At any age or stage, your hormones may be out of balance. You may be fed up with stubborn weight gain, mood swings, fatigue, and other symptoms of hormone imbalances even though you eat healthy, exercise, and do all the right things.
Hormonal imbalances present unique health challenges (no matter your age) and a long list of life-s like hot flashes, anxiety, weightdraining symptoms.
Sadly, few conventionally trained health practitioners are equipped to address – or even recognize them. You may have experienced being dismissed by traditional healthcare providers and know that there must be a better way.
Most health practitioners accept this as part of life, don’t measure your hormones and if they do treat, it is a one size fits all approach using synthetic hormones that carry greater risk.
Menopause is a widely-known condition of hormone imbalance and rapidly becoming the most common as the number of women over 50 in the United States soars higher. Menopause is the top reason women seek hormone therapy.
Menopause often begins in a woman’s late 40s to early 50s, when her ovaries cease producing eggs and stop the subsequent release of hormones that initiates the monthly menstrual cycle.
Perimenopause is the stage just before menopause when a woman’s menstrual cycles begin to become irregular and she may be affected by symptoms similar to menopause. A woman is considered menopausal when her menstrual cycle has been absent for 12 consecutive months.
Perimenopause and menopause both leave many women struggling with their health, well-being, and even their sense of self. It’s hard to resume normal living when plagued by disruptive symptom gain, and fatigue. Some women may also be affected by more serious conditions such as endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), or cancer that can intensify the menopausal experience.
Hormone levels change dramatically during menopause, inducing the uncomfortable symptoms commonly associated with the condition. Hormones control almost every aspect of the body from temperature regulation to metabolism to the sleep cycle, so it’s no wonder that during menopause most women experience a wide range of frustrating issues. In reality, menopause doesn’t have to be like this! Restoring balance to your hormone levels can minimize or even reverse the symptoms.
The benefits of a comprehensive treatment plan for hormone balance extend well beyond addressing symptoms. At Practitioner name, we strive to deliver medically-based solutions to low testosterone and other conditions of aging affecting women.
Near the time of menopause, aka perimenopause, hormone levels can fluctuate widely. With the onset of menopause hormone levels decrease rapidly in many women. These fluctuations can cause symptoms such as:
Weight gain
Hot flushes
Mood swings
Sleep disturbances
Fatigue
Brain fog
Decreased libido
Women’s bodies begin to transition from the reproductive years at varying ages. The level of estrogen, the primary female hormone, often fluctuates during this time and can result in menopause-like symptoms: irregular periods and ovulation, fatigue, moodiness, as well as changes in libido, bone density, and cholesterol levels.
While the onset age varies, when a woman experiences a full year with no menstrual cycle her body has reached menopause. While this is often a time of positive transition, hormonal disruption (loss of estrogen) may cause tiredness, energy loss, and sadness. Physical symptoms can include hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, and weight gain.
A woman’s ovaries produce hormones including estrogen. If her ovaries are removed, post-surgical symptoms mimic menopause, even when the patient is younger than the typical menopausal age.
Testosterone is to men what estrogen is to women. Unusually low testosterone levels in men may affect sexuality, reproduction, muscle mass, mood, sleep, and bone density.
Low testosterone in women can show symptoms of low libido, fatigue, and slow metabolism, to name a few.
Counterintuitively, women can experience high testosterone, which may lead to a condition called Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), which is quite common in younger women. PCOS can be difficult to diagnose. High Testosterone levels can present with symptoms such as aggression, moodiness, and excess facial hair.
Also called underactive thyroid disease, hyperthyroidism is a common disorder. With hypothyroidism, your thyroid gland does not make enough thyroid hormone. When you do not have enough thyroid hormone, your body processes slow down, resulting in less energy and a sluggish metabolism.
PMDD is a severe form of Premenstrual Syndrome. Those who suffer from PMDD may experience physical changes including tiredness, bloating, and breast tenderness, as well as irritability, sadness, and extreme moodiness.
Hormone replacement can rebalance hormone levels, alleviate symptoms and restore vitality. One size does NOT fit all. At Vitality Renewal Functional Medicine, we carefully evaluate hormone levels, metabolism, lifestyle, and inflammation to customize the best plan for YOU. We consider multiple options including traditional pharmacies (as long as the hormones are bioidentical), compounding pharmacies, in-office injections, and longer-acting implantable pellets for continuous hormone release.
Do you have questions about starting your path back to health? Our patient coordinator is standing by, happy to answer any questions you have to determine if our approach is right for you.
Known for her successful approach towards chronic wellness issues, Jennifer Baer, Nurse Practitioner and her team at Horizons of Health combine an integrative, functional medicine approach.
Our unique approach to diagnosing and resolving chronic health issues recognizes that lasting health depends on resolving the root causes of your symptoms. Click here to learn more »
After you have reviewed the information on our website and in our downloadable guides, we’d love to hear from you – to answer more specific questions about our approach and track record.
Simply apply for a free discovery consult with our patient coordinator at (518) 755-6870 or via our online appointment scheduler.