7 Symptoms and Signs of a Hormonal Imbalance

As women, we’re kind of trained throughout our life to just accept certain things like weight gain, low energy, low libido, and mood swings as a normal part of being a woman. And yes, it may be super common, but it is not “normal”. In fact, it’s a cue from your body that something is off, and oftentimes they’re signs of a hormonal imbalance. 

After chatting with Laura Martire for this week’s UM Club episode we were shocked to hear not only how common these hormone imbalance symptoms are, but also how so many women don’t realize that there’s something that can be done about them. This is why we’ve gathered up this list of 7 Symptoms of a Hormonal Imbalance. All of these are examples of what happens to your body when your hormones are imbalanced. If some of these symptoms sound familiar to you, it may be worth doing more research into women’s hormone imbalance and speaking with your medical support team. 

How can you tell if you have a hormonal imbalance?

It isn’t always as easy as noticing a symptom and knowing it’s directly related to having a hormonal imbalance. Often these signs of hormonal imbalance are disguised by being a normal part of family life. 

After you read through this list of hormonal imbalance symptoms you may decide to talk to your doctor or medical support team. From there they can order some tests to do further diagnostics. There is no one size fits all hormone test, but you can expect blood work to check your thyroid and hormone levels, or you may have to do a pap smear or stool test. 

What causes hormone imbalance in females?

A hormone imbalance in females can be caused by many different things. Some contributing factors can include: 

• High amounts of stress
• Poor sleep quality
• Poor liver function
• Overactive or underactive thyroid
• Health conditions
• Birth Control
• Prolonged exposure to endocrine disrupters
• Pregnancy, breastfeeding, and menopause

7 Symptoms and Signs of a Hormonal Imbalance

Low Energy

Yes kid’s have a way of sucking all of our energy out of us, but if we’re in a stage of motherhood where we’re able to get a full night’s sleep, and we’re still having low energy throughout the day, then there’s a good chance it could have something to do with your hormones, and switching some things up could give you a big boost in energy. 

PMS, Heavy Periods, Irregular Periods

Nine out of ten times when a woman comes to see Holistic Nutritionist Laura Martire, and they’re struggling with heavy or irregular periods, it’s a sign that they’re potentially estrogen dominant, which means their balance of estrogen and progesterone, is out of whack. Good news for you, it’s totally treatable, and with some tweaks and lifestyle changes, you could experience consistent low pain periods, even if you never have before. 

Low Libido

Low libido can be caused by many medications including birth control, but it can also be affected by a hormonal imbalance. Getting your levels checked and making some minor changes can help reset the body and get things back to where it feels like you’ve got your libido again. 

Hair Loss

Both men and women can develop hormonal imbalances that can cause hair to thin or fall out. Often, treating the imbalance helps your hair regrow. Although most people think of estrogen or testosterone when they think of a hormone imbalance, issues with your thyroid can also lead to hair thinning.

Unexpected Weight Gain or Plateaued Weight Loss

So often, as women, we’ve been trained throughout the years to resort to restrictive measures or diets, in order to lose weight or hit our happy weight for good. When in reality, what we need to be doing is addressing what’s the root cause of that weight gain, or that stubborn weight; nine out of ten times it has something to do with your hormones.

Bloating or Constipation

Exactly. And it’s also foundational, because I deal with a lot of clients that will come to me who are constipated, which has a big impact on your hormonal health. Because if you’re not having daily bowel movements, and get rid of – basically your liver is preparing the excess hormones to be removed from your body. Right? So if your liver is already not functioning properly, and then you’re not having a daily bowel movement, to get rid of the excess hormones, it’s staying in your body, it’s going to have a ripple effect and cause all those symptoms that you don’t want.

Mood Swings, Anxiety, and Depression

Hormones are very much tied to what’s going on with our moods, our anxiety, and oour depression. It all factors in together and a hormone imbalance can be a big contributing factor. 

What are the 5 hormonal imbalances?

The five main hormone imbalances to be aware of include: 

• Cortisol
• Insulin
• Estrogen
• Progesterone
• Testosterone

Cortisol

Cortisol is produced when our body is under stress. When we’re in a stress mode our body can put all of it’s focus on producing cortisol, and doesn’t do what it needs to do to produce and balance out our other hormones. 

Insulin

Insulin is a hormone that is produced to regulate the amount of sugar in our bloodstream and can have a big effect on our energy levels and weight gain. 

Estrogen

Estrogen is one of the main hormones in women that regulates the big female hormonal changes we’re all familiar with like puberty, menstruating, and menopause. It also plays a role in supporting our bones, heart, hair growth, vaginal lubrication, and so much more. 

Progesterone

Progesterone plays a big role in helping our bodies make babies. It helps prepare the uterus for pregnancy, and regulates our menstrual cycles. 

Testosterone

Testosterone isn’t just for the guys. It also plays a role in bone health, muscle health, reproductive tissue, energy, libido, and hair growth. 

How do you fix hormonal imbalance?

Thankfully these signs of a hormonal imbalance are totally fixable through strategic diet and lifestyle changes. Our guest expert, Holistic Nutritionist Laura Martire, has a Happy Hormone Reset Guide and Meal Plan. It walks you through six steps you can implement now to increase your energy, banish food cravings, and feel good in your body.