Reproductive Years
From her late teens to early 30s, a woman’s ratio of sex hormones is usually optimal. She is in hormone balance, with estrogen rising in the first half of the menstrual cycle, peaking at ovulation, and then falling in the second half. At this point, progesterone, released by the rupturing egg follicle, rises (in the case of a pregnancy, it will remain high). For the most part, if periods occur on a normal 28-day cycle, it can be inferred that the body, and particularly the ovaries, are producing plenty of all the required hormones. Some young women may experience premenstrual syndrome, or PMS. Bloating, anxiety, irritability, back pain, nausea, cramping, and lethargy are some of the most common PMS symptoms.
Women in their late teens and twenties can suffer from estrogen dominance, especially if high stress levels result in a lack of ovulation, or “anovulatory” cycles. (Remember that without ovulation, you are without progesterone.) Other common culprits of hormone imbalance in what should be a woman’s peak hormone producing years are body fat and man-made environmental estrogens, called xenoestrogens, that are foreign to the body. Unfortunately, fat cells have a built-in ability to churn out estrogen, so if you have been 10 pounds or more overweight for one or more years, your body fat could be causing your estrogen levels to escalate to an unhealthy high. And if you live in the United States or any other industrialized nation, you are frequently exposed to xenoestrogens through hormone-injected meats and poultry, pesticides, fungicides, plastics, and general hygiene products – creams, cosmetics, shampoos, hair colors, and deodorizers – containing petrochemicals.
Pre-Menopause – The PMS Years
How do you know if and when you need supplementation to balance hormones naturally?
During their 20s and 30s, women should experience fairly regular menstrual cycles with balanced estrogen and progesterone levels. But increasingly, younger woman who are prone to extremes of stress, exercise, crash dieting, and contraceptive use are not ovulating regularly. Anovulatory cycles can lead to estrogen dominance, progesterone deficiency, and shifts in cortisol stress hormone levels. Severe PMS, sleep disturbances, migraines, and unwanted belly fat are the red flags of hormone imbalance in the premenopausal years, as are more serious health issues such as polycystic ovaries, endometriosis, and infertility that can manifest in vulnerable women well before the end of periods.
How do you know which type of supplementation you need for natural symptom relief?
Dr. Randolph has created specific guidelines to help you determine your individual supplementation needs and correct dosage. The type of supplementation you select depends on your age, menstrual history, symptoms, (and hormone test results if you have them). Recommended supplements are based on specific criteria, including: age range, life cycle, and associated hormone level shifts, resulting type of imbalance/ medical condition, and common symptoms. All hormonal supplements are bioidentical formulations that duplicate the natural physiology of hormones in the body. Ingredients as listed are derived from natural and/or plant-based substances
What are the benefits to you as a woman?
The first question you should ask is what you can expect from a natural hormone balancing regime. The answer is simple: relief from unwanted symptoms! No more painful periods or severe PMS, fewer migraines, deeper sleep, renewed energy, the ability to drop weight easily and a belly that goes from fat back to flat. When and if symptoms persist, adrenal support, additional bioidentical hormone supplementation, and/or a compounded formulation may also be required.
Informed women know that when periods are painful, PMS is severe, breasts are tender, migraines frequent, sleep fleeting, and energy nonexistent, that all signs point to estrogen dominance. And the informed pre-menopausal woman knows what her body most likely needs: bioidentical progesterone to rebalance her estrogen levels, along with adrenal support to bring cortisol stress hormones back in line. Informing yourself cannot only bring about the relief you seek but empower you to take personal charge of your hormonal health – and get the results you expect.
Peri-Menopause
How do you know if and when you need supplementation to balance hormones naturally?
As ovarian function wavers in the years approaching menopause, 40-something women begin to experience erratic cycles as estrogen and progesterone levels fluctuate dozens of times a day from high to low, and back again. This causes shifting levels of other key hormones in the mix like DHEA, testosterone, and cortisol – which negatively impact overall hormonal imbalance. A whole new world of symptoms, from hot flashes and mood swings to high anxiety and low libido take women on a hormonal roller coaster ride during the perimenopause years. Now the search for symptom relief begins in earnest!
How do you know which type of supplementation you need for natural symptom relief?
Dr. Randolph has created specific guidelines (chart below) to help you determine your individual supplementation needs and correct dosage. The type of supplementation you select depends on your age, menstrual history, symptoms, (and hormone test results if you have them). Recommended supplements are based on specific criteria, including: age range, life cycle, and associated hormone level shifts, resulting type of imbalance/ medical condition, and common symptoms. All hormonal supplements are bioidentical formulations that duplicate the natural physiology of hormones in the body. Ingredients as listed are derived from natural and/or plant-based substances.
What are the benefits to you as a woman?
The first question you should ask is what you can expect from a natural hormone balancing regime. The answer is simple: relief from unwanted symptoms! Periods may continue to be irregular in concert with Mother Nature’s plan as we get older, but you should expect fewer night sweats and hot flashes, improved moods, memory and sleep, renewed strength and energy, the ability to shed extra pounds more easily, and a belly that goes from fat to flatter. When and if symptoms persist, adrenal support, additional bioidentical hormone supplementation and/or a compounded formulation may also be required.
Informed women know that when periods are irregular and bleeding is erratic, breasts are lumpy, belly is bulging, memory lapsing, thinking foggy, moods swinging, sleep fleeting, and libido AWOL, all signs point to hormone imbalance. And the informed peri- menopausal woman knows what her body most likely needs: bioidentical progesterone to rebalance all her hormone levels, especially excess estrogen levels, along with DHEA and adrenal support to bring cortisol stress hormones back in line, and Vitamin D and calcium supplementation to prevent osteoporosis and maintain bone and muscle strength. Informing yourself can not only bring about the relief you seek but empower you to take personal charge of your hormonal health – and get the results you expect.
Menopause/Post-Menopause
How do you know if and when you need supplementation to balance hormones naturally? As the ovaries take their final bow, ovulation ends and menopause begins after 12 consecutive months minus periods. When age-related declines in estrogen, progesterone, DHEA and testosterone levels kick in, the resulting imbalances trigger symptoms, disorders and long-term disease risks that women may be unprepared to manage. With less and less hormone to go around, their vital role in protecting the health of the breasts, bones, skin, brain, and heart is greatly diminished. As the adrenal glands pick up the slack in hormone production, reducing stress and balancing hormones with natural supplements and bioidentical hormones in the right amounts, becomes more important than ever.
What are the benefits to you as a woman?
The first question you should ask is what you can expect from a natural hormone balancing regime. The answer is simple: relief from unwanted symptoms! Periods come to an end, but vaginal dryness and libido improve as deficient levels of all the sex hormones are restored through supplementation with the appropriate blend of bioidenticals. If you have frequent urinary tract infections, they can become less frequent through the use of prescription bioidentical estrogen replacement therapy, which has been shown in studies to reduce recurrences of UTIs. You should also notice that night sweats and hot flashes no longer dominate your days and nights that you can remember names again and your thinking is less foggy and more focused. With stress management and adrenal boosting, sleep comes more easily, you are not as stressed out and irritable with everyone around you, and your moods are beginning to mellow. With optimal diet and weight bearing exercise in the treatment mix, you find you can shed extra pounds, especially in the waist, and come closer to your desired weight. When and if symptoms persist, adrenal support, additional bioidentical hormone supplementation, and/or a compounded formulation may also be required.
Informed women know that when periods stop permanently but symptoms such as vaginal dryness, painful intercourse, and frequent urinary infections persist, estrogen levels may now be declining more precipitously. At this point bioidentical progesterone alone may not be enough. Your body most likely needs the right blend of all three sex hormones, estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone.
At the same time, the informed woman understands that post menopause she is post fertility, and can no longer depend on a steady hormone supply from the ovaries. Now the adrenal glands pick up the slack and become the sole source of hormone production in the body. So informed women keep in mind that boosting adrenal function through optimal nutrition, sleep, exercise, and hormone balance is essential to healthy aging and disease prevention.
Hysterectomy and Artificial Menopause
Approximately one in every four American women will enter an abrupt, artificial menopause. The condition known as “surgical menopause” is the result of a complete hysterectomy. A hysterectomy is the option that most physicians commonly recommend for women who have fibroid tumors, severe endometriosis, cancer, and/or constant, heavy bleeding. A complete hysterectomy involves surgical removal of the entire reproductive tract, including the uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries.
Some medical experts estimate that of the more than 600,000 hysterectomy procedures performed annually in the U.S., up to 70% may be unnecessary. And, because mortality rates and long-term risks for disease are known to be higher in women who have had a hysterectomy, doubts are growing about its therapeutic value; many practitioners now recommend it only as a last resort. Indeed the safest approach of all may be to detect and correct hormone imbalance early before it becomes cause for a hysterectomy that might otherwise have been prevented.
Once a woman has had a complete hysterectomy, her body will immediately enter menopause regardless of her biological age. It is important to note that after a complete hysterectomy there are no ovaries to produce any level of hormones. As a result, the body goes into a kind of shock, since the main source of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone dries up overnight. Regrettably, too many physicians make the mistake of prescribing only estrogen for women after a complete hysterectomy, but estrogen alone is not enough. In fact, estrogen prescribed without progesterone to balance it will inevitably trigger estrogen dominance, along with potential risks for breast cancer, low thyroid, and other preventable diseases. Furthermore, an estrogen-only approach ignores the basic physiology of hormones and their interactive role in protecting the health and function of a woman’s vital organs.
Needless to say, though her uterus and ovaries have been removed, the breasts, bones, brain, and heart that remain still need their full complement of hormones to function.
A woman who has a complete hysterectomy will require a new and balanced supply of all her sex hormones: estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone, as well as DHEA. In a partial hysterectomy, where the uterus is removed and the ovaries are left behind, the belief that ovarian production of hormones is not affected is an error in thinking common to many in the medical profession. In fact, the ovaries are significantly impacted because there are two primary pathways for blood flow to the ovaries: one through the aorta, and the second through the uterus. When the uterus is removed, the flow of blood to the ovaries lessens significantly, and consequently, total hormone production is reduced. While hormone imbalances may not be as severe as with complete hysterectomy, women who have partial procedures should be tested, treated, and monitored to ensure that hormone levels do not become imbalanced over time.
“Artificial menopause” can also occur as a result of radiation or chemotherapy, or by the administration of certain drugs that catalyze menopause for medical reasons such as to shrink fibroid tumors. Because there is no opportunity for gradual adjustment to the hormonal drop-off, the symptoms of artificial menopause can be sudden, severe and debilitating – requiring a more immediate intervention of supplemental hormone therapy.
