Hormones: Decoded

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Dimple Vaswani
Hormones: Decoded

Hormones: Decoded

Have you ever found yourself asking - “Why am I feeling so tired?” 

“Why do I have sudden sugar cravings?” 

“Why am I so moody during this time of the month?” “Why are my periods irregular?” 

“Why am I unable to lose weight, no matter how hard I try?”

One of the major cause for all of this - Hormonal Imbalance

What even are Hormones?

Hormones are chemical messengers in our body responsible for all kinds of metabolic processes. From growth, reproduction, metabolism to our mood and energy levels- everything is regulated by our hormones.

Hormones and mood

There are different hormones responsible for different kinds of moods, and they fall broadly under these 2 categories.

  • Sex Hormones
  • Neurochemicals

Sex Hormones

  • Estrogen: Made in the ovaries, apart from being responsible for the maturation of the eggs, they play a huge role in regulating our anxiety, stress, irritability, etc. A lower estrogen in perimenopausal women/menopausal women is the number 1 cause of depression among them.
  • Progesterone: The main function of this hormone is to thicken the uterine lining, apart from this, it is also responsible for “balancing out” estrogen’s intensity- it helps to calm the nervous system and reduce estrogen driven irritability.
  • Testosterone: a.k.a. the male sex hormone, it is present in testes AND in ovaries , responsible for libido levels in males and also their energy levels, mood levels.

Neurochemicals

  • Dopamine: a.k.a the reward hormone. Ever felt that sense of euphoria when you take the first bite of your favourite chocolate? The sudden excitement and rush of joy when you accomplish a task? Yes, that is your dopamine levels rising. Dopamine release is associated with motivation and reward.
  • Serotonin: Your day is going smoothly, you had your morning dose of warm sunlight and a hearty meal…. the sense of contentment and peace that you feel in these situations can be described as the release of Serotonin– the hormone that makes you feel content and peacefully happy.
  • Oxytocin: The feeling of being loved and connected, spending quality time with your loved ones, the feeling of being “heard” when someone understands what you’re trying to say, this is where your brain is releasing oxytocin, the love hormone.
  • Endorphins:  Laughing so hard that your sides hurt, getting that “runners high” when you run too much, that’s when your endorphins are at their peak.
  • Cortisol:  Commonly known as the “stress hormone”. This adrenal hormone is produced on the top of your kidneys. Apart from regulating your blood sugar levels, blood pressure levels, it also plays a major role in managing your mood. Those work deadlines, pressure, late night doomscrolling on instagram, inability to sleep- all are signs of a high cortisol level in our body.

Our mood is widely enhanced by the synergy of both our sex hormones (the regulators) and our Neurochemicals (the messengers).

SOURCES

 

Related Concerns:

  • PCOS Bliss
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