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The Happy Hormone Cottage and the Three Myths June 28, 2010

Posted by Lyn in : Hot BHRT Topics, Uneducated doctors , 4comments

Once upon a time in the Heart of Centerville was an adorable little cottage where a team of stunning patient counselors lived! They were terribly busy helping women and men navigate the muddy, muddy waters of hormone imbalance by educating them on the strategies for natural hormone balance through customized natural options. Everyone was happy learning new strategies that didn’t involve antidepressants and drugs(!) and women left the cottage feeling validated and respected, AND feeling better than they had in years.
One day it came to the attention of Lyn, the director of the tiny little cottage, that somewhere in the land, 3 myths were being perpetuated. She got fed up and in a fit of energy, burst forth with these 3 “myth busters!”

Myth #1 “Compounded Hormones Are Not FDA Approved”
The FDA’s job is to approve manufactured drugs for the masses. WE customize therapy for one individual. So WE are strictly regulated by the Ohio State Board of Pharmacy.
**HOWEVER, each of the following hormones we use ARE FDA approved: Testosterone, Estradial and Progesterone.

Myth #2 “Insurance Doesn’t Cover Compounded Therapy”
Actually most insurance companies DO cover not only the cost of compounding, but also reimburse for the cost of the saliva testing, as it is considered a billable lab fee.

Myth #3 “Commercially Made BHRT Products Will Produce The Same Results”
Good luck with that! Commercially made BHRT products are “one-size-fits-most”. so the dosage can not be adjusted, we can not customize for the individual, so therefore expectations are not met.
For example, Prometrium®, the commercially-made Progesterone capsule comes in only two doses: 100mg and 200mg. Prometrium® is dissolved in peanut oil and only lasts in the body for 6 hours. On top of that, the dosage can not be adjusted, so when the patient gets unexpected results, adjustments can not be made. The commercially-made Estrogen products on the market (the patches and gels) are developed by drug companies based on blood serum data. When one uses blood serum hormone levels, the levels have been depleted by the heart so they are very low. The result is that the drug companies make their products with WAY TOO MUCH ESTROGEN to compensate for these low levels. IF they would use saliva test results, where the hormones are being measured at the tissue level of cells, maybe their products would be dosed accordingly. Giving too much Estrogen to an already Estrogen dominant woman does not make sense and may actually increase the risk of breast cancer. Also, some of these products were approved by the FDA after only a 12-week study.
Bonus Myth #4 “Compounded Topical Hormone Therapy Increases The Risk Of Blood Clots”
Actually, oral Estrogen has been shown to increase the risk of blood clots. We have several studies that show there is no risk of blood clotting with topical hormone replacement therapy.
Once these myths and untruths were addressed across the land, Lyn, her Happy Hormone Cottage and all who came to get tested, get treated and get better lived happily ever after!
The moral of the story is to always, always think for yourself. Do the research! It’s out there! Become educated and empowered to make the right choice for YOU!

TO BHRT OR NOT TO BHRT-THAT IS THE QUESTION!! June 28, 2010

Posted by Lyn in : Hot BHRT Topics, Uneducated doctors , add a comment

I heard it again! One of my neighbors, late 30’s, actually talked her doctor into doing a hormone check on her and of course, “Your results are normal!” Why the big surprise? Her practitioner used blood serum to check her hormone levels, where the levels have been depleted by the heart, and the ranges that are used are set for post-menopausal women. At least her levels were checked. I do appreciate that. What I don’t appreciate is the “normal’ ” comment. What is normal anyway? Is “normal” for someone else the same thing as “normal” for you?? I think not. Hormone imbalances are not age OR gender specific. They can happen to women age 18-98 AND men. I will say it again: in this area of women’s health, where the waters are very muddy and the misinformation and untruths are perpetuated, it is up to YOU to become empowered and educated. Do the research; read the books. In fact, a great place to start is with Natural Hormone Balance by Dr. Uzzi Reiss. This is a great read and written in layman’s terms to give you the truth on natural hormone balance. Secondly, it IS OKAY TO QUESTION YOUR DOCTOR WHEN S/HE GIVES INFORMATION. Much of what we do is outside the realm of medical training. Trust me on this-NATURAL HORMONE BALANCE WAS NOT TAUGHT IN MEDICAL SCHOOL. For example, when your practitioner tells you that customized hormone replacement therapy is not FDA approved so it should not be an option, YOU can actually inform your practitioner of the reason: The FDA approves drugs that are manufactured for the masses. When we customize therapy for just one, WE are instead strictly regulated by the Ohio State Board of Pharmacy. HOWEVER, THE PRODUCTS THAT WE MAKE ARE INDEED FDA APPROVED: ESTRADIAL, PROGESTERONE AND TESTOSTERONE. So that argument is really an untruth. Let’s get with the program people!! YOU are in charge of YOUR health. YOU need to get educated. YOU need to think for yourself. It is OK to ask questions and to even question your doctor. Only YOU know the best plan of action for YOU.

I FEEL THE LOVE!! (not) June 8, 2010

Posted by Lyn in : Case Studies In Natural Compounded Hormone Therapy, Hot BHRT Topics, Uneducated doctors , 2comments

I have never been one to blog unless I felt I had something significant to say. Boy, do I have something to say now! You will never believe what happened today! We had a client come through our cottage a few weeks ago for her free consultation. We listened to her and together, developed a strategy to deal with her hormone imbalance. In essence she was on board to “get tested, get treated and get better.” At least that was our game plan! Unfortunately, when we got her lab results back and sent our recommendation for her hormone balance to her practitioner to sign off on it, and fax it back so we could make her customized therapy, there was a glitch! This client went to a practitioner who we advise against because she is non-supportive of customized therapy. She would rather slap an estrogen patch on you or presribe a one-size-fits-most progesterone capsule based on your symptoms and be done with it. We strongly, passionately disagree! We feel women deserve to be respected enough to actually check their hormone levels. How is this difficult or even controversial?? Don’t doctors check every other level known to man (and woman)?? Again I beg the answer to “WHY NOT HORMONE LEVELS?”
Why NOT check hormone levels and then plan a strategy for restoring hormone balance via natural options? Why not just customize the therapy for that client?? How hard can this be really?? You guessed it! This practitioner talked our client out of customized hormone therapy that we recommended based on HER body’s levels, and instead prescribed the commercially available prometrium capsule. Although both are bioidentical progesterone, we get far greater success with our compounded progesterone cream because we can make necessary dosage adjustments during the process of balancing your hormones. From our point of view, using progesterone cream is a superior way to treat progesterone deficiency. Being able to adjust therapy is the key to success. I fully expect to hear from this client in the future when she isn’t experiencing the success she was promised. And we have no options to adjust her dosage when she is taking prometrium capsules. OUR focus is helping women get better with strategies that are customized for them.
In this case, this client loses.

I’m forever and always excited!! Customized hormone replacement therapy at its best!! June 3, 2010

Posted by Lyn in : Case Studies In Natural Compounded Hormone Therapy, Hormone Therapy Joy , 3comments

You’ve heard of the “aha” moments??? I always get the “whoopie!!” moments every time I read an email from one of my clients who is experiencing life-changing moments on our therapy. Dawn, who began her natural hormone therapy 3 weeks ago just emailed me this morning. She says, “Thanks. I have to tell you I know it has only been a few weeks, but I totally feel like I have my life back and if it keeps getting better I can’t imagine what I will be able to do! I am so excited about this. I have been able to do more in a few weeks than I have in months and I actually have the desire to do things I didn’t have before! I feel like I am coming back to life!!” What’s not to LOVE about that??!!! My response is always the same. “I’m so happy for you, but I am not surprised. This “bio-cream” is doing exactly what it is meant to do: replace your hormone levels that your body needs to function correctly! By actually checking your levels first so we have the necessary data to make informed decisions, we can then customize the proper therapy for YOU!”
It works! Again, I say….”it’s not rocket science!!” So why the big deal? Why aren’t all the doctors on board yet?? I think a big reason and one that I hear practically daily from my clients is that their doctors tell them that “compounded hormone therapy is not FDA approved so buyer beware!” My response to this is simple. The FDA approves drugs that are manufactured. Compounding is customizing a therapy for just one person. So the FDA can’t approve it. That doesn’t mean we are free to run rampant and not follow any rules or regulations. Quite the contrary! Compounding labs are under the strict jurisdiction of state boards of pharmacy, so our Piqua Medicine Shoppe is strictly regulated by The Ohio State Board of Pharmacy. So when practitioners try to scare their patients away from what we do based on THAT argument, it’s just silly. It makes no sense. It’s like saying, “you know…you can’t make lemonade from apples.” Yes, and your point is?????? Again I urge everyone with a hormone imbalance issue to do the research and take charge of YOUR journey. The research IS out there in favor of what we do. You just have to look for it!