We knew it. Now a leading hormone specialist explains the science behind why some of us are more ruled by our hormones than others
We’d long suspected it, but now there’s definitive proof that female hormones don’t play fair. Some women recall feeling uneasy through puberty, then mildly irritated by their periods each month and now are having life occasionally interrupted by perimenopause. Then there’s the other subset of women who would report their lives have been figuratively set on fire.
The Impact of Hormones on Mood and Behavior
In truth, sometimes it’s hard for women to understand just how home-wrecking hormones can be when they themselves have only experienced the odd twinge or teary day. But take a group of five female friends, and there’s likely to be one who is annoying nonchalant, verging on oblivious about being perimenopausal, three who feel intermittently low, and have a handful of established menopause symptoms and then the last, who’s feeling the full force of menopausal madness. In fact, she’s probably forgotten to come.
Anecdotally this scene of symptom comparisons will resonate with many of us but in fact, it is scientifically proven to be the case. Mr. Kevin Harrington is a Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist based in London, who specializes in hormones and menopause. He sees thousands of women from all over the world, hopelessly comparing themselves to their friends and wondering why their hormones feel so personal. The answer appears to be because they are, and there are ample medical studies to prove it.
The Role of Puberty and Menopause in Women’s Health
Here’s what science has found about the link between hormones and our personalities, from Mr Harrington himself:
“Puberty, when the female hormones become active in your body, brings about enormous changes to the way you look and think (1,2). This is challenging for every young woman, but for some it is particularly difficult, leading to a number of adverse symptoms, especially during the premenstrual phase of the cycle.
Approximately 20% of women appear to sail through puberty, with very few symptoms, while about 60% will suffer a number of symptoms, both physical and affecting their mood, but will generally cope quite well with the changes and challenges that puberty brings.
About 20% will suffer symptoms sufficient to affect their daily life, with subsequent compromise to their ability to work, study, exercise and can lead to anxiety, depression and in a small number of women psychotic thoughts (3,4). In general these women are prone to neuroses and anxiety as part of their personality, with hormone changes often accentuating their level of anxiety and even depression. These women not only benefit from a number of medical approaches, but can also benefit from complementary treatments and therapies, which will not ‘cure’ the person, but can often alleviate some of the more detrimental symptoms they suffer.
It follows logically that women who are significantly affected by changes in hormone levels will experience excessive mood changes when their child is born, as within 72 hours of giving birth there is a dramatic reduction in the levels of hormones experienced in pregnancy (5).
It is not surprising that menopause can cause a lot of physical and psychological symptoms (6). Women who have suffered from PMS and/ or postnatal depression are more likely to have a challenging menopause (7).
There are many ways in which women who suffer from hormone changes in their body can be assisted (8,9,10,11), including hormone replacement therapy (12,13).”
Effective Solutions for Hormonal Imbalances
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References
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK470216/
- https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-024-03361-8
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7641041/
- https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pre-menstrual-syndrome/
- https://womensmentalhealth.org/posts/what-is-the-link-between-pms-and-postpartum-depression/
- https://www.nhsinform.scot/healthy-living/womens-health/later-years-around-50-years-and-over/menopause-and-post-menopause-health/menopause-and-your-mental-wellbeing/
- https://www.womenshealth.gov/menstrual-cycle/premenstrual-syndrome
- https://womensmentalhealth.org/posts/cognitive-behavioral-therapy-for-premenstrual-syndromes-a-review-of-the-literature/
- https://braintrainuk.com/neurofeedback-for/pre-menstrual-syndrome/
- https://faq.iapmd.org/en/articles/5312618-is-light-therapy-an-effective-treatment-for-pmdd-and-or-pme
- https://lyma.life/blogs/menopause/menopause-depression-symptoms
- https://thebms.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/04-BMS-TfC-HRT-Guide-NOV2022-A.pdf
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7475284/
- https://www.nm.org/healthbeat/healthy-tips/menopause-and-your-skin
