After sleeping for eight hours, you still feel very tired. You get easily irritated over nothing. You skip going to the gym, and by nighttime, you don’t want to have anything to do with sex. These are signs of hormonal imbalance or low hormonal levels. At LUNA Clinic in Austin, TX, we put this guide together to explain what HRT is and who it may help.
Hormone imbalance affects your energy, mood, and libido. By the time women reach their 40s, they can lose almost half of their testosterone, while men experience a gradual decrease.
When these hormone levels drop, you start to experience various symptoms, including low libido, fatigue, and mood changes. Hormone replacement therapy HRT in Austin, TX, is an effective treatment used to boost and balance hormonal levels, which ultimately helps to reverse those symptoms you’re experiencing.
Hormones are your body chemical messengers that act as a control system throughout your entire body. They help to maintain balance in all areas of your body system.
When they drop, many things in your body go wrong, including your sexual life, energy, and mood. If you’ve lost interest in sex, you’re always tired, and you always experience mood changes, you’re experiencing symptoms of low hormonal levels. You need to get HRT in Austin, TX, to reverse those symptoms.
When it comes to hormones, a single symptom is not enough to tell the whole story. Life in Austin is hectic, with long commutes and lots of stress. It’s easy to think your tiredness is only from daily pressure, but fatigue can also signal that your sex hormones are low. When that happens, the stress hormone (cortisol) can get thrown off balance too.
Most standard lab tests don’t always detect this. They usually measure “total” hormone levels, but that number doesn’t show how much your body can actually use.
One of the main reasons for this is Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin (SHBG). If SHBG is too high, it locks away testosterone, keeping it from reaching your cells. This means your test results could be normal, but your hormone is still running low.
If your sex drive has dropped, your hormonal level is often the first to be checked. Your body’s number one priority is survival. In the face of already overtaxed energy and focus, sexual desire is pushed to the side. For women, the silent cause is low estrogen and testosterone. In men, the cause is low testosterone.
The body may also convert excessive amounts of testosterone into estrogen (aromatization), which can lead to decreased libido, weight gain, and mood changes.
Treatment is not a one-size-fits-all approach. The proper dose will vary depending on how rapidly the hormones are eliminated by the liver. If the levels become too high, estrogen can spike and negate all of your hard work.
If you are getting 8 hours of sleep and still feel tired when you wake up, the issue is not that you are not sleeping long enough; the main culprit is your hormones. Thyroid hormone and testosterone control the production of energy in your cells. When those levels fall, sleep ceases to be restorative.
Fatigue is not the same for everyone. If you feel wired at night and exhausted in the morning, it is likely your cortisol is off balance. If you’re feeling dull throughout the day and have no energy to do anything, then your estrogen or testosterone levels are low. So many people attempt to fix the issue by taking sleep medications without performing a hormone test. This approach will not solve the problem.
Hormones could be the reason you’re feeling irritable, anxious, or unmotivated. Estrogen affects the production of serotonin, the chemical that regulates your mood in your brain. Changes in estrogen, especially during perimenopause, can cause irritability and a lack of motivation. Low testosterone in men is frequently manifested as withdrawal and constant grumpiness.
When you sleep, your body produces most of its hormones. But if your hormones are already off-balance, your sleep becomes restless, and restless sleep makes your hormone levels drop even further the next day. It’s a cycle that quietly gets worse if nothing is done.
Brain fog follows the same pattern. Both estrogen and testosterone directly affect how your brain works. When either one drops, your brain becomes inflamed and sluggish. You might walk into a room and forget why, or lose a thought mid-sentence.
Getting HRT right for low libido starts with comprehensive testing. We look at complete blood count, liver function, and a full thyroid panel. Underlying anemia or hypothyroidism can completely block the benefits of testosterone therapy.
We also want to understand the timeline. How long have these symptoms been present, and did they follow a specific pattern. All these will help tailor your treatment to ensure maximum success.
How hormones are introduced into your body is more important than you think. Each delivery method is different, and the ideal method for you will vary according to your lifestyle and how your body responds.
Tiny pellets are inserted just under your skin around your lower abdomen, buttocks or thighs. The pellets slowly release hormones over a period of 3-4 months. It’s great for those who travel often or for people who find it difficult to maintain their normal hormonal balance.
Primarily for men, testosterone injections are fast and effective. The twice-weekly dose keeps the hormone at a healthy level and prevents excess estrogen from accumulating.
Applied directly to the skin, but the absorption rate is not consistent. Your skin type, moisture, and habits like showering immediately after can reduce the level of absorption.
These small lozenges dissolve in your mouth, absorbing through your inner cheek lining. They do not require liver processing. They are fast-acting and effective at providing testosterone and progesterone.
Low libido isn’t just about sex. Your body can only do so much at once. When it’s busy keeping your brain functioning and your organs running smoothly, your sex drive gets pushed to the back of the line.
For women, a sudden drop in testosterone is often the hidden reason behind a disappearing sex drive. For men, your body may be converting too much testosterone into estrogen, which reduces your libido while also causing weight gain and mood swings.
Getting the dosing right is everything. Push testosterone too high too fast, and estrogen spikes, making things worse, not better. Your Hormone Replacement Therapy is based on how quickly your liver processes hormones, keeping everything precisely balanced for your body.
At LUNA Clinic, we are the best medspa in Austin, TX, and hormone care is approached as part of a broader personalized wellness plan. The goal is to understand your symptoms, health history, lifestyle, and individual goals before determining whether hormone replacement therapy may be appropriate.
Your hormone levels are only one part of the picture. Factors such as sleep, stress, overall wellness, and how you feel day to day can also help guide the conversation around treatment.
If you are experiencing low libido, fatigue, mood changes, poor sleep, brain fog, or other symptoms that may be related to hormone changes, contact LUNA Clinic in Austin, TX to discuss your options.
Yes, and when all three are present, hormones are almost always a factor. As the levels of testosterone and estrogen decline, your brain becomes deprived of the chemicals it requires to keep your energy, emotions, and sex drive even. These symptoms rarely appear in isolation.
Absolutely. Your serotonin levels follow your estrogen, and serotonin is what keeps your mood steady. At the same time, low testosterone decreases the efficiency with which your cells produce energy, meaning that you are feeling tired even after you get a good night’s rest.
Testosterone is responsible for sexual desire, motivation, and physical recovery in both men and women. It is produced by the adrenal glands and the ovaries in women, and a slight drop can make a huge difference to your libido and emotional state.
Yes. Your body makes its own calming hormone, called progesterone. Once it falls below the level of estrogen, you may experience anxiety, mood swings, and a sense of being overwhelmed.
Deep sleep is when most of your hormones are produced. Fatigue, mood swings, and lack of libido are all more noticeable the following day if you are not getting a good night’s sleep or your sleep is disturbed.
Typical testing includes total and free testosterone, Estradiol, progesterone, SHBG, DHEA-S, a full thyroid panel, and a complete blood count.
Yes. Women require a careful balance of estrogen, progesterone, and low-dose testosterone. Men require testosterone optimization and careful monitoring of estrogen levels to avoid undesirable side effects.
Medical director: Amir Baluch, MD | Design by Outland Design Co.