Identifying And Dealing With Hormonal Headaches
Many people experience headaches, and there are a number of reasons for this: stress, diet, physical strain. But did you know that hormone imbalances can cause intense headaches and migraines as well? When your body is used to a certain level of a hormone, too much or too little can result in an adverse reaction.
How do you know?
How can you identify when a headache or migraine is caused by a hormone imbalance? Usually, hormonally induced migraines and pain are found in conjunction with other symptoms. When you notice any number of these symptoms coinciding with frequent headaches, it could be possible that they are hormonally based:
- Difficulty concentrating
- Increased or persistent acne
- Joint pain unrelated to exercise
- Sudden cravings for alcohol, chocolate, or salty foods
- Difficulty coordinating movement
- Lower than average urination
- Constipation
Which Hormones Cause This?
These headaches affect both men and women and thought to be most strongly linked to lowered sex hormones (estrogen for women and testosterone for men). It is possible that other hormones like those produced by the thyroid are also involved in the reactions that result in migraines and headaches.
Because these hormones control blood flow, muscle tension and growth, and the release of chemicals in the brain, it’s easy to see how them being out of balance can lead to pain in the brain.
What Triggers These Migraines And Headaches?
Though hormones can be largely to blame for these episodes, other factors are usually involved as well. Here are some of the most common triggers for these kinds of migraines:
- Flashing lights, or other overstimulation of the senses
- Changes in atmospheric pressure, such as changing seasons or severe weather
- Alcoholic beverages especially those that contain tannins, like red wine
- Drinking too much caffeine or suffering from caffeine withdrawal.
- Simple stress
- Irregular sleep schedules, either too much or too little sleep
- Significant changes in diet and exercise routines
- Excessive salt and intense seasonings
- Extra processed foods such as packaged sausage and deli meat
- Artificial sweeteners like aspartame
What Can You Do?
The common thread between most of these factors is a disruption of the body’s homeostasis, or natural balance. If you find yourself prone to these kinds of headaches, it may be a good idea to look at your own schedule and habits. Most experts recommend drinking plenty of water and attempting to calm yourself to reduce stress and lessen the severity of the migraine or headache. Talking to a doctor is always a good idea when it comes to making a significant change in your lifestyle as it relates to your health.
Hormone replacement therapy could also be effective in curbing migraine headaches. Talk to your doctor or hormone expert to determine if hormone replacement therapy is right for you and your symptoms. It’s important to remember that every person is different, and what might be a normal level of a hormone might not be the same for another person. A doctor or hormone expert can help you identify where your baseline is.
If you suffer from hormone induced migraines or headaches, the experts at Renewed Vitality can help. Contact us today to schedule a consultation.
Hormones dictate so much of our lives that sometimes, it’s hard to realize what kind of effect they can have on our day to day. They control everything, including our emotions and moods.
If hormones fall into imbalance, then our moods can fluctuate wildly and make day to day functions difficult. It’s important to understand which hormones affect our moods most so that we can address issues when they arise.
Serotonin and Dopamine
Some hormones are directly responsible for regulating moods: serotonin and dopamine. When these hormones are being produced in proper amounts, it’s easier to control moods and regulate thought processes. These are the primary hormones responsible with preventing depression and similar emotional and mood disorders.
Testosterone
Testosterone is also a key hormone when it comes to mood regulation. When your body is lower on testosterone, you can feel physically sluggish, muscle mass and tone diminish, and sex drive lessens.
However, the effects of lowered testosterone go beyond the physical, but also result in emotional issues. These physical effects can also result in anxiety about physical performance, depression as a result of lowered energy, and mood swings.
Estrogen
Estrogen is another hormone that controls and stabilizes moods. When estrogen is out of normal balance, either as a result of having too much or too little, mood swings can occur. These mood swings can vary between active irritability or aggressiveness and sluggish depression. At other times this imbalance results in high levels of anxiety as well.
Though many think of testosterone as primarily male and estrogen as an exclusively female hormone, everyone needs both in varying amounts in order to have healthy and balanced physical and mental functions.
Thyroid Hormones
Thyroid hormones are also key to keeping energy levels high as well as regulating mood. By keeping cells in the brain energized and functioning efficiently, your mood will be positively affected. When these levels are lower, mood will be lower as well.
Looking For Help?
When attempting to track down the exact source of a mood shift, it’s important to remember that no hormones act without interacting with many different parts of the body alongside many other hormones.
Seeking a diagnosis and discussing your concerns with a professional hormone therapist or doctor are both valid avenues to follow when seeking a solution. In many cases hormone therapy can address and reverse these negative effects of hormone imbalance.
If you are looking to talk to someone about a possible hormone imbalance, the experts at Renewed Vitality are here to help!
When it comes to hot flashes, there is a ton of information out there, so it can be difficult to parse out what’s most relevant to you and your experience or the experiences of someone you know. To figure out what are the possible causes of a hot flash, let’s break down what a hot flash actually is.
What Is A Hot Flash?
A hot flash usually consists of a wave of heat, discomfort, sweating, and flushing of the face and skin unrelated to the actual temperature around them. What is not typically known is that hot flashes can focus on different parts of the body—hands, chest, legs, face—or they can affect the whole body if they are quite severe. There are also varying degrees of hot flashes.
You may experience something as minor as a vague tingling and warming of your hands, or as intense as feeling like you’re in a pot of boiling water.
When Do They Start?
Though normally thought of as a menopausal issue, these can occur years before and after menopause occurs. The several years before menopause is called perimenopause. It is during this time the body is beginning to deal with various changes in hormone balance and blood flow among other things.
Once these flashes start, they usually continue through menopause and for some time afterwards. Most people who experience these notice a gradual reduction in severity and frequency over time.
What Causes Hot Flashes?
Over the years, research has indicated that decreased estrogen levels or other hormonal imbalances characteristic of menopause are to blame for these unpleasant waves of heat.
There are also other theories that it may also be caused by changes in circulation in the brain. As bodies age, and hormones that regulate heart rate and blood flow change in balance, this can cause bodily reactions, like hot flashes, to happen.
What Are Likely Triggers?
Though it is difficult to completely prevent hot flashes once they begin, identifying what triggers them can be helpful. Here are some of the most common causes:
Drinking Alcohol
Alcohol dilates blood vessels and can already cause a feeling of warmth to spread across the body. It makes sense that this would increase the chances of a hot flash.
Caffeine
Increased heart rate can affect your ability to regulate your body temperature normally, and raising the likelihood of a flash.
Smoking
Smoking lowers estrogen, and so can increase the frequency of hot flashes.
Decreasing Severity and Occurrences
In addition to avoiding these triggers that can cause more frequent and intense hot flashes, there are some steps you can take to improve your body’s ability to handle these experiences:
Hydrate Well
Having more water in your system is always a great idea for overall health, but especially when dealing with hot flashes. Being more hydrated improves blood flow which is important for temperature regulation.
Control stress
Hot flashes can be caused by stress, but they can also cause stress. It’s a vicious cycle! Using calming techniques to slow your breathing and recognizing that the waves of heat will pass can help calm your mind and body and allow your body to return to its natural balance quicker.
Hormone Replacement Therapy
For many people experiencing hot flashes, carefully directed hormone therapy is a fantastic solution. Through the use of similar or biologically identical hormones, the symptoms and severity of hot flashes can be greatly reduced, as well as the other associated effects of perimenopause and menopause.
Though a serious issue that many women face, it is not insurmountable, nor does it need to be a lonely experience. Seek the advice of your doctor or a hormone specialist if you are experiencing hot flashes.
What Do Hormones Do?
Hormones are chemicals naturally produced to send signals throughout the body. When hormones are working in balance, hormones allow our bodies to function effectively and efficiently. Hormones regulate body temperature, muscle growth, and metabolism among other things.
What Happens When They Aren’t Balanced?
A hormonal imbalance happens when these chemicals are not in proper proportion. When you experience a hormonal imbalance, you may have a variety of different bodily reactions depending on which hormones are out of harmony.
These effects are often closely connected and influence each other. This kind of snowball effect can lump many minor signs and symptoms into one big problem. That’s why it’s important to constantly monitor your own personal health.
Who Else Experiences This?
Countless people experience hormone imbalances at different times in their lives for the same number of reasons. While every situation is unique, that does not mean anyone who experiences an imbalance is alone. Many others are having the same or similar problems, so don’t fret!
Here are some signs and symptoms that might indicate a hormone imbalance. This list is not exhaustive, but can go a long way to helping you identify what your particular concerns may be
The Telltale Signs of Hormone Imbalance
Hot Flashes and Night Sweats
This usually occurs with women experiencing menopause, but can affect women of any age. When signals that are supposed to regulate your body get crossed, it can get quite uncomfortable.
Breast Tenderness
Throughout the menstrual cycle, fluctuating hormones can lead to soreness or tenderness of the breasts.
Increased Hair Growth on Face, Neck, Chest, or Back
When some hormones are not being properly distributed, this can lead to hair loss or even hair growth.
Weight Gain
As stated before, hormones help regulate metabolism as well as other bodily functions. When these regulatory hormones are in short supply or at least are being overpowered by other factors, fluctuations in weight can be the result.
Fatigue
When you find yourself more tired than normal, but unable to get restful sleep, you could be experiencing a hormone imbalance.
Mood Swings
Some hormones are regulators of mood. When combined with other issues usually associated with hormone imbalances can lead to anger, irritability, and feeling of hopelessness.
Monitor Yourself!
As every person functions differently, these can vary from body to body in terms of occurrence and severity. If you notice something that feels out of the ordinary, talk with your doctor about your concerns. Never forget, you are not alone in your situation, and there are treatments available to get your hormones back in order!
