Menopause & perimenopause

Is it menopause — or an adrenal imbalance?

• Why menopause symptoms resemble adrenal symptoms
• Using symptoms as guidelines for effective natural solutions

Ellen was worried she wouldn’t be able to make her daughter’s college graduation. She was experiencing symptoms all over the map — anxiety, night sweats, extreme exhaustion — and to top it off, she’d gained weight around her belly and couldn’t fit into her clothes. Most days, life seemed utterly overwhelming. Ellen knew she’d have to work late to get everything done beforehand, and then there’d be a four-hour drive and sleeping in a hotel bed for several days — all of which left her feeling even more anxious and overwhelmed.

Like many women, Ellen was relieved to find Women to Women. She felt that Women to Women’s Personal Program could genuinely help her, but couldn’t decide which program to choose. When she called our contact center, we asked her which of her symptoms seemed hardest to handle. She had no hesitation in picking fatigue. “If I could just get some sleep, I think I’d be able to handle the other stuff,” she told us.

If you, like Ellen, struggle with symptoms that run the gamut — hormonal and adrenal and everything in between — this article can help you sort things out. If you still have questions at any point, you can call us here in Maine. Women to Women’s contact center is a place where real women listen and communicate with other women, and have the knowledge, compassion, and wisdom of our own experience to help you find what works for you.

Take a look at the following table and see if you can align yourself more closely with one group of symptoms than the other.

Common symptoms of hormonal imbalance

Sometimes, when a woman simply can’t decide which way to go, we suggest she begin by supporting the adrenal glands and working toward minimizing the effects of stress on her body. In our experience, this will help rebalance sex hormones and minimize menopausal symptoms as a welcome “side effect.”

Why do menopause and adrenal imbalance overlap?

You may be wondering how sex hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone could be related to the stress hormone cortisol, especially since the ovaries are supposed to produce sex hormones and the adrenal glands cortisol… right? Well, our endocrine (“hormone-releasing”) system isn’t quite so simple.

The connection between adrenal health and hormonal balance originates in our brain. The areas of the brain known as the hypothalamus and pituitary are responsible for controlling whether to increase or decrease the release of hormones by the adrenal glands, ovaries, thyroid, and other endocrine tissues. These parts of the brain receive information in the form of stimulus from our environment, as well as internal feedback loops from the rest of the body, so that if there is need for more of any one hormone, the brain can respond appropriately.

Ellen’s story of runaway stress began with her daughter’s diagnosis of severe asthma as a child. Even when her daughter’s asthma was quiet, the stress of a night job took its toll. For many years, your body can and will accommodate long-term stress. Yet even though the body’s stress and sex hormone pathways lead back to the same place — the brain — the stress response takes priority because it’s more immediate to your survival.

As women enter perimenopause, the adrenal–reproductive hormone connection becomes even more pronounced. Here’s why: your adrenals are responsible for so much more than pumping out stress hormones. One of their secondary jobs is to make and release sex hormones, to pick up the slack as production in your ovaries tapers off. If you’ve spent the bulk of your adrenal resources on chronic stress, by the time you reach perimenopause there’s little reserve for keeping peace in the sex-hormone camp. This is why adrenal imbalance can sometimes lead to worsening menopausal symptoms, which is most likely what happened to Ellen.

Here’s a simplified scenario of what happens when a woman who has been stressed-out for many years transitions into menopause:

• The brain perceives stress.
• The stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol are released by the adrenals to help the body respond to the stressful event — whether it’s emotional or physical.
• This occurs daily over many years, cortisol remains continually high, and symptoms of adrenal imbalance result (see list above).
• During perimenopause, the ovaries naturally slow down production of sex hormones.
• Under stressful circumstances, the adrenals moderate stress first, leaving very few resources for maintaining sex hormonal balance.
• Menopausal and adrenal symptoms are intensified.

Let your symptoms lead the way

If you’re not certain what’s worse — your menopause or your adrenal symptoms — take a moment to rank them in terms of their cost to your overall quality of life. If your most disruptive symptom or symptoms align with one program more than the other, heed your body’s message. Ellen’s fatigue was ruining every other aspect of her life, and the insomnia and anxiety were closely tied for second place, so she ultimately chose our new adrenal program. Though she was experiencing typical menopausal symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats, which we explained as relating closely to fatigue, anxiety, and insomnia, she elected to begin with trying to normalize her cortisol levels as a means to resolving her other concerns.

We sometimes call this the “back door” approach to hormonal imbalance. If you think about hormonal balance as your home, sometimes you like to enter through the front door, and sometimes you prefer the back door. Our Personal Program for Hormonal Imbalance is a “front door” approach to balancing sex hormones because it is designed to optimize the ratios between estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. But supporting the adrenal glands allows for a more appropriate stress response, levels out cortisol spikes, restores sound sleep, and, ultimately, provides for more physiologically balanced sex hormones in the process.

Compare our programs in adrenal health and menopause

Because there are many paths to healing — choose the Personal Program that’s right for you.

Our Personal Programs tap into the latest science and are based on over 25 years of clinical expertise. We structure our solutions to include targeted formulas for symptom relief, real-life diet and lifestyle assistance, and supplementation for a strong nutritional foundation.

Plus you’ll get the one-on-one support that so many find is the key to their success. We helped Ellen, the woman in our article above, find the Program that’s most effective for her so that she could celebrate her daughter’s graduation. And we can help you too.

• Think your symptoms are due to menopause? Take our Hormonal Health Profile.
• Is adrenal imbalance causing your symptoms? Find out by taking our Adrenal Health Profile.
• Find out more about our Personal Programs for Hormonal Imbalance and Adrenal Health.
• Let us help you choose the right Program, or call and ask us a question about your symptoms. We’re right here in Portland, Maine, and are ready to listen. Call us toll-free at 1-800-798-7902.

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References & further reading on is it menopause or adrenal imbalance?