Hormonal Hierarchy: Creating Balance
The key to balancing your hormones lies in understanding hormonal hierarchy. Most of us have no clue which hormones I am talking about let alone that there is a hierarchy. Here’s what you need to know, certain hormones have power/control over others. For instance, sex hormones are at the bottom of the hierarchy. This means to balance them, we MUST, not only understand the ones above, but we have to get those hormones in check FIRST!
These hormones are: (in order)
oxytocin
cortisol (your stress hormone)
insulin (your blood sugar hormone).
estrogen, progesterone, testosterone (sex hormones)
thyroid (your metabolism hormone)
When you don’t have enough oxytocin, stress increases which triggers the production of cortisol. Cortisol raises your blood sugar. High blood sugar signals the body to make insulin. High levels of cortisol and insulin start to accelerate the decline of your sex hormones, leaving you with insomnia, hair loss, anxiety, hot flashes, brain fog, weight loss resistance, low sex drive, and muscle loss. Can you see the connection??
Ways to know you have a hormone imbalance:
1. Your menstrual cycle
Do you have irregular, painful or missed periods? Do you have PMS symptoms like moodiness, cravings, bloating or acne,? Have you been diagnosed with endometriosis, fibroids, cysts, or PCOS?
2. Your energy levels
Have you been feeling more tired? Have you been pushing yourself physically and emotionally? Do you depend on caffeine to get through the day? Do you still feel unmotivated and slow all day even after 8 or more hours of sleep?
3. Your weight
Have you recently gained weight around your belly? OR do you tend to gain weight on your thighs and hips?
Estrogen, insulin and cortisol are all linked to belly fat. Weight gain around your hips can be caused by toxic estrogen build-up.
4. Your mind
Have you been more forgetful more often than usual? Do you struggle making decisions? Or do you have brain fog?
5. Your skin
Your skin is the largest organ in your body! Skin issues are a cry for help from your internal systems. Pay attention; the body is speaking!
6. Your libido
Have you been feeling less interested in sex? Do you have pain during intercourse due to vaginal dryness?
If you answered yes to one or more of these things you might have an imbalance. The first step to healing hormone imbalances is to take a look at insulin. Here’s why….
Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas that regulates blood glucose levels and helps glucose enter cells in the body. Excess sugar and carbs create blood sugar spikes that lead to insulin resistance.
Insulin resistance is a condition that occurs when cells don't respond properly to insulin. When this happens, blood sugar levels remain high, which causes the pancreas to produce more insulin in an attempt to get cells to respond. Over time, the pancreas can become exhausted and unable to produce enough insulin, leading to blood sugar levels that are high enough to be considered diabetic. The simple equation to remember here is sugar/carbs = insulin secretion.
Because insulin is above the sex hormones, high levels of insulin can disrupt the production and metabolism of estrogen. This can wreak havoc on your fertility and female hormone balance. It’s the cause of PMS, heavy bleeding, blood clots and bloating.
By balancing insulin levels, you actually make a huge positive shift in ALL of your hormones, which makes everything else much easier to balance. As women it is also critical that we understand our menstrual cycle. This includes the phases, the hormones in each phase and what each hormone needs to be produced during that phase.
