Increased Anxiety

Did you know a hormonal imbalance can interfere with several of your body’s natural processes? In addition to heart rate, sleep cycles, sexual function, and reproduction, it can cause several emotional and psychological symptoms, including anxiety. Anxiety occurs when a person experiences nervousness or feels uneasy about something. It can be an unsettling, or even frightening feeling, especially for anyone who doesn’t normally struggle with it.

Women have a higher risk of developing hormone imbalance and anxiety than men. Why? Women go through several unique reproductive phases in which their hormones fluctuate drastically, including puberty, menstruation, pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, and postmenopause.

Is my anxiety hormonal?

Anxiety can have several causes, from work stress and job change to emotional shock and hormonal imbalance. Treatment largely depends on why you’re experiencing persistent anxiety. If you’re concerned about your anxiety and think it may be related to hormonal imbalance, talk to a skilled specialist at SynergenX. We can help you identify which hormones are causing your anxiety and recommend safe, effective treatment options to help you feel like yourself again. Here are two types of hormonal anxiety and what you can do about them:

Low progesterone levels
A hormone imbalance and anxiety might be the result of low progesterone. If you feel anxious, overwhelmed, and have trouble sleeping in the days or weeks before your period, your body may not be making enough progesterone. Progesterone supports sleep and relaxation of the nervous system, boosts metabolism, and helps us use fat for energy. It also supports feelings of calm throughout the second half of your menstrual cycle. Additional warning signs of low progesterone include:

• Sore, swollen breasts before your period
• Shorter menstrual cycles (25 days or less) with brown spotting before or after your period
• Pre-period or mid-cycle acne
• Premenstrual syndrome
• Low sex drive
• Sleep issues

Low estrogen levels
If you tend to feel sad or anxious at any time of your menstrual cycle, your body may not be producing enough estrogen. Low estrogen affects the level of serotonin (the “happy” hormone) in your body as well, which means you may not feel its mood-boosting effects. additional warning signs of low estrogen include:

• Low sex drive
• Low energy levels
• Very light or absent periods
• Night sweats or hot flashes
• Headaches

Hormones that affect mood, anxiety, and stress response

While sex hormones, stress hormones, thyroid hormones, and the “love” hormone oxytocin are essential for the proper functioning of your body’s processes, too much or too little of any one of them can lead to complications. Let’s take a closer look at hormone imbalance and anxiety.

• Estrogen and testosterone
  Fluctuating levels of the sex hormone estrogen directly impact how much anxiety women experience. For example, higher estrogen levels during the first two weeks of a woman’s menstrual cycle can encourage higher levels of serotonin (the happiness hormone), while lower levels of estrogen during the last two weeks of her menstrual cycle increases her risk of experiencing physical, mood, or anxiety symptoms. A dip in testosterone may also increase stress levels in men, which can turn into a vicious cycle as increased stress may also lower testosterone levels.

• Cortisol and adrenaline
  Chronic stress can lead to persistently high levels of the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline. The long-term activation of these hormones can disrupt almost all of your body’s natural processes, like metabolism, heart rate, and blood pressure, which increases your risk of anxiety, depression, headaches, digestive problems, and more.

The skilled healthcare provider at SynergenX can help you connect the dots between hormone imbalance and anxiety and help you feel like yourself again. Not only can they help you with a healthy diet, lifestyle, and nutritional changes, but they can also help you determine if hormone replacement therapy is right for you. Call our skilled specialists at 888.219.7259 to schedule an appointment.