Hormones And Energy Levels
Hormones are chemicals in the body that are instrumental in controlling its various processes such as heart rate and temperature. Even a slight imbalance can produce several symptoms and one of the most prevalent is fatigue.
Sleep difficulty is a common symptom of hormone imbalance but when you consider that hormones control everything in your body, it often results in your body not functioning the way it should.
What Can Be Done To Cope With Crashing Fatigue
Hormone imbalance fatigue should be first tackled with healthy lifestyle changes.
- Exercise is one of the biggest energy boosters. Exercising five times a week, for half an hour a day, can help to balance hormone levels and prevent episodes of fatigue.
- A healthy diet is essential to combat fatigue. Food is the fuel of the body and women cannot function properly without being well nourished.
- Sleeping for the recommended 7 to 8 hours a night is extremely important for beating fatigue.
Another way to combat fatigue is to get straight to the root of the hormonal cause, by tackling the hormone imbalance. There are a range of treatment options available, but natural supplements are an excellent way to complement these healthy lifestyle changes.
However, if menopausal women suffer from extreme fatigue, they should visit their medical practitioners. Hormone imbalance fatigue can be serious when it begins to affect a woman’s daily life. If extreme fatigue leaves a woman unable to continue with her normal activities, it may be indicative of a bigger problem. Click here for more information about treating hormone imbalance fatigue and other menopause signs and symptoms.
What Is A Hormonal Imbalance
Hormones are chemicals produced by different glands and tissues, forming a part of the endocrine system.
Hormones travel to all of the bodys tissues and organs through the bloodstream. They give messages to these organs, letting them know what function to perform and when to do it.
Hormones help regulate a lot of processes in the body. Hormones manage appetite and metabolism, sleep cycles, heart rate, sexual function, general mood and stress levels, and body temperature. Because they affect so many functions, imbalances in certain hormones can lead to uncomfortable symptoms.
A hormonal imbalance occurs when a person has too much or too little of a certain hormone, such as insulin, cortisol, thyroxine, androgens, estrogen, or progesterone. Even slight changes can have a significant effect on your body.
Read Also: What Is Treatment For Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Recommended Reading: High Blood Pressure Nausea Fatigue
Progesterone Helps You Sleep Better
Symptoms that may suggest hormonal imbalance include bloating, fatigue, irritability, hair loss, palpitations, mood swings, problems with blood sugar, trouble concentrating, and infertility. These are just a few symptoms of hormone imbalance. Hormones are compounds that affect every cell and system in the body, and hormone imbalance can be debilitating. Some hormonal shifts are normal, like monthly fluctuations of sex hormones responsible for menstruation and ovulation or the changes that occur during pregnancy. Menopause is another time for a normal hormonal shift in a woman’s life. Many women may experience weight gain, mood swings, night sweats, and diminished sex drive during this time. Other times these fluctuations may be due to a medication or a medical condition.
What Is Adrenal Fatigue
Adrenal fatigue occurs when our adrenal glands are unable to produce adequate quantities of hormones. The reduced number of hormones can affect every part of the body. Adrenal fatigue, like all conditions, affects everyone differently. Moreover, adrenal fatigue also impacts many parts of the body differently. The diverse range of symptoms of adrenal fatigue make it difficult to diagnose, especially since all systems affected by adrenal fatigue are so interconnected.
Also Check: Strongtek Anti Fatigue Balance Board
Androgen Insufficiency: A Cause Of Fatigue Symptoms
Menopausal women and women who have had surgery for removal of their ovaries may develop Androgen Insufficiency Syndrome. The symptoms of this condition are low sex drive, persistent and unexplained fatigue symptoms, a decreased sense of well-being, and blunted motivation.
One common cause is low testosterone. Women whose testosterone blood levels are below the normal range or are in the bottom of the normal range should have treatment with testosterone. This is likely to relieve the fatigue symptoms as well as other symptoms such as decreased sexual desire, well-being, and motivation.
The Thyroid Gland And Stress
There is a definite link between stress and thyroid function. Tyrosine is an amino acid that assists in the production of T3 and T4 as well as adrenaline and noradrenaline. When the body is under stress, it requires more of these hormones, resulting in limited tyrosine storage, which directly effects the function of the thyroid hormone and can affect your sleep.
We also know that there is a direct link between stress and sleep. When the body is under stress, the autonomic nervous system releases both adrenaline and noradrenaline. This can cause you to toss and turn at night before eventually falling asleep.
Also, overworking is associated with stress and not sleeping. If you work long hours, you may find it difficult to wind down after a long day, which can affect your sleep and leave you feeling groggy and tired when you wake up!
Unfortunately, this can lead to a vicious cycle of poor sleep and stress.
So, the thyroid gland plays a huge role in hormone production and issues with the thyroid can cause health issues, including tiredness and poor sleep. If you suspect that you are suffering from thyroid imbalance, go to see your doctor.
You may want to consider using Kelp tablets. These contain iodine which supports the bodys metabolism by promoting the normal production of thyroid hormones in your body.
Also Check: What Does Fatigue Feel Like
What Are Bioidentical Hormones Made With
Bioidentical hormones are typically derived from plants, such as yams, that produce hormones that are biologically compatible with the human body. This is a stark difference from traditional hormone replacement therapy, which uses synthetic hormones derived from bovine sources. Because bioidentical hormones are biologically compatible, they are gentle on the body and do not cause the negative side effects commonly associated with HRT.
Extreme Fatigue: What It Means For Your Hormones
Have you ever wondered why some nights you go to bed early and get plenty of sleep, but wake up exhausted in the morning? Or maybe youre going about your day, fine one moment, and the next moment a wave of exhaustion hits you so hard you can barely move? This is what we call extreme fatigue , and when your hormones are out of balance, extreme fatigue can hit you fast and put a screeching halt to your life.
Ready to jump in?Join my 12-week program to prepare your body for conception and a healthy, full-term pregnancy. Let me simplify the process by sending you weekly, bite-sized modules about what you should be doing everyday, along with tons of resources and convenient weekly checklists.
Along with bone-deep tiredness, extreme fatigue can come with symptoms like:
- Feeling like you havent slept
- Racing thoughts
If youve been experiencing bouts of extreme fatigue on a regular basis, there are a few simple steps you can take to feel like yourself againbut it helps to know exactly whats causing it.
Recommended Reading: Copper Anti Fatigue Foot Sleeves
Other Factors That May Be Involved
At the root of so many of our hormonal fatigue problems we can find stress. Stress from work, conflict, a busy life, gut issues, food intolerances, inflammation, HIIT exercise, toxins It all counts.
If theres one thing you do as a result of reading this, make a list of the stressors in your life and see how you can start to limit these. Oh, and meditate.
Outside of hormones and stress, there may be other factors behind your fatigue, such as:
- Not getting quality sleep if you suffer from hot flashes , or if you find yourself waking up regularly, you may be getting poor sleep. Improve your sleep hygiene and revamp your sleep routine.
- Nutrient deficiencies a number of vitamin and mineral deficiencies have been linked to fatigue. Key nutrients to pay attention to are iron , vitamin B12, omega3 fatty acids, and vitamin D. We like to ensure were getting adequate nutrients by supplementing with BePure One, BePure Three and Vit D.
- Hydrate to stay awake! not drinking enough water can also cause fatigue.
Looking for more information?Head over to our FAQs page where you can find out about Eve, what the Eve Hormone Balance Test measures, when the best time to test your hormones is, and more.
Also Check: What Are The Symptoms Of Adrenal Fatigue
Causes Of Crashing Fatigue
There are many factors that can induce crashing fatigue including environmental stress, poor eating patterns , lack of exercise, and hormonal changes due to perimenopause and menopause. Women in perimenopause often describe their fatigue as a sudden deep exhaustion that takes over their body even though they havent exerted any physical effort. When they try to do any physical or mental activity, the fatigue often worsens. This exhaustion is always coupled with very little physical stamina that isnt improved by rest, a situation also made worse by the insomnia experienced in perimenopause.
Hormonal changes occurring in a womans body during perimenopause and menopause are a major reason for this debilitating fatigue. Estrogen is key in controlling cortisol, a hormone produced by the adrenal gland released in response to stress which increases blood pressure and blood sugar levels. When estrogen levels dip in perimenopause and menopause cortisol is left uncontrolled, thus causing more intense stress levels and, as a result, increased fatigue. Sometimes the fatigue is caused not by a drop of estrogen but by a decrease in testosterone in a womans body. Furthermore, estrogen can have a calming, drowsy effect, which is weakened when hormone levels drop, thus causing less restful sleep and increased daytime fatigue.
Also Check: What Vitamin Helps With Energy And Fatigue
What Happens When Serotonin Levels Are Too High
On the other hand, serotonin syndrome can occur when serotonin levels are too high. This usually occurs due to a change in medication or if you have taken an anti-depressant along with another medication that contains serotonin.
This causes symptoms such as rapid heartbeat, sweating and sleep problems. If your heart is beating rapidly and youre sweating excessively, you may struggle to fall asleep, thus leading to tiredness the next day. If you are unsure about any medications you may be taking, talk to your doctor.
Indications Of Hormonal Imbalance
Hormonal disequilibrium emerges in myriad ways and affects everything from how often you eat to your emotional state. Even a slight shift can cause big symptoms.
Here are eight signs that point to hormonal imbalance. We hope the list can help you understand just how influential hormones are.
1. Weight fluctuations: Your thyroid controls how your body uses energy from the food you eat. When it goes out of whack, you can either lose or gain weight.
Hyperthyroidism means your thyroid is overactive and you may have trouble maintaining your weight, while hypothyroidism makes your thyroid sluggish, and you tend to put weight on, even when trying to lose it.
2. Skin woes: If your body makes too much of the male hormone androgen, your oil glands go into overdrive and you suffer acne breakouts. Conversely, lower estrogen levels in later life contribute to skin dryness and a loss of elasticity.
3. Lowered libido: If your testosterone levels are lower than they should be and this includes women because they make it too your sex drive can plummet.
For women in perimenopause, lower progesterone levels also contribute to a loss of desire, while low estrogen during menopause causes vaginal dryness.
4. Raised blood sugar levels: A host of hormones contribute to higher blood glucose levels, but the most well-known is insulin, which is made by your pancreas.
6. Persistent sleep problems: If you have insomnia or dont sleep well night after night, the cause could be hormonal.
Read Also: Extreme Fatigue And Abdominal Pain
How Do You Fix Hormonal Imbalance
Many health conditions that involve hormonal imbalances, such as diabetes and thyroid disease, require medical treatment.
Many nutritional supplements in stores claim to treat different hormonal imbalances, but few of them have been scientifically proven to have a beneficial effect. Its important to always talk to your healthcare provider first about taking supplements.
Aside from medical treatment, your provider may recommend certain lifestyle changes to help manage a hormonal imbalance, such as managing your stress levels and getting routine exercise.
Other Approaches To Balancing Hormones To Recover From Female Hormone Imbalance Symptoms
Some people choose not to use either synthetic or bioidentical hormones because of significant or potential side effects. Herbal remedies are sometimes used.
These herbal remedies are the most commonly chosen alternative ways of balancing hormone levels. They may be the easiest route to follow, and they appear to be the only good way to get directly to the source of the hormonal imbalance and rectify it.
Basically, there are two types of herbs used for this purpose: phytoestrogenic and non-estrogenic herbs. The phytoestrogenic herbs have estrogenic ingredients made by plants. Thus, they work to change the hormone imbalance by bringing the plant-based estrogens into the body. One potential difficulty with this approach is that by adding outside sources of estrogen, womens bodies may produce less estrogen on their own. If this happens, it adds to the decrease of the bodys own estrogen.
Black cohosh is one of the phytoestrogenic herbs. It appears to decrease spasms and inflammation. As we have seen, inflammation is implicated in both female hormone imbalance symptoms and AFS. This herb helps relax the uterine muscles, easing menstruation and the cramping that often comes with it. It also can help regulate menstrual periods. Herbs, however, are foreign to the body. The risk of developing toxic reactive metabolite overload tends to be much higher than that of normal naturally occurring compounds like magnesium.
You May Like: Muscle Fatigue Is Caused By
Can Thyroid Problems Cause Extreme Fatigue 7 Tips
Extreme fatigue is a very common symptom of thyroid problems such as hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism. When your thyroid is out of balance and produces too much or too little hormones, it can disrupt functions in your body and make you feel tired.
- Hypothyroidism is caused by an underactive thyroid, which slows down your metabolism and can lead to fatigue. Symptoms include weight gain, hair loss, and dry skin.
- Hyperthyroidism is caused by an overactive thyroid, which speeds up your metabolism and overwhelms your body. Symptoms include unintentional weight loss, rapid heartbeat, increased appetite, and nervousness.
If you are constantly feeling tired even after 8 hours of sleep, experiencing anxiety before falling asleep, or suffer from excessive drowsiness during the day, you may have a thyroid problem. Talk to your doctor for proper diagnosis and treatment.
Hormone Loss Causes Fatigue Symptoms
The one thing most healthcare providers dont consider is hormone evaluation and restoration for fatigue symptoms.
The one thing most healthcare providers dont consider is hormone evaluation and restoration for fatigue symptoms.
There are many reasons for hormone decline leading to fatigue symptoms. The first reason is the hormone decline in DHEA, testosterone, and thyroid hormone that occurs with aging. Another is the loss of hormones with the perimenopause and menopause transitions.
Low thyroid function due to nutritional deficiencies can cause fatigue symptoms at any age, even in young people. Also, an autoimmune thyroid disease called Hashimotos thyroiditis is another cause of fatigue symptoms.
Surgery for removal of the ovaries in women can cause Androgen InsufficiencySyndrome with low sex drive, low motivation, and severe fatigue symptoms.
Stress is another cause of hormone loss with resulting fatigue symptoms.
Read Also: Back Pain And Fatigue Cancer
Restoring Balance And Lifting Fatigue
Though your hormone imbalance may be a normal part of your aging process, theres no need to suffer from your symptoms, like fatigue. If we determine that hormones are responsible for your chronic exhaustion, we recommend hormone replacement therapy.
In addition to boosting your energy, hormone replacement therapy may ease your other symptoms, like your low libido and depressed mood. Hormone replacement therapy also benefits your bones and weight management.
If you dont feel refreshed after getting a good night of rest and physical or mental activities leave you exhausted, we can help. or request an appointment online today.
You Might Also Enjoy…
Can Hormones Cause Acne
Many women experience monthly breakouts before or during their period. However, chronic acne is something different. Acne that does not go away may be due to excess androgens, male hormones like testosterone that both women and men have. Excess levels of these androgens make oil glands extra productive and contributes to jawline acne from hormonal imbalance. Androgens also affect skin cells that line hair follicles. Excess oil and skin cell changes clog pores, leading to acne. A doctor may prescribe birth control pills, corticosteroids like prednisone , or anti-androgen medications to treat hormonally influenced acne. High androgen. levels may sometimes indicate polycystic ovary syndrome . Women with PCOS may experience infertility. High insulin levels can stimulate the production of androgens and may be associated with insulin resistance. Weight loss can help reverse insulin resistance.
Recommended Reading: Extreme Fatigue For No Reason
Don’t Miss: Extreme Fatigue And Mood Swings
Loss Of Progesterone And Estrogen Causes Fatigue Symptoms
Women in perimenopause and menopause often have fatigue symptoms. Also, some women have surgery that removes their ovaries. They have what we call surgical menopause. These women have more severe hot flashes than women who experience menopause naturally.
Estrogen is an important hormone that promotes resilience to stress. I often hear from women that they were able to juggle many things in life and multitask until they reached menopause. Then they feel overwhelmed by demands that previously were a breeze for them.
The loss of hormones in perimenopause and menopause causes fatigue, hot flashes, and insomnia.
Animal studies show that the loss of estrogen at menopause and subsequent loss of stress resilience causes fatigue symptoms.
Loss of estrogen causes other problems during the perimenopause transition to menopause. Low estrogen levels cause hot flashes during this transition time for women. Hot flashes occur in 75-80 percent of perimenopausal and menopausal women in the United States.
Hot flashes and night sweats often disrupt sleep. The interruption in sleep is due to frequent awakenings. Often women perspire and soak their sheets and night clothes. The lack of sleep causes fatigue symptoms the following day.
Scientific studies show that progesterone is a respiratory stimulant. Progesterone might be helpful for both men and women who have sleep-disordered breathing or obstructive sleep apnea, two sleep disrupting conditions.
