Is BHRT Right For You? Breaking Down the Basics of Bioidentical Hormones

Welcome, everyone. I am so glad that you're here, whether you are here with me live or watching the replay. I am glad to have you here, and I am glad— I'm excited to have this conversation with you guys. Today I'm diving into a topic that's often misunderstood but incredibly important, and that is bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, also known as BHRT. And I just want to start off by, by saying that, please know, this is not an exhaustive conversation. We could be, we could be here for months talking about, about BHRT and all of the good and bad and the misinformation and clearing up and trying to clear up all the confusion. And I still don't know that we would get to all of it. So, uh, this is not that, but I did want to, to Just dive into it a bit to share, to break some of the misconceptions and hopefully give you guys a little bit of guidance, at least, you know, that will help you to understand whether or not it's right for you and how to decide, how to figure that out for yourself. So, Um, I'm, again, I'm glad that you're here. And, um, just start by, by sharing. I, I'm sure that, that you guys are aware of this, but, um, BHRT is, is one of the most talked about options in the menopause space. You know, we talk about all of the things that we can do to feel better, but it is one of the most talked about options. And it's also surrounded by a ton of confusion. And, and the, the, the truly disheartening thing I think is that it's, The confusion is not just ours, not just us, the, the women who are struggling and, and looking for answers, but quite often our clinicians don't know enough about BHRT. They don't know enough about what's— what it's good for, what it isn't good for, why it should be used, why it should be avoided, all of the things that are so important to each of us. as individuals. And so my goal today is to clear up some of that confusion and show you how BHRT can fit into a natural holistic plan for perimenopause and menopause. So I will explain what BHRT is, how it's different from HRT or synthetic hormones, how it can support your body naturally And some of, not all, but some of the pros and cons to help you decide if it's right for you. If you have any questions, please drop them in the comments below. I cannot promise that I will answer them during this live. I can't promise that I will get to them here, but I promise to come back and provide an answer. And I'll tell you honestly, I don't have all the answers. So if I don't have an answer for you, I will find a resource or I will find someone who does have the answer for you. Please do not hesitate to ask your questions, and if you're really feeling uncomfortable with sharing your questions here in the chat for everyone to see, I'm not in the chat in the in the comments for everyone to see. Please send me a direct message. I I I welcome them, and and I will respond to you there as well. So that said, let's dive right into BHRT. As I've said already, BHRT stands for bioidentical hormone replacement. Theory. And these are hormones that are derived from natural sources and designed to be more chemically identical to the ones that your body naturally produces. And why is that important? It's important because it's different from HRT or synthetic hormones. Synthetic hormones are, um, are not a match to the ones that you— the hormones, um, are not a match to the hormones that are produced by your body. And this Mismatch can sometimes lead to side effects. And it's not to say that BHRT, um, can't— won't, won't have side effects. It absolutely can and quite often does. But, um, it— but because BHRT mimics your body's natural hormones more closely, it can make it easier for your body to, like, recognize that that's what this is and then use it use the hormones more effectively. I hope that makes sense. It's, it's really this body confusion thing that happens with synthetic versus bioidentical. Even if, even when your body recognizes the hormones and knows what to do with them, BHRT is not a quick fix. It's not a magic pill, but it can be A valuable tool when, especially when combined with proper nutrition, movement, stress management, so important, and other just lifestyle changes. It, it can be one piece of the puzzle that helps to restore balance in your body. But BHRT does not work for everyone. And it's important to understand that no amount or type of added hormones, whether from BHRT or even the hormones that your body produces, can fully fix hormonal issues if your body isn't able to process or utilize the hormones properly. So I would really like to talk about that for a moment. So what so often happens is that we have these hormonal things that are happening in our body, these fluctuations, the dips and and the increases, and it causes hot flashes and dry skin. And you guys know all of the things that you're struggling with, it causes all of those things. And so we go to our clinician and we say, if you're lucky enough to have one who will listen to you and provide hormone replacement therapy. So they give it to you, whether you take it orally or topically, I apologize, I lost my train of thought. The issue is that when you— even when you're able to get those from our clinicians, which can be a struggle all on its own, if our bodies are not in a state to be able to utilize the hormones properly, Then it won't— it doesn't make a difference. It won't help you. You won't feel better. So you basically end up wasting time and money on something that can't actually help you, not because the hormone isn't good for you or isn't going to— isn't helpful for you, but because our bodies simply are not able to properly use them. And I'll give you some quick examples. So, like, Especially if you're taking an oral, an oral hormone, if your gut is struggling because you have like leaky gut or dysbiosis, or tons of things can be happening in our gut that cause the hormones to not work properly because it'll interfere. Those things will interfere with how the hormones are absorbed and processed. And I, I won't get into that a whole lot today, but just, just keep that in mind when you, when you're trying any kind of, of, um, of a hormone therapy. If you're having digestive issues and you're, if you're, if you're struggling with something like leaky gut or dysbiosis, and, and then you put that in also and it doesn't work, it may not be that that doesn't work, that the hormone doesn't work, but it may be that you need to. address your gut issues first. Same thing with your liver. If your liver isn't metabolizing hormones correctly, or your adrenal glands are not functioning optimally, because those are so important for even not just for what happens with what we put in our bodies, but how our bodies produce hormones. So if any, if, if your gut isn't working, if your liver isn't working properly, if your adrenals aren't properly functioning, BHRT Might not provide the results that you're hoping for. And if you guys saw, I shared recently in the group here that I have used BHRT myself. Specifically, I use topical progesterone. And I'll just really quickly share with you guys, when, when I, when I first started struggling with— it was in my mid-30s. I didn't realize it was perimenopause. I didn't realize it was menopausal at all. You know, I had no idea. I, um, I was just having really bad periods and the cramps were— I would literally just be in bed for 48 hours. Like, I just could not move. I was in so much pain. And I had gone to my doctors and they gave me lots of different medications. I tried them all. They did not work. They had given me pain pills. They did not touch the pain. And it was really just out of desperation. I was looking for something else, something to help to feel better. And I came across a book actually where the, um, author was a doctor and he was talking about the importance of topical progesterone and how it could help with, with my periods. And so I, I gave it a try and it was truly a game changer. I, I think I was taking it for 3 months before I had my, my yearly exam with my, um, OB-GYN. And she's amazing. I love her. She's wonderful. But when I went in and I told her, I said, hey, I'm taking this topical progesterone and oh my gosh, like I finally feel so much better. And she was like, oh, well, if you like that, you are going to love. And she gave me a synthetic progesterone pill, and I didn't know any better. I thought, you know, one, the other, same thing, no big— you know, no, there's no difference, right? And she says, she says this one, so I'm gonna try it. And I did. And it gave me the worst hot flashes that I have ever had. I actually remember my husband and I had gone in like October, late October, we had gone into North Carolina and Um, up to North Carolina, to the mountains in North Carolina for a, um, vacation. And it was middle of the night. I wake up and it's snowing outside. And I, um, I wake up and I thought the heater was broken because it was so hot in the room. And I, I know you guys know what hot flashes are like, so I don't have to explain them, but it was so hot. I was drenched in sweat and I throw the covers off and I go over to this big window and I throw the window up and I'm literally standing in front of this window with the snow falling outside. And I'm just like, oh. And I stood there for a couple of minutes until I finally cooled down. And I truly was thinking the room, the whole room was hot. But I turned over, turned around, I looked at my husband and he's under the covers with like, he's got the covers pulled up to his nose, up to his chin. And he's like chattering. He's like, I was like, maybe it's not the room. Maybe it's me. But that was, that was my first Hot flash. I had never had a hot flash before that, and and it was it was brought on by this progesterone, this synthetic progesterone, and I immediately stopped taking it and went back to using my topical. And and as because I mean I was like I said I was in my mid-thirties, and as as time went on, as I when I started to get hot flashes, I've never had one like that. I've they've always been. much easier. They've been very mild. They, they, um, they don't— I don't get them very often at all. And I'm sure that that's because the, the topical progesterone has the effect of calming the, the temperature, calming our— calming those hot flashes. So that was my experience with, with it. And, and I— the, um, the benefits that I myself have experienced from topical progesterone I sleep better. I don't have hot flashes. My periods did calm down. They became much more regular and less painful. I went from having these huge clots to having less. Now, I will say it's been 15 years. I'm gonna be 51 next month. And at this point, my periods are becoming more erratic and less regular, and the clots have gotten more. And I'm sure that that's normal for this stage of my life and as I get closer to menopause. But I truly feel so much better than I think that I would without it. I'm quite certain of that. So, like I said, I'm not— I can't get into all of what's good and bad about bioidentical hormone replacement therapy, but I would like to just cover a few pros and a few cons. Some of the pros are that BHRT is often customized. It can be tailored to your unique body and to your unique needs based on how you're feeling, or if you go in for testing. Testing can be, can be very helpful. I will tell you, I don't recommend blood testing for hormones. I believe that urine or saliva is a much better way of testing for hormones. And you— and I also don't think that you have to be tested to try it. I, I didn't. I have— I do get testing regularly now, but, but before I started, I didn't. I just started using it and I felt better. And that's really what I, what I would use to gauge. Do you, do you try it and feel better or do— or don't you? Another, another pro is that it's more natural because it is bioidentical. It can actually feel more natural to your body and in your body. And the 3rd pro that I'll share is that it is versatile. It can address a wide range of symptoms from hot flashes, low libido, dry skin. If you're still cycling, it can be very helpful with regulating that, especially if you're starting to, to go out of sync. Some of the cons is that it can take some— and this is true with any type of hormone replacement— it can take some trial and error to ensure that you are using the right products and the right dosage. There are so many things. Like, I personally just prefer the topical because I do have some issues with my liver. And when you take it orally, so much more of it is synthesized through the liver. And for me, that's not, not something that I want to, um, to struggle with. So I, I prefer topical. Um, but, uh, so yeah, so one of the cons would be, um, monitoring— could be, you could look at it as a con— monitoring it for how, how you feel and how it feels and how it's working in your body. Another one is that And again, I put this down as a con. I don't know that it really is, but it's not a one-size-fits-all solution. It's not the answer for everyone. So you can find the ideal— you can find the ideal way for you to use it, and it won't work for your best friend or for your sister or for your daughter. Like, it may not be the thing that works for your mom. Like, it may not be the thing that works for them. It's not. not a one-size-fits-all approach. And the biggest con, in my opinion, um, can be cost depending upon your provider, your healthcare provider. It can be more expensive to use bioidentical versus, um, synthetic hormone options. And I mean, that's truly unfortunate because, um, I think that we all have, have seen that, that our doctors and our, especially our health insurance companies are not as open to what's truly best for our individual bodies. They are, they're more about their bottom line. And so, um, it— you may end up having to come out of pocket more for, um, for BHRT options than you would for, um, the synthetic options. And, um, again, it's truly, truly unfortunate. I'm really hoping that that's something that changes here in the near future, but I don't know. Um, Luciana, I see your question. Um, how, um, how you use topical progesterone. So, um, it depends upon where you get it from because there's a couple of different ones that I use. I like to, I like to use 2 different ones, um, just because they, they— so there's one that I use that's just a, just a basic progesterone, um, and then there's one that has more like botanical ingredients and things like that. Now, the botanical one, I put it— I actually put it on my face because it helps with lines and it helps with dryness and things like that. And then the, the, the, the other one, and actually both of them, you want to put it on thin, thin-skinned areas. So like, you'll put it here on the inside of your forearm, you put it on your breasts, you put it on your chest and your neck. And so that's basically the rotation. What I do is, and I only use mine Because I am still cycling, I use it just the second half of my cycle. So like day 14, I put a small amount. And this is the other— another key thing that when you're using it, when you're— when you decide to use any kind of hormone replacement, I suggest starting with the smallest dose possible and then, and then build up from there. And so what I do is I use just a tiny amount. I put it here, and then the next day I'll put it on this breast, and then the next day I do my chest, and then the other breast. The other arm, and then the neck, and then back again. You— the reason you want to rotate them is because we have receptor sites in our skin that can become overwhelmed and stop actually working as well. So you— so, so if you, if you like wear out the receptor cells in, in this part of your arm, it won't work as well to continue putting it there. So you want to keep moving it, moving it around. I use it, like I said, just for the second half of my cycle. So day 14, I start. Day 28, I stop, and then I bleed, and then, and then, you know, you know how the cycle goes. So I hope that answered your question, Luciana. If you have another question, please feel free. You know, if you, if you'd like further information on that, I'm happy to share. Just, just, just drop your question down there for me. So, just to reinforce some of the key points that I've shared with you guys today, as we start to wrap up. Um, BHRT, um, 4% USP grade. I apologize. Allison is asking, is topical progesterone a 4% USP grade? And honestly, I'm not sure. I, I, that's not something that I know offhand. I know that the, the one that I use is 25 milligrams per pump, and I use— and I apologize because I think that that's right, 25 milligrams per pump. And I don't use a full pump other— up until I use— actually, I get— I build up as, you know, day 14 I start and I use a small amount, and then I build up to a full pump at day 21, which is how our natural— what our natural progesterone cycle would look like. You, at day 14, you start to build progesterone, and then you— it kind of goes up. And then it peaks at day 21, and then it starts to fall off. So that's, that's how I use it. I use it building up, and then day 21, 22, 23, I keep it at the full pump, and then I start to come back down. And it's that coming back down is really what signals to your body to start your period. If you are, if you are in, if you're in menopause, well, we're all in menopause, but if you're, if you're no longer cycling, You would still use it only a portion of the month. And, but I believe, and, and when you purchase progesterone, it'll come with instructions. It will say, if you are cycling, use this amount. If you are, if you are no longer cycling, use this amount and use it on these days. And so, and you can follow that. And you can also, one of the really cool things about it is you can also tweak it to, to what feels best for you. But if you are no longer bleeding, I Do believe that it's, it's 21 days on and 7 days off. It may be 5 days off. I'm not 100% sure, but because I'm not there yet, so that's not something that I've, that I've, that I've, that I've had to utilize myself yet, but it's something that we'll definitely look into further. Um, estrogen and testosterone, I am not as familiar with how they work. Because I'm not— please note, Terry, I'm not a hormone specialist. I am sharing with you guys about how I've used it. And so that's something I will definitely get someone who is a hormone expert to get back with you on. So, yeah, so any other questions, please feel free to drop them in the chat. Thank you guys so much for for the questions that you have shared. And Jean is asking, is this over-the-counter or prescription? You can get prescriptions, but I— the ones that I use are over-the-counter, and they're from doctors. It's not that they're, you know, they're not, you know, some fly-by-night company that is just throwing some stuff together. The ones that I use come from doctors. who created these progesterone. And yeah, you can buy it directly from their offices online though. So yeah, over the counter. And truly doing it that way too, I think that, I mean, you can't, you don't get to use your health insurance for it that way, but, um, it's not terribly expensive. The, the progesterone is really not. Um, so anyway, so, um, what I was, what I was, what the point I was trying to make is that, um, BHRT is a powerful tool, but it's not the only answer. Um, I truly don't believe that everyone who, every woman who goes through, um, who makes it to, to, to midlife and who, who goes through menopause, Um, has to be on some sort of a BHRT. I think that if you're struggling with symptoms, it's, it's part of a holistic plan, which includes lifestyle changes like nutrition, stress, stress management, and movement. Um, but it's just another piece of that. So you can, you know, you take care of the, the food that you're putting into your body, take care of the, the way that you move your body. We also need to consider The environmental toxins, the stuff that we put on our skin, the, the air that we breathe, all of those make a difference in how our bodies are going to feel. And of course, stress management and, um, yeah, just simple lifestyle changes. It's so, so important to remember that we're all connected. Everything is connected. So there's nothing that you do to any part of your body that isn't affected. by the rest of your body. So just think about that. If you, if you're interested in exploring whether BHRT or another natural approach is right for you, please feel free to reach out to me. And again, if it's not something that I can help with, I am happy to, to find someone for you who can. And with that, I will say thank you guys so much for joining me today. I hope that you Found this helpful and that it gave you some, somewhat of a better understanding of BHRT and how it might fit into your journey. And I want to appreciate, just once again, appreciate you guys all for being here and know that this is something that we're going to start doing on Thursdays. I will be here live and we'll talk about not BHRT every week, but we'll talk about something of importance, hopefully of importance and something that's helpful for you. And so I, with that, I will say, take care, be well, and I will see you next time. Bye everyone. Good night.