Flying around the hormones: Part II
PAID CONTENT
In Part I of “Flying around the hormones,” we likened our hormones to flying an airplane. Our instrument panels’ critical “six pack” of gauges tell us how high we’re flying (altimeter), how fast or how slow we are going (airspeed indicator), how level we are (attitude indicator), how fast we are climbing or descending (vertical speed indicator), where we’re heading (heading indicator) and how coordinated we are when we are changing directions (turn coordinator). All of these gauges are critical if we want to fly without crashing. It is the same with our hormonal system.
Our hormonal system, a.k.a. our endocrine system, is comprised of organs and glands that release hormones that tell us which direction we’re going and make sure we go where we want. It is a delicate feedback loop that can really go askew and get “lost” if all glands are not on top of things.
When one part isn’t doing its part in this delicate flight, how we respond to it is so important, that if we don’t get it right we will crash. As our glands get tired and aren’t so vigilant, many people mistakenly give it a little extra push. We call it “Hormone Replacement Therapy” or “HRT.” What gets neglected or forgotten is that with that little push, that extra freebie hormone, comes a response from many of the other glands in this delicately coordinated movement. They respond by either amping up their hormonal release, or by tapering back. Because they do that, their other cohorts also must dump more hormone or hold back in response. And because those hormones do that, others do the same and the cycle goes around and around.
Newest to this launch of giving our lazy glands a foot up is “bio-identical hormones.” As much as they sound like they are the same as the ones we produce, they aren’t. We can put the wrong octane gasoline in an airplane engine that is “close” to the right stuff, but that error can cost lives. When we give freebie hormones, the gland almost always will respond by tapering back its own production. But not putting out the right amount was the problem in the first place! By giving HRT hormones, aren’t we furthering the problem?
Now don’t get me wrong, I know people can feel so much better on them and swear by them, but is it the right thing to do? What happens when an organ continually tapers back on its own production? Your HRT dosages have to keep going up to compensate. Then this delicate biofeedback loop says, “Oops! Looks like we’re over-producing again! Better shut down even more!” As smart as we are, we cannot duplicate it the way the body does and stay stable in this delicate give-and-take domino effect of a system.
The better approach is to find out what went wrong in the first place. Which organs or glands aren’t doing their part? Why not? What is missing that they need to get their “attitude” back up to par? Or, what is inhibiting them? Is it a liver that is overloaded with toxins from the environment, medications, garbage foods or other things? Is it the pancreas that is so overloaded with sugar stimulation that it is becoming resistant to its life-sustaining hormones? Are the adrenals getting so tired that it can’t regulate the hormones critical for keeping inflammation or blood pressure under control? Who’s falling down on the job and why?
If you are enmeshed in this Russian roulette of HRT, there are ways you can get your hormones flying the straight and narrow path necessary for a safe landing. Learn more by attending our upcoming health class, Bio-Identical Hormone Recovery, at 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 4, at Vital Health in Coeur d’Alene. Fee: $10. RSVP: 208-765-1994 or register here: http://bit.ly/VHHormoneClass
- • •
Holly Carling is a Doctor of Oriental Medicine, Licensed Acupuncturist, Doctor of Naturopathy, Clinical Nutritionist and Master Herbologist with nearly four decades of experience. Carling is a “Health Detective,” she looks beyond your symptom picture and investigates WHY you are experiencing your symptoms in the first place. Carling is currently accepting new patients and offers natural health care services and whole food nutritional supplements in her Coeur d Alene clinic. Visit Carling’s website at www.vitalhealthcda.com to learn more about Carling, view a list of upcoming health classes and read other informative articles. Carling can be reached at 208-765-1994 and would be happy to answer any questions regarding this topic.