Hormonal Imbalances-30 Day Challenge to Treating Horomonal Balance Naturally

Hormonal Imbalances-30 Day Challenge to Treating Hormonal Balance Naturally

►In this article we will look at symptoms of hormonal imbalance and the topics I will cover each week.

Once I hit 40 a couple of years ago, I noticed that my hormones were becoming increasingly out of balance. I have always preferred naturally alternatives to treating ailments rather than our conventional western ways of pharmaceutical medications. Hormonal imbalances are often treated with hormonal replacement therapy, anti-conceptive pills, or other synthetic hormones. These treatments do not solve the underlying problem. A lot of symptoms can be treated naturally through diet and lifestyle changes.

Learn to balance hormones naturally. Want to know more? Stay tuned each week! 

Hormonal imbalances for women can occur for several reasons such as before menopause (ageing), chronic stress, toxins, synthetic xenoestrogens (pesticides, plastics, processed food and preservatives in cosmetics), high body fat, and poor eating habits.

Physical and mental stress disrupts your hormones. Chronic stress is so powerful that it can even be the ONLY source of hormonal imbalance. Once your body gets into a state of chronic stress, your body begins to use up your progesterone and transforms it into cortisol, thus having high levels of cortisol. Finding the “root” cause(s) of your hormonal imbalance will be key to unlocking your health. According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, internal emotions have a direct impact on a person’s health and addressing emotional imbalances, external factors and lifestyle choices can help to prevent health conditions associated with hormonal imbalances. A major component of balancing your hormones naturally is addressing any emotional imbalances. Your hormones and emotions are connected, so working to balance one can impact the other.

Hormones act as messengers between body systems regulating digestion, metabolism, respiration, sleep, stress, growth, movement, mood and reproduction. Hormones tell your body when you are hungry, sleepy and stressed. We have many different hormones, some you may be familiar with such as progesterone, estrogen, testosterone, and some you may not be familiar with such as insulin, growth hormone, leptin and cortisol.

*I would like to add before you begin this journey with me or if you are even considering taking natural approaches to hormonal balance, I in no way am advising anything medical or telling you not to go the route of western medicine/treatments. The decision to go the alternative road will consist of much prayer and of course your willingness to follow through on the natural regimens. It is a faith journey for me and one I am willing to take. I have assessed the pros and risks and you will need to as well. I do understand that some women have to go the route of hormonal replacement therapy, hysterectomy and/or psychiatric medications to treat hormonal balance. I am not willing at this point to subject myself to these treatments and have begun the research into balancing hormones naturally.

I strongly advice getting lab work done to test your hormones, you can do this through a health practitioner who specializes in alternative treatments. However, from what I have learned from taking natural supplements alone will not correct hormonal imbalance, you will need a holistic treatment plan.

Each week I will posts up to (3) articles on various ways to treat hormonal balances naturally using a holistically treatment plan. I will also post a couple of YouTube videos in this 30-day challenge.

Symptoms of hormonal imbalance:

·         Fatigue

·         Mood swings

·         Irritability

·         Trouble concentrating

·         Hair loss or thinning

·         Weight gain

·         Hot flashes/sweats

·         Low or no libido

·         Difficulty falling or staying asleep

·         Brian fog

·         Depression

·         Anxiety

·         Headaches and/or migraines

·         Infertility/miscarriage

·         Vaginal dryness

·         Heart palpitations

·         Irregular menstrual cycles

Topics that I plan on covering each week on treating hormonal imbalance naturally:

·         Week 1 Topics: Diet. What should you be eating and not eating.

·         Week 2 Topics: Stress. How stress affects hormonal imbalance, and how to manage stress (including exercise, music and deep breathing).

·         Week 3: Eliminating toxins. What could you be using such as plastics or certain cosmetics that are contributing to your hormonal imbalance.

·         Week 4: Natural supplements for treating hormonal imbalances. What are the supplements, herbs, and are there “natural” hormones to balance hormones.

Counselor's Corner: Focus on What You Are Doing Right

Your a work in progress, focus on the good in you!

Are the thoughts about yourself centered on what you are doing right more or on what you are doing wrong more? Do you tend to focus on your failures instead of any progress that you have made?

→Choose to magnify your progress not failures. Choose to magnify your strengths not your weaknesses.

Focus can be defined as what you concentrate on the most or the center of your attention.

We all have faults, weaknesses, and have made mistakes. The problem is when the enemy places a magnifying glass over each one of your weaknesses, and your focus becomes distorted and all you can see are the negative aspects about yourself.

Focusing on your deficits can cause discouragement, defeat, and depression.

Focusing too long on what is wrong with you can cause you to shrink back and not go forward, and this is exactly where the enemy wants you-stuck in the past and living in defeat of your past mistakes.

If God has forgiven your sins, He does not keep reminding you of your failures.

The enemy will attempt to get you to focus on all that is wrong with yourself. There are some key things to watch for and to recognize when the enemy has your focus distorted on the negative areas in your life.

1.      Your focus will turn to your circumstances more than to Jesus, and your circumstances will appear larger than they really are. When your focus shifts to all the distractions, chaos, and upheaval around you it is easy to feel anxious, uneasy, irritable, worried, and fearful.

2.      Confusion instead of clarity. You can doubt yourself, your strengths and your abilities because the enemy has you focused on what you have done wrong.

3.      Past hurts and insecurities are magnified. What you thought you dealt with in the past gets rehashed. This rehashing is an attempt to weaken you and to cause you to doubt what God is doing in your life. The past is used to hinder you as you attempt to move forward and enter a new season in your life. The enemy will try and derail progress and growth.

This week CHOOSE to focus on your strengths, your victories, and your good qualities. Write out what God shows you about yourself and CHOOSE to believe Him. CHOOSE to completely forgive yourself of any past mistakes and CHOOSE to love and nurture yourself. Be good to yourself. Don’t let the enemy erect lies in your mind about yourself, he is the accuser of the brethren.

Counselor's Corner: God Why Did You Allow This to Happen?

Dealing with Anger from Emotional Pain and Trauma

When you endure times of emotional pain and trauma and you specifically prayed for that event or situation not to occur and it did, or if you prayed that God would further shield you from any more pain and that did not happen the way you thought-it is possible that you have unresolved and repressed anger towards God.

Any type of trauma or emotional pain often shakes the very foundation of your faith.

Before the trauma you may have believed that God was your protector and that He was good ALL the time. After much suffering, it can be challenging to believe that God always protects you and is good to you ALL the time. Unfortunately, this is a topic that is rarely discussed in our Christian communities because we put on “masks” to cover up how we really feel. Unresolved anger towards God not only hinders our relationship with Him but with others.

A client I had years ago had many emotional problems and an addiction to prescription pain medicines. I asked her if she was “Angry at all at God for the things that happened to her”, and her response was, “We can’t get angry at God. I would never tell Him that I was angry with Him.” I then asked her, “Don’t you think God already knows?”

Countless Christians, many who you attend church with every week are angry with God but would never admit that. God already knows what is in the deepest part of our heart. God desires that you sit with Him, and tell Him how you feel. If you can’t tell God, write it in a letter addressed, Dear God. After you speak or write your letter to God, sit quietly and allow the Holy Spirit to minister to you. You will find that God is super gentle, gracious and merciful to our human weaknesses and understanding of our suffering.

In my own time of trauma, I eventually sat with the Father and asked, “God, why did you allow this to happen?” and I asked, “Why, God, why!” Of course, I did not get an immediate response to my questions, instead God started revealing to me all the good times that I had with the person that caused so much trauma in my life. God showed me that He already knew I was angry for believing that He did not stop what happened.

What God desires is to restore our relationship with Him. I did not realize that unconsciously I had placed God out of my heart because I had repressed anger towards Him. How you view your earthly father is a lot how you view your Heavenly Father. If your earthly father abused you, did not protect you, or neglected you, then when something happens in your life that you desperately want God to rescue you from and He does not immediately; anger and pushing God away is common.

Don’t condemn yourself if you have pushed God away or if you are angry at God. Don’t let another day go by staying this way. God may not reveal every detail why suffering happened to you, but He will comfort and strengthen you. Get real with God, He can handle it! Unresolved anger towards God can lead to bitterness and apathy and eventually a complete turning away from God. Why do you think so many people turn away from God when tragedy occurs?

Why God permits suffering is the age-old question. Some Biblical theologians and even scholars have concluded we just don’t know why suffering happens but perhaps like with Job in the Bible, God allowed satan to bring suffering for a reason or with the Apostle Peter how God allowed satan to “sift him as wheat,” to refine Peter, and sometimes it is to test our faith and other times we live in a fallen world and bad things happen. Whatever reason has caused your suffering, know that no weapon formed against you will prosper, this means if you took a hit from the enemy’s arsenal that weapon cannot succeed in your life. If you are highly analytical like I am, saying, “Just trust God,” is not helpful. People who are analytical have to work through and process with God our feelings, and that is okay because God created the analytical mind! Allow people who may be different from you the space and time to work through their questions about suffering.

Just because someone wonders and questions about suffering does not mean they don’t want a relationship with God, in fact the opposite is most likely true- the analytical are looking to prove God cares and not that He is a distant or non-existent God. Let God show you His great and marvelous mercy-ask Him!

Counselor's Corner: Getting Motivated After a Setback

After you have gone through a trial or setback, do you find it difficult to get motivated? You could lack the motivation to get up in the morning, be productive at work, start and/or complete daily tasks, or build relationships.

→Reflect: One of the first questions you should ask yourself is, “Do you know the reason(s) behind lacking motivation?

 

Are you lacking in motivation?

There could be many reasons you lack motivation:

·         A recent difficult trial, setback, or circumstance

·         Someone close to you betrayed, lied or took advantage of you

·         Chronic stressors in your life.

·         Hormonal imbalances for women

·         Don’t feel you are making progress

·         Feel every time you move forward, you have a setback

·         Feel overwhelmed-physically, mentally, or relationally

·         Not getting proper sleep and/or tiredness during the day

There may need to be some changes to make first to increase your motivation, such as getting at least 8-9 hours of sleep nightly. Visiting a nutritionist/doctor for hormonal balance issues as well as having blood work done to test proper levels. If you don’t feel physically well, it will be most challenging to motivate yourself.

After assessing your health and getting the proper treatments, the following are ways to get motivated again:

1.      Start small and make one or two goals for yourself each day.

2.      Take off your plate what is draining you and wasting time.

3.      Get inspired through a movie, a book or reading about a success story.

4.      Recognize that motivation ebbs and flows, some days you will have lots of motivation and other days not so much. Just keep going anyhow on the days you don’t feel motivated, knowing you will have motivational days ahead.

5.      Stop the negative self-talk about why you are not getting more accomplished.

6.      Go out in nature and let the beauty of nature inspire you.

Counselor's Corner: Bringing Your Life into Balance

Have you noticed in your life that when you get too little or too much of something, your life gets out of balance?

→There are many ways that your life can get out of balance. Check as many that apply to you:

·         Work demands

·         Extended family obligations

·         Church functions and/or volunteer opportunities

·         Watching too much TV, texting/checking emails constantly and/or social media

·         No time for fun or relaxation

·         Giving of self to others when your “cup is empty”

·         Little quality time with spouse

·         Eating too much junk food

·         Little or no exercising

·         Time spent with God is little or infrequent

Any others that may apply to you?

Life happens and sometimes curveballs come your way and you get completely out of balance. The goal is then to not stay out of balance.

Recognize the signs of being out of balance so that you may immediately get back in balance.

Signs you are out of balance:

1.      Tiredness, excessively sleepy or fatigued.

2.      Difficult concentrating or staying focused.

3.      Short-fused, irritable and/or easily frustrated.

4.      Feel tense; back and/or neck pain.

5.      Trouble laughing or smiling.

6.      Find yourself complaining and grumbling more.

7.      Difficulty enjoying the simple things of life.

8.      Overall just do not feel well.

9.      Experience high levels of stress.

How to get your life back in balance:

·         Recognize when you are out of balance.

·         Place God first above all. Spend daily time with God.

·         Prioritize what is most important-God, spouse, family, work/ministry.

·         Take a Sabbath (rest) once a week. That’s right, once a week, relax and do nothing stressful or work related.

·         Take a day off of work, or a long weekend.

·         Start exercising regularly and eating a balanced diet.

·         Be okay with saying, “No,” when you need to.

·         Do something that you enjoy.

·         Decrease time with energy-draining people and increase time with others who inspire, encourage and lift you up.

·         Set limits on your time-phone calls, texts, emails and social media.

You will know when you are back in balance when your heart rate, breathing and blood pressure are becoming normal. Your sleep is restful and replenishing. You have energy, have motivation and have creativity again. You do not feel tense, stress or anxiety. You are able to laugh and enjoy the simple pleasures of life.

Counselor's Corner: When You Don't Know What to Do

Have you experienced a situation in your life that you have no idea what to do? You get perplexed, confused and anxious just thinking about the problem. You may have a problem in your life that is just unsolvable to you. The more that you try and figure out how to solve your problem, the more complex the situation gets.

I recently had a situation come into my life that I had no idea what to do. I felt perplexed, anxious and worried at every turn. This problem I had made me feel backed into a corner, like I had no options but the one tangled mess in front of me. As much as I tried to sort through the rubble of mess in front of me-I could not! The more I tried to find a solution to the problem, the more unrest and agitated I was becoming. I felt smothered and squished as this problem kept getting more complicated. I grew increasingly frustrated as I could not discover how to make the crisis in my life stop.

I began to realize through all of my efforts to untangle the problem I was faced with, I could not; so, I stopped and I began speak God’s word over the situation. I began praying prayers for spiritual warfare, and I declared to the Lord, “I can’t and I have not a clue what to do.” As I gave the situation over to the Lord in trust, He began quickly interceding and overturning the tangled mess that came into my life.

►The KEY when you don’t know what to do is that you do nothing in your own accord, if you do you will wear-down. If a problem comes to you and you feel pressured or “backed in a corner” with no way out, take that as an indication the enemy is involved. God always provides a way out and never acts in confusion, chaos or pressure. If you feel problems are coming at you with no solution, and any solution you give does not help-back away and allow God to untangle the confusion. Even if you feel you should be doing something, especially if it is a crisis, don’t! Wait upon the Lord to direct and smooth out those ‘whirlwinds.”

Review: Prophetic Breakthrough: Decrees that Break Curses and Release Blessings

Prophetic Breakthrough: Decrees that Break Curses and Release Blessings by Hakeem Collins
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Absolutely a must read book to learn how to speak life and blessings and to come into agreement with the Word of God says about you and your situation. Powerful, anointed book. Highly recommend, it will change your life.

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Counselor's Corner: Get Back Up Again!

Do you feel you have been knocked down by repeated blows of the enemy? I want to encourage you today to get back up! You may have been knocked down but not knocked out!

If you have watched a boxing match and noticed when one of the opponents throws a punch that takes their opponent down to the ground the referee begins to count to see if the fighter will get back in the fight. There are times the bruised and wounded fighter stays down and the fight is finished, and then there are times a fighter who can’t even see out of their eyes because of the blood and swollenness gets up and back in the fight.

Perhaps you feel like the fighter who has been in a really long match and has gone down at of sear exhaustion. You may have thought about staying down because you do not know how you will possibly get back up and fight again with little strength.

→If you have been in a spiritual fight for any length of time you understand battle fatigue can happen. Battle fatigue is fighting the same “war” over and over again but not gaining any ground, and that becomes exhausting. This is exactly where the enemy wants the saints-worn-out from the same fights.

→The enemy will continue to use the same “fight” over and over hoping that you will get so fatigued from the fight you will stop fighting.

Reflect: Are you fighting a ‘fight” you are not supposed to fight and that is why you are worn-out? Have you been knocked down by the repeated blows that you just might stop fighting? What do you or who do you need to let go of and let God take over the fight?

God did not intend for us to engage in battles that we could never overcome. If you have been fighting the same battles for years, and you are tired from how you get defeated each time-step back and ask God, “Is this my battle or your battle?” God does not give you battles to lose over and over again.

If you are “down for the count,” pull away from your battles and seek the Lord. If you don’t know what to pray anymore, just sit still before God and allow Him to speak to you. Let God refresh and restore you in your quiet time. Allow God to bandage your wounds before you get back up and get back in the fight. It is possible that when you seek God, He may show you the fight that you keep fighting is not your fight and to get up and go another way. It is also possible that you have been trained as a warrior for the Kingdom of Christ and through the repeated trials you are not strengthened for battle. Seek God and His stillness what He is trying to say about the repeated battles you face.  

Review: The Story of the Year

The Story of the Year by Bonnie Howell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



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Counselor's Corner: What Does it Mean to Cast Your Care on the Lord?

What are you holding onto that is causing stress, tension, and worry? A wayward child, troubles in the family, or job difficulties?

Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you. He will never allow the righteous to be moved. Psalm 55:22

Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you. 1 Peter 5:7

What exactly does it mean to cast your burden on the Lord?

Burdens make you feel heavy, weighted-down, and like you are the one who has to figure out how to solve the problem. When you feel burdened God promises that if you cast your care upon Him; He will sustain you.

→To cast means to throw something forcefully in a specified direction, or to throw off or away.

1.      Talk to God about your concerns. Be open and honest about what is concerning you or causing your anxiety. Don’t pretend you don’t have concerns and that everything is fine. Come before the Lord and tell Him.

2.      Sit quietly before God and allow Him the opportunity to speak to you about what is concerning you.

3.      Visualize yourself handing over to Jesus the person or situation that is concerning you. Ask God to take your concerns as you place them in His hands.

4.      Pray whatever is concerning you that God intervenes and that the plans of the enemy would come to a halt in the name of Jesus.

5.      Speak out loud scriptures daily over your life, and the situations that concern you.

6.      The most difficult part-after you have given your burdens to the Lord it is time to get up and keep moving. Don’t focus all day and night on what burdens you, if you constantly carry your burdens you will end-up physically, mentally and spiritually drained.

7.      Have a set time during the day, preferably first thing in the morning where you cast your burdens on the Lord and then leave it for the day. Sometimes, our burdens do crop up during the day even after giving them to the Lord. When this happens, don’t sit around and entertain all the possibilities of what could go wrong and what could happen. Stop and give your concerns back to the Lord. If you are undergoing difficult circumstances you may have to do this several times a day. The key to leaving your concerns with God is to not dwell, analyze and worry for hours a day. You could have intrusive thoughts that can be common if you have endured traumatic or difficult situations. The more you practice leaving your burdens with Jesus, the less intrusive thoughts you will have.

8.      The most important key in casting your burdens on the Lord is trusting God with His timing and His outcomes for what you are concerned about. Waiting patiently and expectedly that God has heard your cries and He will come through. As you are waiting on God, DON’T STEP IN AND TAKE OVER! If you get impatient as you wait for God to make a way, keep giving Him your burdens. Tell God, “I can’t carry _____________ (whatever your burden is) any longer, please take care of this for me.”

9.      Believe in your heart that God does care about you and your troubling situation. God’s Word says to cast your anxieties on Him because He cares for us.

10.  Humble yourself before God. Admit to God that you are not capable or strong enough to deal with your burdens.

11.  After casting your burdens on the Lord, you will be able to enter His rest and you will feel light and your load will not feel heavy any longer. The key to Divine rest and a light load is to not hold onto what is burdening you and not to doubt that God has heard your cries for help. Allow God to work, STEP OUT AND LET GOD STEP IN! Only then you experience God’s rest. There are some things that you have to let go of and let God take full control. It is okay to daily give your concerns to God until there is complete victory, and thank God for the victory that is coming.

→Be aware when you are feeling overly concerned in any area of your life, stop and pray immediately and ask God to intervene. You will know you are overly concerned when you are thinking constantly about a troubling situation, worrying, fretting, and figuring out what you can do to.

→Casting your burdens on the Lord usually is not a one-time event but can be daily if you have many burdens that you carry. The more you practice casting your burdens on the Lord, you may notice less tension, stress, and anxiety in your life.

Review: Tragedy Transformed: How Job's Recovery Can Provide Hope For Yours

Tragedy Transformed: How Job's Recovery Can Provide Hope For Yours by Gordon Grose
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

An insightful and compelling book focusing on human suffering and the myriad effects trauma has on our relationships, including God.

Author Dr. Gordon Grose of Tragedy Transformed explores the in-depth perils of modern-day suffering in relation to what Job experienced in the Bible. The author uses tender compassion as he shares delicate and personal issues of examples of his own life and the lives of friends and family to bring an awareness into the complexity of suffering and points you in the direction to transformation from tragedy.

If you are someone you love has endured suffering, trauma, or grief, I would recommend reading Tragedy Transformed, as a tool and a resource for your recovery. There are application questions at the end of each chapter that you can use to go further in your healing recovery


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