How Do You Know If Hormones Are A Problem in Erie CO?

By Dr. Samantha Boldt

Some symptoms seem very easy to attribute to out of balance hormones. When we're having hot flashes, no libido, moodiness, acne, bloating, fatigue, it's very easy to blame hormones. However, there are a lot of symptoms caused by hormones in Erie CO that people don't realize. For example, anxiety, low motivation, sleep apnea, feeling dizzy, bone loss, insomnia, joint and muscle pain, and changes in facial and body hair are all closely tied to what your hormones are doing. There are potential other causes for these symptoms as well, but more often than not, they're hormone related.

A Brief Overview of Hormonal Symptoms (But not all of them)

If you are experiencing some of the symptoms below, it is probably worth having your hormones checked. We often tell our patients it's worth checking hormone levels every 3-5 years. Why start having symptoms when we can prevent any negative patterns that may be starting to show up in the labwork?

Low Cortisol in Erie CO

• Fatigue
• Low Motivation
• Sleep Apnea
• Dizziness/Weakness
• Low Libido
• Orthostatic Hypotension.

High Cortisol (very common)

• Fatigue
• Low Motivation
• Anxiety/Panic Attacks
• Insomnia
• Inflammation
• Muscle and Joint Pain
• Brain Fog
• Blood Sugar Dysregulation
• Hair Loss
• Cardiovascular Issues
• Weight Gain

Low Progesterone (Very Common)

• Short cycle
• Irregular Periods
• Anxiety
• Infertility
• Insomnia
• PMS
• Menorrhagia

Low Estrogen

• Night Sweats
• Hot Flashes
• Brain Fog
• Vaginal Dryness
• Insomnia
• Low Libido
• Joint Pain
• Weight Gain

High Estrogen (Very Common)

• Swelling
• Bloating
• Weight Gain
• Tender Breasts
• Acne
• Mood Issues
• Painful Periods
• Menorrhagia
• Headaches
• Sleep Problems

Low Testosterone (Common in Males)

• Low Energy
• Low Libido
• Decreased Muscle Mass
• Belly Fat
• Bone Loss
• Mood Instability
• Brain Fog
• Erectile Dysfunction

High Testosterone (Common in Females)

• PCOS
• Acne
• Mood Instability
• Thinning Scalp Hair
• Body/Facial Hair Growth
• High Blood Pressure
• Weight Gain
• Irregular Cycles

So you think you might have some of these symptoms. What's the next step?

Start With an In-Depth History

Unfortunately, the healthcare system continues to move away from spending actual time with their patients. We're pretty lucky if we get to spend 15 minutes with our medical doctor discussing what is going on with our health. The average face time spent between a new patient and a medical doctor is just under 11 minutes. That is not enough time to get a clear understanding of a patient's health history or to dig into the symptoms they're currently having. While having labwork done is great, and absolutely helps give us answers, symptoms are a key puzzle piece when putting together the whole hormonal picture.

At Live Your Life in Erie, our average new patient functional medicine visit is 50 minutes. Certain symptoms absolutely match up with particular hormones. Blood, salivary, and even urine tests all have their own cons that can be mitigated by a good health history.

Labwork

Wait….you just said a good history taking session is what's needed. Yes, and that is true! However, labwork still remains a large piece of the puzzle. In our office, we typically use the DUTCH test, which utilizes urine analysis. With blood, we typically only get one data point a day, which can be affected by many things. Our hormones fluctuate throughout the day. Depending on what time the data point was taken will change the results, and different people may have different high points of their day.

With urine, we usually collect 4-5 data points throughout the day. We also get the amount that was actually metabolized by the body for the full day, not just what is floating around in the blood. Not only do we get hormone levels like cortisol, estrogen, progesterone, dhea, and testosterone, but we also get their break-down products (which can affect the body), and detoxification pathway analysis. So in the end, we know what the original hormones are doing, what the secondary break-down hormones are doing, and how well your body is ridding itself of unnecessary hormones. We will also use blood and salivary testing as needed.

If you're concerned that hormones may be causing some of your issues, schedule a free 10-minute consult or book your initial appointment today! Stop wondering if there's a way to feel better. There is, and we're here to help!