Going crazy? Maybe it's your hormones.

In this blog post I want to talk about the mood and behavioural changes that are a key part of PMS. They vary wildly of course depending on the physical and emotional health of the person but the mechanism behind it all is the same.

Oestrogen and Progesterone are the two main female steroidal hormones and the main the reason why they affect mood and behaviour pre-menstrually is because they can cross the blood brain barrier, bind to the many hormone receptors in the brain and influence our feel good brain neurotransmitters. We need to have the right levels of these hormones in our body in order for these neurotransmitters to do their job. Wow.

These two hormones share common pathways and receptor sites in the body with the neurotransmitters serotonin, GABA and dopamine. Serotonin regulates mood, memory, appetite, libido and pituitary hormone secretion (for

healthy ovulation); GABA is our anti-anxiety neurotransmitter and dopamine enhances feelings of relaxation, mental clarity, motivation, movement and libido. Low dopamine can mean high prolactin, which often leads to infrequent or totally absent ovulation.

In our brain, the growth of our neurones are sensitive to the levels of Oestrogen and Progesterone. Oestrogen can increase the production of receptor sites for serotonin, dopamine, endorphins and noradrenaline, which is great for our moods but too little can cause depression and too much can lead to irritability and anxiety. Progesterone can give us more energy, great sleep and most importantly perhaps, more GABA, which means better moods. I see so many women in my clinic with low progesterone and often when their levels begin to rise, so does their mood and other PMS symptoms decrease.

Interesting hey! Our bodies need to have our systems working in balance and coordination.

It is crucial that our hormones are kept in check so that we have the best chance of having stable moods, good appetite regulation, great memory and focus, a healthy libido and a pain-free, mood-swing free period!

There are many ways to naturally address any hormone imbalance using nutritional and herbal medicine, dietary guidance and natural health products.

With care,

Jesabe