Tag Archive for: Hormones

Beauty and The Beast

Remember the fairytale “Beauty and The Beast”? The beauty was the lovely young, feminine, elegant, sexy, desirable, kind woman who seemed to have everything going for her. The beast was a big, hairy, ugly, mean, cursed animal who inflicted pain and misery on others.

In the story, the names “Beauty” and “Beast” clearly distinguish the two characters as diametrically opposed in terms of their significance. Ahh, but the tale ends when the beauty falls in love with the beast. So, somehow, the beauty realized that the beast wasn’t so bad after all.

So, how is it that something so wonderful as the beauty can recognize the goodness in the beast? And how is it that something as horrific as the beast can actually have some redeeming qualities?

The tale of “Beauty and The Beast” was never my favorite … until I assessed it in a slightly different way.

Day after day, I hear women talk about how estrogen is bad. It causes cancer! It will kill you!

And it makes me wonder, is estrogen both the beauty and the beast?

When women make disparaging remarks about estrogen, I respond with questions:

“So, estrogen surged through your body from the time of puberty until the time of menopause. Let’s see, that was about 39 or 40 years. And it made you feminine, soft, sexy, fertile, attractive, beautiful, strong-boned, healthy-hearted, and witty. And all that time, you loved it. You felt great.”

“But then, at menopause, you lost your estrogen. And, suddenly, you had 22 symptoms that made you feel awful. You had hot flashes, night sweats, insomnia, forgetfulness, irritability, joint pain, dry skin, hair loss, whiskers, an itchy and shrinking vagina, urinary incontinence, weight gain, and acne. You felt so miserable you thought you were going crazy.”

“So, you felt fantastic with estrogen. And you feel miserable without it.”

“At what point did estrogen convert from being the beauty to becoming the beast?”

The funny thing is that those women never have an answer.

So, I ask you: Can it be both?

Is it “the beauty” while your own body still produces it, but “the beast” once it doesn’t?

Or is the estrogen your body produced “the beauty,” but estrogen that you take as replacement “the beast”?

And why is it that you think it’s the beast only after you’ve lost it? Was it the beauty making you a beauty while your body still produced it, but became a beast once it didn’t?

I don’t understand the logic. It just doesn’t add up. Does it make sense to you?

If estrogen were the beast, we would expect it to make us feel terrible all the while that our bodies produce it. So, from the time of puberty until we transition into menopause, we would be sick all the time, have the cancers women attribute to it, and feel doomed to live with the beast for far too long.

And then. when we went through menopause and lost the stuff, we’d feel ecstatic. All the beastly effects of estrogen (whatever they may be) would disappear. And we’d feel better than ever before. Menopause would signify ridding ourselves of the beast.

Oh, and without the beast, we’d become more beautiful.

If such were the case, women would long for menopause. They would praise the day when they no longer had to be plagued by the beast.

But, oddly, the reality is that it’s the other way around.

So, my confusion lies in understanding how the very thing that make you feel wonderful is the beast. And how in the world did it transform from being the beauty to being the beast?

As far as I’m concerned, this story line about estrogen the beauty becoming estrogen the beast is more of a fairytale than the actual fairytale. It’s magical, unrealistic, full of fantasy, and completely irrational.

What do you think?

Who Moved My Estrogen?

Have you ever heard of a book written by Spencer Johnson, M.D. entitled Who Moved My Cheese? It’s a tiny little book of about 97 pages, easy to read, and unforgettable. It’s not really about cheese, though. It’s about change, and the cheese is a metaphor for something that disappears, forcing those who are affected by the change to adapt.

I absolutely love that book, and I think it applies to many things in life. It certainly applies to the change called menopause. But, in that case, I guess we would call it Who Moved My Estrogen?

Who Moved My Cheese is about four little characters in a maze. Two of the characters are mice. The other two are humans. And in the middle of the maze is a big mound of cheese. Every day, these four characters wake up, go out and eat the cheese, and haven’t a care in the world.

One day, one of the mice, named “Sniff,” sniffs the cheese and notices that it’s starting to smell a bit rancid. Shocked at this change, he stands back to see the entire mound of cheese. And, low and behold, he realizes that the mound is shrinking!

“Oh, my!” Sniff exclaims. “This cheese is gonna disappear some day.” And with that, Sniff takes off and goes in search of new cheese. He foresees the inevitable. And he acts on it in advance, before it hits him over the head like a ton of bricks.

The other three creatures in the maze just keep on going through the motions: Wake up, eat the cheese, and assume things will always stay the same.

Eventually, one morning, they wake up and find that all the cheese is gone.

They’re shocked! They didn’t see this coming!

The second mouse, Scurry, says, “Oh, well, the cheese is gone. I’m outta here.” And he hits the road to go find new cheese. He hadn’t anticipated the change, but as soon as he came face-to-face with it, he wasted no time in adapting to it by leaving his comfort zone to accommodate the change.

The two little humans fume. They have temper tantrums. They stomp around screaming, “Where’s my cheese?” “This isn’t fair!” “That cheese had better come back, or else ….” They resist the change. They refuse to adapt to it

After days of stonewalling, “Haw,” one of the humans, decides that he has no choice. The cheese is gone. It isn’t coming back. And that means he must force himself to go in search of new cheese. He isn’t happy about it. In fact, he’s terrified. He’s a creature of habit. He doesn’t’ like change.

But, the way he sees it, he can either stay put and die or he can venture out and manage his new situation.

So, with angst and trepidation, he forages beyond his familiar surroundings. As he does so, he discovers new things. “Gee,” he says, “If it hadn’t been for the disappearance of the cheese, I never would have learned about any of these other things. I would have kept doing the same old thing for the rest of my life, oblivious to the fact that there are so many other options available.”

And, as Haw continues his search, he becomes more comfortable, more knowledgeable, and more excited about his future. Because he finally decided to do something productive to make the best of his new-found situation, he saved his life and actually made it better.

“Hem,” the other human stayed and stewed. He refused to budge. He had his head stuck in the sand and his feet rooted right where he stood. No one and nothing was going to force him to change. And, because of his stubborn attitude, he suffered from starvation and died.

As I said, the story is about change. And the question is, “Which of these four creatures most resembles you?” How do you adapt to change?

Menopause is change. You’re going to wake up one day and wonder, “Who moved my estrogen?” So which scenario will depict you?

Will you be pragmatic and proactive by planning ahead for the inevitable? If so, you’ll educate yourself about menopause before your estrogen disappears. That way, you’ll recognize that it’s dwindling in advance, and you’ll be able to prevent the shock of its sudden disappearance.

Alternatively, will you be instamatic like Scurry, and adapt immediately? Will you spring into action as soon as you realize that the change has occurred?

Or will you be dramatic like Haw, balking at the fact that you have no choice but to adapt, dragging your feet, dragging out the process, but figuring it out as you go along?

Or, will you be like Hem, and meet a traumatic end?

There’s no avoiding it. Your estrogen will not last forever. One day, you’ll wake up and wonder, “Who moved my estrogen?”

Mama Comes Unglued

Mama! Good ole’ mamma. She’s everybody’s favorite. She takes care of us, pampers us, spoils us, and understands us. Mama is selfless. Never does she place her needs above ours. Her schedule yields to our wishes and desires. In essence, there’s nothing Mama won’t do for the ones she loves.

Mama! What would we do without good ole’ Mama? Read more

Menopause is All About Compensation

What does the word “compensation” mean to you?

As with most things, it probably depends on context.

Read more

Menopause Management Isn’t Political

Have you noticed that things that aren’t political sometimes seem political? You know, when people feel they have to take a side, label themselves this or that, and confine their opinions and choices to what’s consistent for their side?

Opinions about abortion are political … even though abortion itself is really more personal and medical than political.

Opinions about global warming are political … even though geologic effects of climate and ecology are more scientific than political.

Opinions on your health care are political … even though your employer, insurance company, and government are less qualified than you are to decide what’s best for you.

And on and on.

The point is that we tend to take sides and politicize things that really aren’t political.

How you manage your menopause is not political. Despite the fact that there tend to be “two camps” of thought, you don’t have to take a side.

Three’s the “Traditional Medical Camp” which promotes pharmaceutical hormone replacement. People in this camp focus on estrogen, and believe you should replace your estrogen when your ovaries stop producing it at the time of menopause. They don’t “believe in” herbs, acupuncture, hypnosis, or diet for managing menopause. And if you request anything other than pharmaceutical management options, a person entrenched in the Traditional Medical Camp will scoff and dismiss your request. They’re loyal to the Traditional Medical way of doing things.

And then there’s the “Alternative and Complementary Camp,” which promotes non-pharmaceutical options and denounces hormone replacement. People in this camp focus on progesterone, and believe progesterone is the solution for all your menopausal woes. They instill fear of estrogen to persuade you to use progesterone instead of estrogen. And if you request hormone replacement, a person entrenched in the Alternative and Complementary Camp will shame you for failing to remain loyal to the “natural” way of doing things. They’re patriots of Alternative and Complementary Medicine.

As with politics, every person in either camp is absolutely certain that their way is the best way. They’re sure that they’re right and everyone else is wrong.

Fortunately, your menopause management doesn’t have to fall into one camp or the other. You don’t have to choose sides. You can sample offerings from both camps, form your own opinions, and construct your own management technique.

Think of all the options in both camps a one big smorgasbord.

There’s no need to label one camp good and the other bad. Or one right and the other wrong. There’s no need to take a side.

Wouldn’t it be great if un-politicizing other things were this easy?

Non-truth, Half-truth, And Everything But the Truth

You know how you have to swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth … so help you God, in a court of law? Well, I don’t think that should be confined to just the courts. I think it should be a requirement for a lot of things, including public announcements about research findings.

Don’t you feel like you get conflicting information every time you hear a report about a research study? One report says Vitamin E is good for you; another says, maybe not. One day, two glasses of red wine prevent disease; the next day they don’t. One guideline tells you to get a mammogram every year; another says every two years.

How in the world are you supposed to know what’s true when you hear non-truths, half-truths, and everything but the truth?

Wouldn’t it be so much better if all research reporting required that you get the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

One particular study really brings this other-than-the-truth phenomenon to light. It’s the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI), which came out in 2002.

Before 2002, women routinely took hormone replacement therapy (HRT) when they began experiencing the symptoms of menopause at about age 51. Most women would continue taking the hormones for the next ten years, or even indefinitely. The belief at the time was that hormone replacement therapy for menopause replaced a deficiency in female hormones. A “deficiency” is absence of anything the body needs to function normally.

Just as insulin deficiency (diabetes) requires insulin replacement, and thyroid hormone deficiency (hypothyroidism) requires thyroid hormone replacement, estrogen deficiency at the time of menopause was viewed as a deficiency state that warrants replacement therapy.

Now, if you have a deficiency state and don’t replace the missing substance, what happens?

You experience a list of about 20 symptoms that make you feel awful. And, eventually, your body breaks down because it lacks something it needed to function properly.

Previous research had shown that, without hormone replacement, women had higher rates of blood clots, stroke, heart attack, breast cancer, osteoporosis, and Alzheimer’s Disease.

So, the WHI set out to discover if taking hormone replacement therapy could prevent these diseases. Now this is a far cry different from using hormone replacement therapy to alleviate the symptoms of menopause … with the added benefit of decreasing your risk for these diseases.

Using hormone replacement therapy to directly, specifically, and primarily prevent these diseases is a whole different story! In other words, that’s using it to do something entirely different from its intended purpose. But, of course, explaining that would constitute telling you the whole truth.

Well, you didn’t hear the whole truth about the purpose of the study. You only heard half the truth.

And that’s not all.

The media report to the public on the results of the study weren’t exactly the truth, either.

Here’s what you heard: Hormone replacement for menopause carries more risks than benefits. For example, in the WHI study, it increased the risk of blood clots 100%. It also increased the risk for strokes, heart attack, and breast cancer.

Before I tell you the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, let me tell you what happened when women heard that media report: They all flushed their hormones down the toilet. They became terrified of taking hormones. Consequently, doctors, seeing the public’s fearful reaction, became unwilling to prescribe hormones. They were concerned about the possibility of litigation that might ensue if a woman developed any of these diseases.

So, in the blink of a single media report about a single research study, women went from taking hormone replacement therapy as a benefit … to condemning hormone replacement therapy as a curse.

Hormone replacement went from being the fountain of youth to being the kiss of death.

So, I ask you: Which is it? What’s the truth? How did something that had been so standard and beneficial become so offensive and risky, just because of one research study?

Here’s how: You heard the non-truth, the half-truth, and everything but the truth.

So, what is the truth?

Non-truths and half-truths take many forms. One form is to make a statement that is essentially “true,” but presented in such a way that makes it sound much more devastating than it really is.

Let’s take one single statement that was included in the WHI media report and reveal all the facts:

The media report stated that “Hormone replacement therapy for menopause increased the risk of blood clots 100% in the study subjects.” In other words, the risk of a blood clot increased 100%.

So, what does a “100% increased risk” mean to you?

Does it mean that 100% of the women who took hormones had a blood clot?

Does it mean that the risk of a blood clot increased 100%?

Does it mean that women who took hormones had a blood clot 100% of the time?

Hmmmm? Makes you think, doesn’t it?

Well, if the media report had given you the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, you wouldn’t be wondering what “100% increased risk” meant. You’d know!

So, now I’ll reveal the truth.

The WHI study examined 10,000 women. That’s a lot of women!

The average age of those women was 63. Hey, that’s a whole lot older than the typical woman who takes hormone replacement therapy for the symptoms of menopause! They’re normally only around 51. And, hey, older women have more blood clots, anyway.

But here’s the shocking part of the truth:

Without hormone replacement therapy, 8 women (out of 10,000) had a blood clot.

And, now for the punchline:

With hormone replacement therapy, 16 women (out of 10,000) had a blood clot!

So, the “100% increased risk” meant that instead of 8 women having a blood clot, 16 women had a blood clot … out of 10,000.

But, of course, no one bothered to tell you that. All you heard was “The risk of a blood clots increased 100%.”

Does “16 women out of 10,00 had a blood clot instead of 8” sound as devastating and drastic as “The risk of a blood clot increased 100%”?

Surprised?

Or maybe you’re a little angry.

If so, you have every right to be. You got the non-truth, the half-truth, and everything but the truth. That’s not fair.

If only you’d heard the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, you would have had the opportunity to evaluate the significance of that study fairly. And I’ll bet a lot fewer women would have flushed their hormones down the toilet.

Upside Down Misconceptions About Menopause

One of the most striking things I’ve learned about menopause is that the vast majority of women have numerous misconceptions about it. And the misconceptions are sooooooo prevalent that women pass them from one to the other. Read more

Estrogen Dominance: Is It Good or Bad?

You know how the mere “sound” of a term can lead you to assume that it’s a good thing, and the mere sound of another can insinuate that it’s a bad thing? There are a lot of terms that imply positive or negative qualities simply by the way they sound.

Let’s see what you think.

Read more

The Window of Opportunity

Do you remember back when you were in high school and your parents told you that the choices you made then would affect you forever? You might have seen no reason to make good grades or just say “No” to drugs, or observe the speed limit. Read more

The Three Hormones

Have you ever realized how applicable fairy tales are to real life?

Cinderella was a good person whom others treated badly. But she ended up living happily ever after with the prince.

The slow, steady, methodical tortoise won the race against the inconsistent, impulsive hare.

The Wicked Witch of the West ended up melting to death when she tried to get pretty Dorothy and Toto.

One of my favorites is the story of The Three Bears.

As a nerdy gynecologist, that fairy tale warms my heart because it depicts the real life situation of hormones.

The great thing about that story is that every bear had his or her own thing.

Papa Bear had his own bed, his own chair, his own porridge.

Mama Bear had her own bed, chair, and porridge.

Even Baby Bear had his designated bed, chair, and porridge.

It all just seems so fitting that each bear had tailor-made furniture and bowls that were just the right size. And, obviously, no one else’s things would have sufficed for any of the other bears.

Papa Bear would not have fit in Baby Bear’s bed or chair. And he’d have been hungry with Baby Bear’s portion of porridge.

Mama Bear would not have been as comfortable in Papa Bear’s bed or chair. And she would have felt stuffed to the gills with Papa Bear’s porridge.

And Baby Bear wouldn’t have been as snug or happy in Mama Bear’s or Papa Bear’s bed or chair. Nor would he have liked their porridge.

So you might wonder why The Three Bears reminds me of hormones.

Well it’s because, when it comes to the sex hormones, there’s a hormone for every member of the family.

Papa Bear has testosterone. It’s the male hormone. It makes him strong, hairy, and masculine.

Mama Bear has estrogen. It’s the female hormone. It makes her soft, calm, and feminine.

But wait! Mama Bear has progesterone, also! Does that mean Mama Bear gets two hormones while Papa Bear gets only one?

That’s not fair!

The fact is that progesterone isn’t for Mama Bear. It’s for Baby Bear.

Mama Bear produces progesterone specifically and exclusively FOR Baby Bear.

“Progesterone” literally means “Hormone in support of pregnancy.” (Pro = in support of, Gest = pregnancy, One = hormone)

And the only reason Mama Bear produces progesterone is because she’s the one who gets pregnant with Baby Bear.

So, just like The Three Bears, each of whom had his or her own bed, chair, and porridge, everyone in the family has his or her own hormone.

Estrogen belongs to women. Testosterone belongs to men. Progesterone belongs to babies.

Ahh, fairy tales! There’s a reason they always end up happily ever after.