The Hormone Cure: Reclaim Balance, Sleep, Sex Drive, and Vitality Naturally with the Gottfried Protocol

by Sara Gottfried MD, Christianne Northrup (Foreword by)

Overview

The New York Times bestselling guide to hormone balance that helps women of all ages achieve increased energy, resilience, vitality, and sensuality through science-based natural therapies.

All too often women are told that feeling moody, asexual, tapped out, dried up, stressed out, and sleep deprived is just a part of being female. Or they’re led to believe that the answer can be found only at the bottom of a bottle of prescription pills. Dr. Sara Gottfried, a Harvard-educated physician and nationally recognized, board-certified gynecologist, refuses to accept that being a woman means feeling overwhelmed or that popping pills is the new normal. In The Hormone Cure, she shares the unique hormone-balancing program that she has used to help thousands of women reclaim wellness, verve, and optimal health.

Combining natural therapies with rigorous scientific testing and using an informative questionnaire to identify the common causes of hormonal imbalance, Dr. Gottfried provides an individualized plan in nonjudgmental and thoughtful language. Based on ten years’ study of cutting-edge medical research as a specialist in functional and integrative therapies, Dr. Gottfried’s three-tiered treatment strategy includes:

•Supplements and targeted lifestyle changes that address underlying deficiencies

•Herbal therapies that restore balance and optimize your body’s natural function

•Bioidentical hormones—most available without a prescription

The Hormone Cure is a groundbreaking book that demonstrates how balancing your hormones can cure underlying health issues and result in restored sleep, greater energy, improved mood, easy weight loss, increased productivity, and many more benefits. Dr. Sara Gottfried’s The Hormone Cure will transform your life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781451666953
Publisher:	Scribner
Publication date:	03/11/2014
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	480
Sales rank:	92,100
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Sara Gottfried, M.D., is a Harvard-educated physician and board-certified gynecologist who treats the root cause of problems, not just symptoms. A nationally-recognized yoga teacher, Gottfried teaches women how to balance their hormones naturally. She has been featured in Yoga Journal, Glamour, and Cosmopolitan magazines and in the award-winning film, YogaWoman.

Table of Contents

Foreword Dr. Christiane Northrop, MD xi

Preface xv

Part I Educate and Illuminate: Understanding the New Hormonal Landscape

Introduction: Why Hormones Matter 3

1 Getting Started: Fill Out the Questionnaires 22

2 A Hormonal Primer: Everything You Need to Know About Hormones 42

3 Perimenopause: Your Own Personal Global Warming Crisis, Hypervigilance, and Tighter Jeans 56

Part II Assess, Diagnose, Treat: From Imbalance to Ideal Hormonal Specimen

4 High and/or Low Cortisol: Stress Case? Is Life Without Caffeine Not Worth Living? 71

5 Low-Progesterone Blues and Progesterone Resistance: Heavy Periods, PMS, Insomnia, and Infertility? 121

6 Excess Estrogen: Depressed and Chunky? 150

7 Low Estrogen: Are You Dry and Cranky? 178

8 Excess Androgens: Do You Have Pimples, Ovarian Cysts, and Rogue Hairs? 205

9 Low Thyroid: Weight Gain, Fatigue, and Mood Problems? 231

10 Common Combinations of Hormonal Imbalances 263

11 Hormonal Nirvana: Staying on Course 286

Epilogue 308

Part III Appendix

A The Gottfried Protocol, by Hormone Imbalance 313

B Glossary of Terms 321

C Hormones and Their Functions 331

D How to Find and Work Collaboratively with Practitioners for Your Hormone Cure 335

E Recommended Labs for Home Testing 339

F The Gottfried Food Plan 341

G Normal and Optimal Ranges of Hormone Levels and Related Laboratory Tests 343

H Fertility, Conception, Pregnancy, and Lactation Protocols 347

Paperback Q and A 361

Acknowledgments 381

Notes 387

Index 429

Editorial Reviews

"Gottfried takes a comprehensive look at the most common physical and emotional ailments affecting women and explains why a hormone imbalance may be at their root. Her premise is simple: when a woman’s hormones are in sync, she’s a powerhouse, but when they’re out of whack, they wreak havoc on her body and mind. The book is both fun and an informative read [and] Gottfried’s take on the female body is eye-opening and empowering."

Spirituality and Health

“The Hormone Cure is the playbook for your mojo, your mind, and your bootie. With every chapter I thought, "So THAT's how that works." I wanted to call every girlfriend and give them the goods on how to glow...now and always

Danielle LaPorte

Occasionally a book comes along that’s perfect for its time-on topic, written with authority. Such is the book by Sara Gottfried, MD. It is a definitive integration of safe and effective approaches to the management of menopause.

Jeffrey Bland

"Gottfried, a beautiful Harvard Medical School graduate, board-certified gynecologist, and yoga teacher, looks like an advertisement for healthy living and convincingly pushes women to make lifestyle changes rather than immediately asking for conventional prescription drugs to treat problems such as depression. Most of her tips are solid and helpful...A valuable title."

Booklist

“The Hormone Cure is a breakthrough hormone guide—entertaining, persuasive, hilarious. I’ve not seen this content anywhere! Get to the root of your issues: low energy, fatigue, low sex drive, anxiety, weight gain. This book is gold.

Marci Shimoff

A magnificent book! Every woman needs to read it, and every doctor.

Louann Brizendine

Never before have I read a book and shouted, ‘Oh my God, that’s ME!’ Managing hormones is the most important issue of women my age. I don’t just want to read Sara Gottfried, I want her to be my doctor, my friend, and my sister.

Ayelet Waldman

Don’t accept the hormonal hell of being tired, stressed, fat, never in the mood for sex. Dr. Gottfried gives you an effective, easy-to-follow plan to balance your hormones and become lean and energetic. Stop settling, reclaim your sexy!

JJ Virgin

This wonderful book transforms how we approach women’s health issues, and will help you understand how to achieve hormonal equilibrium if you suffer from fatigue, depression and other endocrine-based neuropsychiatric symptoms.

Jay Lombard

Dr. Sara is smart, she’s hip, and yet she’s pure Harvard! Learn how to make your hormones hum. Run, don’t walk, to buy this book—for yourself and your friends. The life you save may be your own.

Hyla Cass

"Gottfried, a beautiful Harvard Medical School graduate, board-certified gynecologist, and yoga teacher, looks like an advertisement for healthy living and convincingly pushes women to make lifestyle changes rather than immediately asking for conventional prescription drugs to treat problems such as depression. Most of her tips are solid and helpful...A valuable title."

Booklist