HORMONES AND HEALTH: FEELING AWFUL ALL OVER

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Hormones and Health

HYPER-HYPOCHONDRIAC?

“So, hey, how’re you doing?” you might hear.

So, how do you answer?

Uh, let’s see…queasy, jacked up, run-down, rotten, defective, debilitated, blah, bleh, broken, not so hot, woozy, wobbly, stricken, sick, ick, uck, yukky, ucky, a total mess, at a total loss, down and out, out of it, in the dumps…oh heck, get out the thesaurus. Point is, that at different times in our lives, we all go through feeling like dreck (there’s another apt word). Well, the good news is that it just might be that your hormones are unbalanced. Hormones? Oh groan, something else to worry about. (Hold on, hold on…keep reading…)

WHO KNOWS WHAT A HORMONE IS, ANYWAY? (HONESTY, HERE…NO WIKI WANDERING)

in the simplest of terms, hormones are powerful chemical messengers in your body that are constantly traveling around your bloodstream telling your tissues and organs what to do. (And their word is golden.) They control most bodily functions and are essential for every activity of life. The bummer is that you can’t control them on your own. They choose to play “mayhem and misery”, with every inch of your body, and it’s a game you can’t win.

GOLDILOCKS AND THE 50 OR SO HORMONES

There are about 50 different hormones in the body which effect trillions of our cells. Each hormone has a different effect on our body, and each and every one of those hormones can be out of balance at some point or another during our lives. Here’s how the story goes:

“This hormone is too much”, Goldie would say.

“This hormone is too little”, she might claim.

In both cases, with too much or too little of any hormone, even tiny changes can have serious effects throughout your body. From head to toe. To get to “this is just right”, takes fine tuning to get your hormones in a balance that gets you feeling your best. It can be a bear of a problem.

IT’S EVERYWHERE, IT’S EVERYWHERE

So, what causes all these hormone imbalances? To name a few (ok, more than a few) …maybe you should be sitting:

  • Chronic or extreme stress
  • Type 1 and type 2 diabetes
  • Hyperglycemia (overproduction of glucagon (more insulin produced than there is glucose in the blood)
  • Underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism)
  • Overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism)
  • Poor diet and nutrition
  • Being overweight
  • Hormonal replacement or birth controlmedications
  • Abuse of anabolic steroids
  • Benign tumors and cysts(fluid-filled sacks) that affect the endocrine glands
  • Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (low levels of cortisol)
  • Endocrine gland injury
  • Severe allergic reactions or infections
  • Cancers that involve endocrine glands
  • Chemotherapy and radiation therapy
  • Iodine deficiency (goiters)
  • Hereditary pancreatitis
  • Turner syndrome (females with only one functioning x chromosome)
  • Prader-Willi syndrome- (what in the…?)
  • Anorexia
  • Exposure to toxins, pollutants, and endocrine disrupting chemicals, including pesticides and herbicides
  • Pituitary cancers

ENOUGH TO MAKE YOU SICK

So, what are some symptoms and signs you might be suffering from a hormone imbalance? Don’t leave now, and don’t fly into an apoplectic fit that you have not just one of the following symptoms, but all of them:

  • Tired all the time/no energy
  • Difficulty getting up in the morning
  • Poor sleep
  • Craving for salty or sugary foods
  • Taking more effort to perform everyday tasks and duties
  • Decreased sex drive
  • Decreased ability to handle stress
  • Increased time to recover from illness or injury
  • Light headed when standing up quickly
  • Depression
  • Lack of enjoyment or happiness
  • Weight gain/loss
  • Food intolerance
  • Sinus problems
  • Alcohol intolerance
  • Excessive allergies
  • Anxiety
  • Digestive disorders
  • Dry and thin skin
  • Excessive hunger
  • No hunger
  • Hair loss
  • Unexplained headaches
  • Immune deficiencies
  • Inability to concentrate
  • Infections
  • Liver disorders
  • Chronic pain
  • Inflammation
  • Blood pressure problems
  • Low body temperature
  • Hot flashes
  • Night sweats
  • Mood swings
  • Poor memory
  • PMS
  • Sleep disorders
  • Tender breasts
  • Weakness
  • Difficulty building muscle
  • Cramping
  • Fluid retention
  • Slow metabolism
  • Irritability
  • Chronic illness
  • Unexplained or excessive sweating
  • Changes in sensitivity to cold and heat
  • Very dry skin or skin rashes
  • Changes in blood pressure
  • Changes in heart rate
  • Brittle or weak bones
  • A bunch of different cancers and hard-to-even pronounce maladies

A DIAGNOSIS FOR FAILURE

Certainly, at this point, the biggest thing you’re suffering from is panic. The point is, there are times you don’t feel well, and well, can’t figure it out. So, you might ignore what’s gnawing at your health and try to go your merry way. No way that’s going to work. Finally, it gets to the point it starts to interfere with your life, so you start on a medical merry-go-round of supposed experts subjecting you to tests you couldn’t even attempt to pronounce. Which are followed by enough different diagnoses to puzzle Einstein. Maybe it’s this. Probably it’s that. Could be both. “Clueless” is the overwhelming diagnosis of all their efforts. Google any of it and you’ll be sure you’re going to die. Slowly. Painfully.

GET THOSE HORMONES HUMMING

Something else you probably don’t know, is that there are two types of hormones that can be used in hormone replacement therapy. There are natural bioidentical hormones that have the exact same chemical structure your body produces, so when used, the body doesn’t know the difference. Then there are synthetic hormones patented by Big Pharma. (Big nightmare.) It’s a little too close to one size fits all. And we know how productive that is. Additionally, because synthetic hormones are not created structurally the same as natural hormones, they often lead to uncomfortable side effects. That’s where Denver Hormone Health comes in. All their doctors are skilled and experienced in the ups and downs of hormone imbalances. They use bioidentical hormones, not what could be dangerous synthetic hormones. Instead of using the “hunt-and-peck” method for discovering what imbalances you might have, the doctors at Denver Hormone Health look at your body as a whole. With simple tests they are able to determine where the problems are, and based on the results, create a unique, tailored treatment plan to get you feeling like you’re ready to take on the world. Which is why going to Denver Hormone Health makes all the difference in the world. Make an appointment at Denver Hormone Health now. And get ready to discover balanced hormone heaven.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: A Hormonal Wake-Up Call

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SICK AND TIRED OF FEELING SICK AND TIRED

Seems you’re tired all the time. No, exhausted. No, crushingly fatigued. Something has to be wrong, right? Without question. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS), also referred to as myalgic encephalomyelitis(ME), is a medical condition characterized by long-term fatigue and other symptoms that limit a person’s ability to carry out ordinary daily activities. It’s an energy-draining tiredness that doesn’t improve with rest or sleep. Even a solid 24 hours won’t touch it. And the worst? (Well, not worst, worst) You could be suffering from it and not even know it. All you know is that you feel outta gas. All the time. Sick, huh?

LEAPING NOWHERE

The main symptom of CFS is severe (that would be understatement) fatigue that lasts for 6 months or more. You also have at have at least four of these other symptoms:

  • Feeling unwell for more than 24 hours after physical activity
  • Muscle pain
  • Memory problems
  • Headaches
  • Unexplained muscle or joint pain
  • Sleep problems
  • Sore throat and a feeling of swollen glands in the neck
  • Tender lymph nodes

Any of these could make you just want to pull the covers over your head and worry what the heck is going on with you. That is, if you’re able to stay awake long enough to even think about it.

NO FIGMENT FEELS LIKE THIS

You feel like a constantly miserable mess. You think it’s all in your head (not your body), so you put off going to see what’s really going on. And if you don’t know, a lot of doctors know even less. They agree with your misconstrued self-diagnosis that nothing is really wrong, but they put you through a searching-in-the-dark battery of tests that tell them, well…nothing. It’s in your imagination they say. Maybe it’s fibromyalgia. Or mono. Lyme disease? Maybe (and “maybe”, is the big part) it’s an infection. Or obesity. Alcohol. Narcolepsy? This is a diagnosis? Where is the part where they connect it to a hormone imbalance? Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of a hormone imbalance. Excess progesterone can make you sleepy. Too little thyroid hormonecan sap your energy. Just a few examples. Hormones are chemical messengers that impact the way your cells and organs function. Yet we don’t often appreciate hormones until they aren’t working like they should.  It’s well documented that low amounts of hormones are found in the brains and endocrine glands of people with chronic fatigue syndrome. Who knew? Not your doctor, obviously.

OH, WOMAN, OH MAN…

Research shows that Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is six times more likely to affect women than men. But while Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is usually thought of as a woman’s illness, men can get it, too. Actually, long-term fatigue was once considered a male disorder caused by societal pressures. Just over 100 years ago, it was primarily upper-class men in intellectual professions who were affected. “Neurasthenia,” as the condition was called at the time, was a physical diagnosis with high status. The typical patient was a man, and not just any kind of man. He was “civilized, refined, and educated, rather than of the barbarous and low-born and untrained.” (Just who were the scientists dreaming this garbage up?)

Today, both male and female CFS sufferers, suffer from some of the same symptoms. But men tend to suffer in silence. Men’s perception of their worth is typically tied to their careers, earning potential, and/or their ability to take care of themselves or a family.When a man starts having chronic symptoms, he may feel less masculine, even afraid, choosing  to ignore his symptoms. In some cases, men may push even harder to tough it out, which only adds to their fatigue. (Like who needs that?)

HORMONAL “HELP!”

Time to take this distressing and debilitating condition seriously. And we know just the place: Denver Hormone Health.There isn’t anything they don’t know about hormones and the health issues imbalances can cause. And no one knows better how to get you back to balanced and feeling your best. Just talking to one of their experienced, knowledgeable doctors is enough to give you a hopeful shot of energy. With simple tests, they can determine if your hormones are having a field day with your health.  They’ll know if one hormone might be off track, or if it might be several. They’ll know, and know just what to do, creating a tailored, integrated treatment plan that can let you plan on feeling happy instead of haggard. Don’t suffer another day, wondering what’s what. Call Denver Hormone Health and take your life back.

MERRY STRESSMAS – Let it go, Let it go, Let it go

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Let it go

LET IT GO, LET IT GO, LET IT GO

Let it go? Without question, stress is all around you. Every day seems to load it on even more. You really don’t feel well. Everything you’ve been looking forward to has left. You’ve got physical stress, topped off with emotional stress. And one of your wishes on a star includes letting it all go. a But how is that possible…there’s so much to do, so much to remember. You did forget someone…oh, you. Before the holiday even begins, dump the entire concept of expectations, and leave yourself room for a big stocking of joy.

HAVE YOURSELF A SANE AND MERRY CHRISTMAS.

But how? Maybe we can help.

Make a long to-do list, and then dole it out to as many people as possible. And give them a practiced “you don’t want to cross me” look.

Make “delegate” your holiday mantra.

Thank heaven for new appliances that do everything like eliminating the chore of rinsing the dishes before you wash them.

When everyone comes looking for you with things you’d rather not do, tell them you’re facetiming your dearest friend who now lives in Latvia and disappear for an hour. (in which time you’re really taking a breather.).

Go to the pancake house for specialty pancakes.

Be glad you don’t have a chimney and let everyone else figure it out.

Start a new tradition called “give it a rest.”

Don’t fear “store-bought”.

Learn to say “no” in a sweet, endearing way.

Fear not, “naughty”. (At least to some degree.)

VISIONS OF FEELING YOUR BEST

Stress that’s not checked, just continues to make you feel like you’re

constantly under assault. But you can fight back. You don’t have to let stress control your life. The answer isn’t overindulging in eggnog overload. It isn’t feeling like the house has to be spotless before you try to get to bed. Where your head will be crammed with visions of debt. Sleep in heavenly peace seems like a dream. This requires more than elf help. It requires the help of STEPHEN A. GOLDSTEIN MD, F.A.C.S. AT DENVER HORMONE HEALTH. Since you can’t sleep anyway, make an appointment to see him the moment his office is open. Or leave a message and we’ll get right back to you.  With Dr. Goldstein, Christmas cheer comes early and stays that way. As an unparalled expert in hormone therapy, he’ll see that you’re probably feeling your worst. Stress and hormones. Can’t have one without the other. But simple tests will tell him that. And that way he can create a treatment program tailored to your exact needs. No one size fit all. So, call for an appointment now.

And make this the best Christmas ever.