Finding Peace: Balancing Hormones, Transforming Lives

“You’re a wreck,” the doctor pronounced. “Do you feel normal?”

The question took me by surprise. What did he mean by “normal”? I hadn’t felt “normal” for about as long as I could remember, which is why I was sitting in his office, unresponsive and confused. What I wanted to tell him, but couldn’t choke out the words, was that I had felt this way so long that I did not know what “normal” was anymore..

Instead, I described how abnormal I was feeling.

“I do bite my tongue every day to keep from lashing out in anger or crying at the drop of a hat,” I said tentatively, “or to stop me from melting down when little things upset me.”

After a thorough physical and a few tests, the doctor announced: “Thyroid, my dear, and you will be a new woman.”

I had my doubts. It couldn’t be that easy.

But after a month of bio-identical thyroid and adrenal supplementation, I was a new woman. And I still am.

Had it not been for a chance encounter with a friend who was a doctor, however, I might still be dealing with those symptoms—like countless other women nationwide.

Hormones: What They Do & Why

Hormones have the power to make women feel terrible, and they have the power to make women feel well, balanced, and healthy. While major fluctuations in hormones can indicate a serious medical condition, even minor fluctuations in hormones can impact how women feel, think, and behave.

“After your genetics. . . hormones are the next most important factor that determine your balance, your wellness, your weight, your life, and your health,” Dr. Ericka Schwartz, author of The Hormone Solution, told ParentWise.

In fact, the female brain is so deeply affected by hormones that their influence “can be said to create a woman’s reality,” says Dr. Louann Brizendine, a neuropsychiatrist at the University of San Francisco and author of The Female Brain. “[Hormones] can shape a woman’s values, desires, and tell her day to day what’s important…Their presence is felt at every stage of life, right from birth.”

Hormones begin to shape babies in the womb: they have a profound effect on brain development quite apart from the sexual regions of the brain. Indeed, the structure, function, and chemistry of a woman’s brain affect her mood, thought processes, energy, sexual drives, behavior, and well-being throughout her life, Dr. Brizendine says.

Hormones do more than simply regulate a woman’s menstrual cycle: they shape women from the inside out. They are chemical messengers made by a specific gland —like the thyroid gland or the adrenal gland—that instruct our cells what to do and how to do it. For this reason, hormones impact every cell of the body, so even minor fluctuations in hormone levels can impact how women or girls feel.

“When we have good levels of hormones and they are properly balanced, we feel well; we look good; we have good attitudes,” explains Dr. Steven Hotze, founder of the Hotze Health and Wellness Center in Houston and author of Hormones, Health, and Happiness.

Hormone Imbalance

Hormones can become imbalanced at any time during a woman’s or girl’s life. Typical triggers include the onset of puberty, the birth of a child, chronic stress, a woman’s age, and the environment. For many women, symptoms of hormone imbalance begin with mild discomfort, which they accept as “their plight in life”, says Dr. Hotze. Many woman also know that their mothers or sisters experienced similar symptoms, so they ignore the discomfort until it becomes too much to bear.

“Some women tell me ‘I haven’t been well since I had my first period,’” Dr. Hotze says. “They have been on a downward spiral for 20 or 30 years!”

“A lot of women chalk things up to aging,” says Dr. Amy Neuzil, a naturopath from the Excelon Health in Austin and author of Do It Yourself Health For Women (due out in August). Although hot flashes, insomnia, heavy bleeding, and PMS are common, they’re not necessarily “normal”. Just because lots of women experience these things “does not make them healthy to have,” she points out.

While symptoms like fatigue, “brain fog”, insomnia, and difficulty losing weight may not be life threatening, neither are they something women have to live with.

Unfortunately, many women think the symptoms of hormone imbalance are all in their head and therefore do not seek treatment. “In the past, people thought [PMS] was psychological,” explains Dr. Frank Minirth, author of Mood Swings and president of the Minirth Clinic in Dallas. “We now know that when estrogen drops, which it will each month, the chemical neurotransmitter serotonin also drops, causing people to feel more irritable or depressed.”

The good news is “these are all things that can be fixed,” says Dr. Neuzil.

The trouble is, seeking help can be a challenge. The Women’s Health Initiative (WHI), a government funded research project, abruptly ended part of its hormone trials in July 2002 because it became clear that certain traditional synthetic hormone therapies were doing more harm than good. Since then, however, no one clear medical method has emerged to take the place of traditional hormone therapy, which has left both doctors and women scrambling to find answers to hormone imbalance problems.

“Many women have felt confused and betrayed by the fact that they were told one thing a few years ago by their doctors about HRT [Hormone Replacement Therapy], now called HT, but now hear the opposite based on the results of the WHI study,” says Dr. Brizendine. “How and when to start HT, and when and if to stop, remain burning questions for patients and doctors alike.”

For this reason, women who ask their doctors for help often receive mixed answers: their family practitioner may recommend birth control pills, while their gynecologist will recommend an antidepressant. Or, their doctor may take a blood test to determine their hormone levels and then report that everything is fine, leaving a woman to wonder if she’s a hypochondriac.

Due to fear and lack of information, many women assume there are few safe options for dealing with hormone-related issues. Although some women push for a diagnosis and treatment alternatives, many women —not knowing they have a problem that can be fixed— simply try to deal with the symptoms on their own.

“Until new studies clarify this issue, each patient must find her own way—using diet, hormones, activities, exercise appropriate treatment, and regular doctors who specialize in hormone therapy,” explains Dr. Brizendine.

Education & Treatment

Given this, any woman who believes she may have a hormone imbalance needs to educate herself about her body, hormones, and lifestyle before embarking on any kind of treatment. “Before you even consider doing any kind of hormone therapy, you need to look at your diet, your exercise, your lifestyle, your stress management,” says Dr. Schwartz. “A hormone friendly diet is crucial.”

Although the Internet abounds with self-help questionnaires and suggested hormone balancing diets, it’s important to see a specialist who can tailor a diet-and-exercise program to a woman’s specific needs. Family physicians, nutritionists, and exercise therapists can all be helpful in this endeavor. For some women, however, exercise and diet may not be enough to minimize symptoms; that’s when a hormone specialist should be consulted. And picking the right one is key to feeling better.

“Find a doctor who wants to work with you,” says Dr. Scwhartz. “Pick a doctor because that doctor respects you, listens to you, and treats you as an equal.”

A specialist will be able to recommend an array of therapies specific to the woman and her symptoms. Some specialists, like Dr. Schwartz, now use bio-identical hormones, which are formulas that contain various hormones that are chemically identical to those a woman’s body makes naturally. The FDA has approved several bio-identical drugs. However, “compounded”, or custom made, formulas are not regulated by the FDA and for that reason the North American Menopause Society questions their safety and efficacy. Despite this, many specialists are convinced that custom formulation of bio-identical hormones are often the best option for many women.

When taken within the clinical range of what a woman’s body would naturally make, bio-identical hormone treatment can definitely improve a patient’s symptoms, says Dr. Hotze. “[Bio-identical hormones] are not addictive [and] they are not harmful,” he adds.

For women who don’t feel comfortable taking any kind of hormone, natural or not, a naturopathic doctor may be the person to see. A naturopath works with a woman’s body to restore its natural internal balance, generally by using minerals, herbs, diet and exercise to change the way a woman’s body processes hormones. It is important to select a naturopathic doctor carefully! The state of Texas does not regulate naturopaths, although they must have —and display— a valid state license to practice. When selecting a naturopathic doctor, choose one who attended a four-year graduate school accredited by the Association of Accredited Naturopathic Medical Colleges, recommends Dr. Neuzil.

From personal experience, I have learned that women have to be their own vocal advocates when it comes to solving hormone issues. I was not even 30 when I had to begin supplementing my hormones in order to live a peaceful, normal life. I’m sure there were many reasons for my hormone imbalance — previous major illness, loads of stress, major life changes, family history, all of the above; take your pick — but I honestly didn’t know anything could be done about it until that chance encounter with a doctor-friend. Like many women, I thought I had to grit my teeth, smile and endure. Now I know that it is absolutely possible to feel physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy and satisfied. But this can only happen when a woman is informed. So get educated, take action, and secure for yourself a happy, healthy life!