How Does Hormone Therapy Work?

It’s important for your body’s hormones to be at the appropriate levels. This is because your hormones regulate your body’s internal processes. While it’s normal for your hormone levels to fluctuate, especially with age, many undesirable side effects come along with these changes. At ALC Med Spa in Gurnee, IL, our hormone therapy treatments can help you get back to your old, healthy self.

How Does Hormone Therapy Work?

Are not quite feeling yourself? Perhaps you’re feeling more tired than usual, or your emotions are running amok. You may also be experiencing drastic changes to your weight or your feelings of wellbeing in general. If you’re struggling with some unexplained changes like these, then you may be having some issues with your hormone levels. If that’s the case, hormone therapy could be right for you.

It’s normal for both men and women to experience hormonal changes throughout their lives, especially as they age. But if these changes are becoming a real impediment to your daily life, you’ll want to consider HRT. This treatment method involves replacing hormones your body may be lacking in, getting them back up to appropriate levels.

Everything You Need To Know About Hormones and Hormone Therapy

If you think that HRT might be right for you, then you probably have a few questions. Here’s everything you should know about receiving this treatment and how it can drastically improve your quality of life.

What Are Hormones?

Before we can get into the specifics of how HRT works, you need to know how hormones work. Essentially, your hormones are your body’s messengers. Your brain uses them to send signals to various parts of your body.

These signals tell your body to perform actions. There are many different hormones in your body, all of which work together to get it to perform certain tasks. This includes metabolizing and digesting the food you eat, maintaining its temperature, and your sexual function and the health and growth of your reproductive systems. If your hormones get out of balance, then your body may not be able to perform these tasks effectively.

Why Do Hormone Levels Change?

It’s natural for your hormones levels to vary throughout your life. Certain hormones will be at higher levels in your youth than they will be as you get older. For example, estrogen levels are generally higher in women in their youth, tending to peak around their 20s. For men, testosterone levels will begin to lower with age.

But hormonal imbalances can also be caused by medical issues. Conditions like diabetes, hyperthyroidism, or Cushing’s syndrome are just a few examples of medical problems that could be causing major hormonal imbalances in your body.

Symptoms of Hormonal Imbalances

If you’re experiencing hormonal imbalances in your body, then you may be experiencing a range of symptoms. Bear in mind that this isn’t a comprehensive list, but rather a few of the most common symptoms those with hormonal imbalances experience.

If you suspect that you might be having some issues with your hormonal levels, then making an appointment with your doctor and discussing treatment options like HRT will be beneficial.

Changes in Your Weight

You will naturally experience changes in your weight throughout your life. Gaining or losing a few pounds here or there is completely normal. In fact, in a single day, your weight can vary by as much as five pounds.

But if you’re eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly and you’re noticing huge shifts in your weight, that’s a major sign you have a hormonal imbalance. If you’ve noticed that you’ve gained or lost a lot of weight in a short time, then a hormonal imbalance may be causing your metabolism to work improperly.

Changes in Your Sex Drive

One of the things your hormones do for your body is that it regulates its libido. Your libido, or your sex drive, is both your desire to have sex and the energy required to engage in sex acts. A long time ago, doctors believed that aging naturally resulted in a loss of libido. But today, we know that’s not true, and that older people can and should be able to engage in an active and healthy sex life.

If you’re experiencing a plummet in your libido, then you might have a hormonal imbalance on your hands. HRT can help you get your hormones back to the right levels and allow you to enjoy sex again.

Fatigue

One of the major signs of an imbalance in your hormones is fatigue. It’s normal to feel tired every once in a while. If you’ve had a busy day, or maybe you just didn’t sleep as well as you usually do, then it makes sense that you would be a little sleepy.

But there’s a difference between being a little tired and being fatigued. Chronic fatigue means an almost ever-present lack of energy, and nothing you do seems to be able to get your energy back up. Fatigue can be caused by a variety of things. If you’re inexplicably tired and unable to boost your energy, it might be a good idea to have your hormone levels checked.

Mood Swings

Your hormones have a huge impact on your mood. It’s one of the major internal systems that your hormones help to regulate. If you’re finding yourself feeling incredibly joyful one moment and frustrated the next, then you might be experiencing some issues with your hormones.

There are several hormones involved in controlling and maintaining your mood. This includes cortisol, dopamine, and serotonin. If these hormones start getting becoming unbalanced, then you may experience some pretty major and frustrating mood swings.

Anxiety

Another really common symptom of severe fluctuations in your hormones is anxiety. It’s normal and even healthy for you to feel stress at some points in your life. But if your stress and anxiety are getting out of control, this can have a huge negative impact on your overall health and happiness.

You should speak to your doctor if you are experiencing a lot of unexplained anxiety. If your hormone levels are at play here, HRT will help you manage your anxiety.

Depression

Depression is a mental illness that can vary greatly in its severity. It’s more than just feeling a little sad. This condition is characterized by constant and even overwhelming feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, and a lack of motivation and energy.

One of the major causes of depression is hormonal imbalances. Leaving depression untreated can be extremely harmful. If you think you might be depressed, speak to your doctor and consider looking into HRT treatments.

Difficulty Sleeping

Your body needs sleep for it to function properly. Your hormones are meant to regulate your body’s sleep schedule and ensure that it gets enough. It’s normal to experience difficulty sleeping every once in a while, but it’s not normal to be experiencing this issue super frequently.

If you’re having trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, then HRT could help you get your sleep schedule back on track.

Difficulty Focusing

Are you finding it difficult to focus on tasks? Maybe you’re having trouble remembering things, or taking in new information. These are all signs of brain fog, which can be a really challenging symptom to deal with.

Your hormone levels play a huge role in your ability to focus retain information. HRT is a great way to get your hormones back to appropriate levels, allowing you to once again perform complicated cognitive tasks and remember things more easily.

What Happens When I Get Hormone Therapy?

If you’re considering getting HRT to treat hormonal imbalances in your body, then you’re probably wondering what the treatment process will be like. When it comes to any kind of medical treatment, the important thing is to do your research and find a clinic and technician you trust.

At our clinic, you can count on your experience being smooth, clean, and comfortable. When you come to us, we’ll do everything we can to make your time with us the best that it can be.

Before Treatment

The first thing that we will do before you receive your HRT treatment is set up a consultation. This gives us the chance to discuss what your symptoms and concerns are. If you have any questions about the process, we will be more than happy to answer them.

We will then perform some testing to help us determine which hormone levels are lower than they should be. Once we’ve found the imbalance, we’ll be able to set you up with your treatment.

During Treatment

Because everyone’s hormones are different, no two treatment plans will look alike. We understand that and will make sure to customize your treatment plan to fit your specific needs, whatever they are.

At our clinic, we use bio-identical hormones which are designed to have the same structure as the hormones produced by your body naturally. When it comes time for your treatment, we will inject these hormones into your body. The treatment process is generally very fast, painless, and requires essentially no downtime.

After Treatment

Because your needs and treatment process will differ from someone else’s, you’ll get different results depending on what’s being targeted. Over the next few months, you’ll notice that your symptoms improve greatly and that you’re able to get back to the things you enjoy again.

You’ll need to return for follow-up treatments, and a plan will be devised when you come to see us. If you want your results to last for as long as possible, make sure to keep up with both mental and physical activity and maintain an overall healthy lifestyle.

Am I a Candidate for Hormone Therapy?

If you are concerned about your body’s hormone levels and you want a safe and effective way to manage them, then you could be a candidate for this treatment method. Men and women alike can reap the benefits of HRT.

If you’re interested in getting this treatment and have any other medical conditions, please let us know. This will help us ensure that you’re getting a treatment that’s both safe and effective for you.

Improve Your Quality of Life

Your hormones are responsible for essentially all of your body’s internal functions. If you’re experiencing symptoms like unexplained weight loss or gain, anxiety, difficulty sleeping, or brain fog, then you may have a hormonal imbalance. HRT is a super safe, fast, and effective way of treating this issue. Are you ready to learn more about how hormone therapy can help you? Get in touch with us today at ALC Med Spa in Gurnee, IL.