A battle plan for "feeling like me again!"
by Angle Fielden, CPhT
S
earch & Rescue: It's time to begin the search, and rescue these women from being held captive. Let's call on central intelligence and recap what has taken place in our women. Intelligence says, "At about the age of 40 to 50, strange things start happening to a woman's body. All of a sudden, women start getting hot flashes, night sweats, moodiness, sleepless nights, joint pain, depression, low libido, vaginal dryness and a foggy brain. Furthermore, there seems to be confusion on how to attack these symptoms. There is controversy within the ranks —physicians, pharmaceutical manufacturing companies, PDA, compounding pharmacies and the women themselves. The women must decide to do some research on their own if there is any chance of fighting this war against menopause." So as you can see, we must send a rescue team in and help these women.Plan of attack: Ladies, it's time to do our research in order to get our mission underway. Where should we go to find the research? The Internet has a wealth of information. Look for reference when looking at any information.
Another good place to find research is in well-written books by known authors. Ask someone who is recommending BHRT (Bio-Identical Hormone Replacement) for women for names of good books you can read or where you can find them and do the research you are needing. After reading, you can decide what type of therapy you want to use to attack your symptoms. Then you are ready to go to your physician with your research. Be well prepared to explain more in depth what you are wanting to do; call a compounding pharmacy that has someone specializing in BHRT.
Mission under way: Once you have talked to your physician and you have both agreed on what therapy is best for you, decide on a compounding pharmacy you will be using. Suggestion: check out different compounding pharmacies and see how long they have been doing BHRT and how much experience they have. Do they have any recommendation from other patients/physician or their testimonies? Cost may be a factor for some people, so ask up front how much it will cost a month. Many insurance companies' co-pay for non-formulary are between $35.00 to $50.00.
Mission accomplished: After you have been on BHRT for around two to thee months, you will want to get follow-up blood work to see if you have reached your optimal levels. Make a follow-up appointment with your doctor or compounding pharmacy BHRT specialist to see if you may need some adjustments. It is time to enjoy life again and claim victory over this war against menopausal ignorance. Remember, hormones are not the enemy. The enemy is ignorance. •
Angle Fielden, bio-identical hormone replacement
specialist at Solutions Pharmacy, has five years' experience
in counseling and educating patients. Solutions, 4632
Highway 58 North, was named "the nation's experts in
formulating bio-identical hormones" by the American
Medical Review. Call (423) 894-0423 for appointment for,
a free in-house hormone assessment. *
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