Yes! Estrogen Matters
A new and exceptionally well-researched book has come out recently that I want to share with you. It presents the research data on Estrogen and demonstrates the effects it has on the health of every woman. In the spirit of giving this season, please share this article with all the women you know, especially those who have […]
Effects of Birth Control Pills on the Hormonal Systems
This month I am writing on a topic that I often get questions about: what are the effects of birth control pills (made of synthetic hormones) on my body? Recently, I came across an excellent scientific article on this topic full of references for all the data stated here. I am grateful to those authors […]
Progesterone
This hormone is primarily made in the ovaries of women and testicles and adrenals of men. It has several important functions for each sex. For women, one of the important roles of progesterone is in balancing estrogen effects on the uterus, keeping the lining from overgrowing and causing the shedding during the menstrual cycle. […]
Re-Building Hormone Balance~ Estrogens
As we start a new year, I want to begin sharing with you the foundations we need to consider when re-building hormonal balance in the body. We’ll start with….. Estrogens~ Estrogen in higher amounts is what makes women feminine. It is what changes girls into women by affecting our sex organs and creating full […]
Welcoming the Abundant Harvest
For the past month I have enjoyed the delicious taste of some fantastic locally grown heirloom tomatoes. They are so flavorful, reminding me of the ones my father raised when I was growing up. One slice of his tomato would cover the entire piece of bread! To me, few things beat the taste of a […]
Hormones – Our Friends!
Recently as I was talking with a new patient at her first visit, we started discussing the pros and cons of the use of bio- identical hormones for her. She proceeded to share with me that despite all the bad press hormones get these days, she couldn’t see why something that was needed to balance […]
Hormones Affect Every Body System
Hope this finds you enjoying late spring in Sonoma County or wherever you are. Such a wonderful time of year to enjoy hiking and the natural beauty of the out-of-doors. And, I find myself after these ventures, feeling refreshed and renewed in life, better able to enjoy it and relieved of whatever stress I might have […]
The Positive Effects of Estrogen Replacement
There are times when patients ask, sometimes for themselves and sometimes for well-meaning family or friends, whether it is really safe to take estrogen? Or even more troubling to me, a patient may say something that gives away the fact that she is worried that taking estrogen may cause her some form of harm. I […]
Am I in Peri-Menopause? or, Am I in Andropause?
Many women ask me whether they are in peri-menopause, and the answer often surprises them. By identifying signs and symptoms and reviewing appropriate lab tests, I frequently find they have been in peri-menopause for quite some time – even years! Those are years when something could have been done to alleviate the growing imbalance […]
Testosterone … The Benefits for Women as Well as Men
Recently in this newsletter, I discussed estrogen and progesterone and their multiple roles in our body. Testosterone is the third of the sex hormones. It is the most prevalent in men, but also plays an important role for women. In both sexes, it serves to maintain good quality of life, slow down the […]
The Importance of Progesterone
I must say that it feels somewhat crazy to be writing 2015 on my documents. How is that possible? And how are you doing in this New Year? We can come up with many great intentions, but the important ones are those that stick – the intentions that we make into habits and life style […]
Happy Thanksgiving! Part 1: Back to Basics – Estrogens
What a lovely fall we have had here in Wine Country! Haven’t you enjoyed these sunny, temperate days with the fall foliage that brightens our countryside? Glorious to me! So, appropriate that we are moving into the season of Thanksgiving. Thank you for making your health a priority and letting us be involved in that […]
Hormones – Our Friends
During a discussion of the pros and cons of the use of bio-identical hormones in an initial visit with a new patient, she proceeded to share with me that despite all the bad press hormones have had over time she couldn’t see why something that was needed to balance our body’s health in the first […]
Hormone Imbalances in Younger Women
Sometimes we can get focused on menopause (and andropause) and forget that younger women also face health issues that can be traced back to hormonal imbalances. Recently, I have been seeing an increasing number of women in their 20’s and 30’s who have read that there are options to improve their health and quality of […]
Maintaining Sexual Health Over the Lifespan ~ Use it or Lose it.
By Remi Newman, MA (Sex Education Consultant) Our sexuality is a complex part of our personality that is with us from birth until death. It includes our anatomy and physiology, our sexual behavior, intimate relationships, sexual values, sexual fantasies, our gender identity and our sexual orientation. Whether or not we are sexually active, we are […]
Angelina Jolie’s Recent Choice
What a brave step for Jolie to share publicly her very personal decision to have her ovaries and breast tissue removed (See her op-ed in the May 14, 2013, issue of the New York Times: My Medical Choice). Hopefully she will accomplish her dual goals of cutting her own risk of developing cancer and prompting […]
A Disservice to Women and Men
The symptoms of peri-menopause are very real for most women all over the world. Insomnia, mood swings, depression, fatigue, brain fog, loss of a sense of self, loss of libido – all of these and more can wreak havoc in the lives of today’s women. We are talking about women who are doing their best […]
The Journey to Balance
In my early forties, plagued by the stress of being a business woman, raising 2 teens, and facing my own health issues, I came face to face with the reality of being at a serious low point in my life. Nothing was working right. I was in physical pain, emotional trauma, and unrelenting stress with […]
Am I in Peri-Menopause? A Guide to the Beginning of “The Change”
Many women ask me whether they are in peri-menopause, and the answer often surprises them. By identifying signs and symptoms and reviewing appropriate lab tests, I frequently find they have been in peri-menopause for quite some time – even years! Those are years when something could have been done to alleviate the growing imbalance that […]
Hormones and Our Quality of Life
Nearly every day I see people who are not living at the level of health and vitality that they want for themselves at mid-life and who are looking for shifts and changes that they can make to improve their over-all well-being.The changes that we face in our body’s physiology at mid-life can have profound effects […]
Women’s Libido
Ahh! Many men through the ages have felt mystified about this topic. It is a central part of who we are as women and holds much power, pleasure, intimacy, and creativity for us. Yet, as we are moving into mid-life (starting with our first born child!), it often disappears – and we don’t always know […]