– can you help me better understand your doctor’s reasoning please. Other than the size increase and new development of fibroids, what is the doctor’s reasoning for the surgery? Are you very symptomatic?

If you’re not already aware, estrogen dominance can lead to fibroids. Have you tried addressing the possible root cases? Have you seen this “Fibroids” symptom sheet in the Symptom Dictionary yet to see the possible root causes?

Also, have you watched Dr. Carrie Jones’ presentation on estrogen dominance in the “All Call Recordings”? She touched on fibroids as well.

Please let me know.

 fibroids don’t usually increase in size for no reason, so addressing the root cause will help prevent any future growth, and fortunately you’re asymptomatic.

From the symptom dictionary fact sheet on fibroids, you can see that there are many possible root causes. Which ones from this list have you explored?

-Relative estrogen surplus (i.e. estrogen dominance). Have you tested your estradiol and progesterone levels during day 19-21 of your cycle?

-Elevated insulin leading to androgen dominance, low progesterone & estrogen dominance. Have you tested your blood sugar levels, and more specifically fasting insulin? How about testosterone, DHEA and cortisol?

-Poor liver detox ability and hormone excretion (i.e. liver congestion, chronic constipation, caffeine consumption). Do you have a minimum once daily, well formed type 3-4 bowel movement on the Bristol stool chart? Do you live a fairly “low tox” lifestyle to your knowledge? Do you consume alcohol or a lot of caffeine? 
 
-Thyroid hypofunction. Has a full thyroid panel been tested? TSH, Total T4, Total T3, Free T4, Free T3, anti-TPO, anti-TG, reverse T3?

-Gut dysbiosis. Do you have any GI symptoms like gas and bloating that would indicate some dysbiosis or overgrowths?
 
-Iodine insufficiency or deficiency. Do you get breast tenderness or swelling? Do you have symptoms of low thyroid function? Constipation, low energy, hair loss, brittle nails, dry skin, heavy periods/PMS, intolerance to cold, can’t lose weight, etc.? 

-Insufficient liver detox nutrients: magnesium, B vitamins, amino acid proteins. Do you eat animal proteins? Have you ever been on hormonal birth control? Do you get headaches, muscle spams, crave chocolate, or other symptoms of low magnesium?

If you can help answer these questions, I can continue guiding you to address the root cause, and hopefully not need invasive surgery.

 unfortunately, I’m fully booked. You can add your name to my waiting list here if you’re still interested.

 

Thank you for providing us with so many details! In addition, could you tell us when your FSH was measured in your period? Was it during the follicular phase, luteal phase (or ovulation?)

When it comes to your questions on what labwork would provide us additional information:
• The Dutch test is a test I would highly recommend. In particular, The DUTCH Plus (click here) can provide us insight in • If you are estrogen dominant (and if so, what type of dominance)
• It provides us insight into how you breakdown estrogen
• It will show us how your androgen levels are
• It shows us your cortisol metabolism.

          How to prepare on The DUTCH complete you can find here.
• A full thyroid panel which includes:• TSH, fT4, fT3
• Anti-TPO & Anti-TG
• Reverse T3
• Fasting Insulin

Did I read correctly that you were low on energy? Or did you mean you had no low energy symptoms? If you are low on energy:
• Iron & Ferritin are important to check as well (could also cause brittle nails)
• RBC Zinc (Low zinc status could cause low thyroid symptoms and brittle nails as well)
• Vitamin D (which also helps with estrogen metabolism)

Magnesium is needed to break down estrogen. Although you didn’t mention any other symptoms of magnesium deficiency (except for low energy) I like to be thorough. Other symptoms of magnesium deficiency are GERD, Stiffness of muscles, and feeling easily irritated. Are those symptoms you experience? If you want to be sure about your magnesium status then test also for
• RBC Magnesium 

Maybe  has some additional lab tests she likes, but these are my recommendations!
 

Hi  – just wanted to check in. How are you doing? Have you been able to implement some of the suggestions, watch videos or do the additional tests? Please let us know how we can further support you. ❤️

Hi  – you can always attach your reports directly in the posts here for us to take a look at.

As a next step, I would recommend getting the additional tests we’ve recommended above done. These would help us figure out the possible root cause(s), and then a course of action.

Possible root causes:
• Relative estrogen surplus (i.e. estrogen dominance) – test estrogen/progesterone during days 19-21 of your cycle
• Elevated insulin – test fasting insulin, fasting glucose, HbA1C
• Poor liver detox ability and hormone excretion – test a liver panel: ALT, AST, ALK Phos, GGT, Direct bilirubin, Total bilirubin, Protein, Albumin
• Thyroid hypofunction – test TSH, Free T4, Free T3, Reverse T3, anti-TPO, anti-TG
• Gut dysbiosis (a GI map would help, but since you don’t have apparent GI complaints, no need at this stage)
• Iodine insufficiency or deficiency – here’s a video explaining how to test iodine
• Insufficient liver detox nutrients: test RBC magnesium, vitamin B12 or MMA

You live in India correct? If you can find a doctor to run these tests for you, that would be a great start. Otherwise, consider paying out of pocket (if finances allow) and getting them done directly through a walk-in lab.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

 mold remediator info is below the video here.

Mold symptom questionnaires are also there. You have to click on the file icon on the top right.



Pregnenolone is often referred to as the “master” or “mother” hormone. This is a diagram I frequently use to explain some of the most important elements of the stress and sex hormone cascade.  As you can see, pregnenolone in the top left is the first hormone stepping stone to be produced from cholesterol in the steroid cascade.  The body then decides how much pregnenolone it wishes to retain and how much of other downstream hormones it wishes to synthesize and retain.  The amount of enzymes we retain to catalyze the conversion of one hormone to another is determined by many factors e.g. stress, diet, immune system status, inflammation, other hormone levels, genetics.  And of course, all of the hormones affect each other too (ex. higher insulin drives higher testosterone production in women, a common dynamic in PCOS).
Here’s my most important guidance.  If a person’s pregnenolone is low, make sure to address the true root causes first.  Keep in mind (as in the diagram above) that cholesterol is the precursor of pregnenolone, and the body will supply cholesterol for this purpose via LDL coming from the liver (either from diet or made in the liver itself).  If a person’s LDL level is too low (ex. <70 mg/dl), this may simply provide the insufficient raw material for the body to make adequate pregnenolone. Have you ever measured your lipids before to rule this out?

It's common in those using statin drugs.  It may also happen more readily to those who do not consume dietary cholesterol (ex. vegans) and who are thus fully dependent on the liver to produce adequate cholesterol (which it should optimally do, but we know that's not always the case). 

If LDL is too low (in the absence of medication specifically causing it), I would consider boosting it with clean, dietary sources such as organic and grass-fed butter or ghee and/or free-range eggs.  Fattier cuts of beef are also a good option, though eggs and butter/ghee will have higher content and are usually easier to find from high-quality sources.
It's also important to realize that ongoing stress demands that can cause a "stress steal" can also deplete pregnenolone (often as well as progesterone and DHEA actually). More specifically, this HPATG axis modulation on purpose to support sympathetic nervous sytem response and the need to survive will lead to this specific hormone pathway choice.  The body is prioritizing all of the hormonal cascade "fodder" to respond to stress, and there is not much left for producing sex hormones or keeping a responsive "reservoir" of adequate pregnenolone either. 

This is why adrenal health is one of the foundational courses I've created. It's critical to address sources of chronic stress which can be mental/emotional in origin (ex. trauma, crisis) or physiological (ex. toxicity, unaddressed food sensitivities, simmering ongoing infection, especially in the gut), or physical (ex. over-exercising, undersleeping, undereating, etc). Would you say stress might be at play in your case? Have you ever measured cortisol levels with a functional test like the DUTCH Adrenal test?

Addressing the root cause of why the hormone cascade has become depleted is key. Certainly there are times when it makes sense to do both (work on root cause and supplement) because a person is so depleted and needs relief. 

Just keep in mind that supplemental use of any hormone is very likely to suppress the body's own production of that hormone.  Over time, steady, higher levels of any hormone from supplementation are also likely to cause the body to develop reduced hormone receptor sensitivity.  This is why an initial dose that seems to work so well often eventually becomes ineffective and needs an increase.
The challenge with using pregnenelone as a supplemental hormone is that you cannot control what the body is going to use it to make downstream.  For example, if adrenal hormones like cortisol are low yet estrogen is high, then simply supplementing with prenenelone is more likely to boost the estrogen further than to boost cortisol because that's what the body is already preferring to do at that point in time.  
It can be valuable as a supplemental hormone when its level is low AND when downstream hormones below are all consistently suboptimal. It's also important (as with all other hormones) to check the level of all hormones no more than ~3 months after initiation to ensure a good balance has been achieved and that the dosage is optimal.  This is a well-written summary (with research links embedded) of some of the benefits of pregnenolone supplementation.

Now regarding your thyroid... FT3 is suboptimal. Thyroid conversion happens primarily in the liver. Have you measured a liver panel in the past? Thyroid conversion also needs nutrients; iron, vitamin A, zinc, selenium. Here's a video on reasons for low FT3 and foods that support thyroid function.

Given the fact that your progesterone is low relative to estrogen, this is what is considered estrogen dominance, and a possible root cause for fibroids. With the natural aging process, women reaching perimenopausal years do not ovulate as often and do not produce as much progesterone. So supplementing with bio-identical progesterone, taking vitex etc. should help in that regard.

I hope this helps answer your questions and gives you a few additional areas to explore...