I Knew I Felt “Off” Even When My Labs Were “Normal”

My 10-year journey through exhaustion, hormones, hair loss, and finally learning how to support my body in a more personalized way.

I grew up in a home where my mother never talked about menopause. Most likely because she didn’t know much about it herself.

So when it became my turn, I had no idea what to expect and honestly didn’t even know it was really happening because at the time, which was just maybe 10 years ago, nobody was really talking about it.

I remember going to the doctor because I was feeling extremely exhausted, which I chalked up to my long commute and if you live in Los Angeles, it’s actually a pretty valid excuse! I also was experiencing weight gain in my midsection, which was not the norm for me.

Like many women, I did the deep dive on Google trying to figure out what this could possibly be and I found some information on hormones and perimenopause, so I took that information to my doctor feeling like I was going in somewhat informed.

My general doctor ran the labs and did all the things only to tell me that everything was normal.

Looking back, it’s crazy to think that I was actually disappointed that I wasn’t given a diagnosis. I was hoping for some label to explain what was going on in my body so that at least I had steps and instructions as to what I could do to feel better, but when she hit me with “you’re fine,” I felt defeated and almost hopeless because if everything was OK, why did I feel like this?

Disappointingly, my doctor did leave me with some suggestions.

One, to get more rest. As if life would allow that. I was already getting my 6 to 8 hours of sleep and working a full time job!

Two, she also told me that I should probably do more sit-ups to help with my belly. I had just told her that I exercised five days a week and her solution for me was to do sit-ups?! Needless to say I was pissed.

And three, she handed me a prescription for antidepressants, which she said had helped so many women who were feeling tired and overwhelmed like me.

Intuitively, I knew that I didn’t need the antidepressants, but I took the prescription anyway just in case. That’s how desperate I was.

The last thing I told her was, “I know that you say everything is normal, but the one thing I do know for sure is that I don’t feel like myself.”

She assured me that her recommendations would really help. Obviously, they didn’t.

For the next 10 years, yes, I said 10! I went back to doing the deep dive on Google and social media because I didn’t know where else to go.

At the time, adrenal fatigue was the hot thing and the description fit the bill, so naturally me and my girlfriends self diagnosed ourselves with it.

Eventually, I found out that label wasn’t accurate for me. Wow, the time I spent trying to help my adrenals even when it wasn’t making me feel better is wild!

My next experiment was going to see a functional doctor and she was the one who confirmed that my adrenals actually weren’t the issue.

She did a DUTCH test, ran some labs, diagnosed me with leaky gut, gave me supplements to take, and a protein shake that she said would be helpful.

Honestly, I think I left there super overwhelmed because it was a lot of information all at one time, so I ended up doing the bare minimum, which lasted until the supplements ran out.

I didn’t feel better enough to continue and maybe that was my fault, but it’s definitely something that I notice for a lot of women. When women are given protocols that are overwhelming, it’s almost as if they freeze and end up doing nothing.

And honestly, what I’ve realized now is that this story is actually really common for women.

We know something feels off, but we either get told everything is normal, get overwhelmed with information, or end up spending years trying random things hoping something finally works.

I have been going to the same gynecologist for years and she had been consistently talking to me about hormones. But again, I was so misinformed that my belief was that since breast cancer ran in my family, I was not a candidate.

She assured me many times and gave me information to read about the women’s studies that were not accurate and how considering HRT could actually benefit me.

I finally listened and quite honestly, probably out of desperation because I did not know the woman who was living in my body anymore.

And that feeling is hard to explain unless you’ve been through it.

The brain fog.
The mood swings.
The weight gain.
The hair loss.

It all felt out of control and I couldn’t take it anymore.

Maybe because I had such high expectations of feeling like a new woman, I was kind of disappointed because I didn’t have the AHA moment that a lot of women seem to have once they start HRT.

Some things weren’t enough for me.
Some things were too much.
And some things just did not work for my body.

I was frustrated to say the least.

And that’s when I started realizing that maybe this wasn’t as simple as “just hormones.” Maybe my body needed a more personalized approach.

So again, I did the scroll and came across DNA testing.

I’m very much the girl who appreciates science and wants to understand how things work, what they do, and why. So this intrigued me so much.

I took the test, got the results, and it finally helped me understand how my body is genetically wired.

With this information, there was no more guessing as to which foods worked best for me, what I should avoid, or how my body responded to stress, sleep, and hormones.

I’ve always been pretty in tune with my body. I’ve exercised consistently throughout my life and have tried every diet out there to stay healthy and feel good. What I found was that some things that were suggested by friends, social media, or even wellness trends just didn’t necessarily work well for my body.

That was a huge lightbulb moment for me.

Instead of blindly guessing, I finally felt like I could start connecting the dots.

I’m fortunate that my doctor is so open to working with me and the information that I bring her about my genes. I’ve been able to go to my appointments with informed questions and ask for certain blood tests to be taken to rule out what could be causing hair loss.

At one point, I thought my hair loss was because of my fluctuating hormones but it was actually my blood sugar and insulin resistance that were the bigger culprits at that time. It enabled me to start focusing on the things that were actually moving the needle for me.

As someone who experiments all the time and does a lot of research around food, exercise, and health, it was pretty incredible to have an actual blueprint of my body that essentially gave me a map as to how to support myself.

I no longer had to waste time or money guessing and just hoping something would finally make me feel better.

Now, this is how I support women who are experiencing hair loss and other midlife symptoms get more personalized answers so they no longer have to feel overwhelmed, frustrated, and disconnected from themselves.

Because I think a lot of women know when something feels off in their body even when they’re being told everything is “normal.”

If any of this resonated with you and you’d like to see what this could look like for you, request a Hair + Wellness consult here.

Peace, Love, and Good Hair Days,

Chris