Posts Tagged ‘pre-menopause’

You’ve heard of progesterone before, but you are not quite sure what it is.  You might think it’s the same thing as progestins because you may be familiar with this word.  However, the difference is that progesterone is a natural bioidentical hormone and progestin is a chemical synthetic hormone.  Both are used in the treatment of menopause symptoms, but the side effects of progestin are very harmful on the health of a woman.

Progestins will cause water retention but progesterone is a natural diuretic.

Progesterone is firstly a natural hormone in both men and women.  In women, progesterone is made in the ovaries.  As you grow older, your progesterone levels will decrease, possibly leading to estrogen dominance which is a dangerous state to be in.  Progesterone is made from wild yams and then synthesized in a laboratory.

Bioidentical progesterone benefits are numerous.  As already mentioned, it is a natural diuretic.  Other benefits include assisting with sleep problems which are very common in menopause, elevating feelings of depression and sadness.  It also counteracts against estrogen buildup and estrogen dominance.  It is also beneficial in the treatment of hot flashes, night sweats and decreased libido.  It also helps with thyroid function, normalizes blood sugar levels, protects against endometrial cancer and improves energy levels, stamina and endurance.

Progesterone can be used with bioidentical estrogen or alone, it depends on what your doctor prescribed for you for the treatment of menopause symptoms.

For the treatment of menopause, progesterone is made into a cream and then applied to the skin twice a day, usually from day 12 to day 28 of the menstrual cycle.    Bioidentical doctors – those skilled in menopause treatment will test hormone levels in the blood when menopause symptoms are effecting a woman and then will prescribe bioidentical creams of estrogen and progesterone for the treatment of symptoms.

by Don Bodenback

One of the most common and disturbing symptoms of pre-menopause and menopause <href>=http://tiny.cc/menopause_relief921>menopause relief is depression. The severity can range anywhere from very mild to devastating. Why does depression strike so many women at a time in their life when they should be experiencing empowerment, liberation and freedom!

The answer can be hard to find, often buried under a mountain of contradiction, vested interests and opinions. Let’s experiment with some good old common sense and see if we can’t flush out a cause and a solution. First, it’s very important to determine what kind of depression we’re talking about. Clinical depression or MDD (Major Depressive Disorder) is very serious and includes mood disorders, dysthymia and bi-polar disorder. Professional help is necessary and these conditions are out of the scope of this discussion.

What I’m talking about is the mild to moderate forms of depression that show themselves when women’s bodies are adjusting to pre-menopause and menopause transitions. It’s time to move away from the tired, worn out, unproductive belief about pre-menopause, menopause and depression; that is that it’s because of falling levels of your female reproductive hormone, Estrogen.

Estrogen is one possible contributing factor but almost never the primary cause of your depression. Depression is only one of at least thirty five well documented symptoms that can occur during pre-menopause or menopause. The symptoms of pre-menopause and menopause are actually the result of your metabolism and hormonal system being so out of balance. Few people realize this and even fewer will tell you. Remember those ‘vested interests’ I mentioned earlier?

The normal and natural fluctuations and decline in your female hormones that occur during this transition can now trigger an avalanche of frustrating symptoms, including depression. Most women in today’s world reach pre-menopause and menopause in no condition to handle the changes their body and mind are inevitably about to go through.

There’s a progression of imbalance that occurs which ends up causing depression, mood swings, anxiety and irritability in susceptible women. First, your major hormones that control metabolism start to lose their grip. Then, your faltering metabolism sends a, “we have a problem” message to your brain. Your minor hormones, which include your female hormones Estrogen and Progesterone, are in effect ‘stolen’ to perform damage control. This downward spiral depletes the ‘feel good’ chemicals in your brain and there you have it, the recipe for depression – plain and simple!

Some women get sweet cravings. Some ride an emotional roller coaster with wild mood swings, anxiety and irritability. Others get brain-fog, memory lapses; have difficulty concentrating, trouble sleeping or loss of sexual desire; and, a combination of some or all of these troubling symptoms. All of these symptoms are unnatural and unnecessary! When you focus on the underlying problem, you can reverse this downward spiral and return to the happy, healthy and productive you!

Thankfully there is a clinically proven, safe, effective and natural way to rebalance your hormonal system, fix your faltering metabolism, spare your minor hormones and recharge those feel good chemicals in your brain! You just need some very specific natural medicines and a few lifestyle modifications. If you do it right, the healing is rapid and almost always permanent.

If your pre-menopause or menopause transition is less than empowering, we’d love to help!

Don Bodenbach: Co-Founder,http://www.life-factor.com

Don Bodenbach is a visionary, investigator, consumer advocate and trendsetter in the areas of health, healing and human potential. He is considered one of the premier supplement formulators in the world. For 13 years Don hosted southern California’s most popular health talk radio show, The Nature of Health.