MORE BLOG POSTS — Perimenopause
Which Test is Best: The Proper Way to Get Accurate Female Hormone Test Results
Posted by Lena Edwards MD on
One of the most common questions Iβm asked is how to properly get baseline levels of estrogen, Β progesterone, and testosteroneβand even more importantly, how to monitor those levels once Β bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT) has been started.If youβre confused, youβre not alone. This topic stumps many health care practitioners as well.Β Hormones donβt behave in neat little boxes. They fluctuate. They bind. They convert. They exit Β stage left when you least expect it. But hereβs the truth: BHRT can be both safe and effective when itβs properly dosed andΒ thoughtfully monitored. The key is using the right test at the right...
A Commonly Overlooked Reason BHRT Sometimes Doesnβt Work
Posted by Lena Edwards MD on
Last week, I received a call from a compounding pharmacy with a very apologetic pharmacist on Β the other end. After taking a closer look, he realized they had been filling one of my patientβs Β hormone prescriptions incorrectlyβfor six months. That explained a lot. This patient had been doing everything right. She applied her hormones consistently and Β 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 Β adjusted her doses, it felt like we were chasing our tails. As it turned...
Our Sentence is Finally Over
Posted by Lena Edwards MD on
Freedom from Menopause Prison After 25 years Menopausal women rejoice! Weβve finally been unshackled. All that unnecessary suffering-- navigating hot flashes, weight gain, brain fog, and that stubborn fatigue that makes you feel like gum on the bottom of a shoeβwas completely unnecessary. For more than two decades, women have been denied release from βmenopause prisonββtold it was safer to stay locked in even while the key dangled inches from our fingers.Β But now, twenty-five long years later, the cell doors have finally swung open. On November 10, 2025, the FDA announced it will remove the black-box warningβthe mostΒ severe caution...
Perimenopause: How to Navigate Mother Natureβs Crash Course
Posted by Lena Edwards MD on
Youβre cruising through your 40s, finally in your grooveβand then one morning you wake up inΒ a body thatβs gone rogue. Welcome to perimenopause: Where hormones rule the roost andΒ predictability packs its bags. Your periods start playing hide-and-seek, midnight ceiling stare-Β downs become the norm, youβre convinced youβre getting early-onset Alzheimerβs, and yourΒ waistline seems to be the only thing sticking around for comfort. The kicker? Most women donβt even realize whatβs happening. They wonder: Am I stressed? Depressed? Just getting old? Nope, nope, and nope. The truth is, once your baby-making daysΒ are behind you, Mother Nature decides your ovaries are ready for...