Period Gone Missing After the Pill? Here’s What to Do First.

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Birth Control Leave a Comment

Have you been off the pill for 3 months and your period still hasn’t returned? You’re not alone. This is called post-pill amenorrhea and it’s more common than you probably realize. In fact, anywhere from upwards of 3-6% of women can lose their period post pill with studies suggesting that women with a history of irregular periods are at higher …

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 …

How to Improve Egg Quality Naturally

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Fertility Leave a Comment

Improving egg quality for fertility consists of increasing nutrients, reducing or eliminating environmental toxins, and addressing daily stressors. These are important steps in any preconception plan. In this article I’ll be sharing how to improve egg quality naturally, including steps you can take right now. When couples are wishing to conceive there are several areas that I feel are important …

Is Pain Keeping You From Getting Pregnant?

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Fertility Leave a Comment

Are you one of the millions of women who is struggling with chronic pain? Well, it may just surprise you to hear that your pain may be keeping you from getting pregnant.  Headaches, gut pain, menstrual cramps, joint pain, backaches and old injuries have many women reaching of a bottles of Ibuprofen, Naproxen, Midol, and NSAIDs to get symptom relief. And …

What Role Does Diet Play in Male Infertility

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Fertility, Preconception & Fertility Leave a Comment

We tend to emphasize what a mother eats; after all, she is the one who carries the child, and what she eats directly nourishes the developing baby. However, there is growing awareness about the role preconception nutrition plays for men, too.  The foods men choose during the preconception period directly influence their overall wellness and metabolic health. And poor metabolic …

Easy Detox Tool for Happy Hormones

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Sex Hormones Leave a Comment

Your body is a wondrous thing – constantly working to remove toxins and excess hormones, while converting the food you eat into nutrients that fuel every cell in your body. As much as your body helps you it deserves some extra attention! This blog is all about how to do just that, how to help it detox hormones and more. …

Functional Medicine | Naturopathic Physician Oregon | DrBrighten.com

Lab Tests—Could Your Doctor Be Missing Something?

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: Wellbeing Leave a Comment

Have you ever received a letter or a note from your doctor about your lab test results that simply says, “Everything is normal?” Unfortunately, for many people, their doctor will tell them everything looks normal, although they feel utterly terrible. Getting regular lab testing done is an important part of every person’s health journey.  It gives your physician valuable insight into …

PCOS Hormone Fertility Functional Medicine | Dr. Jolene Brighten | DrBrighten

5 Blood Sugar Balancing Strategies for PCOS

Dr. Jolene BrightenPublished: PCOS, Sex Hormones Leave a Comment

One of the major characteristics of PCOS and other conditions that cause hormone imbalance is blood sugar dysregulation. This results in surges of high blood sugar followed by deep dips in energy and mood. Blood sugar dysregulation can result in symptoms like irritability, shakiness, and fatigue, or even lightheadedness and nausea. The Blood Sugar Dance Metformin is often recommended for …

hypothyroidism symptoms

10 Signs You Have Hypothyroidism

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

There are very obvious signs you have hypothyroidism and then much more subtle signs that can make this condition easy to miss. Hypothyroidism is an endocrine disorder, which means it affects hormones—in this case, thyroid hormone. Thankfully, providers are getting better at recognizing the signs. Even so, symptoms are often subtle or chalked up to other things, which means it …