5 Signs Your Hormones May Be Sabotaging Your Energy and Mood

When out of balance, your hormones can cause an array of disruptive symptoms, from weight gain to fatigue. While some fluctuations are normal, others should be noted and possibly treated with hormonal replacement therapy (HRT). 

Bretton Powell, MD, and David Zweiback, DO, offer HRT for men and women to combat signs of aging and improve your overall quality of life at our concierge-style practice, Monarch Concierge MD – Hilton Head, on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.

When hormones need a little help

We each possess more than 50 kinds of hormones, including the following:

• Estrogen regulates reproductive health, improves memory, and supports brain health 
• Testosterone influences energy levels and more for men and women
• Progesterone increases the neurotransmitter GABA to ease anxiety and promote sleep
• Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) keeps your metabolism, mood, and focus in check
• Cortisol, the “fight-or-flight” hormone, affects sleep, stress, blood pressure, and more 

Each hormone plays a different role to help:

• Balance mood
• Regulate blood sugar levels
• Stabilize your sleep cycle
• Control blood pressure
• Balance electrolytes
• Maintain your sex drive

Our knowledgeable team provides HRT when your body produces too many or too few of these vital chemical messengers.

Hormonal checks and balances

Our team gauges your hormonal health by:

• Reviewing your symptoms
• Taking a thorough medical history
• Performing a physical exam

We then use blood tests to ascertain your precise hormone levels. If HRT is the way to go, we offer a variety of formulations, from medication and creams to injections and patches. Your doctor may also implant a pellet beneath your skin to release hormones into your system.

Five ways hormones disrupt mind and body

It’s important to trust your instincts when your body feels out of sorts. Pay attention to such telltale signs as:

1. Mood changes

Your serotonin levels work hand-in-hand with estrogen to steady your mood. When estrogen falls below a certain level, you may feel more depressed and/or irritable.

2. Hot flashes and night sweats

Most common during perimenopause, hot flashes usually signify a drop in estrogen levels that puts a damper on your days and disrupts your nights. We may recommend a combination of estrogen and progesterone for menopausal women to ease your struggle.

3. Ongoing fatigue

When you’ve had a good night’s sleep and still feel tired, hormones may be to blame. In females, an abundance of progesterone, also known as the relaxation hormone, secreted by your ovaries, may cause more drowsiness than normal. 

Low thyroid hormone levels due to hypothyroidism could also be at fault.

4. Waning sex drive

Testosterone powers the male sex drive. Although estrogen and progesterone are key hormones affecting female sexuality, testosterone plays a part as well. Both sexes may benefit from HRT to offset the natural decline of hormones.

5. Hair loss or excess

Too much or too little testosterone causes a cascade of problems, from body and facial hair loss to infertility and low libido. 

In certain genetically predisposed people, an enzyme converts testosterone into dihydrotestosterone (DHT), causing hair follicles to contract and die. This often results in male- or female-pattern baldness.

Our team gets to the bottom of these and other hormone-related symptoms to help you feel more like yourself again.

Live your best life

Imbalanced hormones may be due to many issues, from autoimmune disease and chronic stress to pregnancy and menopause. Telltale signs include headaches, brain fog, fatigue, mood swings, and other undesirable symptoms.

If you’re ready to shed light on your hormonal health or to discuss other areas of concern, we offer same-day telemedicine appointments as well as in-office visits. Call us at 843-681-5305 or request an appointment online today.