anemia and menorrhagia

Is Heavy Menstrual Bleeding Making You Anemic?

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Menstrual Cycle Leave a Comment

Nikki was changing a super tampon and pad every one to two hours when she first came to see me. Even these would fail her on her heaviest days. Beyond the bleeding she was struggling with fatigue, anxiety and hair loss. The reality was, her periods had caused her to become anemic and that anemia was causing her to have …

The Anxiety Hormone Connection

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Thyroid & Hormone Balance Leave a Comment

Could hormone imbalance and anxiety be linked? Hormones and anxiety can got hand in hand. Hormone imbalances like low progesterone or low thyroid can cause so many women struggle with anxiety, despite the medications or meditations they are offered. So much emphasis is put on stress and anxiety that people nearly roll their eyes now when we talk about it. …

Healing Anxiety with Functional Medicine

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Sex Hormones Leave a Comment

Anxiety is common enough that I’d venture to guess you at least know someone who has dealt with it, or maybe still is dealing with it. Or maybe that someone is you and you’re trying to understand if there is any chance of healing your anxiety. Functional medicine may just be that step for you. The conventional perspective on anxiety …

Thyroid Disease After Pregnancy: Fatigue in the Fourth Trimester

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Postpartum Leave a Comment

Thyroid disease after pregnancy may be the most overlooked and under diagnosed condition affecting new mothers. Taking a conservative estimate, we can expect 300,000-400,000 mothers to develop postpartum thyroid disease this year. That is 10% of all new moms. But some estimate it may be as high as 17%— and those are only the women who are being tested. Many other mothers …

Navigating Autoimmune Disease During Pregnancy

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Pregnancy Leave a Comment

When my friend Joe Tatta asked me to share with his audience how to navigate autoimmune disease in pregnancy and postpartum, my answer was “of course!” This is a topic that I speak on often and one that I work with daily in my clinical practice. But it is also a topic that is near to my heart. A little …

Seven Mind-Body Practices for a Better Mood

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Wellbeing Leave a Comment

Mind-body healing techniques can be defined as incorporating mindfulness/meditation and movement into our healthcare routine in order to tap into our bodies’ natural healing abilities and cope with stressors. These techniques have been used for centuries to heal and strengthen our bodies and minds, but it’s only recently that these techniques have been recognized by the scientific and medical communities. …

Common Hormonal Imbalance Symptoms

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Thyroid & Hormone Balance Leave a Comment

Estrogen and Progesterone are generally regarded as the female sex hormones, although women also have testosterone, but it is in lower amounts than men (except in PCOS). When your sex hormones are out of balance, they are rarely alone. In fact, your hormonal imbalance symptoms may stem from issues with your adrenals, thyroid, gut, liver, diet or lifestyle factors. Because of …

Postpartum Thyroiditis

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Postpartum Leave a Comment

Fatigue, weight loss or gain, anxiety and irritability are all just part of being a mother, right? Not necessarily. In fact, when these symptoms persist, postpartum thyroiditis is a likely suspect.  While we expect there to be some level of fatigue, many mothers find themselves in my practice after being told their severe exhaustion, debilitating anxiety and fluctuations in weight …