Fighting Fatigue with Hormone Therapy

Are there times when you feel tired all the time or like you just can’t get rested? Feeling tired all the time, or Fatigue can result from lifestyle issues like poor sleep or lack of exercise but can also be triggered by things like stress, illness, or hormonal imbalances.  Let’s discuss when feeling tired all the time warrants evaluation and treatment with hormone therapy.

What is Fatigue?

Fatigue is when you feel severely overtired. When you are fatigued, you experience reduced energy levels making it difficult to get up in the morning, go to work, do your everyday activities, and even make it through the day. It differs from just feeling tired or sleepy. This is a feeling of complete exhaustion that is both physical and mental.

Symptoms you might experience from fatigue include:

• Lack of energy or motivation
• Depression
• Difficulty concentrating
• Problems with memory or thinking
• Feeling very tired or exhausted
• Weakness
• Feeling irritable or moody

Chronic Fatigue

When fatigue goes on long-term, it can progress to chronic fatigue. Chronic fatigue is a serious syndrome that impacts many body systems making it hard to function or even get out of bed. The hallmark of chronic fatigue is that it lasts for at least six months. In addition to the above symptoms, you might also experience:

• Extreme exhaustion after mental or physical exercise
• Dizziness that is worse when you move from lying down to sitting or standing
• Muscles or joint pain
• Still feeling tired even after you sleep

Adrenal Fatigue

Adrenal fatigue is a type of fatigue that results from long-term exposure to stress that causes cortisol levels to become abnormal. The adrenals are small glands located on the top of each kidney. They are responsible for producing hormones that control heart rate, blood pressure, and other essential body functions. When you are under prolonged stress, your adrenal glands start by making excessive cortisol to try to keep up with the effects of stress. Over time if the stress continues, the adrenal glands essentially burn themselves out, resulting in a cortisol deficiency.

Those experiencing adrenal fatigue may again experience all of the above symptoms with the addition of:

• Cravings for carbohydrates, sweet or salty foods
• Memory loss
• Lowered sex drive
• More frequent illnesses that are harder to get over
• Reliance on caffeine or stimulants to keep going

What’s the link between Fatigue and Hormones?

You might be surprised to learn that fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of a hormone imbalance. Let’s explore how each of the following hormones may contribute to your symptoms.

Cortisol

Cortisol is known as the “fight or flight” hormone. When your body is under stress, cortisol is released to give you the energy you need to keep going. If stress lasts for a long time, your adrenal glands can’t keep up, and cortisol levels plummet. The result is adrenal fatigue.

Thyroid

The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland located at the base of the neck. The thyroid releases hormones that regulate metabolism. If the gland produces too much hormone, you may have hyperthyroidism or too little hormone in hypothyroidism. Both conditions can contribute to fatigue; however, hypothyroidism is more often associated with increased fatigue and low energy.

Click here to check out one of our previous blogs on Thyroid—what to do when your doctor says your levels are “normal,” but your symptoms say otherwise.

Progesterone

Progesterone is a reproductive hormone. Decreased levels may contribute to fatigue, anxiety, depression, hair loss, dry skin, heavy periods, PMS, weight gain, vaginal dryness, and thyroid dysfunction.

Testosterone

While testosterone is usually considered a male reproductive hormone, women also have smaller amounts. In both sexes, decreased levels may cause fatigue, mood changes, sleep problems, lack of motivation, and reduced sex drive.

Estrogen

Estrogen is a reproductive hormone. Increases in estrogen may contribute to fatigue, changes in thyroid levels, weight gain, anxiety, and depression.

How Do I Know What is Causing My Fatigue?

Because fatigue can have many different causes, it’s important to seek the care of a healthcare professional to evaluate your symptoms. Your provider will ask you questions, discuss your health history, and recommend blood tests to determine what is causing it. Once the cause has been determined, an appropriate plan of care to help you feel better can be determined. Possible causes of fatigue may include:

• Alcohol or drug use
• Poor diet
• Medications
• Lack of sleep
• Too little or too much physical activity
• Medical conditions
• Hormonal imbalances

The treatment for your fatigue may vary according to the cause. More often than not, addressing and restoring balance to your hormone levels will ease your symptoms.

How do I combat fatigue due to a hormone imbalance?

If your healthcare provider determines that fatigue is part of a hormone imbalance, specific treatment is available to get you feeling better. Both men and women can suffer from hormone imbalance and benefit significantly from treatment. Treatment starts with comprehensive bloodwork to determine your current hormone levels.

Our providers will then customize a treatment plan to balance and optimize your hormone levels. Your plan may include supplements and hormone therapy using bioidentical hormones. Here at Your Wellness Center in Cincinnati, Ohio—we administer hormones mainly through pellet inserts. Though some patients may choose topical creams depending on their preference. After your initial consultation and treatment, we’ll repeat bloodwork at various points in your journey to check your body’s response to treatment and monitor your symptoms.

We believe in treating your symptoms, not just the numbers on the lab test.

What are the benefits of hormone therapy services?

Declining hormone levels are expected as we age; however, when you are experiencing unpleasant symptoms, it may be time for treatment. Symptoms of a hormone imbalance that can be improved with treatment include:

• Fatigue
• Hot flashes
• Insomnia
• Weight gain or trouble losing weight
• Decreased sex drive
• Thinning of hair and nails
• Mood changes
• Joint pain
• Decreased mental focus

When your hormones are optimally balanced, these symptoms improve. You’ll experience a deeper, more restful sleep, increased physical energy and mental clarity, increased lean muscle mass, improved bone health, decreased risk of heart disease, and improved sex life.

It’s Time to Stop Feeling Tired All the Time

If you’ve been experiencing fatigue, it’s worth a consult to see if treatment can improve your symptoms. Our hormone therapy providers here in Cincinnati, Ohio are ready to customize a plan to help you feel your best. The easiest way to get started with hormone therapy and optimize your testosterone, progesterone, and estrogen today is to fill out our initial consultation form. A member of our staff will then be in touch to get you scheduled and started with the process!

You don’t have to live with fatigue—hormone therapy can help you to restore your quality of life.

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