HELP! Anyone know anything about hormone imbalance and weight loss??

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  • ummibrahimk
    ummibrahimk Posts: 85 Member
    edited February 2017
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    I personally don't have experience with your situation, but reading your description of what happened with the weight increase without significant habit change, unusual gaining in the stomach area, etc. sounds very much like the stories I read of a group of people who have trouble with the Mirena IUD. I was researching the mirena as an option to control my extreme menorrhagia, but found a significant number of women who experienced symptoms very similar to what you are describing.

    Hormone balance in the body is REALLY complicated, and it sounds like you had to undergo a procedure that would definitely put things out of whack. I don't know that you can say from a few lab tests that everything is a-ok because x, y, and z are normal. There are LOTS of variables in there, and there can be a lot going on that may be affecting your health. Seeing another endocrinologist for another opinion is a good idea, though I think there is an awful lot about those systems that we just don't know.

    Reading the stories of women who had trouble with mirena on these forums might be helpful. As an aside, plenty of women did just fine and had no trouble with stalls in weight loss while on mirena, it's a subset of users that all had REALLY similar symptoms that remind me of what you are describing. Some of them fixed things by removing the IUD (obviously not a helpful solution for you, lol!), but maybe some of them came up with dietary/exercise/macro balances that might be helpful?

    Good luck!

  • ronjsteele1
    ronjsteele1 Posts: 1,064 Member
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    Hi OP. I do not have medically induced menopause but I have had hormone issues for YEARS. I have PCOS and am now closing in on the end of perimenopause (hopefully!). I am also on armour thyroid for hypothyroidism. I've had to mess with hormones and weight for a long time and I finally found what worked for me. For sure, I had to give up cardio being my main source of expenditure for weight loss. What's worked best for hormone balance and weight loss has been progressive lifting with some light cardio. So now I'm lifting 30 minutes in the morning (I alternate upper and lower body days and take one day off mid-week) and after that do what is truly a slow walk (2.0-2.4) on the treadmill. So I basically workout 4 days a week. If I'm watching my calories closely and working out like that, I lose steadily. It's slower then most by far. Around .5 to .75/lb per week but it's steady. Some weeks I get lucky and will lose 1-1.5lbs but that is rare.

    On the hormone side of things, I found using bio-identical hormone replacements to be far better in terms of actually balancing my hormones and making me feel better. I do not take the doctor's "they're in normal range" as acceptable. I try to keep my progesterone at 2/3 to 3/4 of the upper end of the range and my estrogen at 1/2-2/3 of the range. That's based on how I feel at those levels. You might feel better at levels higher or lower then those. The low end of the ranges most doctors will say is "normal" but it's not if it makes you feel like crap and affects your weight loss. I finally found a functional medicine doctor that knew how to tweak the hormones and then have them compounded specifically for what I need and I have done much much better over the years. Compounding bio-identicals allows the doctor to literally give you exactly what you need instead of "this comes in 20mg, 40mg, etc." What if I only need 38mg of progesterone per gram of cream? That extra 2mg can be miserable and it does affect weight loss efforts. So using compounded creams has been my lifesaver.

    Don't know if this helps at all, but this has been my experience.
  • Jess830409
    Jess830409 Posts: 285 Member
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    @ummibrahimk Thank you - I appreciate the insight and I will definitely look into that. I have been searching for a specialist in this area of medicine that I might be able to go to, as I have found both the endocrinologist and my GYN have not been very helpful. I appreciate your advice!
  • Jess830409
    Jess830409 Posts: 285 Member
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    @ronjsteele1 - thank you for the information! I find a lot of comfort in knowing that there is hope! I would be THRILLED with half a pound loss a week :-)
    I did try BHRT for a span of about 6 months, and found no change really...but they may have not done enough tweaking for what I needed. I am in search of a new physician that truly gets it, and can work with me to find a way!
    Thank you for taking time to respond :-)
  • ronjsteele1
    ronjsteele1 Posts: 1,064 Member
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    Jess830409 wrote: »
    @ronjsteele1 - thank you for the information! I find a lot of comfort in knowing that there is hope! I would be THRILLED with half a pound loss a week :-)
    I did try BHRT for a span of about 6 months, and found no change really...but they may have not done enough tweaking for what I needed. I am in search of a new physician that truly gets it, and can work with me to find a way!
    Thank you for taking time to respond :-)

    Look for a functional medicine doctor. If you specifically look up FMD they'll come up. I've seen a couple of different endocrinologists and they are 100% completely clueless. :s
  • Jess830409
    Jess830409 Posts: 285 Member
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    @ronjsteele1 Thank you!! That is very helpful...will do!
  • playadelcarmen2
    playadelcarmen2 Posts: 38 Member
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    I had the same problem (kinda). Perimenapausal and went on hrt, also stopped smoking before the hrt and never gained a pound until the hormones. I could not lose weight, no matter what I tried. Pants got tighter and tighter. Two weeks ago I stopped the hrt and am noticing changes. I also have tightened up on my calories and lowered my cardio from tough, to not as tough. I do lift and if possible, you should too. I think alot of the hrt is water weight and hopefully you can find your sweet spot. Good luck and fingers crossed for both of us.
  • Jess830409
    Jess830409 Posts: 285 Member
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    @playadelcarmen2 Thank you! Best of luck to you. I truly am not afraid of tightening up and putting in the work, its just figuring out the new boundaries and what works and what doesn't as far as food choices, caloric intake and exercise type and intensity. Appreciate the info!!
  • CharlieBeansmomTracey
    CharlieBeansmomTracey Posts: 7,682 Member
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    I am perimenopausal and I also have a metabolic disorder. while weight loss for me is slower, I still lose weight.I would talk to your doctors and maybe get a second opinion and see if maybe a change in meds would make a difference as well(if you currently take any). also the less you have to lose the slower it is going to be. I have 22lbs to lose and they have been the hardest.as for hormone imbalances,it too would be getting the levels right.. if your stomach is getting bigger is any other area getting bigger? maybe get an ultrasound on your stomach done to make sure you dont have any issues causing it(stomach issues causing severe bloating,tumors,etc.).
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,950 Member
    edited February 2017
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    CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »
    I am perimenopausal and I also have a metabolic disorder. while weight loss for me is slower, I still lose weight.I would talk to your doctors and maybe get a second opinion and see if maybe a change in meds would make a difference as well(if you currently take any). also the less you have to lose the slower it is going to be. I have 22lbs to lose and they have been the hardest.as for hormone imbalances,it too would be getting the levels right.. if your stomach is getting bigger is any other area getting bigger? maybe get an ultrasound on your stomach done to make sure you dont have any issues causing it(stomach issues causing severe bloating,tumors,etc.).

    Despite uterine fibroids being unlikely with the OP's estrogen being at post-menopausal levels, I would also check this just to rule it out as the cause of the increased stomach. My fibroids certainly make my stomach bigger >.<
  • ronjsteele1
    ronjsteele1 Posts: 1,064 Member
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    One more hormone thought. Get a full thyroid panel done. Don't just let a doctor do a TSH. You need at least your free t3 and free t4 done as well. Your frees should be in the upper 2/3 of the range and your tsh should be between .5 and 1.5. If those numbers are off you will have a harder time losing weight. Perimenopause also changed my thyroid. When my armour is not optimal, I can literally gain 20#'s in a month. When you see a doc again, have them check thyroid too.
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
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    First of all congrats fellow survivor!

    I know this is not what you want to hear, but you are not in a caloric deficit. You can get BMR/REE tested if can budget this. There are services available that do this or you can check out local universities with metabolic labs. If you contact the grad department you may be able to find someone conducting research and may use you as a test subject. From clinical observations there is only a ~5% change in REE.

    I see a lot of similar issues related to hypothyroidism. The issue with weight and hormones is problematic as it is nearly impossible to maintain any sort of balance while overweight. Hormones are free cycling and will have greater difficulty finding their receptor sites simply due to the increase in tissue.
  • waterjcky43
    waterjcky43 Posts: 1 Member
    edited February 2017
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    Hello....my battle is similar, however, I am a little older, well a lot older ;) (50). I had a hysterectomy at about 40, and did well with my weight until about 3 years ago. The nightmare was steady weight gain during exercise (cardio and weights) and eating torture. Stress is a HUGE part of the barrier to weight loss for mine and others with similar symptoms, it is so hard to relieve stress in these hormonal times. My journey has been filled with numerous changes, adjustments and flavor of the month advice and lots of screaming and tears. I had moved away from a doctor (4 years ago) with whom I trusted and who is empathetic and provides solid health guidance, he is also a tri-athlete. I got back in touch with him and he recently has suggested an overhaul in my nutrition & exercise profile, I am in my 3rd day, so nothing to really report yet, but the food advice is simple, determine my maintenance calories and reduce my maintenance by about 3000 calories per week (eat well no junk, a treat on occasion is reality and ok). For me, he is changing me to 90% cardio. Why is he having me do this? I need to burn fat, building muscle will help increase my metabolism some, but also will put on weight. Also, doing the labs again. So, this is my new start, hopefully, sharing my info helps! Keep at it, you will find the combination that works for you! If you like, I will report back on my journey!
  • Jess830409
    Jess830409 Posts: 285 Member
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    kshama2001 wrote: »
    CharlieBeansmomTracey wrote: »
    I am perimenopausal and I also have a metabolic disorder. while weight loss for me is slower, I still lose weight.I would talk to your doctors and maybe get a second opinion and see if maybe a change in meds would make a difference as well(if you currently take any). also the less you have to lose the slower it is going to be. I have 22lbs to lose and they have been the hardest.as for hormone imbalances,it too would be getting the levels right.. if your stomach is getting bigger is any other area getting bigger? maybe get an ultrasound on your stomach done to make sure you dont have any issues causing it(stomach issues causing severe bloating,tumors,etc.).

    Despite uterine fibroids being unlikely with the OP's estrogen being at post-menopausal levels, I would also check this just to rule it out as the cause of the increased stomach. My fibroids certainly make my stomach bigger >.<

    Thank you both. I would say 90% of the weight gain is in my stomach. I gained almost 50 lbs, so I am definitely concerned. I appreciate you sharing and passing on these suggestions!!
  • Beeps2011
    Beeps2011 Posts: 11,953 Member
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    ronjsteele1 wrote: »

    On the hormone side of things, I found using bio-identical hormone replacements to be far better in terms of actually balancing my hormones and making me feel better. I do not take the doctor's "they're in normal range" as acceptable. I try to keep my progesterone at 2/3 to 3/4 of the upper end of the range and my estrogen at 1/2-2/3 of the range. That's based on how I feel at those levels. You might feel better at levels higher or lower then those. The low end of the ranges most doctors will say is "normal" but it's not if it makes you feel like crap and affects your weight loss. I finally found a functional medicine doctor that knew how to tweak the hormones and then have them compounded specifically for what I need and I have done much much better over the years. Compounding bio-identicals allows the doctor to literally give you exactly what you need instead of "this comes in 20mg, 40mg, etc." What if I only need 38mg of progesterone per gram of cream? That extra 2mg can be miserable and it does affect weight loss efforts. So using compounded creams has been my lifesaver.

    Don't know if this helps at all, but this has been my experience.

    this is very interesting to me.

    I have medically-induced menopause, too. Went on HRT 6 months ago. Prior to tumor-ovary removal, my weight jumped 15 lbs in 4 months. After surgery, I stayed at the SAME (too high) weight for all the months on HRT.

    After seriously counting calories starting in November (....I have always been a 3-day per week lifter and 1-day per week cardio....so, the exercise piece is FINE and I do NOT "add back" any calories...), I have only lost 3 lbs. Basically about 0.3 lbs per week.

    I do follow Brad Pilon and he has told me in a conference call that "estrogen" will f**k up any scale-loss victories. So, I cannot "cut out" my HRT...but I wonder if I tried to "decrease" it if that might actually help my scale-loss?!?!?

    I have 12 more lbs to go....and, it looks like it will take me most of 2017 to shave that off.
  • Jess830409
    Jess830409 Posts: 285 Member
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    @Beeps2011 I feel there may be more like us that struggle to even lose an ounce! HRT, for me, was a huge reason I put on almost 50 lbs. I have been ok being off of them - almost 5 months now - but that scale fails to move! Part of me wants to go back to a low dose and see if it helps, but I hate messing with hormone levels when I dont know if it will cause more harm than good! I wonder what the suggestion on estrogen is. For me, increased dose meant more weight gain.
  • Jess830409
    Jess830409 Posts: 285 Member
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    @CSARdiver I have always wanted to get that type of testing done; just never had the funds to do so. I will probably look into it again, as I am sure my BMR has to be extremely low now. I have one from being able to eat 1,600 a day and reaching my 120 goal doing it - to now, I have decreased first to 1,500 and then again to 1,300...and nothing. Appreciate the feedback!
  • Jess830409
    Jess830409 Posts: 285 Member
    Options
    waterjcky43 wrote: »
    Hello....my battle is similar, however, I am a little older, well a lot older ;) (50). I had a hysterectomy at about 40, and did well with my weight until about 3 years ago. The nightmare was steady weight gain during exercise (cardio and weights) and eating torture. Stress is a HUGE part of the barrier to weight loss for mine and others with similar symptoms, it is so hard to relieve stress in these hormonal times. My journey has been filled with numerous changes, adjustments and flavor of the month advice and lots of screaming and tears. I had moved away from a doctor (4 years ago) with whom I trusted and who is empathetic and provides solid health guidance, he is also a tri-athlete. I got back in touch with him and he recently has suggested an overhaul in my nutrition & exercise profile, I am in my 3rd day, so nothing to really report yet, but the food advice is simple, determine my maintenance calories and reduce my maintenance by about 3000 calories per week (eat well no junk, a treat on occasion is reality and ok). For me, he is changing me to 90% cardio. Why is he having me do this? I need to burn fat, building muscle will help increase my metabolism some, but also will put on weight. Also, doing the labs again. So, this is my new start, hopefully, sharing my info helps! Keep at it, you will find the combination that works for you! If you like, I will report back on my journey!

    Thank you for sharing! It can be very confusing. Some say too much cardio is too much stress and only increases cortisol and hinders weightloss...others say the opposite! I would be very interested in your results! Best of luck!! Thanks again
  • ronjsteele1
    ronjsteele1 Posts: 1,064 Member
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    Jess830409 wrote: »
    @Beeps2011 I feel there may be more like us that struggle to even lose an ounce! HRT, for me, was a huge reason I put on almost 50 lbs. I have been ok being off of them - almost 5 months now - but that scale fails to move! Part of me wants to go back to a low dose and see if it helps, but I hate messing with hormone levels when I dont know if it will cause more harm than good! I wonder what the suggestion on estrogen is. For me, increased dose meant more weight gain.

    I my experience is any help, I found progesterone helped weight loss and estrogen increased weight. If you have the option of doing bio-progesterone at a dose to bring you in normal range and bio-estrogen to put you barely at the edge of low normal that might be an option? Also, if you try HRT again, I would only add one hormone at a time and use that one for 3-4 months before trying the other. At least by adding them separately, if one starts to make you gain you'll catch which one right away and can stop that one. I have a feeling thyroid is a biggie too. It may have been fine a few years ago but menopause does strange things to people's hormones. A must check b/c it may not have been the HRT at all that caused the issues if your thyroid has been low and untreated the entire time.

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