happiness and regain your birthright of
vitality and well-being, call our office to schedule a consultation.