HORMONAL IMBALANCE

"When something feels a little off, it probably is"

HELP ME WITH:PMSPERIOD PAINENDOMETRIOSISPCOSMENOPAUSAL SYMPTOMS

Oftentimes women intuitively know when their hormone balance seems a little off. A hormonal imbalance can look like many things for different people however it almost always creates unnecessary suffering. It can affect your energy levels, mood, pain levels, your experience of your monthly cycle and fertility.

When something feels off, it probably is. We can guess what the problem is but but in order to practice evidence-based medicine, we need to see the numbers and know exactly what may be causing you to feel the way you do. One of the principles I practice is "test don't guess" and functional medicine testing can provide the platform to see the imbalance, and help individualise a treatment plan.

This becomes most relevant when discussing issues such as irregular periods, PCOS, PMS, fertility, fibroids, endometriosis, and peri- and postmenopausal symptoms.

However, it's important to understand that all of these are not simply isolated hormone problems. All have components related to gut-dysfunction, inflammation, and problems with detoxification, which are all looked into when working with your Naturopath.

The following aspects of hormonal health can be assessed via specialised functional medicine testing:

Sex Hormones

Important sex steroid hormones such as oestrogen, progesterone, and testosterone levels can be measured in blood, saliva, and urine. However one of the more innovative tests involves four samples of dried urine which also measures the important metabolites of sex hormones. This can give a more clear picture of how to guide your treatment plan, as well as indicate any need for further testing that may be helpful. This kind of testing is extremely valuable in identifying your specific hormone balance and can be helpful for anyone suffering with irregular or absent periods, PMS, fibroids, PCOS, endometriosis, fertility issues, perimenopausal hormone changes and mor

ADRENAL HORMONES

Adrenal hormones such as cortisol and DHEA are also known as our stress hormones.

When adrenal stress hormones are out of balance, this is an indicator of ongoing stress to the body. Stress hormones being out of balance don't only affect our mood and energy but can have a detrimental effect on all other hormone systems in the body, particularly our sex hormones (oestrogen, progesterone, testosterone).

In order to evaluate the root cause of stress, and to develop a lifestyle and appropriate supplement protocol, it's important to know exactly what your stress hormones are doing throughout the day. 

These hormones can be measured via blood, saliva and urine, however functional medicine testing aims to look at what's known as your cortisol curve throughout the entire day. This is often best done by testing urine or saliva.