Sometimes we can get focused on menopause (and andropause) and forget that younger women face health issues that can be traced back to hormonal imbalances. Several perceptive mothers I see as patients have asked: "Is there something that can help my college-aged daughter?" The answer is, "YES!- definitely yes!" Due to these recurring requests from my patients, I'm offering a class at Gordon Medical specifically for younger women on July 20, 2011 to provide additional information and options for treatment for the common issues they face. Please invite any of these women you know to attend by encouraging them to call and make a reservation for this informative evening "Your HORMONES affect SEX, STRESS, SLEEP & WEIGHT". For more information see the announcement section at the end of this issue. This newsletter, in fact, will focus on how to assess and treat imbalances for teens, young adults, child bearing women, and post-delivery.
Stress affects all of us at every stage of life. But it is our response to what is happening around us that determines what gets triggered in our physiology, positively or negatively. Some stress can be considered beneficial when it provides the necessary motivation. However, whenever we feel we don't have the ability to manage our circumstances, we generate a negative stress response. Typically we get caught up in the treadmill of life with demands from school/work, friends, boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse, family, kids, and our budgets..... and don't take regular breaks often enough to let ourselves really relax.
Over time, this type of stress has the most detrimental effect on our body and undermines all the hormonal systems - adrenals, sex hormones, thyroid, insulin, and neuro-transmitters. We begin to feel tired all the time, have food cravings, often gain weight, feel depressed and moody, can't think straight, get overwhelmed. We may also experience more PMS and other symptoms, face problems with fertility and how we feel about life in general.
Learning to stop to evaluate our stress and change our response to it, along with other supportive measures, can make a huge difference in getting things under control again. Taking simple yet significant steps to improve our diet, implement stress management, beginning to take daily vitamins and herbs or other supportive supplements, may be indicated for a period of time. The good news is we can revive our adrenals , balance our hormones, and feel the positive results in our life.
Often as clients implement these changes they report back in a couple of weeks amazed at how much better they already feel - even before we do any hormonal treatment.
When you are really stressed, the adrenal glands steal the sex hormones in your body, converting them into cortisol. This causes even more disruptive hormonal symptoms like heavy bleeding, severe cramps and PMS or totally stops periods. Taking birth control pills can also lower your hormonal levels, often creating progesterone and testosterone deficiencies, the latter leading to lowered libido in many women. Taking some needed hormones or specific supplements can often get this back in balance within 4-6 months of use or longer, depending on the goal. Many times young women I work with are surprised that these more natural therapies can eliminate PMS and other symptoms entirely.
As a young adult, I experienced extremely heavy menses that nearly kept me in bed or at least restricted my activities and quality of life for the first couple of days due to severe cramping and heavy bleeding. I was experiencing the effects of low progesterone, what is called "estrogen dominance." You could be too. Fortunately today there are good solutions for avoiding these problems.
In the July class, we'll talk about your thyroid and how it affects energy, weight, and the other hormones. We'll look at other issues that affect keeping a balanced weight; you might be surprised how it is not just about food and exercise. Understanding what can suppress your sexual and sensual self will also be discussed along with how to get a good night's sleep, even during finals!
If you find yourself, or someone you know, in an "in between" place, I encourage you to take the steps to get better in balance so you can create the life you want! Hope to see you in July where we will share our common experiences, review underlying causes, and provide options for you to consider in creating the health and vitality you really want!
Finding (hormonal) balance amidst the stress,
Jane Kennedy
Nurse Practitioner
Gordon Medical Associates
P.S. With special thanks to Robin for your continual, warm-hearted motherly concern and prodding!
Please send your comments or question to me at: jane@gordonmedical.com
