The Hormonal Tight Rope

Two summers ago, Dr. Sara Gottfried's book The Hormone Cure began my quest to balance my hormones. Now at 47 I realize it's a constant tight rope act as my hormones are always shifting and Peri-menopause is a reality . One of the best tools I have found is the Hormone Cure Quiz  in her book and online. This quiz is a pretty accurate account for where your hormones are and where you may be high or low. It addresses cortisol, progesterone, estrogen, androgens, and thyroid. It's not a diagnoses, but rather an amazing tool to collaborate with your doctor on what tests should be ran. I can't even tell you what a life saver this book and quiz has been. I take this quiz when things start to feel out of whack and then have a conversation with my (holistic) doctor where we formulate a new plan.

Toward the end the school year (I'm an educator) I was in a really bad state. Along with horrible hives that would not go away, I had major mood swings, pms with crying jags that would keep me from coming into work,  severe brain fog, low cognitive function, and extreme exhaustion.

I was taking a combination of 50mcg Levothyroxine and Nature-Throid 1 grain. I decided to up my Nature-Throid to 1.5 grains, and that helped a little. I was still having severe issues however and decided to go in and work with my doctor on tests to recheck my thyroid, look for parasites, check  cortisol and get a complete blood panel. Through my own research, I had also requested a metabolic panel.

Everything checked out except the metabolic tests showed I had Hashimoto's. I knew I was not going to be able to effectively deal with Hashimoto's until I got the rest of my hormones balanced so I could be at a functioning level, which at the time, I was not.

My doctor is not a big fan of checking estrogen and other hormones due to the ever changing shits throughout the month and the amount of money it would cost to get an accurate account. That said, using my trusty quiz from above, I was able to communicate my symptoms and what I thought it meant. Through that conversation she also pointed out that it sounded like my progesterone was low during days 17-28 of my cycle. She gave me progesterone drops (under the tongue) and we discussed ways to raise my estrogen, which also sounded like it was very low during that time as well.

The first half of my summer has been a rocky road. In researching and putting things into action, I have experienced highs and lows. While waiting for the right times to start my new plan of action I went through some very depressive states.  I've never been depressed before, not like that.  It scared the shit out of me and immediately made me see depression for what it is. It's a place I don't want to be. A very dark place that brings to me tears just thinking about it.

As I enter the last half of Summer break,  I feel like things might be coming together. The progesterone drops have helped immensely!! I am also including foods and supplements according to my Lunar chart (menstrual cycle). On days 1-17  I include organic soy such as tofu, and mung bean sprouts (yes, controversial, I know), pumpkin seeds, ground flax seeds, and maca root to help pull my estrogen levels up for the last half of my cycle. Days 17-3 I include sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, evening primrose oil, B-complex, Rhodiola, BioFem PMS (which includes chase berry, black cohosh, wild yam, white peony, ginger, magnesium, and turmeric), and progesterone drops. I sounds like a lot, but shit.... To bring myself to better health while so hormonally imbalanced would be damn near impossible in such a low functioning state, so dealing with my hormones has been my top priority.

I've experienced one full cycle of success so far with only mild mood shifts. As I enter this next cycle my hope is I will be okay and ready to move forward to the next step I plan on taking  to heal my autoimmune situation. It's hard to be consistent on this tightrope and it occurs to me as I type that I have not eaten any soy this cycle to help boast my estrogen. My hope is that this is not a stand alone and all of the other things I'm doing will keep me stable so I can move forward. I have a lot of work still ahead of me and am making plans for my next step or two.   
Baby tightrope steps... ;)