MORE BLOG POSTS — Estrogen

Hot flashes. Anxiety. Insomnia. Heart palpitations. Headaches. Brain fog. Random itching. A nose that suddenly behaves like it’s allergy season year-round. A glass of wine that used to feel relaxing but now leaves you flushed, wide awake at 2 a.m., and questioning every life decision you've ever made. Sound familiar? I thought so…. Most women assume these symptoms are simply part of stress or aging. And to be fair, many of them are. But there’s another player that often flies under the radar—one that can quietly stir up a surprising amount of chaos—especially during perimenopause and menopause. Meet histamine, an...

The Top Six Sleep Saboteurs You fall asleep just fine…only to snap awake at 2 or 3 AM for no obvious reason. Your eyes open. Your brain suddenly decides it’s the perfect time to review your to-do list, replay conversations from earlier in the day, or contemplate the meaning of life while the clock ticks by. If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Night waking becomes extremely common for women over 40. Many assume it’s simply part of getting older—but in most cases, it’s a signal something deeper is going on inside your body. Several biological shifts occur in women after 40, and...

One of the most common questions I’m asked is how to properly get baseline levels of estrogen,  progesterone, and testosterone—and even more importantly, how to monitor those levels once  bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT) has been started.If you’re confused, you’re not alone. This topic stumps many health care practitioners as well.  Hormones don’t behave in neat little boxes. They fluctuate. They bind. They convert. They exit  stage left when you least expect it. But here’s the truth: BHRT can be both safe and effective when it’s properly dosed and thoughtfully monitored. The key is using the right test at the right...

Last week, I received a call from a compounding pharmacy with a very apologetic pharmacist on  the other end. After taking a closer look, he realized they had been filling one of my patient’s  hormone prescriptions incorrectly—for six months. That explained a lot. This patient had been doing everything right. She applied her hormones consistently and  correctly. She completed appropriate testing at regular intervals. Yet her symptoms never fully resolved, and her lab results never quite matched what they should have been showing. Even as I  adjusted her doses, it felt like we were chasing our tails. As it turned...

  Estrogen Only is NOT Enough!   One-third of all American women over the age of 60 have had a complete hysterectomy? In fact, this is the second most common surgical procedure after C-section. Most women who have their uterus and ovaries removed are never offered hormone replacement therapy for symptomatic relief or disease prevention. Those who are lucky may find a doctor enlightened enough to prescribe hormones. Unfortunately, estrogen only is what is typically prescribed, and this is a problem! While estrogen replacement is essential countless ways, estrogen replacement alone, without the addition of progesterone, can cause a whole host of...