Many women who are in menopause have the common symptoms of hot flashes, night sweats, and other symptoms. Many of these women think they have to live with the symptoms, but what they don’t understand is while these symptoms may be common, they aren’t “normal”, and in most cases can be managed naturally.
The following are just some of the symptoms women who are in menopause experience:
• Hot Flashes
• Night Sweats
• Vaginal Dryness
• Mood Swings
• Sleeping Difficulties
• Hair Loss
• Fatigue
• Inability to concentrate
So why do so many women who are in menopause experience one or more of these symptoms? There could be numerous reasons for this, but the most common one has to due with a hormone imbalance involving the hormones estrogen and progesterone. These symptoms can be due to a deficiency in either of these hormones, although they are far more common with a progesterone deficiency.
In fact, Dr. John R. Lee wrote an entire book about menopause and natural progesterone. This book goes into great detail about all of the different symptoms women with menopause commonly experience, and he talks about how taking natural progesterone can help many of these women. Although I don’t agree with everything Dr. Lee says in his book, I do think it’s a great book and should be read not only by any woman who is experiencing menopause, but any person with a thyroid or autoimmune thyroid condition. For any woman with menopausal symptoms who has a progesterone deficiency, taking natural progesterone probably can help, but many of these women can eliminate their symptoms without taking any bioidentical hormones.
Here Are Three Steps To Eliminate The Symptoms Of Menopause:
Step #1: Consult With A Natural Endocrine Doctor. While you can take natural progesterone and/or some nutritional supplements to help manage the symptoms, if you want to eliminate the menopausal symptoms, then you should consult with a competent holistic doctor. Self-treating your condition is an option, but if you’re looking for optimal results then it really is best to speak with an expert. After all, the ultimate goal should be to address the cause and eliminate the symptoms if at all possible, and not just manage them.
For example, while menopausal women will of course have a decrease in progesterone when compared to cycling women, they still should be producing a certain amount of progesterone. In addition, the ratio of progesterone to estrogen for both a menopausal and cycling woman should be around 30 to 1. A common cause of an imbalance in the ratios of estrogen and progesterone is problems with the communication between the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland. This is why it’s also important to look at the hormones FSH and LH, as the levels of these hormones can give the holistic doctor a good idea as to what is causing the hormone imbalance.
Step #2: Obtain A Female Hormone Panel. A good holistic doctor will want to evaluate the hormones which can be responsible for the menopausal symptoms. Most doctors will evaluate estrogen and progesterone, but since hormones are interactive it’s a good idea to evaluate some of the other hormones as well, which can be accomplished through an expanded female hormone panel. This will give a complete picture as to what type of hormone imbalance you may have, if any. As I mentioned before, it really is a good idea to look at the levels of FSH and LH. But at the very least both the estrogen and progesterone levels should be evaluated.
Step #3: Follow A Natural Treatment Protocol. If it is determined that you have a hormone imbalance, the next step will be to correct this problem. How this is accomplished does depend to some extent on what type of imbalance you have. If it’s a progesterone deficiency, which is a frequent cause of menopausal symptoms, then this can usually be corrected by modifying certain lifestyle factors and taking specific nutritional supplements and/or herbs. Sometimes a purification program is also necessary to correct problems with the hormones, but this once again depends on the individual condition.
Can One Bypass These Steps And Just Take Natural Progesterone?
As I mentioned before, a woman with menopausal symptoms who has a progesterone deficiency can take natural progesterone, and this most likely will help to manage her symptoms. But as I’ve also mentioned in the past, the problem with this approach is it does nothing to address the actual cause of the problem. In other words, what caused the progesterone deficiency to occur in the first place? Most doctors will attribute the progesterone deficiency to the ovaries no longer producing progesterone. But while there no question will be a reduction in the amount of progesterone produced in menopausal women, there still should be sufficient progesterone manufactured so they don’t have these symptoms.
Obviously there are exceptions to this, as if someone has a severe progesterone deficiency, or has had a complete hysterectomy, then they probably will need to take natural progesterone. In the case of a complete hysterectomy they will most likely need to take natural progesterone continuously. So there are some women who will need to take natural progesterone, but other than those who have a severe defiency or have had their uterus and ovaries removed, most menopausal women do not need to take natural progesterone.
In summary, many women with menopausal symptoms can have them eliminated through a natural treatment protocol. For those with a severe progesterone deficiency, or for a woman who has had a complete hysterectomy, then taking bioidentical hormones might be necessary. In either case, it’s a good idea to consult with a competent holistic doctor to determine if you have a hormone imbalance that is contributing to your symptoms, and if so, they will give their recommendations as to how you should manage the symptoms, or if possible, completely eliminate them.
Other Articles You Might Like To Read:
Should Natural Progesterone Be Used To Help Restore Thyroid Health? [1]
3 Common Causes of Estrogen Dominance [2]
Overcoming Depression When Dealing With A Thyroid Condition [3]