Hormone Imbalance in Women: Things I’m Doing to Help Myself

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I tell you what. I feel like I’ve been dealing with wrecked hormones for my entire life. Ok. Hormone imbalance in women ain’t no joke!

I will start by mentioning that NONE of this blog post is medical advice. I’m simply sharing the things I have been using and doing to try to help support the rebalancing of my hormones while being likely perimenopausal and crazy. Any links in this blog post are either affiliate links to companies I personally love and have chosen to work with or links to my online farm store.

Don’t feel obligated to buy anything.. that’s not what it’s for. But if you would *want* to and I have a lil linky dink here for you to click and I do get some pennies for sending you over. I only work with companies I truly like and products I personally use and love.

Maybe that’s dramatic, but the migraine thing… that’s been going on since my late teens. It didn’t happen EVERY SINGLE menstrual cycle, but often enough that it was noticeable once I hit my 30s, they’ve become downright unbearable and would last every single menstrual cycle without fail for at minimum 5 days.

Hormone imbalance in women ain’t no joke!

The migraines are what initially had me wondering if they were hormone related. After I had my first baby, I got them every single menstrual cycle at the same time and with the same warning… a weird ice pick to an eye sensation that ended up blossoming into a full blown migraine, complete with spotty vision, light sensitivity, nausea, and occasional vomiting. So bad somedays I had to give my kids snacks, turn a movie on, and lay in a miserable heap. That’s not living.

When I talked to a doctor about it, the first thing they want to do is offer medication. Get an MRI of your brain and then you can start sumatriptan. NO THANK YOU.

I’d rather not take any of those medications if I don’t have to. The side effects aren’t worth it to me. (No shade if you do take them… I get it!). But being me, I am sensitive to medications and have weird reactions to just about anything, so I’d just rather avoid it.

It wasn’t until after I had my second child that I realized my body was wrecked. My hormones had gone haywire. It started with hair loss. And it wasn’t just your normal postpartum hair loss. I had bald spots and nothing was growing back. I used to have a moderately thick pony tail and my hair was wispy and thin.

I got my thyroid levels checked. Fine.

The hair loss led into having very bad heart palpitations. Ones where my heart would race in the 150-200s for days. I couldn’t sleep because my heart would be flopping all over the place.

Then came the anxiety. I would have this feeling of dread and doom just walking through the yard. Sometimes so bad I couldn’t breathe and I felt like I was going to die. Not cool. I would find myself praying nearly 24/7 begging God to help me. Take this anxiety away. I can’t do this anymore. My hands would be ice cold and my face bright red during these “anxiety attacks” too.

Then this past year, I started having joint pain. It wasn’t just your normal hand and elbow pain from carpal tunnel, but feeling as though my shoulders would be separating from the joints and my elbows were frozen. I don’t have time for this. I was frequently hurting my shoulders and visiting my chiropractor to which I would be described “as a mess” and need to be put back together. It was MISERABLE and while the chiropractor adjustments helped, the pain never really ceased. It ebbed and flowed and was never due to anything strenuous or whatnot.

I had about HAD IT at this point.

I went to my primary care doctor to ask for lab work and to talk about what I’m experiencing. I was miserable. I don’t trust doctors after working as a nurse through 2020 and basically just needed them to order the labs I asked for. Because they don’t know what I’m talking about… they weren’t trained on dealing with hormones. My OBGYN even said she can’t test hormones because there’s no conclusive way to tell if they’re high or low. BULL CRAP. But they just don’t know what they don’t know.

When I saw the doctor this fall to ask for labs, she asked what I was experiencing, to which I told her everything, and was then given the pat on the back and told “welcome to menopause.” To be dismissed like that as a dramatic woman by another woman was rage inducing. I got my labs, and then 6 months later a hefty bill to pay for their extensive unhelpfulness.

So it has fallen into my hands to fix myself.

I’m not asking anyone to diagnose me, fix me, or tell me what to do. I’m figuring it out. So if you’re here to tell me I have POTS or EDS (like the entire internet has said), I’m good. I don’t collect diagnoses and I don’t want them. Unsubscribe.

I have been told “just go to a naturopath” or “see a hormone specialist” a million times. The problem is, the naturopaths around here are either wildly expensive or wildly insane, or both. I’m crazy enough as it is, I don’t need to go visit another nutball. And I feel confident I know enough that I can make decisions for myself. That’s all. And right now, in my area and surrounding, there seems to be wellness centers specializing in hormone replacement therapy on every corner. It’s the next BIG thing. I don’t subscribe to that. And I’m also not going to “hormone specialists” I worked with in the hospital just a few years ago. I’m good :D

So, here’s a list of what I’ve been doing that has worked for me. I do believe I am estrogen dominant which explains the migraines, and when I took a quiz online with Elix healing, my Qi is stagnant… which tracks. I’m gonna take you through the simple things I’m doing, and have been doing for 3 months now, and seeing very good and positive changes.

Keep in mind, and this is for myself too, healing isn’t linear. Some things may change quickly while other symptoms linger. It’s been frustrating that my migraines didn’t just completely disappear when I found something that was helping other symptoms. When you go the natural route using herbs and food to heal your body, it takes time and patience. Patience is not my strong suit, I will admit.

Elix reached out to me a few months ago asking if I’d like to give them a try. I had been openly sharing about what I’m dealing with in my stories on social media just to see if anyone else was experiencing this themselves. The response was shocking. So many women just like me suffering. It made me so sad, but also not feel so dang alone. I’ve had some wonderful conversation with fellow women like me!

I took the quiz Elix provides along with sending a tongue picture (weird, but lots can be told just from your tongue), and the quiz stated I was stagnant. That tracks.

I was recommended my own personal blend of herbs for Cycle Balance and to take Daily Harmony as well. I’m currently on my third month with Elix. You take the blends, which are liquids in dropper bottles every morning. I keep my bottles by my coffee, because coffee is life, and I also see them and don’t forget. I add them to a bit of water and down the hatch. It’s been extremely easy to take and remember to take!

The first month I noticed a major decrease in anxiety and heart palpitations. HOLY COW! I was pumped seeing such amazing results so quickly. So, obviously I was extremely bummed when I had my migraine for 5 days that cycle. Reminder: healing isn’t linear. I counted my blessing with what had positively changed and kept going.

The second month I noticed a massive decrease in my joint pain and tons of baby hairs growing back. My hair is starting to feel somewhat thicker and I see tons of new growth which is so exciting. Unfortunately, my migraine came again this cycle BUT only lasted for 24 hours. I cried. I have never had one go away so quickly.

I’m into my third month and have had no anxiety or palpitations so far. My luteal phase has been less rage-y and more productive and energetic. I’m praying my migraines subside this time.

If you would like to check Elix out, I do have an affiliate link that will give you 15% off your order. Go ahead, take the quiz and see what they say. And try it for yourself. The price isn’t bad for daily doses as compared to some of the supplements and things I see. I will say I’m very pleased and so thankful they reached out because the results I’m seeing can’t be denied!

Wild yam is a know phytoestrogen which helps support female hormone balance. Chaste berry does the same thing. I slow infuse both in jojoba oil and pure suet beef tallow and add some beeswax to make a salve. I find that tallow mimics our skin’s sebum and aids in good absorption!

I make my own, but you can purchase yours as well! I have it available in my farm store in 2 ounce jars currently. I will work on getting my recipe for this up on my blog if you would prefer to make it yourself :)

I have been using this for about 1 year religiously. I’m forgetful, so maybe I should say 6 months max. I rub it onto tender areas morning and night, stopping during my cycle. Tender areas include under breasts, abdomen, neck & behind ears, upper inner arm, and inner thighs. Rotate spots with each application for best absorption.

It’s no secret I adore milk kefir. I go in waves where I drink it every day and then quit. And I’ve decided I just need to drink it every. single. day.

Since February, I have been drinking 2 cups of milk kefir made with raw goat milk from my dairy goats every single day. I have been concocting a smoothie of sorts with a scoop of Equip protein powder (beef protein based), 1-2 raw eggs, and ice or a frozen banana. Milk kefir makes me feel like I could punch concrete apart every day. It fuels me, gives me energy, and the added protein keeps me full for most of the day.

Milk kefir is a bit different than other fermented foods as it has a different bacteria strain that the grains ferment the milk with. It has amazing properties! I do from time to time split my milk kefir grains and offer them in my online farm store if you’re interested in getting your own brew going!

As a gal who loves a good sweet treat, this was extremely hard to do. I did a 30 day complete sugar fast, including natural sugar sources like honey and maple syrup. It was HARD. I had a headache for almost 10 days when I was a couple days into it. That just shows how doggone addicted your body can get to sugar.

Now, I’m not condemning all sugar because our bodies do need glucose. But I do stay away from highly processed sources and try to limit how much I’m consuming. I also try to discern if it’s my body needing glucose or I’m just craving it because I’m deficient in something else. Don’t worry, I’m still making cookies and eating plenty! **slaps belly**

I have had multiple bouts of heart racing that persisted for days. Even landed myself in the ER because after 3 days of no sleep and a heart rate of 170 or better because I was miserable. Everyone just wanted to put me on medication and not get to the root cause.

So I went to the doctor and asked for more lab work. And as long as you fall in between the “lines of normal” you’re fine and we don’t know why you’re feeling this way. I got a pat on the shoulder and was told “maybe it’s menopause. It’s so fun being a woman.” Really?!

So women are just expected to have crazy cardiac symptoms along with everything else I’m experiencing and it’s normal because I am female?! And the one that could help would test my hormones at different phases but then only wanted to start me on hormone replacement therapy. I’m sure it would make me feel better…. but how is that any better about fixing the root cause? Seems like another bandage to me.

I want to fix the things causing the symptoms, not get synthetic hormones given to me regularly. That seems like a recipe for disaster, especially if there’s shortages or it’s no longer a “thing.” This is also not shade to anyone doing HRT… you do what you gotta do. I’m simply explaining my rationale to why I personally did not choose to do it. That, and there are HRT clinics popping up on every corner as its the next BIG thing. I mean… locally I’ve worked with most of the practitioners that are doing it. Hard pass.

This past fall, around October, I started closely tracking my symptoms and cycle phases very closely. And what I found was a little unsettling. All the symptoms I experience happen at the same times during my cycle. That’s how I concluded this was ENTIRELY hormone related. Am I a doctor? Nah. But I have a brain and can use it.

Follicular came with doom and heightened anxiety and palpitations. I had no clue why I was anxious. My hands would be ice cold, chest would be tight, and I felt like it was hard to swallow for DAYS. I would also have insomnia due to the palpitations which would lead to heart racing for extended periods of time and the anxiety. So add sleeplessness to anxiety and we got ourselves a disaster.

The anxiety would ease once I hit ovulatory phase, but only for a couple days. I’d be in a good mood and feel like I could get things done and have some energy. But I always felt what was coming. I felt like each cycle I had maybe 3 good days. That’s not fair.

Luteal would smash through me like the dang Kool-aid man. Holy cow. I would go from zero to raging angry because I dropped something and felt completely out of control all of the time. And I know I was mean and I tried to talk myself down from it, but I was overly sensitive, angry, and anxious. The palpitations hit this time, too, along with no energy. All I wanted to do was lay down and take naps. I didn’t, of course, but I had to fight the exhaustion.

Then menstrual would come with very heavy bleeding and clots that would last 5-7 days with cramps, crazy hot flashes, and insomnia. And the migraine, ohhhh the migraine. It would come anywhere from 2 days prior to menstrual to 2 days after starting. And I’d get an aura every time of a stabbing sensation in the center of my head with dizziness.

Once that happened I had a couple hours before I was completely miserable for about 5 days. We’re talking nausea, vomiting, spotty vision in the affected eye, dizziness, and inability to stand of straight because it felt like gravity was pulling my brain out of my head. And I still had to take care of my children and the farm. I’m determined and tough but these migraines have been the worst symptom of all.

Since making these small, and very easy, changes I have noticed quite a bit of changes.

My anxiety is much lower, sometimes completely gone at times. Palpitations are rare and my mind is blown! I am taking hawthorne berry for support with that though.

I’m still getting my migraines but my last one with my cycle only lasted about 1 day as opposed to 5 days or more. Do you know what that’s like to know you’re going to be miserable for 5 days (which has been my menstrual routine for YEARS) only to notice it wanes and completely goes away after some wild lettuce tincture and turmeric?! Say WHAT. Neither of those have ever even slightly touched my migraines before and now it went completely away?! I am PUMPED.

I have also noticed that I have more energy and am less apathetic during all phases of my cycle, especially luteal and menstrual. Luteal still comes with some of that luteal rage, but that’s normal to a degree I find and sometimes we can channel that rage and energy to get some stuff done. I mean… I ripped and entire wheelchair ramp off our farmhouse cause it looked at me wrong. Sometimes we can use our hormones to our advantage :)

I also noticed quite a bit of regrowth around my hair line after 1 month of adding Elix to my routine. I have wavy/curly hair, so it’s a literal lions mane and I don’t even care. My hair has been THIN to the wind since having my daughter so I will take it! My husband has even told me my hair feels and looks a little thicker.

So far, so good!

I will add updates to this blog post as I continue on in my journey to give updates on my protocol I’m following to support hormonal imbalance in women and if I add or remove anything. But for now, I’m pleased with the healing and changes I’m seeing. I obviously would be much happier if I had it IMMEDIATELY, but we’ll take small wins as they come. Healing isn’t linear, some things will change quickly, some with change slowly, and some will come and go for a while. So for now, I’ll sit back and see what happens.

I hope this blog post is helpful to get you on track to healing and caring for yourself. I know as mothers we tend to put ourselves last, which I constantly do, but taking care of our bodies is an absolute must. If you’re experiencing hormone imbalance or any of these symptoms I mentioned, I am SO sorry. I have found after sharing on social media several times there are so many women struggling with the same things and they’re getting little to no help. It’s frustrating.

And it’s hard to dig through everything and discern what’s trying to help and what’s just trying to make a quick buck off of our symptoms. You know, Big supplement and all that. They’re just as bad as pHarma. Remember, food is medicine most of all and sometimes some Traditional Chinese Medicine is a good thing!