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That is a good question: how do you know how your hormonal balance is doing? What are the signs of a hormonal imbalance? Let’s start by painting a picture of the woman who can keep all the balls in the air: she manages her family and household without too much hassle, enjoys her work, exercises and moves regularly, is stress-resistant and energetic, has a healthy libido, and maintains good contact with her partner, family, and friends. Moreover, her skin glows, she sleeps well, finds her monthly period a breeze, and her mood is (usually) good…
Do you recognize yourself in her?
If you recognize yourself in her, you can safely say that your hormonal balance is perfectly fine! Your hormones are simply doing their job very well 'behind the scenes'.
Unfortunately, this is not the case for many women. Almost all Western women suffer from a hormonal imbalance at some point in their lives. They notice this through a range of (pre)menstrual ailments, such as: food cravings, fluid retention, mood swings, severe abdominal pain, and heavy bleeding. There are also many women who experience problems with their fertility, while others struggle with endometriosis or typical (peri)menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, and a disappearing waistline.
And furthermore, if your hormonal balance is not in order...
Furthermore – as if that weren't enough – many women also struggle with all sorts of other, sometimes vague, ailments that you wouldn't immediately associate with hormones, but which often are indeed related to them. These often involve ailments such as fatigue, feelings of sadness, irritability, sleep problems, acne, excess weight, sugar crashes, dry skin, brittle nails, lifeless hair, and often cold hands and feet.
Why do our hormones influence our mood so much? To understand this, it is helpful to first explain what hormones are. The word hormone comes from the Greek word hormao, which means 'to set in motion'. That is exactly what hormones do: they give instructions to our cells, and in doing so, they influence your sleep, your mood, your weight, your fertility, digestion, blood pressure, etc. Consequently, hormones have a significant effect on our physical and mental well-being. You might even wonder what in your body is n't influenced by hormones.
“Good health & good sense are two of life's greatest blessings.”
In total, there are about fifty known hormones. For hormonal balance, a number of those fifty hormones are extremely important: your sex hormones, insulin, cortisol, melatonin, growth hormone, leptin, and thyroid hormone. Our hormones are produced in specialized glands, such as the thyroid, the pancreas, the gonads, and the adrenal glands. Hormones are then released into the bloodstream so that they can give instructions elsewhere in your body to perform specific tasks.
All these hormones function together in a specific (bio)rhythm. Cortisol, for example, is primarily active during the day, while melatonin is active at night. You will notice this because you feel energetic during the day and sleep well at night. This rhythm can be disrupted if you are still working hard at your computer late in the evening or binge-watching Netflix until the early hours. Due to these activities, your melatonin production really doesn't get going properly... The result is that these two hormones become unbalanced. You can recognize this hormonal imbalance by feeling tired during the day and sleeping poorly at night.
An example of hormonal balance/imbalance
You probably know someone in your circle who really wanted to get pregnant but just couldn't manage it, despite intensive, stressful (IVF) treatments. Only when she and her partner accepted the situation did the stress disappear, and she eventually became pregnant. This example shows that stress (cortisol levels being way too high) is detrimental to your hormone balance—not only for your sex hormones/fertility and sleep patterns, by the way, but also for your thyroid hormone. You might notice this in, for example, the fact that your nails break, your hair becomes lifeless, and your skin loses its radiance.
There is so much more to tell about how your hormones work. Are you curious about that? Then be sure to read Restore Your Hormones in 10 Steps.
Hormonal imbalance? Then you may experience these symptoms.
In any case, remember that your hormones work together. You can compare it to an orchestra that can only make beautiful music if all the instruments play together. It is the same with your hormones. Through this interplay, our hormones can make us the best version of ourselves, but unfortunately, when out of balance, also the worst.
What symptoms can you experience with a hormonal imbalance?
Which symptoms sound familiar to you? Check them off on this list:
- You gain weight and find it harder to lose weight.
- You are irritable.
- You feel gloomy/depressed.
- You become more susceptible to depression.
- You sleep poorly.
- You are suffering from migraines.
- You suffer from night sweats.
- You have a strong craving for sweets and often experience blood sugar dips.
- Your digestion isn't running smoothly, your stomach is often bloated, and your intestines are rumbling.
- Your bowel movements are not regular; you are experiencing constipation or, conversely, diarrhea.
- You feel cold (especially hands and feet).
- You are less able to cope with stress.
- You are having trouble getting pregnant.
- You are experiencing premenstrual symptoms (premenstrual syndrome), such as swollen breasts, fluid retention, food cravings…
- You suffer from PCOS.
- You have troubled skin or acne.
You may also experience these symptoms:
- Dry skin, brittle nails, and lifeless hair.
- Heavy, painful periods that also last longer than a few days.
- An irregular menstruation.
- Hot flashes and other (peri)menopausal symptoms.
- Having little desire for social outings and withdrawing.
- Short on energy for work or the gym.
Find your hormonal balance again
We would like to end this blog on a positive note, because even if you recognize yourself in all kinds of hormonal symptoms, know that this doesn't have to be the case! We really don't have to be the most annoying, moodiest version of ourselves. So: even if PMS , heavy periods, excess weight, sugar crashes, lifeless hair, etc., etc., are currently the order of the day for you, it is not supposed to be this way . This is also proven by the well-known Blue Zones or parts of Africa where these hormonal problems do not occur. The people there live differently than we do, and that knowledge is invaluable to us, because we can use it to help you find your hormonal balance again. So know that your hormonal balance can also return with the right lifestyle, mindset, and nutrition!
Help with regaining your hormonal balance
Could you use some help adjusting your lifestyle and diet? Then follow my online program ' The Viv Hormone Restoration Method ' so that you regain your energy, mood, and the body that makes you happy (and those around you too :-). Yes, then you will also start to look like the woman we described at the beginning of this blog; how beautiful is that?
