If I had to categorize my health by decades, my twenties were the child-bearing years. If I wasn’t birthing, I was nursing, and those years blew by faster than expected. I bounced back into my tiny jeans after every pregnancy and my husband always thought I was hot.
My thirties looked like growing years when we were solidly in the middle of raising six kids on the farm while grandparents passed away left and right. We suddenly felt old and death didn’t seem as far away as it did in our youth. The middle aged bulge became a daily battle as I realized my metabolism looked a little different and didn’t work quite so efficiently. No more brownies for midnight snacks.
My forties just started so when several minor annoyances pestered me, I pushed them away because I was too busy to consider any bodily changes. Just because graying hair is now my newest accessory, welcoming other old lady problems wasn’t on my agenda. Too bad for me. Thankfully, a friend who’d just finished getting certified as an FDN Practitioner made some suggestions on where to start making changes and seeking the source of my new (minor) health issues. Migraines. Weight gain. Exhaustion. I’m always tired after raising six kids and working full time on the farm but this felt different and I never felt fully rested.
Perimenopause
Peri-what? I wondered, after many friends suggested my new bodily changes were actually perimenopause. What the heck? Menopause is for old ladies, I know, but perimenopause? I’m pretty sure I’ve never heard anyone talk about this intro to menopause.
Ugh, why does growing older have to be so gross?
Thankfully, there are resources to meet our bodies changing needs.
As an FDN Practitioner, Lindsey Locklear helps her clients get to feeling their best by focusing on functional tests to find out what is going on within their bodies and then implementing a protocol based on those results. This is not a quick and easy diet plan. Every client is different, therefore, every protocol she suggests is based on that individual. Some clients may feel better immediately just by changing their diets, while others may need more time. Everyone is different!
Female Test Time
While working with Lindsey, I completed 3 tests: the HTMA (Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis) to see if I was lacking any minerals, the GI Map to see what my gut microbiome looked like, and the Stress & Hormone Panel to see what was going on with my stress and sex hormones.
The first test HTMA showed a Slow Oxidizer, which means that energy from food is released too slowly. I had the beginning of a Calcium shell, which means calcium isn’t going to bones/teeth where it should. Other minerals can’t do their job because calcium has begun to form around cells. For this particular test, 2 out of the 6 rations were in good range. The other 4 indicate minerals were off and needed attention.
The second test, a GI Map showed no pathogens but H.Pylori presence (common bacteria). Symptoms typically include acid reflux, abdominal pain, nausea, and burning in stomach although none of these affected me. Good Bacteria was present. Bad Bacteria showed only 3 strains present which is really good! Digestive Markers were pretty good! Only 3 things stood out: not doing a great job with clearing hormones, immune function was a little low, and reacting to gluten.
The third test, a SHP showed Stress Hormones were low and out of balance. No surprise there. My picture is literally next to the word stress in the dictionary. Sex Hormones showed my Estradiol was low; Progesterone was extremely low; and Testosterone fell within a normal range.
After seeing my test results and the areas that were causing dysfunction, Lindsey customized a DRESS protocol specific to my needs. We discussed the areas of Diet, Rest, Exercise, Stress Reduction, and Supplementation.
Perimenopause. As long as I know the symptoms and feel adequate to meet them head on, thanks to friends like Lindsey, who are knowledgeable in this area and can suggest changes to implement, I can do this.
The Peri-Plan
So I’m several months into this and finally faithful with my suggested supplements after needing to pause as yet another issue arose. I’m finally feeling better and started back with daily exercise which feels great. Lindsey’s help and perseverance in helping me get to the bottom of this has been so helful. More women should freely discuss health issues, especially as we age and our bodies change because it is terrifying to think we are going through these changes alone. Knowing it’s common gave me such relief.
Have you gone through perimenopause? What age did you first notice symptoms? Did anything alleviate them?
More About Living Well with Lindsey
Lindsey holds a Bachelor’s of Education in Varying Exceptionalities, where she taught children with special needs. She left the classroom after the birth of her first child and proceeded to spend the next 17 years at home, homeschooling her three children.
After experiencing years of nagging symptoms, including brain fog, extreme fatigue, weight gain, and hormonal changes, with no help from her doctors, she was over it! She decided to put her health into her own hands and fell in love with the philosophy behind Functional Diagnostic Nutrition®!
Lindsey has found success with her own DRESS for Health Success® protocol and feels passionate about helping others do the same.
She lives in Saint Augustine, FL with her husband (who also found great success on his DRESS® protocol), three children, and their dog, Jackson, and rabbit, Milo.
Interested in learning more about your own health? Reach out to Lindsay today! She is amazing and knowledgeable and ready to help you deep dive into building a better, healthier body. You can check out her website here or email her at livingwellwl@gmail.com for more info. Tell her I sent you!