Every morning upon rising, do a four-strand check of your Me Strand of life. Ask yourself four simple questions. How are…
My Hormones
My Weight
My Health
My Thoughts
The Me Strand is intertwined with the Us, Them, and Him strand to make The HOPE Rope. More on that later; I wanted you to know where we were in our pursuit of the best damn Third Act we could ever imagine.
With that written, all four strands affect each other. Using a cliché,
“We are only as strong as our weakest strand.”
I like cliches, so if you don’t, I’m 70, and I can tell you that you should shove…
No, I’m not that kind of 70.
Let me tell you a story.
MY HORMONE STORY
Almost two decades ago, I was working in an integrative wellness clinic. I had tried to retire, but a former colleague I had taken under my wing before he even graduated snatched me up and asked me to run the alternative medicine wing of his extremely busy practice.
My first assignment was to teach women everything there was to know about Hormone Replacement Therapy. This was nearly 20 years ago; there was like no one doing HRT in our town, or anywhere.
He knew I loved to research, write protocols, and teach. I was in heaven; women were seeking solutions to their hormones, and I felt like I had become a wanted teacher.
To jumpstart the program, the clinic advertised that I would be giving workshops, but before you could attend, you had to have your hormones tested.
Women lined up out the door. You see, I told you. Another cliché.
I decided to test my hormones at the same time as the women who were registering for the workshop were.
This clinic was huge in the sense of square feet, and its lobby was the size of a lecture hall. We filled the lobby one evening, and I didn’t need to put together an outline because I had dove so deep into hormones and hormone therapy that all I had to do was scratch the surface of what I knew. Yes, I’m chuckling.
So, I have every woman that attended the workshop, and there were a couple dozen women attending who had spent a lot of money to get their hormones tested; yes, this clinic was kind of like a Las Vegas hotel, in the sense: how do you build such a huge clinic? Charge a lot of money.
Anyway, once I had looked over all their hormones, I saw a trend: every woman in attendance.
AND I MEAN EVERY.
Had a condition called Estrogen Dominance.
There are many different estrogens, but estradiol is the master estrogen. You can assess estrogen dominance using a mathematical formula that places your progesterone number into an equation with your estradiol number.
This number is called a progesterone-to-estradiol ratio, or P/E ratio for short.
Science tells us that a woman with a P/E ratio below 100 to 1 is estrogen dominant.
EVERY woman in attendance had a P/E Ratio below 100.
Most were below 50.
Some were even below 25.
OUCH!
So, anyway, I was teaching at the podium when my assistant laid some papers on it. When I looked down, it was my lab work. She had forgotten to give them to me when she gave me the attendees’ results. I had studied theirs without ever seeing mine.
I was seeing my current hormone levels for the first time.
I glanced and saw my estradiol, testosterone, and progesterone numbers. The same tests the women in attendance had.
When I saw the numbers, my tongue got tied.
My thoughts cursed in a surprising way, “What the ….!”
As the women sat thinking I had received a note that someone had died, I scrambled through their results. What I was seeing was verified.
I looked down.
Then looked again.
Something wasn’t right.
I checked the woman’s results that sat at the top of the pile.
Then another.
Then another.
I wasn’t imagining it.
I had more estrogen than every woman in the workshop.
And there were a few who had higher testosterone levels than I did.
“What the ….!”
At the time, I had over three decades of practice; no lab test had ever punched me in the gut like that one.
I looked up and saw my class looking at me with mother faces, thinking their kid just had a stroke.
I smiled, and then they smiled in relief.
And then I said…
With my arms opening up like I was at church and letting God into my life- I’m not sure if that's a cliché or not, but I’ll italicize it anyway- oh, yeah, this is when I said.
“I now know why I cry watching the Super Bowl commercials.”
I really said that.
The women’s facial expressions went from worried to confused.
Now here is the question you have to ask yourself.
Is it that men’s estrogen levels increase as we age, or is it that women’s estrogen levels decrease as they age, or is it both?
If that’s true, and since estrogen is the feminine hormone, does that mean men become more feminine as they age?
Now there is no way I am going to ask the next question because I don’t want you to throw your cup of coffee onto your phone as you read this.
The question I want you to also consider is,
How in the heck can a woman be estrogen dominant when her estrogen levels have decreased due to her ovulation ceasing and age?
I’ll explain in your next chapter on Wednesday.
If you want to know how well you are doing in your Third Act hormonally, the first thing you should do is check your ovarian/gonadal hormones. You can purchase a salivary assay that will give you remarkably accurate results for Progesterone, Estradiol, and Testosterone.
Over the last 17 years of testing hormones, when it comes to men, yes, they are simple creatures; the only test they need is testosterone, but in today's hormone-laden environments, I’m going to suggest a few more for them. Click on the appropriate link below to see my lab test recommendations.
Oh, and don’t forget to subscribe so you'll be notified when the rest of the story is revealed.
And I will answer the question: How in the heck can a woman be estrogen dominant when her estrogen levels have decreased due to her ovulation ceasing and age?
Don’t forget to investigate the hormone tests available online.
Links to Online Hormone Tests
PS Vicky Here…If you are a 65-or-older female who has tried to lose weight and nothing has worked, not even the GLP-1s, Doc has put together a Master Class just for you and your hormones. Watch it here—> Doc Mac’s 65+ Master Class
DISCLAIMER
Educational & Informational Purpose Only: The information provided in this series—including articles, guides, thoughts, and commentary—is intended strictly for educational, informational, and entertainment purposes. It is not intended to be, and should not be used as, medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
No Doctor-Patient Relationship: Reading this Substack, engaging with the content, or communicating through comments or messages does not establish a doctor-patient, provider-patient, or formal coaching relationship between you and the author.
Consult Your Healthcare Provider. Hormone health is highly individualized, complex, and dynamic. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking it because of something you have read here. Always consult with a qualified physician, endocrinologist, or licensed healthcare professional before:
Making any changes to your diet, exercise routine, or lifestyle.
Starting or stopping any medications, hormones, or dietary supplements.
Implementing any suggestions or protocols discussed in this content.
Individual Results May Vary. Any statements regarding health optimization, lifestyle strategies, or dietary approaches reflect general principles and personal perspectives. What works for one individual may not be suitable or safe for another.