Hormones play an essential role in women’s health and wellness. They act as very powerful chemical messengers that control nearly all of your body’s natural processes. Specifically, your body carries these hormones in your bloodstream and delivers them to your organs and tissues—which impacts different bodily functions.
However, an imbalance in these hormones can lead to significant issues. Though imbalances can occur at any stage in a woman’s life, many tend to see problems after they reach age 40 (when estrogen levels in particular tend to decline), If you’ve been experiencing changes in your physical or mental wellbeing, it could mean that you have a hormonal imbalance.
The best way to know for sure is to visit a leading hormone therapy clinic, such as Forum Health West Bloomfield, for answers and potential treatment options. Read on to learn more about hormone levels and the benefits of hormone therapy for women!
Learn Your Hormone Levels—Here’s Why
Unfortunately, your body’s hormone production isn’t static. Hormones fluctuate naturally during different stages of a woman’s life—such as puberty, pregnancy, and menopause. These hormonal changes can lead to a number of different side effects that have a negative impact on your quality of life.
As women age, most of these imbalances tend to coincide with a reduction in your body’s hormone production. However, some women may also experience side-effects related to an increase in hormone production. In some cases, these imbalances are only temporary and will correct themselves naturally.
But others see more chronic side-effects and symptoms that can prove difficult to manage. These problems can impact a woman’s physical, emotional, and sexual health or wellbeing. Some women may feel a consistent lack of energy, struggle with mood swings, or see an increase in depression or anxiety. Others may experience hormonal acne, irregular menstruation, or vaginal dryness and a loss of sexual desire.
The fact is that your body has over 50 hormones that it produces naturally. All of these hormones play a different role when it comes to biological functions—and imbalances in one or more of them will produce different side effects.
Hormone therapy for women is a proven way to help balance hormone levels and decrease side effects. However, knowing which hormones suffer from an imbalance helps both providers and patients. Through full-panel blood testing, your provider can determine which hormones are above or below optimal levels. This will not only help with developing a therapy plan, but it also helps women know the underlying cause of their symptoms.
When & How Do Hormones Start to Decrease?
While most women begin to experience a decline in their body’s hormone production after age 40, there’s no set date or time for when it actually starts. However, a woman’s loss in hormone production does coincide with the early stages of menopause.
The very first of these stages is known as perimenopause, which marks the point of when the body starts to decrease its estrogen production. It’s a transitional phase in which some of the most well-known side effects of menopause start to appear. Women may start to experience irregular menstrual cycles with bouts of hot flashes or vaginal dryness.
Essentially, perimenopause is your body’s way of transitioning into menopause. As a result, women will produce less estrogen from their ovaries as your body prepares to stop releasing eggs. However, just because you start to see the symptoms doesn’t mean you’re entering menopause right away. Most women experience perimenopause for an average of 4 years.
Once a woman goes 12 months consecutively without completing a menstrual cycle, they’ve officially transitioned out of perimenopause and have completed menopause. The next phase is postmenopause, which lasts the rest of a woman’s life. A woman can no longer menstruate and become pregnant at this point. They may produce small amounts of estrogen and progesterone, but these hormones decrease significantly while others rise.
While postmenopause will alleviate some of the symptoms experienced during perimenopause, other potential health risks become more prevalent. At this point, many women experience a decline in their sexual wellness, bone health, and metabolism.
Though women don’t need to be menopausal to experience a hormone imbalance, many hormone issues are closely related to this natural biological event. Regardless of which stage they’re in, hormone therapy for women can help when it comes to:
- Alleviating symptoms
- Enhancing wellness
- And preventing future health issues associated with menopause
How HRT Improves Women’s Health
Hormone replacement therapy for women can work wonders for those suffering from chronic symptoms of a hormone imbalance. Our focus at Forum Health West Bloomfield isn’t simply to get your hormones back to normal. Instead, we focus on getting your hormones to their own optimal levels—as each person has different biological needs.
Restoring a person’s hormonal balance can bring a number of benefits that enhance a woman’s physical, emotional, and sexual wellbeing by improving their overall health. Hormone replacement therapy helps to rebalance a woman’s biological processes, leading to a reduction in symptoms and a better quality of life.
For women dealing with symptoms of perimenopause or most menopause, hormone therapy can help:
- Reduce hot flashes
- Help with vaginal dryness, itching, or discomfort
- Decrease pain during intercourse
- Help prevent osteoporosis and heart disease
- Stabilize mood
- Increase energy levels
- Enhance mental clarity
- Reduce acne and other hormonal skin issues
- And more!
The most important thing when it comes to hormone therapy for women is choosing the right provider. The number of physicians with adequate training in the fields of regenerative medicine and hormone optimization is slim—meaning that many women don’t see the results that they’re after.
What to Expect
Forum Health West Bloomfield has provided hormone therapy to hundreds of women across Michigan from our clinic in West Bloomfield—as well as at our Forum Health locations in Novi, Rochester Hills, Shelby, and Clarkston. Specifically, we utilize Bio-identical Hormone Replacement Therapy (BHRT) to get the best possible results.
The hormone therapy process for women starts by taking full panel blood work, which allows us to better understand which hormones have a deficiency or imbalance. Some of the deficiencies and imbalances that we test for include:
- Melatonin
- Aldosterone
- Thyroid
- Progesterone
- Growth Hormone
- Estrogen
- Cortisol
- Testosterone
- DHEA
- Androgen
- Pregnenolone
Once your provider performs your blood work, you’ll meet with them for a one-on-one consultation. Although the functions of many hormones do overlap, each plays a different role within your body and each deficiency will come with its own set of potential symptoms. This consultation allows us to get a better understanding of your specific needs, challenges, and treatment goals.
Based on this consultation and the results of your blood panel, your provider will develop a treatment plan tailored to your desired outcome. The hormone therapy process itself is actually quite simple and requires no in-office aftercare. It also uses no synthetic hormones. We ship all necessary medications directly to your home for maximum convenience—even if you don’t live in Michigan!
The exact medication and dosage will be determined by your provider, and used specifically to get any imbalanced hormones into an optimal range.
The only occasions where patients will need to revisit one of our clinics is for follow-up care. Your provider will perform another full panel blood test 6 weeks after starting your therapy, and then again at 6 months.
These follow-ups will ensure that your hormone therapy produces quality results, and can also inform your provider if they need to make any changes to medication and dosage. If the medication works as intended after 6 months, patients will only require yearly follow-ups going forward. However, any ongoing follow-up calls and visits are completely free for patients!
Hormone Therapy for Women FAQs
When can I expect to see results after starting hormone therapy?
Most patients can expect to see hormone optimization within 4 to 6 weeks!
Will insurance cover my hormone therapy?
No. Insurance companies consider hormone therapy treatments as elective procedures, meaning we cannot accept insurance. However, many people have been successful using their HSA or FSA accounts.
Are there any side effects from hormone therapy?
You should not experience any side effects if your hormones are at an optimal level. If you do experience any side effects, our team can quickly address them and offer a solution.
Does BHRT for estrogen cause heart attacks or breast cancer?
No! This is a myth. BHRT is completely safe, and has even shown to reduce the risk of cancer and other chronic diseases in women.
Do you offer financing?
Forum Health West Bloomfield offers Care Credit for patients who sign up for programs of 3 months or longer. We strongly recommend that you apply and get approval prior to your first appointment if you consider this option.
Experience the Benefits of Hormone Therapy for Women—Schedule an Appointment at Forum Health West Bloomfield!
When you work with Forum Health West Bloomfield, you get the benefit of dedicated and knowledgeable staff. Our team will offer timely service and support, as well as all the necessary information needed to begin hormone therapy for women. These services are also performed at our other locations across Eastern Michigan, including Novi, Rochester Hills, Clarkston, and Shelby.
We also offer a variety of other treatments designed to improve your health and well-being. Our team customizes each plan specifically for you, and we’ll work with you individually to overcome your unique challenges.
If you’re ready to get glowing, rejuvenated skin, treat your joint pain, or rekindle the romance in your relationship, our staff is ready to assist! Schedule an in-person appointment today and see the difference a science-backed plan and experienced medical professionals can do for you.
