What exactly does it mean to have “balanced hormones”? Although widely used, this term has its ambiguities. Many people feel that this is something measurable, only found through blood work done at a lab. While others feel that this is more subjective, as a reflection of how one actually feels, both emotionally and physically. Personally, I like to focus on the patient’s actual experience of wellbeing, much more than any blood test.
There is certainly a time and place for blood tests. The information gained from them can be very useful, if not critical, to determine a patient’s health status. But the tests must always be taken in relation to one’s particular signs and symptoms, of their own health experience. An example would be the hormone testing of follicular stimulating hormone (FSH). This test is usually done on day 3 of a woman’s cycle and can be indicative of her reproductive status. The higher the number climbs, the closer the woman may be to menopause.
Many fertility clinics like to see FSH below 10 iu/ml, and anything above will be a red flag in terms of a woman’s ability to conceive. The truth is that this number is more indicative of how well she may respond to IVF drugs, not necessarily for natural conception, as many woman do achieve healthy pregnancies with numbers much high than this. While working at Acubalance Wellness centre, the natural fertility clinic in Vancouver, I myself have helped many woman achieve a healthy pregnancy with FHS levels above 15, 20, and even 30 iu/ml. The reason is that emphasis must be placed on the woman’s actual health status, much more than any number acquired through a lab test.
In a past blog I shared the case of a woman who had a day 3 FSH of 31 iu/ml, who went on to have a very healthy pregnancy. When I worked with her I actually paid less attention to her FSH level then I did to her physical signs and symptoms. As her menstrual cycle regulated and became less painful, and as her premenstrual symptoms like headaches and acne decreased, I knew that her body was coming back into balance – the necessary condition for a healthy pregnancy to be achieved. When this woman actually did became pregnant, we did not test her FSH level again, as it was obvious through her state of well being that she was balanced, hormonally speaking.
Let me say this again, hormonal balance is not necessarily something you will see on a lab test, as the numbers on that test may say something very different than what your actual experience indicates. The true indicator of hormonal balance is verified through your actual state of health, how you feel inside that body of yours.
As Dr. Jerliynn Prior, a well known endocrinologist practicing in Vancouver, B.C., once stated at a conference I attended,
“If you [women] have acne and/ or excessive hair growth, then your androgens [male hormones] are out of balance – no blood test needed.”
Hormonal imbalances show up as physical signs and symptoms, and as such lab testing is not always necessary. When one works on their health and those sign and symptoms improve, then ones hormones will also improve. So as a woman’s cyclic acne improves, we know that her androgen levels are also improving, thus a “hormonal balance” is being achieved – no blood test needed.
Let your state of health be the true indicator for hormonal balance, rather than some arbitrary number. If you have healthy skin, if your menstrual cycle is regular and without complaint, if you have good energy and can sleep well, and if your mind is relaxed, calm and with good concentration then chances are that you are living with “balanced hormones”.
Wishing you health,
Dr. Trevor Erikson
Copyright © 2019 Dr. Trevor Erikson