12 DAYS OF TIPS TO AVOID NOT-SO-MERRY HORMONES FROM RUINING YOUR HOLIDAYS

/in , /by

It’s beginning to look like Christmas…actually, it’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas which isn’t always so great.  Ho ho whoa…everything seems so overwhelming. You worry about the craziest things; that Santa will be coming to town and because every hotel in the area is booked, will want to stay with you. (You already have more out-of-town guests than you can handle). That Amazon closes for the holiday. That you don’t have a chimney. Your latkes will turn out leaden. You do too much. You eat too much. You sleep too little. Holidays can send the already delicate balance of your 50 or so hormones seriously off the skids, making you feel anything but comfort and joy. Cortisol, leptin, insulin, thyroid hormones, progesterone, estrogen, even the normally happy, fuzzy, feel-good hormones serotonin and oxytocin. All of them, together or by themselves can cause a list of health issues longer than your list of gifts which even includes the person at your groomer who sweeps up the hair of your beloved Havanese:

  • Insulin overload
  • Low energy
  • Depression/anxiety
  • Fatigue
  • Insomnia
  • Mood swings
  • Heartburn, diarrhea, constipation
  • Overall aches and pains
  • Migraines
  • Low immune system
  • Low libido
  • High blood pressure
  • Even risk of heart disease

But before you get your tinsel in a tangle, we’re going to give you some help to keep the ho ho in your holiday.

On The First Day Of Christmas

Start ordering your Pumpkin Spice Latte decaf. “Unthinkable” you think. Well, a study conducted by researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, links excess caffeine intake to a jolt of cortisol, which will not only cause you to experience increased stress and anxiety, but severely disturb your sleep. It also stresses the adrenal glands.

On The Second Day Of Christmas 1st/2nd Day of Kwanzaa/4th day of Hanukah

Party, just not so hardy. If you’re on the holiday party circuit and staying out for a go-go night, then awakening early for a go-go day, you’re setting yourself up for leptin dysfunction. When leptin levels are low, your appetite increases and your metabolism slows.

On The Third Day Of Christmas

Raise your glass only not as often. Alcohol raises cortisol (stress hormone) levels. If you’re already stressed out, alcohol takes a further toll on the body, exacerbating anxiety, low mood and headaches. Plus alcohol is stored as belly fat. And hormones aside, it’s not a time to get behind a wheel.

On The Fourth Day Of Christmas

Eat more protein. The thyroid can’t function properly without adequate protein. This leads to a slowing down of the thyroid, which you’ll feel as fatigue, sluggishness and persistent weight gain.  One way to resist unhealthy sweets and foods this season is to incorporate more protein into every meal. You’ll feel fuller, so you’ll eat less and cut down on all those elf nibble and Pin-perfect tidbits.

On The Fifth Day Of Christmas

Breathe deep. Whether you do yoga, meditate or simply take a 20-minute time-out for yourself, deep breathing into the lower and upper lungs has a calming effect on your body, telling it that it’s safe to focus on making sex hormones (estrogen, progesterone and testosterone) rather than stress hormones (cortisol and cortisone). Watch that low libido go.

On The Sixth Day Of Christmas

Disappear for a while…get a massage. Research has shown that massage has a direct impact on lowering the levels of stress hormones that create the “fight-or-flight” response, and can boost “feel good” neurotransmitters like dopamine, serotonin, endorphins and oxytocin.

On The Seventh Day Of Christmas                       

Resist the big binge-o-rama of non-stop food. The average person consumes nearly 6,000 calories during Christmas day. This might be why people gain an average of 6 pounds in the nine days between Christmas eve and New Year’s. Go into meals with a game plan. Don’t deprive yourself, but don’t go overboard either. (Like with 3rd helpings. Yes, you, you know who you are.)

On The Eighth Day Of Christmas

Sleep. Most people are wired during the holidays. So they rarely get their optimal 7.5 to 8.5 hours each night. And their sleep patterns are non-existant. Studies on sleep show that this can make you prone not just to emotional irritability, but to mild to moderate cognitive impairment and motor skill impairment. Think falling off ladders putting up tree toppers. Or toppling all those candles meant to light up the holiday, not light fires. (It happens.)

On The Ninth Day Of Christmas

Exercise. During the holidays, it’s tempting to throw your workouts by the wayside with the promise to start again after the New Year. If you can’t fit in a sweat session, even walking 30 minutes a day will do the trick. Regular exercise lowers the level of stress hormones. It also helps release endorphins and improve your sleep quality. Reduce depression. Elevate mood. Works wonders.

On The Tenth Day Of Christmas

Say no. You don’t need to buy every item on your kids’ lists which they have been adding to since last December 26. You don’t need to lead the caroling brigade while cooking up an endless storm. Ask Siri and Alexa to trim the tree. Stress depletes the calming, “happy hormone” progesterone. And maintaining a healthy level of progesterone is absolutely essential since it converts into other hormones as needed (including estrogen and testosterone) supporting natural hormonal balance.  

On The Eleventh Day Of Christmas

Cut out your expanded consumption of sugar. (We’re not saying to red light the pecan pie or tell those yummy gingerbread men to take a hike. Just be rational. Eating an excess of sugar-laden foods, can mess with your gut, which messes with your cortisol, which makes you crave more sugary foods. Sugar not only creates highs and lows in mood and energy, it disrupts the hormone insulin, which in turn impacts all other hormones in your body. Not so sweet.

On The Twelfth Day Of Christmas

Increase your “me time” under the mistletoe. Researchers have found that expressed affection, of which kissing is a prime example, was directly related to lowering the stress hormone cortisol throughout the day. Kissing activates the brain’s reward system, releasing neurotransmitters like oxytocin, “the love hormone. It also raises testosterone which increases sex drive. (Oh joy, oh joy…)

On any day of Christmas, ask Dancer or Prancer for a lift (OK, so maybe just take a Lyft) to see the hormone experts at Denver Hormone Health. Instead of worrying about all the gifts you’ll have to return, focus on returning your hormones to the levels they need to be And don’t say you don’t have the time. With just few simple tests the hormone professionals at Denver Hormone Health can determine if your hormones are unbalanced and know exactly how to get them where they are supposed to be. So put down the Pfeffernüsse and make an appointment with Denver Hormone Health now.

Helping you feel your best, is their gift to you.

STRESS AND HORMONES; EVERYTHING TO FEAR FROM FEAR ITSELF

/in /by

Who on this planet doesn’t experience stress in their lives? You worry about losing your job. Missing deadlines. Caring for your family. Losing a relationship. Getting sick. In today’s 100-mile-an-hour world, the list is endless.  You suffer from anxiety. Panic attacks loom. Your hearts race, your palms sweat, you shake and even feel like you could pass out. Yikes. It’s scary. And not the kind of scary that makes movies like Us and It become mega box office hits. Well the real scare is how these feelings of terror can create hormone imbalances that can throw your whole life out of balance.

WHEN IT GOES BEYOND “FIGHT OR FLIGHT” YOU’RE IN FOR A REAL BATTLE

You’ve probably heard the expression “fight or flight”, but do you really know what it means? This is the stress response action that happens when you feel threatened or truly scared. When this happens, the body releases several stress hormones, such as cortisol and adrenaline into the bloodstream. These hormones increase your strength, concentration, and ability to react. Your heart rate and blood pressure increase, and your immune system and memory are sharper. After you have dealt with the short-term stress, your body returns to normal. Chronic or long-term stress, however, poses a problem. If you frequently face challenges, your body is constantly producing higher levels of stress hormones and does not have time to recover. These hormones over time can cause serious health problems.

CORTISOL; PUBLIC STRESS ENEMY NO. 1

Excess cortisol is often hard to diagnose as symptoms usually develop slowly and often overlap with many other conditions. Conditions your primary doctor could prescribe the wrong treatment for. These include:

  • Depression
  • Fatigue
  • Weight gain
  • Back pain
  • Thin skin
  • Decreased concentration
  • Swelling in the hands and feet
  • Low libido
  • Acne
  • Impaired memory (especially short-term memory)
  • Female facial hair or female balding
  • Insomnia
  • Poor skin healing
  • Irritability
  • Menstrual abnormalities
  • Increased blood sugar
  •  Decreased bone mineral density
  • High blood pressure
  • Easy bruising
  • Muscle wasting and weakness of arms and legs

Talk about high anxiety…

STRESS AND HORMONES; MEDITATE ON THIS:

Unless you’re the king or queen of Zen, stress is bound to take a serious stab at your health. Yes, following a diet higher in lean protein and fiber and lower in carbohydrates that have a high glycemic index (especially sugar) can partially lowering cortisol levels, as well as the regular practice of relaxation or mind-body techniques such as meditation or progressive muscle relaxation. All things considered, how realistic is that? You could try supplementing your diet with natural compounds such as phosphatidylserine, magnolia bark extract, and ashwagandha root. Oh yeah, you’re going to run out and try that. And do they really do the job? Simple answer? No way. So what can you do? Here’s where we can actually say, “relax”. The hormone professionals at Denver Hormone Health are uniquely expert in diagnosing hormone imbalances and getting them back to the levels they need to be for your body (and mind) to function at its optimal best. Simple tests will tell them if your cortisol has shot into hyperdrive, dragging your health and well-being behind. Then they are able to create a treatment plan tailored to your individual needs. In your whirlwind of a life, take just a few minutes to call and make an appointment at Denver Hormone Health now. They’re experienced, they care and they take you through the entire process nice and easy. How stress-free is that?

May All Your Stress Hormones be Bright

/in , /by

Stress

Stress is at the Top of Your Christmas List

Santa’s coming, and it makes you want to run. (Hold the guilt, just for a minute). Yes, it’s a wonderful time of the year. But it’s also a time when you’re plagued by the ghosts of Christmases past. A time when you end up tangled in tinsel and lights. A time of what to give whom. A time of relatives coming out of the woodwork and coming for what they have come to expect is a spectacular meal. Made entirely by you, of course. Hmmm…if you remember right, it seems everything was done entirely by you. The cards, the gifts, the wrapping, the planning…The one thing you didn’t plan on was the toll chronic stress can take on your body. You can probably blame it all on unbalanced hormones. The link between stress and hormones is well documented. Unless you do something to correct a hormone imbalance, it can do you in.

Helplessly Elf-less

Christmas stress is definitely naughty, never nice. Every day borders on “Bah Humbug”. Your inner Scrooge is screaming to get out. You want to dump baking cookies for Santa, thinking he’s fat enough as is. Labors of love can seem just like labor. You feel like “bad mom”, “bad friend”, “bad, well…just bad.  Endless hours of online shopping can weigh you down with endless strain. Amazon Prime isn’t the kind of help you really need.  When you end up doing everything yourself, your batteries can start to lose their juice. Your Christmas high can turn into a body crash. Unrelenting stress, can topple your tree. Why? Good chance it’s hormones.  Because unrelenting stress can cause your adrenal glands to go into overdrive, causing your hormones to get overworked and out of balance.

Who Put Your Head in a Nutcracker?

Peace might be on earth, but it’s not in your house. It gets to a point where all you want for Christmas is Tylenol, Advil or Prilosec. Your head throbs. You feel aches and pains all over. You have trouble sleeping. (Forget sex.) Your heart races. Your gut is getting to you. You can’t fake how rotten you feel. (Aren’t you supposed to be feeling happiness and joy?) What’s really happened is that hormones caused by stress take hostage of your body. Excess stress can have both physical and mental effects. (if you’re like 7 out of 10 people, you have both.) The longer the stress lasts, the longer the list of health issues, and the longer those health issues can linger. Christmas can sometimes feel like a headache, but how you feel isn’t all in your head.

Find Some Real Holiday Cheer

The most dangerous thing about stress, is how easily it can creep up on you. And how hard it can hit you. But there is a gift you can give yourself. Put a visit to Denver Hormone Health at the very, very top of your list. Forget about sitting on Santa’s lap, and take a seat with one of the experienced and skilled doctors at Denver Hormone Health who are specialized in everything that has to do with hormones and how to get them back in balance. With simple tests they can tell which hormones are having a holiday heyday with your body and then develop a unique treatment plan you can plan on getting you back to feeling the Christmas spirit, and feeling your best. So before you string another strand of popcorn, make an appointment at Denver Hormone Health now.

Nothing will get you caroling quicker.