Understanding Female Reproductive Hormones
It's March and Women's History Month, so it's fitting to share, explore and discuss with you, all things female. Let's start with female reproductive hormones shall we? In the above video, Dr. Peter Attia, a world renowned physician focusing on lengthening lifespan and improving healthspan, provides an excellent overview of female sex hormones throughout a woman's life. It's helpful to see and hear how our hormones fluctuate and change throughout our lifetime.
Over the past year and a half, my own health challenges (I'll get more into that in next weeks post) propelled me to do a deep dive into the most recent research on perimenopause and menopause. I've made so many discoveries and I feel compelled to share what I've learned with women who are experiencing symptoms during this transition, and beyond.
The Impact of Hormonal Imbalances
In my private practice I've worked with many women struggling with hormonal imbalances. Very often, simple changes to the diet is a first line therapy, and can help resolve many issues. Lifestyle changes are powerful as well, and often just as necessary.
Hormone challenges ranging from life-disrupting Pre-Menstrual Syndrome (PMS), thyroid issues, auto-immune diseases, fertility challenges, adrenal issues, Poly Cystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), perimenopause and beyond.
Hormones are powerful chemical messengers, in constant communication with each other. Like a beautiful symphony, when hormones are in balance we feel amazing, but when they are out of balance - be it thyroid, estrogen, cortisol, insulin, testosterone, etc... we KNOW and can FEEL something is off in our bodies.
The Role of Hormones in Bodily Processes
Hormones are required to regulate most major bodily processes, and hormonal imbalances can affect how our body functions.
Hormones help regulate:
metabolism
blood sugar
reproductive and sexual function
blood pressure
general growth and development
mood and stress levels
A Personal Journey Through Hormonal Challenges
Personally, at 18 years old, I was encouraged to go on the birth control pill (by the first OB/GYN I had ever seen) to help regulate my periods. The thought of overriding my body's signals and communication seemed strange, so it wasn't a viable option for me.
Being a dancer, and an athlete may have brought about an imbalance to my sex hormones, which manifested in only having four menstrual periods per year, up until my early 40's - and under extreme stress (i.e. when I broke off an engagement with my fiancé while living in a foreign country), my body in it's infinite wisdom, shut down reproduction completely. In my mid-20's I went an entire year without a menstruating.
After I began to study nutrition, I understood the underlying cause of my hormonal imbalance. I was under the incorrect assumption (like many still are today) that eating dietary fat would make me fat, and I grew up avoiding fats almost entirely.
Thankfully, my body was able to heal when I introduced healthy fats back into my diet, like butter, olive oil, coconut, avocado, and more animal proteins. Once my body was replenished with the required nutrients, my cycle returned beautifully.
Healthy fats are essential raw materials required by the body for the production of hormones in women and men alike. When our diet is lacking in healthy fats, the body is challenged to make hormones needed to function properly, and then it's impossible to hear the symphony because all the players needed are just not there.
Have you experienced any type of hormone imbalance?
What, if anything has helped? Are you still struggling?
I can help you.
Reach out.
I'm Lisa Thompson, a Functional Nutritionist (FNTP) and I'd like to guide you on a journey to optimal health by providing education, support, accountability, motivation and inspiration. Using a holistic approach, I look deeply at how all of our inter-dependent systems work uniquely, and specifically in each of us- keeping in mind the bigger picture and LIFESTYLE choices that impact our well-being. For instance: how and when we eat, whether we get good sleep, what role exercise plays in our life, and how community, friends, family and belief systems impact our health and vitality.
I am currently taking new clients at this time and would love to work with you.
Email me: lisa@lisamarlenethompson.com