Fed up With Feeling Irritable all the Time? Hormone Balancing May be the Answer

I’ve gone through it. I know others who have gone through it. Many of my patients complain about it. That feeling of inexplicable irritability and anger. Snapping at your husband, kids or parents. Complaining about everything. Feeling jealous, stubborn and like you just want to argue against every idea or plan being sent your way. Life sure would be easier if you could get along with everyone…but you just don’t feel like it.

But then the guilt comes. You wish you could be a more pleasant mom, wife, daughter, friend, co-worker. You might feel like you’re “failing” in these roles. You wish you had more patience and that your home or work environment could be happier. It just feels so out of your control.

First, don’t beat yourself up. You’re only human and you have every right to experience all the emotions that come with being human. Second, some of your irritability may be totally justified. Some of it may be a sign that you need to work some things out with yourself emotionally. But some of it could also be a sign that something is off with your health. Often, hormonal imbalances can contribute to grumpiness. Common culprits are estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, cortisol and thyroid hormones. When these hormones are too high or too low you could end up feeling anxious, depressed or irritable.

I went through a period of extra irritability myself. It was not like me at all to feel so grumpy for no reason. Sure, I would get irritable from time to time like anyone else - but this was a whole different level. I hated feeling like this so I decided it was time to test my hormones and sure enough there were imbalances. When I put myself on a protocol to re-balance my hormones I felt amazing. I felt like myself again and my energy, mood and motivation skyrocketed (a crazy acne breakout also cleared up as an added bonus). I’ve seen this type of transformation in my patients as well when we committed to testing and treating their hormone imbalances. Sometimes the change is quick (like in my case) and sometimes it’s a gradual transition to brighter, happier days. Either way it’s worth it.

So if you feel like you’ve tried everything to calm your irritability and it’s not working, consider investing in your hormonal health. Get back to feeling like yourself and shining your light on everyone around you.

Ladies, Do You Have Symptoms of Low Testosterone?

When women think of their hormones the first thing they think of is estrogen. But testosterone plays a huge role in the well-being of every woman. High testosterone has a lot more attention than low testosterone. This is because it’s commonly known that high testosterone is linked to PCOS, acne, scalp hair loss and facial hair growth. Not many women know how having low testosterone can impact them.

Another name for low testosterone in women is “female androgen deficiency syndrome”. The most well-known symptom of this condition is low libido. However, not every woman with low testosterone has low libido. There are many other symptoms like:

- Low motivation

- Fatigue

- Depression

- Feeling generally unwell

- Osteoporosis

- Increased body fat

Low testosterone is most common in post-menopausal women. It can happen in younger women as well. It also seems to be common in women who are burnt out or experiencing something called “adrenal fatigue”. This could be because some of your testosterone comes from the adrenal glands. These are the glands that produce adrenaline and take a big hit when we’ve been stressed or overworked for too long.

More research needs to be done on this important syndrome and more women need to be aware of it. I test for low testosterone through blood or saliva tests. There are many herbs, nutrients and lifestyle protocols that I recommend to raise testosterone levels in women.

The transformation that you feel when your hormones are brought into balance is incredible and so worth the effort. I encourage you to learn more about all your hormones - including testosterone.

Stress Part 2: Hormones

This is the second article of my series on stress. To read the previous article click here.

Last week I discussed how stress can affect the skin. Today I’ll be talking about some different ways stress can make hormones go haywire. Most women remember a time when their period went wonky during a stressful episode in life. This is just one example of how stress can impact hormones. Read on to find out how stress can play a role in hormonal conditions.

 

Irregular/ Absent Periods

Amenorhea is the term used for when you miss your period for multiple cycles. When this is caused by stress it’s known as hypothalamic amenorrhea. This fancy term is used because when you're stressed the part of the brain called the hypothalamus triggers a release of different stress hormones like cortisol. This can cause the brain to release less of the hormones important for your cycle (like LH and FSH). This ends up disturbing the ovulation process and the whole cycle. A similar process can lead to irregular periods.

 

Infertility

One of the most common pieces of advice given to women trying to get pregnant is to be less stressed. Like with hypothalamic amenorrhea, stress can lead to less consistent ovulation. This can make getting pregnant more complicated. Preliminary studies have found that stress can lead to something called reproductive aging. This involves decreased ability for the ovaries to produce a healthy egg.

 

Diabetes

There is some research suggesting that stress hormones like cortisol can make your body respond less to the hormone insulin. This makes it harder for your body to control blood sugar. Blood sugar may remain high for longer after meals when you’re stressed.

 

Thyroid Dysfunction

Improving stress levels has been shown to improve thyroid hormone levels. Cortisol can reduce thyroid hormone levels.

 

Men’s Health

Don’t think that stress only impacts women’s health! Hormones in men are also affected by stress. The effects are less understood though. There is research suggesting that stress may lower testosterone levels in men.

As you can see stress management is an important part of a plan to treat any of these conditions. If you need help with your hormones or your stress levels book an appointment or free 15 minute consult.

Hormone Testing with a Naturopathic Doctor

Hormone testing can be helpful in guiding treatment plans in some cases. It can tell you which hormones are higher than ideal, which ones are lower than ideal and which ones are normal. This can tell me which herbs, nutrients, dietary and lifestyle changes to recommend. Sometimes it’s obvious what needs to be worked on and we can skip testing. Sometimes it’s not as clear and testing provides guidance.

Cases that I may use hormone testing for are:

- Periods that are irregular and difficult

- Menopause that isn’t responding well to my usual treatments

- Challenging PMS cases

- Difficulty losing weight when there is a suspicion that hormones are involved

- Major fatigue, brain fog and other symptoms when there is a suspicion that hormones are involved

There are different ways that I test hormones. One way is the usual blood test that most family doctors do as well. Another other option is to test saliva. There are pros and cons to both.

Blood Tests

Blood hormone tests have been accepted by the medical community for longer than saliva tests. There is a good amount of research supporting them.

Some MDs and NDs have raised concerns about only relying on blood tests for hormones. Sometimes blood test levels and saliva levels line up with each other. Other times I find that patients with normal blood test levels have saliva levels that are not ideal. These saliva levels often match with the symptoms the patient is experiencing.

Saliva Tests

In order for hormones to enter saliva, they may need to travel into cells/ tissue first. This may not be the case for hormones in the blood stream. Some think this means saliva better reflects the levels of hormones that are actually acting on your cells/ tissues. I won’t be able to explain all the biochemistry here. You should know that research on saliva testing is still ongoing. Opinions on it may change in the future.

Insurance Coverage

It used to be that tests run by naturopathic doctors were not covered by insurance companies. Lately, more insurance companies have been covering testing. The only way to know for sure is to contact your insurance company and ask.

If you need some help managing your hormones book an appointment or free 15-minute consult today.