Hormone imbalances in women are prevalent. As many as 80% of women experience it during their lifetimes.
Hormone imbalances for women can be extremely confusing and often happen so slowly that it’s difficult to know if a change has occurred.
However, it’s essential to know the key symptoms so you can spot a problem during its early stages since imbalances take time to reverse. You can also feel the effects physically, emotionally, and mentally, making them widespread. As functional medicine practitioners in Tulsa, OK, we can discuss any symptoms, looking deeper into your hormone imbalances and how to heal them.
Hormones play such a key role in the body, yet they work silently. Until something goes wrong, we may not even know they’re there, keeping our sleep/wake cycles regular, maintaining our energy levels, and driving a healthy libido.
13 Signs of imbalances to keep an eye out for
1. Insomnia
When your progesterone levels drop, your sleep may be affected. Look out for trouble getting to and staying asleep.
2. Chronic Fatigue
Everyone gets tired sometimes, but feeling tired often and being unable to recover from your daily activities may point to a problem with your hormones. If your progesterone levels are too high, you may feel like sleeping more, but tiredness can also be a sign of a thyroid problem.
3. Memory Problems
Changes in estrogen, progesterone, & testosterone levels can make it harder to think clearly and remember things. Your thyroid hormone levels may be to blame. Talk to your healthcare practitioner about any memory problems you’re having so they can check thoroughly for the cause.
4. Stubborn Acne
Persistent acne can have a hormonal component. It may signal that there are too many androgens circulating in your bloodstream, causing your oil glands to produce too much oil, which then clogs your pores.
5. Headaches
Headaches that appear during the same time of the month may suggest your estrogen levels are dropping during that time.
6. Stomach Problems
If your hormones are fluctuating, it can cause stomach pain, bloating, queasiness, or even diarrhea and constipation.
7. Irregular Periods
If you’ve been skipping periods or they are starting and finishing at different times each month, it can indicate that your estrogen or progesterone levels are not where they should be naturally.
8. Breast Changes
Breasts that feel denser and thicker than normal may suggest higher estrogen levels, just as less dense-feeling breasts may indicate the opposite.
9. Hot Flashes And Night Sweats
Hot flashes and night sweats are caused by low estrogen levels and may appear during the period before menopause, otherwise known as perimenopause.
Sweating can also be caused by hyper- and hypothyroidism.
10. Increased Appetite
When estrogen levels are low, the hormone that controls appetite—leptin—can go awry. Cravings for salty and sweet foods and feelings of intense hunger when your body doesn’t really need to eat may also be caused by imbalances in the adrenals, thyroid, and pancreas.
11. Depression & Mood Swings
Sudden changes in your estrogen levels can also affect the brain chemicals dopamine and serotonin, scrambling your moods and leaving you feeling down.
12. Vaginal Dryness
As estrogen levels drop, it can prevent your vagina from lubricating effectively. It’s normal for this to happen from time to time, but if this problem reoccurs often, it may be a good idea to get your doctor to examine you and check your hormone levels.
13. Low Libido
When testosterone levels diminish, it can drastically affect how interested in sex you are.
There are many natural solutions to hormone balance. Often, the first step is to get your hormone levels checked, which you can do here at our functional medicine center in Tulsa, OK. From there, you can take advantage of the many nutritional and lifestyle options to address balancing hormones.