The "Pause" Blog
"My purpose in life is to learn how to make my "Third Act" of life AWESOME."
"My God-given purpose is to share what I have learned with others."
I call the system I have developed to optimize our hormones and weight while in our "Third Acts" of life, The HOPE Protocol. I should have called it The HOPE Rope because it has four strands that need to be intertwined. The HOPE Rope is what we will use to pull ourselves out of The Hormone Abyss.
Because...
"We are nothing more than a reflection of our hormones."
HOPE
Hormone Optimization
Organic Sustenance
Purification Protocols
Enlightenment Coaching
Today's Hack on how to look and feel awesome during your "Third Act" of life is from The Hormone Strand.
HORMONE STRAND HACK
"Doc, I'm gaining weight like crazy, I can't lose this menopausal weight no matter what I do, I can't sleep, I'm anxious, I'm having days where I feel low and emotional, I lost my interest in being intimate, and I am no longer motivated to be social. I know it's my hormones. But where do I begin?"
I promise you that you can balance your hormones and eliminate the plethora of symptoms menopause causes and it can all be done naturally.
As you have learned by now, the condition that is causing most of your prominent menopausal symptoms is called Estrogen Dominance. Estrogen Dominance is the chasm that has grown between two of your ovarian hormones, (progesterone and estradiol). Before entering menopause, these two hormones danced a beautiful dance. When you enter into menopause, which I define as not ovulating, your ovaries no longer produce progesterone. Estradiol loses its dancing partner. One of progesterone's main functions is to keep estradiol in check.
"If you are in menopause, your ovaries no longer produce progesterone, and estradiol runs wild."
I am not one to purchase material gifts for my children. I have always purchased experiences for them, not stuff. One of our daughters is the adventurous type. For her birthdays, she always chooses outdoor adventures. For one of her birthdays, she chose white water rafting. Vicky and I started researching white water rafting and chose a company that floated the American River near Sacramento.
We filled our boat with three of our children and one son-in-law. The key to white water rafting is to paddle your butt off while passing through the white water. We went through the first rapids, which was a tester for our group. It was exhilarating. Our guide explained to us that the one we just paddled through had a class II classification. He said there would be several that were classified as class III. He told us that the way we handled the Class II rapid, he didn't think we would have any problem with the Class III rapids ahead.
But...there was one section of the river that was classified as Class IV. Once we went down the river, we could choose to bypass the class IV section and go in a different direction where the rapids were considered Class II.
We decided to take the Class IV route. The Class IV route scared the heck out of all of us, but we felt pride afterward for a team job well done.
I will get back to the rafting trip in a minute.
Hormones are like food. When we eat food, it is broken down into proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. Hormones are metabolized in a similar way. The liver breaks down hormones into different molecules called metabolites. Since the first hormonal condition we tame is Estrogen Dominance, we will be concerned with what the liver does to estrogen.
"The liver changes estrogen into new molecules called metabolites. Some of the metabolites can go down the Class IV rapids and the other metabolites can go down the Class II rapids. The Class IV metabolites can be very dangerous. They are considered very carcinogenic and cause extreme fat-storing states. The Class II metabolites are less dangerous. In fact, new research indicates that these Class II metabolites may be anti-carcinogenic and are much less likely to cause a fat-storing state."
When your estrogen is converted into the "bad" metabolites, you will store fat, especially belly fat, and live in fear of cancer.
After forty-two years of helping tens of thousands of women and men be as healthy as possible, the main concern I have after women enter menopause and men enter andropause is Estrogen Dominance. Yes, men become Estrogen Dominant. Estrogen Dominance is linked to breast, ovarian, and uterine cancers in women. Estrogen Dominance is linked to prostate and testicular cancer in men.
If you find your men tearing up during movies or even during Super Bowl commercials, they are most likely Estrogen Dominant. Have their testosterone checked immediately.
The tell-tale sign of estrogen dominance in men is a "beer belly." I have many men enrolled in my program.
So...what is the next step we should take to tame estrogen dominance?
"If my wife and I were Estrogen Dominant, which nearly every female in menopause and every male in andropause are, the first tool I would use is a supplement called DIM."
WHAT IS DIM?
DIM - DIM is short for diindolylmethane, (pronounced: dye-in-dollmethane). DIM directs estradiol down the path that creates the "good" estradiol metabolite. This beneficial pathway is called the 2-hydroxy pathway. This metabolite's actions are similar to the original estrogen molecule. It will help with preventing heart disease, in building strong bones, and it will keep your skin and hair looking young and supple.
Vicky and I desire these benefits and continue to use DIM even though we are no longer Estrogen Dominant.
DIM is primarily used to prevent breast cancer in women and prostate cancer in men. If Vicky’s P/E ratio was above 100 to 1, DIM and losing her belly fat would probably be all she would need to do to improve her P/E Ratio.
"Belly fat makes estradiol, and estradiol makes belly fat and belly fat makes estradiol, and so on and so on."
DIM is naturally made in our guts from a compound found in cruciferous vegetables called Indole-3-carbinol.
This is what happens. We eat cruciferous vegetables and the stomach acids break them down into different molecules. One of these molecules is called Indole-3-Carbinol (I3C). I3C is converted by our microbiome (the bacteria in our gut) into DIM.
Cruciferous vegetables include
Broccoli,
Brussels Sprouts,
Cabbage,
Cauliflower,
Collard Greens,
Kale,
Bok Choy,
etc.
Many doctors will tell you not to eat cruciferous vegetables if you take certain prescription medications. They should have said...I wouldn’t have to prescribe these medications if you ate more cruciferous vegetables. I will discuss cruciferous vegetables in more detail in a later e-course.
So, why don't we just eat cruciferous vegetables? Isn’t that the way God intended us to maintain estrogen homeostasis? As you will discover, I do prefer that we eat foods that will supply the nutrient we need to have better-balanced hormones.
"We would have to eat 2 pounds of cruciferous vegetables daily to make enough DIM to impact on our hormones."
Then why don't we eat DIM's precursor Indole-3-Carbinol? It takes 10 molecules of I-3-C to make 1 molecule of DIM. Another problem is that I3C has to be transformed within our guts to DIM. With our microbiomes being so damaged, this conversion can be very difficult.
I have personally tried all 3 methods
Eating Cruciferous vegetables
Supplementing with Indole-3-carbinol
DIM
I have had many of our patients/clients try all 3. DIM supplementation has had, by far, superior results. Recall the "good" Class II pathway is called the 2-hydroxy pathway.
"It has been shown that the beneficial 2-hydroxy metabolites increase testosterone levels in both men and women."
Testosterone increases sex drive and is the #1 fat-burning hormone in our bodies. Unfortunately, menopause causes your ovaries to no longer make testosterone. And andropause is defined as having low testosterone.
DIM increases testosterone by removing proteins bound to our testosterone molecules that makes the testosterone worthless. That is why I prefer saliva testing because saliva tests measure the hormones called FREE hormones. FREE means that the hormones are not bound to these proteins and can actually be used by our bodies.
"By removing these proteins that make our testosterone inert, FREE testosterone levels increase."
With higher levels of free testosterone,
Our ability to build muscle increases,
We burn fat more efficiently
We have improved drives to have sex and to be social.
The one problem that we see with DIM is that it isn't absorbed very well by our bodies. We make sure to use micro-encapsulated forms.
"Vicky takes 200 mg of DIM per day. I take 400 mg of DIM per day. with our last meal"
The more we exercise the more DIM we take. Vicky will take up to 400 mg when working out intensely and I will take up to 600. With extreme exercise, testosterone levels increase and DIM helps us keep our testosterone FREE and useful.
"Research shows that DIM is safe at doses a thousand times higher than the ones mentioned above."
When we were still in practice, our clinics started women on DIM when the first signs of peri-menopause appeared...usually in their early forties. This is when ovulation starts to stutter and progesterone levels begin to drop and cause hormone havoc.
Recall, that the cause of you gaining your weight back after losing it is Estrogen Dominance.
In my first Hormone Strand step, I had you take a self-test to discover how many of the symptoms you have that are associated with estrogen dominance. Here is a link to that test. Estrogen Dominant Self Test
"If you flunk the Estrogen Dominant Self-Test, the next step is to take an objective lab test to discover how estrogen dominant you are."
In my Second Hormone Strand step, I had you discover how estrogen dominant you are with a salivary assay. This test will give you what I believe is the most important number any hormonally challenged woman can discover. The number is called your progesterone to estradiol ratio. Here is a link to the test kit you can purchase from Amazon. Estrogen Dominant Test Kit
MY THIRD HORMONE STRAND HACK: IF MY WIFE'S TEST VERIFIED THAT SHE WAS ESTROGEN DOMINANT, I WOULD HAVE HER TAKE 200 MG OF DIM WITH THE LAST MEAL OF THE DAY.
Click the link below to investigate the DIM product Vicky and I currently use. It has an extra ingredient to assist with absorption.
(Always seek advice from your healthcare practitioner before using any supplement)
(I don't believe in adverse side effects from supplements. If you experience any adverse side effects after using DIM, stop supplementing with DIM immediately.)
If you would like to know how to eliminate Estrogen Dominance quickly, schedule a conversation with me to discuss your symptoms and I will also explain precisely what we did to alleviate estrogen dominance.
Because...your grandchildren want you to dance at their weddings.
Because...Research has shown you live as long as your waist is small.
“Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone”--Pablo Picasso
DIM QUOTE
"A large body of evidence suggests that 3,3-diindolylmethane (DIM), a dimer of indole-3-carbinol found in cruciferous vegetables, can potentially prevent carcinogenesis and tumor development." Carcinogenesis. 2020 Oct; 41(10): 1395–1401. Carcinogenesis is a well known medical journal that publishes research on cancer.
ANOTHER SUCCESS STORY
This is our client Lorena. Balancing her hormones, eating the Protable Menu, purifying her liver, and being coached transformed her body.
"It's all about your hormones."
THE HORMONE ABYSS
Phase One...
Weight Gain
Weight Loss Resistance
Sleeping Disorders
Hormonal Induced Anxiety
Hormonal Induced Depression
Loss of Interest in Being Intimate
Loss of Motivation to be Social
Phase Two...
Marked Loss of Energy
Goldilock's Syndrome (It has to be just the right temperature, or you're miserable)
Hot Flashes and Night Sweats
Loss of Hair
Aged Skin
Laziness
Phase Three...
Inability to Wake Alert
Body Aches and Pains Upon Arising
Irritability, Aggravation, and Anger about things that should not make you Irritable, Aggravated, or Angry.
Brain Fog
Forgetfulness
Our coaching program provides...
Daily Statistical Texting that provides supervised accountability.
Our week-to-week instructional course on how to optimize your hormones and weight.
24/7 access to me via texting for solutions to any challenges you face during the day.
You will receive motivational phone calls from me when you feel like giving up.
SELFIE OF THE WEEK
Vicky and Rojelio, grandson #4, attending Picnic at The Pops this past weekend where we sang Elton John songs at the top of our lungs.
Because...
IT'S ALL ABOUT YOUR HORMONES!
If you would like more information about our coaching program, visit our website
If you have a quick question, please don't email me...
Text me @ 209-345-9799
© 2022 | Doc Mac Coaching
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Furthermore, none of the statements within this post should be construed as dispensing medical advice, making claims regarding the cure of diseases, nor can these products prevent disease. You should consult a licensed health care professional before starting any supplement, dietary, or exercise program, especially if you are pregnant or have any pre-existing injuries or medical conditions. The Food and Drug Administration has not evaluated these statements. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent diseases.
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