Aviva Romm - Hormone Intelligence: The Complete Guide to Calming Hormone Chaos and Restoring Your Bodys Natural Blueprint for Well-Being

I am no longer accepting the things I cannot change.

I am changing the things I cannot accept.

Angela Y. Davis

W ouldnt it be incredible if you could look forward to your periodor at least not hate it anymoreknowing you wont be struggling with cramps, crazy-ass mood swings, swollen breasts, and bloating? If you could wake up knowing that endometriosis pain wont make you pop Motrin, Advil, or something stronger just to make it through the day? How fantastic would it be to not have to take the Pill to suppress period pain, acne, endometriosis, or polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) symptoms? What if you knew you could get pregnant easily, when youre ready to, without spending tens of thousands of dollars and months of physical and mental stress on fertility treatmentsor you knew how to make those treatments more effective? What if we all knew we could look forward to a healthy menopause, free of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) to manage hot flashes, vaginal dryness, poor sleep, or a hysterectomy for fibroids? What if you could wake up each morning ready to face the day with energy and vitality, body confidence, and even (dare I say) feeling a bit sexy?

Youve probably already been searching online for answers, perhaps even changing your diet, taking supplements, doing yoga, or seeing an acupuncturist, naturopath, therapist, health coach, or all of the above. Brava! But sorting through the morass of options and expert guidance out there is overwhelming and even anxiety provoking. Theres so much information, its often conflicting, and its hard to know who and what to trust. You may have already spent a lot of time and money trying various approaches that just havent worked. It would make anyone want to throw their hands up, say F-It, and reach for the Motrin!

Welcome to a whole new medicine for women! I invite you to exhale, because all this is possible. Im Dr. Aviva Romm. The goal of this book is to change all that for you: to share practical, actionable, affordable guidelines that you know you can trust because theyve been clinically proven, and that really work to help you reclaim your hormonal, gynecologic, and whole health. Youve now got me on this journey with you, and Ive spent a combined thirty-six years practicing as a midwife and Yale-trained MD (yes, both!) specializing in womens health. I know a thing or two about why its time for a major paradigm shift from the old way of doing things with a pill for every ill and dismissive attitudes, to one that respects women, honors our capacity to heal, and doesnt turn to medications and surgery as the first or only solution for everything that ails us. I also know you need answers; I will bring you those that really make a difference.

Undoubtedly, youve picked this book up because youre experiencing a hormone imbalance or gynecologic condition thats somewhere along the spectrum of annoying and troublesome to severe or debilitating. Perhaps you know something is up, cant seem to get a diagnosis, and want to know whats going on. Perhaps youve had a diagnosis but are completely confused about what it means and what you can do. And perhaps you want more natural solutions than the pharmaceutical or surgical treatment youve been told is your only option.

If youre wondering what on earth is going on with your periods, if youre sick and tired of feeling hijacked by your hormones (lately or for as long as you can remember!), or simply uncomfortable, month after month, or day after day; if youre interested in natural alternatives but have no idea whats safe and effective, or if your questions have been dismissed by a doctor for what you were pretty sure were hormone conditions and havent been able to get a real answer about whats going on, youre not alone, and finally, youre in the right place.

Regardless of whether youre struggling with the specific symptoms or one of the seven major conditions I help you with in this book, youre curious to know more about your hormones and body, or youre not quite sure if a hormone imbalance is at the heart of what youre experiencingor its something elsethis book finally answers the questions: What does hormone health look like and how do you get it?

Why am I so passionate about supporting you on this journey? Because I believe you deserve to live your most powerful life and our hormones significantly influence pretty much everything. Simply put: if your hormones arent happy, neither are you! Also, as a woman, midwife + physician, and mom of three daughters, I know you need better answers than most women get at their doctors office.

As youll soon learn, were in the midst of a hidden epidemic in which an extraordinary number of women of all ages and life stagesat least 80% of uswill struggle with a hormone or gynecologic problem in our lifetime, significant enough to cause disruption in our life quality, career, or overall health. And though womens hormonal and gynecologic condition, from our teens through menopause, have surged to epic numbers over the past decade, too many in the medical establishment are willing to simply chalk this up to a new normal, and shrug and say take the Pill, with women being told in so many different ways that its no big deal.

But it is a big deal. There have been far too many women enduring