I'm Hormonal | Hormone balance, gut health & nutrition insights

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If you're someone who suffers from unruly and never-ending menstrual bleeding, join me today to learn more. We'll talk about:
- Common causes of excess bleeding
- Supplements that can help prevent heavy bleeding
- Tests that you might consider to discover more about the root cause of the bleeding

Estrogen is a growth hormone so excess estrogen can lead to a greater build up of endometrial lining. Gals--let's get our estrogen levels in check.

If you're just starting out your investigation and are wondering if you even have a hormonal imbalance in the first place, download my free guide that covers the Five Common Signs of Hormone Imbalance. 

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Alright, so what actually is PCOS? Let's break it down in today's episode. Polycystic ovary syndrome often results in anovulatory cycles which can mean long/irregular cycles and heavy menstrual bleeding. It's also often associated with hyperandrogenism. Sounds scary (and it could be) but that's the seven-syllable way to say that you may have acne, excess body hair where you don't want it (hi, chin), and a tough time losing weight. Last but not least--you guessed it--your ovaries may have multiple (poly) cysts on them.

Do you have irregular/long cycles or missing periods? Get my free download here to learn more.

Today, we also talk about:
- The four drivers behind PCOS
- How to understand which driver is leading to your PCOS
- What labs/tests to investigate to determine which driver you're working with
- What you can do to support healthy hormone levels depending on which driver you're looking at

The four drivers?
- Insulin-resistance
- Post-birth control pill
- Inflammation
- Adrenals

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Hey there, I'm Bridget, and welcome to '"Im Hormonal," where we embrace the real talk about hormones, health, cycles, and how to feel our best. 

I’m a certified functional hormone specialist and menstrual cycle coach, and on this podcast, we'll explore the intricacies of hormonal health and break down the science in a way that's relatable and down-to-earth. You deserve better access to information about your body, your hormones, and how you can support them for the long run, so that’s what I’m here to share with you. You can expect episodes that dig into balancing hormones, habits to consider and trends to ditch, and how to interpret your body’s signals. 

Go ahead and hit that subscribe button and join me on "I'm Hormonal" where I’ll remind you week after week how hormones are your superpower! See you in the next episode.

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On today’s show, Bess Berger joined me for a conversation about what you can do to best support yourself when living with PCOS. As a Registered Dietitian-Nutritionist, Bess has over 20 years of experience working with clients and she focuses on women’s health–specifically PCOS and menopause support. 

If you have PCOS then don’t miss out on this conversation, and come back next week when we deep dive the drivers behind PCOS and more of the ins and outs.

Here’s a glimpse at what we cover today:

• PCOS is very responsive to good nutrition and changes in nutrition.
• Bess’s top recommendations for women with PCOS
• Why it’s important to set a doable and realistic plan when making diet/nutrition changes and why all-or-nothing isn’t the best way to make changes
• The importance of making small changes instead of overhauling your diet all at once
• Bess’s clients’ outcomes are best when they can incorporate changes to food that don’t feel like a diet at all
• How dairy, gluten, processed foods, and blood sugar spikes impact PCOS symptoms
• Carbs are necessary for menstruators
• Why going too long between meals can be bad for your blood sugar
• How soon can you see cycle improvements and changes after making changes to your diet and nutrition?
• Supplement recommendations and how they can change depending on the driver of your PCOS
• Why vitamin D is so essential for PCOS and cyclical health
• The best and first thing you should do to support your PCOS is decrease intake of processed foods and increase intake of whole foods.

Connect with Bess via her website (Nutrition by Bess)
Talk with Bess by phone at (201)281-0787
Email Bess at [email protected]

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Elizabeth Tidwell is with us again this week to talk about cycle syncing and how she puts it into action in her own life. If you’re new to cycle syncing and wonder how you can tweak your lifestyle and diet to match where you’re at in your menstrual cycle then this will be a good episode for you to dip your toes in. You’ll hear a lot about Elizabeth’s experience as she shifts from phase to phase which might be helpful in 

Cycle syncing can help you support your natural hormone balance by honoring There’s no wrong way to cycle sync and no wrong way to practice menstrual cycle awareness. Whatever works for you and helps you to feel more connected with your body is the right way to do it. If you’re just starting out–you’ve got this, friend.

You can expect to hear these topics in this episode:

• The similarity and differences between menstrual cycle awareness and cycle syncing
• What is cycle syncing?
• How Elizabeth and Bridget navigate each phase of their cycles
• Inner Winter, or the menstrual phase, and what to incorporate during that phase
• Making your period a time of retreat and ritual and how My Club Red can help you do that
• Inner Spring, and how to support yourself as you get back out into the world and branching out
• How trauma and life events can impact your cycle today
• Inner Summer, and how that’s the time to get your to-do list done without it feeling hard
• Make time for yourself during your Summer and don’t spend all of your energy elsewhere
• How blood sugar and insulin sensitivity shifts throughout the cycle
• During your summer, don’t overcommit yourself to plans for other phases 
• Inner Autumn, its two distinct phases, and how it’s a good phase to get stuff done

Elizabeth’s Website: https://myclubred.com/

Elizabeth’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/myclubred/

Elizabeth’s FREE Menstruality Magazine https://myclubred.com/pages/menstruality-magazine

My FREE Cycle Syncing Guidebook 

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We are kicking off the new year with our very first guest! On today’s show, Elizabeth Tidwell joins us to share her perspective on and experience with menstrual cycle awareness and living in support of her cyclical body. If you are curious about how you can tune in more carefully with your body and its signals, this will be a good listen for you. Elizabeth is a holistic menstrual cycle coach and founder of My Club Red, a hormone-friendly period self-care subscription box designed to transform menstruators' periods into a time of self-nurture, radical rest, and self-connecting ritual.

Awareness of your cycle can be the first step to connecting with yourself, first and foremost, but it can also help you keep tabs on changes in your hormones as well as develop a sense for how your cycle may be changing over time. 

Today’s conversation touches on the following topics:

• What is menstrual cycle awareness?
• The four phases of the menstrual cycle
• Cycle tracking methods and styles
• How you can practice living cyclically even if you don’t currently have a period
• Awareness of our cycle has a regulating effect on it
• Our cycle ‘problems’ are our body’s signal that we need to make a change in our life
• Menstrual cycle awareness is the best gift you can give yourself

When starting an awareness practice, start off by deciding on how you want to note your observations of your cycle. A journal is a good start or take a look at what cycle tracking app feels like a good fit for you (Bridget uses Flo, if you need a place to start). Here are a few things to keep track of if you’re starting out:

• Cycle day (ex. day 3)
• Physical symptoms/experiences (ex. Cramps, tender breasts)
• Mental (ex. Excited about planning)
• Emotional (ex. optimistic) 
• Desires (whether or not they came to fruition) (ex. Today I wanted to do a lot of organizing in the house)

Elizabeth’s Website: https://myclubred.com/

Elizabeth’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/myclubred/

Elizabeth’s FREE Menstruality Magazine https://myclubred.com/pages/menstruality-magazine

My FREE Cycle Syncing Guidebook 

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Happy holidays! The holidays are a fun time of year, and with all of the hustle and bustle, there's the potential to let our hormone health fall by the wayside. In today's episode, we'll talk through a couple of hormone health speedbumps that you may be navigating at this time of year so you can keep your hormones in good health.

You'll hear about tips regarding:
- Alcohol consumption: hydrate, eat antioxidant-rich foods, minimize consumption, support your liver (dandelion root, milk thistle, or castor oil pack)
- Getting quality sleep: use an eye mask, play white noise, avoid caffeine and alcohol before sleep, eat meals that are high in fat/protein, get outside for a walk in the morning
- Honoring your cycle: know what day/phase of your cycle you'll be in, set boundaries and plan ahead

There will not be a new episode in the feed next week because I'm Hormonal will be on a holiday break, so we will see you in the new year! 

Free Guide: Cycle Syncing
Free Guide: Five Common Symptoms of Hormone Imbalance

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If you are someone who has unpredictable periods or bleeds who have altogether disappeared, this episode will help you understand what are the main drivers behind those situations. You'll hear about why the following three things disrupt your cycle and what you can do about it:
- Under eating
- Stress
- PCOS

Grab your free Irregular Cycle SOS Guide here or go to bridgetwalton.com/irregularcyclesos. This guide follows along with our discussion today.

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Not sure if your sluggish energy, painful cramps, or irregular periods could be indicative of a deeper hormone imbalance? Listen to part two of this episode on the five common causes of hormone imbalance. In part 1, episode 11, Bridget talked through what the following three symptoms could indicate and how you can take steps to address them:
- Low/irregular energy levels
- PMS
- Irregular cycle lengths

In today's episode, you'll hear more on the final two symptoms of:
- Painful periods
- Periods that are too short or too long/heavy

Women deserve to have the information need to both understand and influence your hormones so they can work better for you. So that's what we're here to talk about.

If any of those symptoms resonate with you, you'll enjoy this episode and will walk away with a better understanding of what they're indicating and how you can make some tweaks in your life to feel better, sooner.

DOWNLOAD THE GUIDE TO FIVE SYMPTOMS OF HORMONE IMBALANCE

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Not sure yet about what signs of hormone imbalance can look like? Join Bridget to learn about five common signs of imbalance and to get a feel for what's behind those imbalances, as well as what you can do to address them. In this episode which is part one of two, you'll get the run down on the following symptoms of hormone imbalance:
- Low or irregular energy levels
- PMS
- Irregular cycle lengths

Come back next week for part 2, when we'll walk through:
- Period pain
- Period duration

Follow this link or go to bridgetwalton.com/commonsymptoms to get the downloadable PDF that goes along with this episode and which describes the five symptoms and what you can do to start feeling better, sooner.

Referenced in this episode:
- Episode 5 on Seed Cycling
- Episode 6 on Practical Tips & Ideas to Support Hormone Health

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