Do your Hormones make you feel like you're on a Rollercoaster Ride?

Adelaide Female Hormone Naturopath. Adelaide Women's Health Naturopath.

While premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is common, severe or debilitating symptoms are not normal and NO hormonal contraception isn't the only solution. Have you heard about important female reproductive hormones like oestrogen, testosterone or progesterone? They naturally fluctuate A LOT during an average menstrual cycle and as they change, they can have flow on effects to mood, emotions, energy, digestion and sleep. While it's common to notice moderately low energy or mild bloating right before your period, symptoms that are extreme in nature and interrupt your usual day to day life are not normal and may be a sign of a hormone imbalance.

Signs and symptoms associated with imbalanced hormones:

Irregular periods

Painful periods

Heavy periods

Acne

Insomnia

Constipation

Diarrhoea

Mood sings

Night sweats

Anxiety/depression

Low libido

Fluid retention

Weight gain

Extreme fatigue

Extreme food cravings

annoyed girl, the oc

Hormone Testing Options

Usually we refer clients for a mixture of mainstream blood tests to start with and if nothing out of the ordinary shows up that's when we dig deeper. Hormone blood tests are often quite general in nature as they are measuring the inactive version of your hormones. We can organise functional hormone testing to find out exactly how your body is producing, metabolising and excreting your female reproductive hormones over the course of your menstrual cycle. Usually these tests involve collecting saliva or urine samples across different points in your cycle, allowing us track active hormones and their metabolites. Additionally gut microbiome stool testing can be incredibly insightful (especially if gut dysfunction is a big factor for you) - our used hormones are broken down and eliminated via the gut so if this organ is not functioning optimally, hormones will suffer.

Quick Tips for Hormones

Take stress management seriously - when your brain perceives that you are stressed/overwhelmed regularly, it interferes with healthy female reproductive function. All of a sudden keeping you safe in the face of danger is your body's main priority and it will put reproductive health on the back burner. This is because "conceiving a child" in this state is not going to be viable. I understand that pregnancy isn't the only reason you want healthy hormones, (we know it impacts on our energy, mood and so much more) but your body is listening to and responding to primal cues to keep you and "potential offspring" safe. Stress management isn't about getting rid of stress all together but finding ways that lighten the load for you. For some people this might look like speaking to a psychologist or to a close friend, making time for a yoga class or to meditate, going for a walk without your headphones in or simply reading a book.

How can a Naturopath help to balance hormones naturally?

It all starts with recommending the right tests. The more specific information we have about your body, the more targeted and effective your treatment will be. We approach things holistically so treatment always factors in diet, water, caffeine and alcohol intake, digestion, stress management, exercise, toxic load, blood sugar control and sleep. On the whole, Naturopathic treatment will involve the use of targeted nutritional and/or herbal supplements with the long term goal to eventually ween off of all supplements and maintain balanced hormones through ongoing lifestyle and dietary modifications.

Are you ready to finally get to the bottom of your hormonal fluctuations, mood changes and low energy? Book a Naturopath appointment today.