The patient:
- 58 yr old female
The problems:
- Hot flashes and night sweats every day for the past three years.
- Great sleep difficulties – hard time falling asleep and staying asleep because of hot flashes and night sweats.
- Never wears socks, even in the winter; always feels hot and is uncomfortable.
- Menopause started at 40 yrs. old – partial hysterectomy because of excessive menstrual bleeding.
- History of ovarian cysts.
What we found:
Laboratory testing:
With longstanding hormonal problems I always recommend testing cortisol and DHEA first. This is what we found in this patient:
This patient is in Stage 2 Adrenal Exhaustion, with “normal” cortisol and low DHEA. This accounts for her classic symptoms of estrogen and progesterone deficiency. The body is converting her progesterone into cortisol, and DHEA levels are already low which means estrogen will also be low. The up and down cortisol (or cortisol roller coaster) is helping fuel the hot flashes and night sweats.
Progesterone and estrogen were not tested directly, because in every case of female hormone imbalance it is usually cortisol and DHEA that are the primary hormones that are fueling the sex hormone imbalances.
What we recommended:
- Herbal support for adrenal function;
- Herbal support for blood sugar stabilization;
- High potency multivitamin;
- Phosphorylated serine;
- Licorice root;
- Acupuncture;
- Avoid common food allergies (wheat, gluten, cow’s milk dairy, soy);
- Avoid sugar, alcohol, and caffeine;
- Flaxseed powder and cruciferous vegetables;
- Gentle exercise program;
- Stress management program.
What the patient actually did:
- This patient followed all of our recommendations.
The results:
- After 1 month:
- Hot flashes and night sweats are much better;
- Sleeping through the night most nights;
- After 3 months:
- Hot flashes and night sweats are completely gone.
- Sleeps every night without any night sweats.
- She is happy with her progress and cannot wait to re-test her adrenals.
- This case is still in-progress. Further details pending.