Conditions Treated with Bioidentical Hormones
Corona, California Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy Doctor, Patricia Bogema, D.O. of ReVitalize Health & Wellness Center uses Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy to help men and women replenish and rebalance their hormones. Hormones can become imbalanced for many reasons; however, the most common reason for hormone imbalance is aging. When aging occurs, the endocrine system wears down, leaving the body unable to produce a sufficient amount of hormones. Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy has helped numerous men and women to correct these imbalances, and it treats a wide range of conditions that are due to hormonal deficiencies or excesses. Patricia Bogema, D.O. uses offers customized Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy programs to both men and women, and as a result of her expert programs, many patients have experienced a significant increase in their overall health and wellness levels.
Women’s Conditions Treated With Bioidentical Hormones
Patricia Bogema, D.O. customizes Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy programs to help women rebalance their hormones and reduce the side effects of hormonal deficiencies and imbalances. In women, the ovaries produce the main supply of female sex hormones, such as estrogen and progesterone, while the adrenal glands supply the rest of the hormones. When these glands cannot produce essential female hormones, numerous health conditions can occur. Some of the conditions that she uses Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy to address and improve include:
Symptoms of Menopause
Menopause is the clinical term for 12 consecutive months without a menstrual period. As you start menopause, your estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone hormones may fluctuate wildly. Although there are dozens of symptoms associated with menopause, the most common ones include hot flashes, night sweats, low libido, mood swings, and weight gain. Replacement Therapy with Bioidentical Hormones can help eliminate or reduce multiple symptoms at the same time.
Symptoms of Perimenopause
Although the average age of menopause is 51, you may begin perimenopause as early as your mid 30s. Common symptoms include breast tenderness, changes in the menstrual cycle, skin changes, vaginal dryness, and loss of bone density. These problems occur due to decreasing levels of estrogen and other essential hormones as you age. If your blood work confirms hormonal imbalance, Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy can help you feel more comfortable.
Adrenal Fatigue
When you suffer from chronic or poorly managed stress, your adrenal glands do not release the level of cortisol you require to remain healthy and emotionally stable. You may struggle with anxiety, depression, insomnia, fatigue, cravings for sweets, and several other symptoms due to adrenal fatigue. Along with proper nutrition, balancing your hormones with Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy helps you manage stress better by bringing your cortisol levels in balance.
Alopecia
Having too much of the estrogen hormone or an underactive thyroid may cause you to lose hair on your head, arms, legs, or pubic area. If you are diabetic, poor blood sugar control can also cause this problem. Doctor Bogema can take a quick blood test to determine if hormonal imbalance is causing this issue. If so, replacing your body’s lost hormones with bioidentical ones can help you re-grow scalp and body hair.
Anxiety and Depression
When feelings of anxiety and depression are unrelated to a specific life event, they are often the result of unbalanced levels of estrogen, progesterone, and cortisol. You may feel weepy, irritable, nervous, guilty, and many other troublesome emotions. Having a hysterectomy or going through menopause tends to increase your risk of anxiety and depression. When anti-depressant medication doesn’t work, it’s more likely you’re experiencing hormonal depression that is treatable with Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy.
Chronic Headaches
Women who are approaching middle age complain of chronic headaches more often than younger women do. This is often because of pending menopause or being at a certain point in their menstrual cycle. An unbalanced amount of the hormone progesterone may also be the cause of this misery. If Doctor Bogema discovers a problem with your progesterone, she may recommend that you start Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy along with a daily dose of the vitamin B12.
Chronic Fatigue
It’s normal to feel tired when you are under stress or don’t get enough sleep, but chronic fatigue lasting throughout the day is probably a sign of hormonal imbalance. Unfortunately, it causes other problems such as irritability, depression, and lowered resistance to illnesses. Low estrogen levels are often the cause of severe fatigue in women. Balancing your hormones with Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy gives you the energy you need to meet everyday responsibilities and enjoy satisfying relationships.
Insomnia
Insomnia, which is the consistent inability to fall or stay asleep, is both a cause and an affect of hormone imbalance. The hormonal changes of PMS, perimenopause, and menopause can all cause sleeplessness. Chronic insomnia can also make hormone imbalance worse. When your hormones are balanced through Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy, it has a less inhibiting effect on your ability to fall asleep and stay asleep throughout the night.
Low Libido
Lack of desire for physical intimacy is due to an imbalance in the amounts of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone in your body. When the latter two hormones start declining, it may cause estrogen dominance. This problem is also associated with weight gain, mood swings, and painful intercourse, all of which further decrease your libido. Balancing estrogen in your body so it doesn’t dominate other hormones is essential to restore your desire for sex.
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)
If you have PCOS, several small cysts are present on your ovaries. The cysts themselves are not always harmful, but they can cause an imbalance of your hormones. This causes numerous problems such as difficulty getting pregnant, abnormal menstrual bleeding, acne, unwanted facial and body hair, insulin resistance, and weight gain. Treating PCOS with Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy balances the hormones, which may help the cysts go away on their own.
Symptoms of Pre-Menstrual Syndrome (PMS)
In a normal menstrual cycle, estrogen rises for the first two weeks and then begins to fall. During the second half of the cycle, this process repeats itself with progesterone. If you’re highly sensitive to hormonal changes, you may experience worsening symptoms of PMS. Some of these include bloating, irritability, fatigue, tension, and weight gain. If your PMS symptoms are severe enough to interfere with your quality of life, consider Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy with Doctor Bogema.
Thyroid Disorders
You have a thyroid imbalance when your thyroid, which is a small nodule at the base of your neck, produces too little or too much of this hormone. When you go to a traditional doctor complaining of fatigue or difficulty losing weight, she may test your TSH level. However, this may not be enough to determine hormone imbalance. Doctor Bogema conducts several medical tests to see if you are a good candidate for Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy.
Vaginal Dryness
Vaginal dryness affects up to half of all women between age 40 and 59. Having too little estrogen and too much progesterone simultaneously causes drying and thinning of the vaginal wall. You may experience low libido, painful intercourse, burning with urination, and other unpleasant symptoms as a result. Replacing lost estrogen so it is not overrun by progesterone can help restore moisture and make you feel more comfortable.
Men’s Conditions Treated With Bioidentical Hormones
Like women, men also suffer from hormonal imbalances and decline as they age or encounter stress. In men, the testicles supply the body with the main male sex hormone, testosterone, while the adrenal glands supply the rest of the body’s hormones. When these glands cannot produce a sufficient amount of hormones, numerous conditions can occur. Patricia Bogema, D.O. has helped a wide number of men to improve their overall quality of life and health with Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy. Some of the conditions that can be improved with Bioidentical Hormones in men include:
Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome
Your adrenal glands release the hormone cortisol in response to stress, exercise, excitement, and low blood sugar. As you age, your body has a harder time balancing your cortisol levels. This can cause unrelenting fatigue, anxiety, sexual problems, and a wide range of other symptoms due to cortisol imbalance in your adrenal glands. Hormone restoration through Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy can help speed up sluggish adrenal glands and provide you with more energy.
Symptoms of Andropause
By the time men reach age 70, they may have only 10 percent of the testosterone hormone they had at age 25. This explains why many men begin experiencing symptoms associated with low testosterone around age 40. Andropause is a term that describes the many physical and emotional changes that occur due to the imbalance of hormones. Testosterone replacement is essential to help you experience long-term symptom relief.
Anxiety and Depression
Low levels of testosterone cause an overall feeling of discontent in some men, which is the hallmark characteristic of hypogonadism. Balanced levels of this hormone are so essential that men with hypogonadism receive a diagnosis of clinical depression 400 times more often than men with normal hormone levels do. If you feel hopeless, low on energy, and irritable, ask Doctor Bogema to check your testosterone levels. Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy can help balance your hormones and improve your outlook on life.
Chronic Fatigue
When fatigue is chronic, you lack the energy to focus or keep up with everyday responsibilities. Declining levels of testosterone are often to blame for this problem. Chronic fatigue is also worsened by other symptoms of andropause, including night sweats, insomnia, sleep apnea, increased stress, and irritability. It’s important to note that all-day fatigue is different than feeling tired. Fortunately, balancing your testosterone and other hormones with Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy helps to improve fatigue and all of its associated symptoms.
Chronic Headaches
Cortisol, the stress hormone, can go into overdrive when you are under constant, unrelenting stress. This can cause daily headaches of varying intensity. The drop in testosterone starting at age 30 can also play a role in chronic headaches. Doctor Bogema can pinpoint an exact cause with a simple blood test. If your hormones are unbalanced, treatment with Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy can help alleviate headache pain.
Gastrointestinal Disorders
Gas, bloating, constipation, diarrhea, heartburn, belching, and slow digestion may all be related to imbalanced hormones in your body. Specifically, these problems could originate due to problems with normal thyroid functioning due to too much cortisol or estrogen. Many traditional doctors don’t treat digestion problems correctly because they don’t understand the connection to hormones. When diet, exercise, and medication aren’t working, consider replacing lost hormones through Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy with Doctor Bogema.
Insomnia
Because testosterone normally replenishes itself while you are sleeping, struggling with insomnia lowers your testosterone production. This causes a vicious cycle because low testosterone levels cause many sleep disturbances, including insomnia and sleep apnea. While difficulty falling or staying asleep and decreased testosterone production are both normal signs of aging, you don’t have to allow them to affect your quality of life. Providing your body the testosterone it needs through Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy can greatly improve restful sleep.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
Elevated stress levels and a weakened immune system can both cause IBS, which may present itself as abdominal pain, gas, bloating, or frequent diarrhea. In many cases, both stress and immune system deficiency are related to unbalanced levels of hormones. This can trigger an attack of IBS. Determining what triggers your symptoms, including certain foods and hormone imbalance, is the first step to helping you feel better. Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy helps to balance the hormones responsible for triggering IBS symptoms.
Low Libido
The desire to have sex less often and erectile dysfunction are often related, but it’s possible to have one without the other. Testosterone stimulates the nerves in the brain to become sexually aroused, so this sensation naturally diminishes as you age. Smoking, drinking too much alcohol, and a poor diet are additional reasons your libido may be low. When combined with a healthy lifestyle, therapy with Bioidentical Hormones helps to improve your sexual desire and functioning.
Low Testosterone
Low testosterone, which your doctor may also refer to as male menopause, hypogonadism, or andropause, is the term used to describe the multitude of symptoms many men experience as they approach middle age. Your testosterone production actually starts declining one percent every year at age 30. Sexual dysfunction, mood problems, weight gain, and low energy are common problems associated with low testosterone that are correctable with Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy.
Thyroid Disorders
Low thyroid levels in men can cause cold intolerance, fatigue, hair loss, weight gain, dry skin, and constipation; as many as one in seven men struggle with hypothyroidism. When the thyroid produces an excess of hormones, hyperthyroidism is the result. This condition has many additional symptoms, including muscle weakness, trembling hands, insomnia, and heart palpitations. Having your thyroid level checked by a hormone specialist such as Doctor Bogema and completing a Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy program are essential to helping you feel better.
Patricia Bogema, D.O. at ReVitalize Health & Wellness Center in Corona California has helped countless men and women to overcome the issues associated with hormonal decline through the help of Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy. Many of her patients have experienced an increased quality of life and sense of wellbeing after rebalancing their hormones.
