It all started when I read that women beyond a certain age would probably suffer from hormonal imbalance and thought, “maybe some women, but not me”. I was 59 yrs. old at the time and had never experienced any of the famous “change of life” symptoms; you know, the seven dwarfs of menopause – Droopy, Grumpy, Itchy, Sad, Mad, etc. At least I didn’t think that I had. Imagine my surprise when my husband told me that he thought I might have some of those behaviors. What? Well, reading further, I told him that men could have an imbalance too. “Nope”, he said not him. Why is it that most men still hide, run and shrink from the realization of hormonal decline because somehow it’s all tied up in their “manliness”? At that point, I told him that I’d get my levels tested if he would too. So, I started looking for a doctor who specialized in Bio-identical Hormone Replacement (BHRT) in the Charlotte area. Following the advice in the book, I called a compounding pharmacy and found that the ONLY doctor in this area at the time was Dr. Ronald Brown at Carolina HealthSpan. I made an appointment for both of us for a consultation since I wasn’t about to do this alone.
During the consultation, I’m still feeling like I couldn’t possibly need this but I’ll do it just to please my husband. I’m sure he was thinking the same thing. Well, you guessed it; as it turned out, we were both out of balance. My husband was only 49 yrs. old at the time; so guys don’t think just because you’re not over 60 you don’t need to have your hormone levels checked. Why hadn’t anybody told me how grouchy, moody and generally rude I had been. Why hadn’t my husband told me he was feeling depressed? Well, that’s how I started my journey on the road to perfect hormonal balance. There are several methods of treatment for hormone imbalance and Dr. Brown works with each individual to decide which one works best for them. I decided to have the easiest, most convenient treatment, what I call “Pellet Planting”. I know that sounds strange, but it’s really very simple . About every 6 months, I see Dr. Brown and he inserts two tiny little pellets under the skin on my upper hip. The difference in my quality of life is like night and day! I get blood work done periodically to determine whether I’m still on track and getting the right dosage. The pellets have a slow release action that usually takes about 6-8 months before I need more. I believe this depends on how stressful my life has been but I don’t know whether this is based on medical fact; I just know it’s true for me. My friends ask me how I know when it’s time for pellets and I tell them, it’s like dimming the lights. It’s a gradual decline in well being that you may not notice when you first start treatment, but you get much better at recognizing the symptoms that tell you “it’s time”. In my case, I become depressed and begin to act kinda edgy. It’s not a pleasant place to be. My husband will tell me very quickly that it’s time to see Dr. Brown.
Why BHRT? Because I’ll choose a natural, bio-identical treatment any day rather than putting some synthetic drug or pregnant mare’s urine in my body. The Carolina HealthSpan website has great information on BHRT and it’s benefits. Hormonal balance makes aging and it’s stages simply “passages” and enjoyable ones at that. Oh yeah, what happened with my husband? Well, let’s just say that he’s as well balanced as I am and life is good. We’ve both been patients of Dr. Brown for over 11 years now and It’s the best healthcare decision we’ve ever made. ~ Joh Warren