Hormone Harmony

Today more and more women are suffering from symptoms of hormonal imbalances. Whether it’s polycystic ovarian syndrome(PCOS), infertility, or hot flushes, these problems all stem from the same culmination of stressors. In fact problems with adrenal stress, thyroid disorders, reproductive health and mental emotional health, all go hand in hand. There is no separation, the group of endocrine glands all function together in one beautiful orchestra.

When we learn to listen to our internal signals, we hear the call of our hormones. Weight gain, water retention, depression, mood swings, sleep disorders, digestive problems, low energy levels, re-activeness, anxiety, low libido, skin problems, reproductive irregularities, slow metabolism, panic attacks, neurosis, thinning hair, PMS headaches, are all part of your early warming system. Something needs to change.   A pill won’t cure you.

Our bodies have an innate intelligence far beyond our mental understanding. When problems arise, it doesn’t happen because your body has the intention to make your life difficult, it is quite simply a cry for help. There was a time when we were taught by our elders to listen to our own bodies, today we are taught to take a pill and just keep going.

Hormones are extremely sensitive. Our endocrine system is a fine tuned orchestra, each hormone having a vitally important role. When this symphony is interfered with, for instance stopping ovulation and therefore stopping the main production of our key vitality hormone progesterone, there is a cascade of impacts upon our reproductive health, thyroid health, adrenal health, neuro-chemical health and many other aspects of our well being.

Imbalances are cumulative, issues don’t just fall out of the sky, most imbalances build up over time, years or even decades. It takes an investment of self respect, time and consistency to reverse damage and rebuild our vital energy. There is no reason we cannot create a homeostasis or hormone harmony in our lives.

Evidence clearly shows that synthetic hormones and ovulation interruptions are all detrimental to our health and well being:

• Dr John R. Lee MD, on the Contraceptive Pill – “It is also well-known that 19-nor-testosterone progestins bind to estradiol receptors and thus have the potential to stimulate breast and endometrial cancer.

Regardless of dose, birth control pills significantly raise your risk of deep vein thrombosis (blood clots) that can be deadly”. – Excerpted from the Hopkins Health Watch

• Gina Cushman, NMD, PhD in her article Primary Risks of Oral Contraceptives and HRT states – “Long-term use of oral contraceptives (OCs) and of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) have been linked to increased blood coagulation, with its increased risk of cardiovascular problems. Their long-term use also has been linked to altered immune and inflammatory factors, suggesting an increased risk of chronic immune disorders with an inflammatory component, including cancer.”
• Thrombophilic abnormalities, oral contraceptives, and risk of cerebral vein thrombosis: a meta-analysis – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0022980/
• Progestogen-only contraceptives and the risk of stroke: a meta-analysis – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0028173/
• Cervical cancer and use of hormonal contraceptives: a systematic review – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0020422/
• Oral contraceptive use as a risk factor for premenopausal breast cancer: a meta-analysis – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0023141/

Women have a rhythm that is intrinsically in line with the natural cycles of life. When we use synthetic hormones they disconnect us from the core of our being, from our essence. Separation is the greatest illness in the world today. Women are discovering the sense of upliftment that comes, when they support their innate internal flow. They are realizing the gifts of their cyclical nature, discovering a time to be creative, a time to share, a time for clearing and a time to be still, as their body moves through these four phases of being each month. Like the flow of the breath of life our hormones show us that there is a depth to our being, a tangible bounty of vivacity that may yet be undiscovered.

We are the only one responsible for our hormone health. When you find the tools that work for you, you can feel your body stepping aboard the path of regeneration and vibrancy.

Tools that can assist the reversal of synthetic hormone damage?

• Natural progesterone cream (increases essential progesterone levels).

  Chasteberry/ Agnus Castus (the one herb that assists in balancing our estrogen and progesterone levels).

 Toxic environment toxic hormones

In the time when humans lived in line with nature, hormone imbalances and other 21^st century syndromes were almost unheard of. Even when they did occur, we then had a deep wisdom of plant medicine and other healing elements of nature that helped the body balance with ease and grace. Sadly most of this ancient knowledge has been destroyed.

The world is no longer in the paradigm of symbiosis and natural law, the governing energy of today is control and separation. Thankfully this is changing as more and more of us are realizing life can be beautiful, constructive and productive, while living in line with the environment.

The moment humans began to use petrochemicals and other toxic chemicals purely for the sake of making money, we stepped onto a deeply destructive path. When we harm the Earth, we harm ourselves.

The distorted effects of chemicals on marine life etc; has been documented for decades, only now is there a clear body of evidence, that is finally being released, illuminating the dangers of the hundreds of thousands of chemicals present in our food, water, body care products, cleaning products, baby products, plastics, fabrics, paints and so much more.

We have been spraying our food for decades with diluted chemicals used for bio warfare. These chemicals are known as endocrine disruptors. They link to our hormone receptors and convey a distorted message, within our body’s sensitive communication networks. The long-term results are only being fully realized now.

Strategies for cleaning up your environment and body:

• Firstly only buy bio degradable or organic products, or at least chemical and hormone free food, especially when it comes to animal produce.
• Secondly grow your own food where ever possible.
• Thirdly take your body through a step by step detox process, starting very gently and stretching it out over three years.
• I would suggest beginning with:
  • Zeolites (binds and chelates toxins) – http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11434724
  • Probiotics and cultured foods (your intestinal flora is the foundation of health).
  • Bring in digestive enzymes (this increases our ability to absorb nutrients and release toxins).
  • Green juice (helps bind toxins and boosts ones essential protein, mineral and enzyme levels).
  • Cutting out wheat, sugar, diary and all processed foods.

Be Stress Free

“It’s just stress”, how often do we hear these words? Our bodies are designed to cope with an emergency state for 10% of our lives, yet we spend approx 80% of our existence in fight or flight. There is no saber-toothed tiger chasing us, we are not in danger for our lives, so why do we act like we are?

Today society is placing demands on us that go far beyond our innate capacity. Stress arrives when our tasks out way our time for simply living. We have a deeply ingrained belief structure that encourages us to run around pleasing others instead of fulfilling ourselves. Nobody is going to persecute you for having fun, laughing, being creative or being still, this is all part of our human birth right.

Stress damage is a very real problem. Whether you are experiencing stress from consistent pressure at work, relationship issues, over exercise, toxic food, lack of sleep, or plain old worrying, the physical effects are the same.

Stress shifts the body out of the parasympathetic state of awareness, calmness, inspiration, enjoyment, clarity, digestion, absorption, detoxification and regeneration, into a state of sympathetic emergency. In sympathetic dominance we release high levels of cortisol and adrenaline. These hormones keep our blood pressure high, our mind on alert, our perception paranoid, our system acidic. We are unable to absorb nutrients or clear out toxins, there is no space for it, we are under attack! Our progesterone is shunted from keeping our reproductive system, thyroid, serotonin and dopamine levels balanced, to making lots of cortisol. You can see why long-term stress creates reproductive issues, thyroid imbalances and triggers depression.

We are not machines’, we are living breathing human beings. We often forget that we are an integral part of nature. She supplies our food, our housing, our clothing, our medicine, our oxygen, our fun and elements of life that cannot be synthesized in any way shape or form. Part of feeling fulfilled is finding our way of realigning with nature. As women, we hold the cycle of life within us, therefore it is important to plug into this life force whenever possible.

In this high-speed world, it takes sincere effort to set up clear boundaries and create time to engage with the things that are truly our soul food. Life is for living, not just surviving.

Your hormones are what you eat

Food is our physical nourishment, it is the foundation that creates and heals the tissue within every part of our body. Our hormones are made from proteins and essential fatty acids. Our endocrine glands need minerals to function, therefore we need to eat real food that contains these delicious nutrients. The highest quality nutrients today are found in organic whole foods.

The most easily absorbent proteins come from avocado’s, olives, seeds, nuts, sprouts, dark green leaves and free range high quality eggs and fish. The best mineral sources are dark green leafy plants and seaweeds. The best essential fatty acids come from hemp oil, chia, seeds, avocados, olives, algae oil, superior salmon oil, fresh tuna and coconut oil.

As consumerists we have forgotten the most enjoyable food is delicious freshly homemade meals. Growing and making our own food really brings home the gift of nature’s value and nourishment into our lives.

• Include at least 60% raw food in your eating style (especially dark green leaves and seaweeds boost your mineral levels, creates a strong internal foundation).
• Keep your blood sugar level stable. Our endocrine systems prime directive is to keep the blood glucose supply to our brain consistent, it cannot change. Therefore each time our blood sugar/glucose level drops our body is sent back into emergency state, shunting our progesterone to make cortisol, to keep our blood glucose level balanced. Blood sugar stability is a vital key to hormone harmony.

We are all unique

Every one of us has a unique face, body, personality and a unique way of processing the world. Nobody can ever understand your body the way you can, no matter how knowledgeable and skilled they are in their profession, in the end you are the only one who can listen to and heal your own body.

Unfortunately we have grown up in a society that teaches us quite the opposite. We are told that hormonal symptoms are normal, that it just comes with the curse of being a woman, that there is no way of healing or reversing our state of being.

This is really not the case, our body is designed to regenerate, it does it’s best every day, regardless of the level of bombardment that we experience from the day we are born. This bombardment impacts us all in slightly different ways. Some can handle more of these stressors than others, or they experience the impact later on. For our hormones to be harmonious, we simply must not surrender to the flow of the mainstream masses. We need to make a concerted effort to find our own, unique, thriving flow.

Our hormones are our internal guidance system. They are our little beacons that call to us when we need to get back on track. It is our birthright to thrive. There is no lack, there is an abundance of resources, we just need to navigate our way back to our innate state of hormone harmony, fulfillment and well being.