HRT and Taking Progesterone: Hormone Balance Help with Hone Health at Home

I usually don’t talk about menopause here, I am not a great example because I had a hysterectomy in my 30s and didn’t have the typical experience of a woman in her 50s, but I did want to talk about something many of us do, or need to do, in our 50s: taking progesterone and hormone replacement therapy, or HRT. Hormone imbalance is so much more than menopause, and we need to be talking more about the hormone balance and replacement help that is available, so I’m sharing my experience with Hone Health and their telehealth options.

But first…let’s talk a little about the importance of hormone balance, how Hone Health’s services gave me the information I needed to fix imbalances, and how even just taking progesterone can help.

My disclaimer is that I’m not a doctor nor any medical professional <anymore>. I’m coming at this solely from a midlife mom who wants to find some answers and solutions for health and wellness issues common for women my age. (I’m also getting the Hone Health services complimentary to help get the word out, though my writing is not required, and the book that I link to later is an affiliate link; it doesn’t cost you any extra, but I may get a small commission if you order it.)

A lot of people think hormones are mostly relevant in regards to sexual health, or at a later stage in life, but that’s really oversimplifying it all. Hormones, in fact, are important at all ages, and they relate to our brains, our skin, our hair, our organs, and so much more. As a female, you really don’t have to think about them too much until you begin any stage of menopause. They pretty much should just do their thing….until perimenopause starts, then you go through menopause. That’s when you start to notice the differences in things your hormones affected. It’s kind of like taking something for granted, and you don’t really miss it until it’s gone!

Hormones are like our body’s personal messaging system, tiny little chemical signals that travel around, making sure everything runs smoothly. For us women, they’re especially important. Think of estrogen and progesterone: they’re not just about our periods or getting pregnant, though they totally handle that! They also play a huge role in keeping our bones strong, influencing our moods, and even how our skin and hair look. Basically, they’re essential for all our bodies to grow, process energy, and just generally keep us feeling good and functioning at every stage of life, from our teens to menopause. We truly need them for our bodies to work their best.

Once we’ve gone through menopause, and those years are behind us, our bodies have settled into a new normal where the levels of key hormones, particularly estrogen and progesterone, are significantly lower or even non-existent. This is a big shift from our pre-menopause years when these hormones were actively cycling and orchestrating so many bodily functions, from our menstrual cycles to maintaining bone density and influencing our mood. After menopause, without that constant ebb and flow of hormones, our bodies adapt to this new, lower-hormone state. This is why we experience lasting changes like drier skin, a different metabolism, and a continued need to support our bone health. Our systems are simply operating without the same hormonal influence they once had, leading to a distinctly different experience of our bodies compared to how they felt before.

So, why would we want to start taking progesterone or estrogen, and why do we need to focus on hormone balance or replacement? After menopause, with those aforementioned hormones largely out of the picture, our bodies are essentially running on empty when it comes to what they’re used to. All those things we might suddenly be dealing with – struggling to get a good night’s sleep, loss of bone density, dry skin – are often directly because our bodies are missing those key hormones, especially estrogen. Think of HRT, or hormone replacement therapy, as simply giving our bodies back some of what they’re missing. By reintroducing those hormones, even at lower levels, it can really help to smooth out those uncomfortable symptoms and even protect our long-term health, making life feel a whole lot more comfortable and familiar again.

Using Hone Health, I was able to start taking HRT, taking progesterone, and getting some of the problems fixed that my early hysterectomy caused. I was having problems sleeping from 1am-3am, almost nightly. Magnesium glycinate helped with that, but I still wasn’t waking refreshed. My metabolism was slow, I had to work extra hard to drop weight, and my digestive system had seen better days. Brain fog, or just slow recall and ‘why did I go into this room again?’ was a real pain in the butt, and I had a doctor tell me that it was time to get a DEXA scan, because there was concern about my bone density. Why so many things all at once??

I went through menopause without even knowing it, and while I know that’s extremely rare (and maybe lucky?), I’d adjusted to things in my body being wonky and taken it as a ‘this is just how it is’ kinda thing. I had no idea that things like frequent UTIs, clumsiness and itchy skin were related to hormones, or that I had options to get them under control. I didn’t like the weight gain I’d experienced, and after losing 37 pounds, I didn’t want to put it back on. My appointment with my Hone Health doctor connected all the dots for me, and now that I’m taking progesterone and have a full HRT approach, I’m well on my way to seeing the big picture and taking control of my health so I can live longer and healthier.

Working with Hone Health is so easy and convenient! Sign up online, selecting your focus, like menopause, weight loss, sexual health, or a few others. You’ll start with your Optimal Health Biomarker Test (a blood test), in partnership with LabCorp, and when the results are back, you’ll see them available online. You’ll be notified it’s time to schedule your telehealth appointment with a board-certified doctor who will go over your results, your symptoms, your concerns and your goals. In under an hour, you’ll have a plan of action and you’ll receive prescriptions you can then fill through Hone Health to be shipped straight to your house. It’s so easy!

I was given the option for concierge lab service at my house, and while I’d never had that done before, it was fantastic to have a trusted phlebotomist take my blood and then deliver it to the lab. The process moved pretty quickly, and I had results in just a few days. My doctor was knowledgeable, kind, and she truly listened when I asked questions or expressed concern about taking a med or trying something new. (She also recommended this book to me: The New Menopause by Mary Claire Haver, MD. It’s been eye-opening! Easy read, not medical-speak, and engaging.)

Now I’m 30+ days in on my HRT program and I am already seeing differences! The progesterone alone is amazing. I sleep better than I have in many, many years.

The only side effect I saw at all was some dizziness the first two weeks, which has since gone away. That was probably my number one complaint, and if that’s the only improvement I see, I’ll consider it a success…but I also have noticed some other positives that come from taking HRT at my age. (I’m not going into detail about every little thing, but ladies, you probably know there are anatomical things that happen. Some women experience them worse than others, but no matter the degree, there is help out there.)

Having a say in my treatment plan, not having to leave my house, and knowing that I have a trustworthy doctor who has my whole medical history (something I filled out in advance of our appointment) so she’s able to make sure nothing contraindicates anything else I’m taking or is not a good choice for me — this program is something that should have been created a long time ago. We can prioritize our health — in ALL the ways that matter — and it’s on our schedule. Convenient, confidential, affordable.