Hormones & Medication Ramblings

Let's talk hormones.  And anti-depression medication.

If you'd like to catch up on my backstory of how I found myself on medication to begin with, check out this long-winded rambling post:  http://bkmonet.blogspot.com/2013/10/week-2-check-in-ramblings.html

Around the beginning of 2014 I made a goal to be free of medication.  I found myself waking up every morning and asking, "why am I even taking this??"

I feel like over the course of the last few years I've been taking anti-depression medication when it hasn't necessarily been necessary.  Have there been some bumps in the road that I have needed help with?  YES.  Is medication the solution?  I don't think so.

I am proud to share that I have been completely off my medication for three weeks.  Woo!  Given, I am holding back excitement and celebration until it has been at least six weeks or more.  (it usually takes 4-6 weeks for medication like this to completely metabolize out of your system)  At that point I want to take some honest inventory of how I'm feeling.  Best part?  Even if I still feel off, there are endless possibilities of help that don't include medication.

Insert discussion about hormones.

I have begun to take hormone replacement therapy cream since January of 2014.  Cream?  What?  Ew? If those are your reactions, you are a lot like me.  Thankfully it's quite literally not gross or strange.  I simply put some lotion on the inside of my arm twice per day.  Done.

I have an entire inner dialogue about my hesitation to start using hormone replacement therapy.  I wasn't even 30 years old when I started this.  What in the hell is wrong with me?!?  There are risks.  Is it natural?  Is it synthetic?  Will I gain weight?  Will I have side-effects?  Is this going to royally screw me up? Are there other holistic options?  So many questions.  Some I have found answers to, others are still questions I am seeking answers for.

Late 2013 I started to explore hormone options after having some questionable skin "things" removed by a dermatologist.  One of the questionable items led me to find out that it was caused by hormone imbalance.  Pieces of a puzzle began to fall into place.

Long story short, I did a saliva test to check my hormones to discover that for my age, my progesterone and estrogen levels were quite literally almost not on the "chart."  Low.  low low low.

Why can't I fall asleep at night?  Why do I toss and turn?  Why do I wake up feeling like I want to sleep for 3 more hours?  Why do I have mood swings?  Why do I feel agitated and annoyed all the time?  Why can't I just get myself to DO something?  Why am I restless and tired all day?  Libido?  What's that?  

These were some of the questions I have been asking myself for a long time in my life, but just figured that there was nothing I could do.  I had to simply deal with it, find a way to make it better.  Instead I feel like I was dragging everyone down around me in my attempts to figure it out.

Best thing ever?  There ARE answers and solutions.  and I'm already experiencing it.

Yesterday I had a check-up with my practitioner who prescribes my hormone cream and she read a list of my "symptoms" I came to her with back in late 2013 that I was experiencing. (the questions listed above)  Since starting to use this cream I have already noticed a change.  Best part?  I am still just beginning this journey.  I am so excited and optimistic that I might finally be finding answers to the questions I seek.

Hormones are for real!!!

Going futher, I've begun to do research into birth control, and I want to travel back in time and slap my young-self and prevent the use of oral birth control pills.  You know, the pills that were quite possibly the start of the downfall of my hormone imbalance.  Pregnancy hormones.  Daily life stress.  and all the other million factors that play a role.  It's exciting and rewarding to be on the road to finding the answers I seek.

24-Day Challenge with Advocare DAY 1

I am still alive!  I know all of my readers (do I have any???) have been anxiously awaiting another post.  I know it has been quite awhile since I've written but I am back!

Today marks DAY 1 of my 24-Day Challenge through Advocare.  I am a distributor, so if you have any questions or if you would like to order products, head on over to my page: www.AdvoCare.com/131115921

I am excited to be embarking on this journey.  I took measurements today, and I should take some before photos too, but I haven't been brave enough to do so.  It boggles my mind that after months of exercising I have not lost weight, maybe a few pounds.  I take my progress based on how my clothes fit more than the scale and my clothes are not fitting any better than they were.

I have so many things going on. To summarize, changes in anti-depressant medication (that I don't really think I need any longer, working on it), dermatologist visits discovering a cyst that was caused by hormonal imbalance, saliva tests to check my hormones, discovering that I am very low on Estrogen and Progesterone in my body (as in off the charts) .....  SOMETHING ISN'T QUITE RIGHT.  Having significantly low estrogen and progesterone can cause weight gain and water retention.  This makes sense to me.  I have many of the other symptoms of someone who is experiencing hormonal imbalance.

After working with my doctor I am now on 20mg of Progesterone cream per day.  This in itself has me feeling good and bad.  Excited but also apprehensive.  Almost every single thing I've read regarding Progesterone cream includes a side effect of weight gain.  EXCELLENT.

Needless to say I am embarking on a journey that is going to be ....interesting.

I am SO EXCITED to take on the 24-day challenge because it will enforce strict clean eating and exercise which is part of my New Year's resolution to begin with.  But in the back of my mind I have fear that I'm going to start gaining weight from messing around with my hormones.

I truly don't know what to expect.  I hope that I can defy all the odds and pull out of this transition in my life where I can lose weight and feel happy on a daily basis.  These are my goals.  Written out, out in the open for all the world to see, so that I will be held accountable to doing everything I can go accomplish them:

GOALS
1.  Get off anti-depressant medication
2.  Be Happy
3.  Lose Weight!  10 pounds during this 24DC (24-day challenge).... (I want to be down 30 pounds by April 25th ....my 30th Birthday, WHOAH)

Be sure to put your seatbelts on, folks. This might be a wild ride, but I am going to do everything I can to not only MAKE my goals, but exceed them.

Feeling GOOD

Brittney, here!  Hi, how are you?

I think today was a classic 180-day.  A mere three hours ago I was ready to lay waste on my couch after a highly stressful day while drinking an adult beverage and probably eating bagel chips.  Sadly, this is the honest truth, but I DIDN"T.

Instead????? I just got back from a 2 mile jog/walk.  I have to give my husband all of the credit for the motivation to accomplish this task.  He swooped up the kids and said, "Go for it!"

The weather was pleasantly warm today, but as I started jogging I could tell it was getting cool.  Around 36 degrees.  Sidewalks were starting to get a little slippery from a misty rain all day.  I decided to run on the street with my bright construction vest (it's literally bright orange with reflective stripes on it).  This time of year seems like the hardest time to see things at dusk and I'd rather look like a jogging construction worker than risk someone not seeing me!

I don't want to pat myself on the back as if I just ran a marathon, I don't feel like I deserve that kind of applause YET, but I will say that I feel really good for two things in particular.  I ran 1 mile straight tonight.  I'm not sure if I've already done that in the last few weeks, but it was from start to finish - one mile.  I feel very fulfilled to be getting comfortable running again.  Baby steps!  I then walked & jogged the second mile of my workout and felt great afterwards!!!

Second feel-good event of the night was after my cool-down and ab exercises.  For the first time in a long time I attempted side plank abdominal exercises.  I have no idea if that's what they're called, but I lay on my side and bend at the waist, raising my torso and legs slightly off the ground.  This accomplishment might be confusing if you're just starting to read my blog.  A little backstory, I have had a couple years worth of working on correcting my diastis recti (splitting of abdominal muscles from pregnancies).  I've been VERY very very cautious, but tonight I felt it out and it felt GOOD.  So I took it easy and did one set on both sides.  Baby steps, part deux.

In addition to my exciting turn of events tonight I'd also like to share some information about the first part of my day!

I went to a Women's clinic to figure out if I'm having any kind of hormonal irregularities or not.  Over the course of the next few weeks I will be taking a ZRT Saliva Test to see if I need a little bit of help in the hormone department.  After the discovery of the little skin abnormality that was removed from my back two weeks ago most likely being caused from a hormonal imbalance?   Plus the fact that I've been off and on anti-depressant medication from post-partum depression for three and a half years, but still don't feel "right??"  It's time to try to figure out the root of what's going on.

Busy day!  Time to relax with the hubby and decompress.  Until next time!  :)