Lara Briden - The Period Revolutionary
Leading the change to better periods and hormones
Articles about common period problems including irregular periods, PCOS, endometriosis, painful periods, PMS, PMDD, heavy periods, and perimenopause. From the perspective of a women’s health specialist with more than twenty years of experience. Treatments include diet and lifestyle changes as well as simple nutritional supplements such as magnesium and zinc.
What do post-pill acne, hair loss, and weight gain all have in common? They can all be the result of a temporary surge in androgens when trying to come off certain types of hormonal birth control.
In episode eight of my podcast/YouTube video, I discuss post-pill androgen symptoms including why pills like Yasmin are the hardest to come off, how androgens can cause weight gain, and natural treatments such as zinc, berberine, and cyclic progesterone therapy.
For women with gluten sensitivity (celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity), even trace amounts of gluten can drive or worsen endometriosis, adenomyosis, amenorrhea, migraines, and thyroid disease.
For women with FODMAP sensitivity (as opposed to gluten sensitivity), a full serving of wheat or other FODMAP food can cause digestive bloating and potentially worsen premenstrual mood symptoms and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Small amounts of wheat are usually fine.
In a normal period, you should not lose more than about 80 mL of menstrual fluid over all the days of the bleed. That’s equivalent to about five tablespoons spread over all the days of the bleed.
In episode two of my podcast/YouTube video, I discuss heavy periods including the role of hormone imbalance, mast cell activation, and insulin resistance; simple period-lightening strategies such as iron, zinc, and a dairy-free diet; and using body-identical progesterone to lighten periods.
PCOS is the hormonal condition of having high androgens or male hormones. Endometriosis is an inflammatory disease that can cause severe pelvic pain. They’re two very different conditions but also both quite common. That’s why it’s possible to have both PCOS and endometriosis at the same time.
Here’s how to differentiate the symptoms of PCOS from the symptoms of endometriosis and where to start if you have both conditions.