Progesterone:
Our "Happy" Hormone
by Catherine P. Rollins
We believe that if you give a woman back
her progesterone - her mother hormone, her essence
hormone - you give her back an opportunity to
reconnect with herself.
Far too many women have become so hormonally imbalanced that they have no clue
as to what their true essence feels like. Often stress, a hectic lifestyle, or
family can and do distract her.
However, a common thread connecting every women who has ever approached the Natural
Progesterone Advisory Network website is that once she gets her hands on this
vital hormone, she begins an incredible journey.
We know that as soon as a woman starts rubbing progesterone cream onto her body
there's an incredible physiological reaction to that hormone. It's as if it resonates
immediately, and she can tell progesterone is central to her renewed health,
not necessarily because of what's she's read but how it intrinsically feels in
her body. It's as if she's coming home to herself!
Our Network has discovered for ourselves by talking and listening to hundreds
upon hundreds of women, that natural progesterone is different from synthetic
progestins currently used in conventional HRT. It has less dramatic side effects
but has all the actions that nature intended for progesterone. It is the missing
link back to optimal hormonal health and wellbeing.
An intuitive 'knowing'
Even for those women who may
experience incredible discomfort for the first 10 days to 2 weeks when estrogen
actually wakes up and estrogen dominance symptoms are exacerbated, she is determined
to keep applying progesterone cream because she wants the end result. There is
an intuitive 'knowing' that something good has been introduced into her body
and she wants it to stay.
Unfortunately, some women abandon progesterone at the point of discomfort, not
knowing how to get through the debilitating stages of estrogen dominance which
can occur at any stage. It is our hope we help you work through these setbacks
so that you can stay with progesterone long enough to enjoy the true essence
and benefits from both a physical and metaphysical viewpoint.
Within months of starting progesterone supplementation, balancing various aspects
of her life, and encouraging her to acknowledge herself and honour her body,
we've seen these very same women start to 'plump up' spiritually, become vocal,
find their voice, express an opinion, exude confidence, and take back their self-respect.
Indeed, we have observed transformations.
Weakened emotionally
Women in their 40s and 50s
with families, careers, a wealth of experience and knowledge, and tremendous
gifts to offer the world, appear to lose all semblance of their true self because
of hormonal imbalance left untreated, or HRT incorrectly prescribed.
These fuzzy-headed, tentative women, once they get 12-18 months into progesterone
supplementation, often start defining new boundaries, become more assertive and
independent and, finally, they learn how to say "no".
Hormonal imbalance seems to weaken the emotional profile of a woman. She may
present as distraught, exposed, fragile, out of tune with her body and her needs,
exhausted physically, emotionally and spiritually. She doesn't know why she's
crying all the time.
If you have issues - grief, unresolved conflicts, burdens, sadness, a floundering
relationship - then allow them to surface and use your menopause or hormonal
imbalance as an excuse to have a damn good cry. Tears are for healing. Tears
are a way of cleansing the soul. And then get on and deal with it!
Hormone imbalance appears to be a catalyst for visiting painful and hurtful conflicts
and memories, thus isolating and alienating us into further despair and depression
or, for others, triggering anxiety and panic attacks. There is this overwhelming
sense of helplessness and distortion of reality that is compounded by hormone
imbalance, but seems to be easily addressed once progesterone is introduced.
This remarkable hormone just seems to give most women the ability to tackle her
problems with perception and renewed mental acuity.
A time to rebuild
This is a time of shedding.
It is a time of re-building your body, and perhaps a time when you can actually
rebuild your persona. Shake off the ambivalence of who you are. You are more
than a mother, lover, wife, cook, friend, healer, carer, organiser, work colleague,
confidante, or whatever other label given to you. Put an end to such pronounced
feelings of loneliness, confusion, grief, anger, sadness, frustration and take
the time to listen to your own inner child. Teach yourself that it's ok to be
self-nurturing without feeling guilty.
You need to take some responsibility for your own health. Become more "selfing" (not
selfish), to respect your needs rather than putting yourself behind everyone
else. You need to recover and get well, to spiritually nurture your soul, to
heal your tired, stressed-out body.
Devise a plan that targets healthy eating, sensible nutrition and lifestyle adjustments
that will carry you through to old age. Basically, adopt a 'more beneficial'
way of thinking and approach to life.
Getting grounded
Next step is to address hormone
imbalance. Get progesterone - your mother hormone - back into your body to help
ground yourself. Consider this - the hormone progesterone not only plays the
role of progesterone in your body. Progesterone will 'cascade' down to manufacture
in the body other vital hormones such as estrogen, testosterone, and the cortico-steriod
hormones. 'Top up' your progesterone levels and there's a good chance you won't
need to supplement other hormones.
Get your nutrition and exhaustion in order so that you're feeling stronger in
yourself and physically more able to cope with stress, infections and other 'traumas'
your body is exposed to on a daily basis. Then go ahead a deal with the emotional
issues that arise, or won't go away and need re-addressing.
Just keep in mind that if you fail to deal with ALL the issues, your treatment
in hormonal balancing and health will NOT be as effective.
The role of stress
Hormone imbalance creates
emotional instability, but so too can emotional issues often create hormonal
imbalance. There's always a connection with the adrenals when stress is involved.
For adrenal exhaustion can cause hormone imbalance ... hormone imbalance can
cause adrenal exhaustion.
High cortisol production which occurs with stress of any kind, including trauma,
inflammation or inflammatory diseases, emotional and even chemical stress, can
induce high levels of cortisol and this leads to significant reduction of progesterone,
resulting in estrogen dominance.
The Natural Progesterone Advisory Network website has seen, first hand, how stress
can cause a woman's body to lose balance, rhythym and connectivity. It might
be brought on by a sudden shock subsequent to a death in the family, a loss of
a child, an unexpected divorce, a husband running off with another woman. We
have witnessed this sudden triggering of menopause or cessation of periods post
shock where no previous symptoms or signs existed beforehand. This goes to show
how powerful are the messages and chemicals in our brain and body, and how they
impact so profoundly and so cruelly on our delicate organs, and can throw our
whole endocrine system out of balance.
Too often we are exposed to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (xenoestrogens) in
our foods and in our environment, and the stress we are subjected to - chemically,
internally, and through the demands the world places on us, the speed at which
our world encircles us, the fast foods that have become part of our lifestyle
now - that we struggle perpectually to get on top of these dreadful symptoms.
The happy hormone
Progesterone is sometimes
referred to as the "happy hormone" in that it can modulate and enhance
your mood. Use it to find YOUR own happiness and inner contentment, and to recapture
the joy and bliss in your life as you journey with this hormone and discover
its remarkable powers.
Let your beauty shine
The
fluctuations of our hormones throughout our life have
been responsible for our growth and our physiological
being. We encourage you to EMBRACE these imbalances
so that you can grow to understand who you are and
what you are about. Empower yourself with each milestone.
Don't let these symptoms keep you locked in your disease.
Realise your magnificence.
About
the Author:
Catherine
P. Rollins is the author of 'A Woman's Guide to
Using Natural Progesterone' and Director of the
highly popular website:
Natural-Progesterone-Advisory-Network.com.
This
article was syndicated from The
Natural Progesterone Advisory Network:
http://www.natural-progesterone-advisory-network.com/progesterone-our-happy-hormone.htm