Functional Medicine | Women's Health
By Dr. Shawna Darou, ND Many women I have spoken with over the years list irritability as one of the complaints that brings them to a naturopathic consult. First of all, this is a common response to being overwhelmed in life - too many demands and not enough time for self-care. Building in some regular time for yourself can make a big impact on …
Continue Reading about Feeling Irritable? It’s not all in your head →
By Dr. Shawna Darou, ND You may have heard of a condition called PMDD, or premenstrual dysphoric disorder which is a more severe form of PMS impacting the mood. PMDD has a diagnostic criteria according to the DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders), with symptoms appearing the week before menstruation, and lifting within a …
Continue Reading about PMDD – what to do when your period interferes with your life →
By Dr. Shawna Darou, ND I’m always so excited to speak with people who are on the same wavelength, and also on a mission to reframe negative cultural connotations about our menstrual cycles. I truly believe that tracking your cycles and understanding your own patterns through the month is an incredibly empowering practice. Earlier this week, …
By Dr. Shawna Darou, ND Stress and worry are things that most of us deal with from time to time, so we're generally familiar with feelings of anxiety that come from our daily stressors and significant life events. What's less commonly known and explored are the physiological causes of anxiety, or in other words physical changes that trigger an …
Our food cravings can indicate imbalances in the body, and especially of our neurotransmitters. For simplicity, I’m just focusing on two here: serotonin and dopamine. The production of both of these neurotransmitters is negatively affected by stress, and you can have a susceptibility to imbalances with them through your …
All women with circulating hormones experience change in their cycle as estrogen and progesterone levels rise and fall. What this means is that we are not the same every day of the month - one week you may be more sensitive, one week you may be more creative, and another you may have lots of energy. I’ve written about this before, and strongly …
Continue Reading about PMS – what’s normal and tips to manage it →
