Our bodies are complex machines that allow us to go around our daily activities and do lots of amazing things. We put a lot of demand on our bodies, often even without realizing it. Being so complex, our bodies require a complex control system that ensures all parts and systems operate as they should. Hormones are a major component of that system, and when they go out of balance, we suffer.

Age is the most common cause of hormonal imbalance, and the main hormone whose levels are affected by the aging process is testosterone.

Unlike women who go through menopause when their hormone levels drop dramatically, men experience a much more gradual decline in their hormone levels.

Testosterone levels start dropping around the age of 25 and steadily decline every year thereafter.

While the existence of a clear-cut “male menopause,” or andropause, is still hotly debated, the symptoms of hormonal imbalance, and primarily dropping testosterone, levels are quite real. Even though the symptoms of andropause set in gradually, they often dramatically affect the quality of life and lead to serious health issues.

Age is not the only factor responsible for dropping testosterone level and other hormone imbalance. Other causes of hormonal imbalance include:

• Environmental toxins
• Injury to testicles
• Chemotherapy or radiation
• Tumors
• Anabolic Steroids
• Smoking
• Drug Use
• Obesity

Obesity deserves special mention because when you have too much fat, fat cells convert testosterone to estrogen – the female sex hormone with all the repercussions.

Low testosterone levels lead to lots of health problems. They can develop at any age, even in your 20’s!

When your testosterone is low, your overall sense of well-being can become quite low as well. You feel less attractive, and your self-esteem may suffer as a result. You may develop anxiety and depression, your motivation to participate in any activities, not just sex, can easily disappear. You’ll start gaining weight in a bad way – fat, not muscle mass – and that will only speed up the vicious cycle. The risk of serious health issues such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer is also higher when your testosterone is low.

Here is a list of symptoms caused by hormonal imbalance:

Many areas of your life can suffer: your personal relationships and your career. You’ll lose your competitive edge.

Testosterone is not the only hormone whose levels go down due to aging, stress, or disease.

Another major part of the endocrine system is your adrenal glands producing cortisol.

Our lives are getting ever more stressful, and that daily stress has a major impact on the health of the adrenals. Eventually they may start failing, a condition called adrenal dysfunction or adrenal fatigue. After producing too much cortisol for years in response to stress, they cannot produce it anymore.

So if you are experiencing these symptoms, you may be suffering from adrenal fatigue syndrome:

• Feeling tired throughout the day
• Difficulty sleeping at night
• Reduced sex drive
• Difficulty achieving and maintaining erection
• Frequent colds
• Increased anxiety and irritability due to lack of proper sleep

Thyroid gland is key to maintaining your metabolism and energy levels

Although men suffer from thyroid dysfunction much less commonly than women, many health issues cannot be resolved without achieving proper thyroid hormone levels. Millions of people, many of them men, suffer needlessly without undiagnosed thyroid disorders.

The symptoms of under-performing thyroid are called hypothyroidism. Those include:

• Low sex drive and erectile dysfunction
• Constipation
• Weight gain
• Chronic fatigue
• Unsteady body temperature
• Insomnia and anxiety
• Hair loss

As you can see low levels of many different hormones can cause the same symptoms. So if you have these common symptoms, chances are you have hormonal imbalance but testing is required to sort it all out and determine exactly what is wrong.

So if you experience

• Low Libido
• Decreased muscle mass
• Weight gain / increased body fat
• Chronic Fatigue and decreased ability to exercise
• Sleep problems
• Hot flashes and night sweats (men can get them, too!)
• Gynecomastia – growth of breast tissue in men
• Mood problems (depression, mood swings, irritability)
• Poor memory, concentration and focus
• Losing bladder control

You are likely suffering from hormonal imbalance, and because of the overlap in symptoms caused by different hormone deficiencies, the next step is to get tested.

We use thorough and the most advanced testing methods available. For example, we can test not just hormone levels but also their availability to body organs as those hormones circulate though the bloodstream.

Many of the hormonal imbalance issues can then be addressed with appropriate hormone replacement therapy. We use bioidentical hormones with the goal of making your treatment as safe as possible.

The benefits of Bioidentical Hormone Therapy:

Fixing your hormonal balance can dramatically improve the quality of your life in more ways than you ever expected.

There is no need to suffer quietly or give up your well-being because you believe symptoms you are experiencing are a “normal” part of aging. Thousands of people have turned their lives around and are now a living proof of the positive change Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy can bring.

Your next step is very simple: click on the button below to schedule a free phone consultation with Dr. Fleischman, our Bioidentical Hormone expert. Ask her any questions and bring your concerns. That free consultation is to help you better understand whether you may be experiencing hormonal imbalance and your options for handling it.