What the F@&K is going on with my hormones?!

As a woman, we have some serious changes happening in our body regularly and it is important to acknowledge those changes and their role in our goals and how we approach them.  So let’s start with a basic outline of what is going on inside a woman’s body.  First, we have monthly cycles (versus a man who experiences a daily cycle).  Even if you are on birth control, please understand that your body is still cycling.  I am not going to get into what is happening if you are on birth control because that is a hugely complex topic, but definitely check out information from Dr. Mindy Pelz, Dr. Taz (Dr. Taz MD on IG) or the book Period Power by Maise Hill for more information.  Alright, let’s dive in!

The first day of your cycle is the first day of your period.  Your hormones are lower during this time gradually increasing until day 10-15 of your cycle.  Estrogen is the primary hormone in play during the first 10 days of your cycle.  Somewhere between days 10-15 you will ovulate and estrogen and testosterone will be at a peak and progesterone will be higher as well.  Many women feel their most powerful when ovulating.  Then you will start to decrease estrogen and increase your progesterone before your next period begins again.  Why is this important?  Because at all these various times of the month you are going to experience all sorts of different emotions and energy levels.  Your body needs different things at different times of the month.  Right before your period begins again (up to 10 days before depending on the length of your cycle) is when you are most likely to feel anxious, angry, frustrated, emotional etc.  There is actually data to show a higher suicidal ideation in women during this time period.  It can be a real doozy.  This is when going after your goals is going to be the most difficult.  This is when you are going to crave more carbs (because your body actually does need more carbs during this time of your cycle).  Being aware of how your body feels throughout your cycle is going to be such a key player in being able to achieve your goals.  Knowing that your body needs a bit more carbs and a bit more rest the week before your period starts, knowing that you might be more frustrated, irritable and emotional, means that you can acknowledge those feelings.  If you can say “oh yes, I am in week 4 of my cycle and that is why I am feeling this way” you will feel more peace and ease and know that this too shall pass.  If you “fall off the wagon” at some point during week 4 you know that you can course correct because it’s just your hormones throwing you for a loop.  It’s not YOU, it’s hormones.  This gets even more complicated when you start talking about pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause and menopause. 

Now, I am not saying that you should blame everything on your hormones and give into every craving etc. but I am saying being aware of what is happening inside your body throughout the month can be a total game changer.   So where can you start?

Start by tracking your cycle.  When your period starts, that is day 1, then track the days on a calendar and write down things as you go.  How do you feel?  What emotions are you experiencing?  For me, I can without a doubt tell you I’m going to be more tired and quite irritable in the 5-7 days leading up to my period.  It’s pretty much without fail.  Because of this, I HAVE to prioritize sleep.  If I am sleep deprived in any way during this time period it is so much worse. And it is even important to get more sleep than usual if possible.  I know that if you are a mom, this might not be your reality and that is okay.  What is most important is being aware of your body, your cycle and your body’s needs so at least you have an explanation for the things that tend to make us women feel crazy!!

The next thing you can do is work with a functional medicine doctor and/or read books or listen to podcasts to get a better understanding of what your body needs at various times during your cycle.  Once you are armed with this information, you can start to formulate your goals around your cycle.  This will help you to feel so much more ease and peace around your goals because you are not trying to fight against biology.  Besides our monthly cycle, we also experience serious changes after giving birth and throughout our life based on stress levels and where we are in our lifetime cycle (i.e. perimenopause, menopause etc.) so working with a functional medicine doc who can test your levels on a regular basis will be so helpful.  Just know that you are never alone in this.  If you start to think you are going crazy, that is a good sign your hormones are out of balance and that you need to work with a functional medicine doc to figure out what is going on (or perhaps you just need some dang rest.  I see you.).

I do really want to talk about stress as it relates to hormones.  You probably have heard or said the saying “the stress is killing me” but you may not have been aware of how literal that is.  I am coming off of an extremely trying and stressful time at work and I can honestly say that it beat me up.  Emotionally, physically & hormonally.  My body suffered as a result of the stress it was under.  I even had one night where over and over again I had almost like a falling dream where you jolt awake - except without the dream and just the jolt.  I had many sleepless nights and sleep is my love language.  We all have a stress hormone called cortisol. When you are stressed, cortisol increases.  To some extent cortisol is helpful and normal.  It is what keeps us awake during the day.  However, cortisol also has to live in concert with the other hormones in your body and when it is high it can throw off your other hormones.  Cortisol also raises your blood sugar.

I remember there was one day I planned on fasting for 24 or 36 hours (not recommended when under stress).  I had tested my blood sugar when I woke up and it was in a normal range (below 90).  Then, I went to work and experienced a stressful two hour meeting.  I was feeling shaky and weird and assumed my blood sugar might be low since I hadn’t eaten.  However, when I tested my blood sugar it was higher than normal during fasting (110).  That is when it hit me - my stress caused a cortisol spike which increased my blood sugar without me putting a morsel of food in my mouth.  

Continued stress on the body can cause many issues with your body and if you are trying to lose weight, any hormone imbalance, cortisol or otherwise, can make this nearly impossible for you.  Again, it’s not you, it’s hormones.

Armed with this information, we can make different choices to try to reduce stress and keep our hormones balanced and these include:

• Eating at regular intervals
• Eating well 
• Light exercise - nothing crazy or overly strenuous
• Sleep!
• Therapy
• Meditate 
• Box breathing
• Time in nature
• Change your stressful situation (not always easy, but it is worth stating)

Hormones sure are a trip.  Remember, I am not a doc or hormone expert.  I am just a girl sharing the things I have learned that have helped me navigate my female body in a deeper, more compassionate way.  Hormones are real and they have an effect on us.  The more that we are aware of their presence, what they need and how they affect us, the more empowered we can be to take control of our lives and plan our goals and whatever else around this.

I know that we can’t literally always get more sleep in week 4 and week 1.  I know that life is what it is, which is to say - it can be unpredictable.  It can be crazy.  But we can take steps to help ourselves.  We can take small baby steps toward having a better understanding of what our body is going through.  And honestly, when we do that, we become fucking unstoppable.

Let’s go ladies!!!