How I'm Balancing My Hormones and Healing My Ovarian Cysts Naturally

When I was told I couldn't heal my ovarian cysts naturally, I was out on a mission to prove them wrong.

About 3 years ago, I developed ovarian cysts that decided to wreck havoc on my body, leaving me with terrible symptoms and hormonal imbalance.

For the last 2 years I’ve been cleaning up my life from food to environmental toxins to heal my cysts without the help of modern medicine…and thank goodness it’s working!

If you’re a woman with hormonal issues, it’s so easy for a doctor to throw you on the birth control pill to mask all your problems. That’s not addressing the root issue. If your body is trying to tell you something for a reason, it’s time you listen to it.

How do you know if you have unbalanced hormones?

Usually it’s when you have too much or too little estrogen in your system. For me, it’s estrogen dominance, but you should have blood work or a hormone level test done to know specifically how to balance your hormones.

Here are some symptoms in women:

• Heavy or irregular periods, including missed periods

• Weight Gain or trouble losing weight

• PCOS Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome or Ovarian Cysts

• Acne on the face, chest, or upper back

• Pain during sex or loss of libido

• Anxiety and Depression

• Fatigue

• Thinning hair or hair loss

• Hirsutism, or excessive hair on the face, chin, or other parts of the body

• Vaginal Dryness

Your hormones are in charge of a lot more than I thought. Any little tweak could mess you up in all these different ways. That's why hormone balance is so important.

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Here is a full account of what I’ve been doing to heal my ovarian cysts and balance my hormones naturally:

*Preamble: I’m not a doctor…needles freak me out! Consult with a doctor, or better yet a natural medicine doctor to help you balance your hormones. This is just what has worked for me.

I Didn't Go Back on the Pill

This is the most important thing because even though my doctor (and three others) wanted me to go back on the pill to stop my ovarian cysts (she even wrote me a prescription for it!) I didn't do it. Yes, it will make you periods more regular, but it can also make your hormones even more imbalanced. It's not addressing the root cause. Going off the pill and not having synthetic hormones in my body has been the best decision for me and I'm happy I didn't listen to my doctor's advice.

I Gave up Meat

Much to my chagrin, this has by far been the thing that has had the most effect on my cysts. Believe me, I’m crying on the inside because I LOVE MEAT (cue Oprah.) So I gave it up completely for 1 month, and shortly after that time my symptoms almost completely subsided. Coincidence?

Why do I think this helped? Honestly, with all their added hormones, steroids and antibiotics and the fact that animals eat genetically modified, not organic food laden with pesticides probably has something to do with it. And there is a considerate amount of research saying that meat causes a plethora of disease, so all in all it’s just not the best thing for you.

After giving it up cold turkey (and cold turkey was hard to give up too) for about 5 weeks, I started treating myself to having meat in small quantities, but I like to limit myself to once a week.

And honestly, once I discovered black bean veggie burgers as an alternative, it really hasn’t been that bad.

I Limit Dairy

Here again with the elimination…it will get easier I promise. But like meat, dairy comes from animals and is filled with their hormones. Milk is baby cow growth serum and is not really intended for human consumption. BUT…I love cheese. Like, a lot. So this has been really tough. My rule is that I don’t consume direct milk, not even in coffee or cream of any kind. What I do have is a sprinkle of parmesan cheese on my pasta and use some butter. That’s it. Aside from hormone balance, my stomach has felt a lot better since I limited dairy so that’s some food for thought. And honestly, coconut milk ice cream is just as good.

I Steer Clear of Soy

Soy is a commonly known estrogen mimicker, which acts like estrogen in the body and can seriously unbalance your hormones. Soy can be found in veggie burgers, Asian sauces, tofu, and processed foods. I steer clear of this as best I can.

I Cut Back on Gluten

Again, like Oprah, I love bread. I could eat bread for a meal if I could, and I often did. Now, I cut back by eating gluten free pasta and only eating bread with little ingredients…not processed from a bag. I will definitely splurge and eat pizza, but otherwise I am now the obnoxious ‘no bun’ girl.

I Drastically Decreased My Sugar Consumption

No meat, no dairy, no bread, and now no sugar?? Are you serious?? Okay, I get it, it seems like a lot. But honestly, once I cut back, I don't crave it as much! See the full story here.

I Eat Mostly Organic

I say mostly because when I obviously don't when eating out or when I'm at people’s houses, I’m not going to turn down fruit if that’s the healthy option, just because it’s not organic. But for my home, I try to purchase everything from the store organic. Why? I could go on a rant, but I believe that pesticides are not safe. Even if they’re approved by the FDA, there is not enough time and research on all of them to warrant a stamp of approval to be in my body. They are meant to kill small living things, so my common sense says it won’t kill me, but it’ll kill small parts of my body. Also, I’ve read success stories of women with irregular periods who have switched to organic and are back to normal.

I Stopped Using Toxic Self Care Products

Basically things we use every day are filled with toxic chemicals that can mess with your endocrine system (hormone system.) Shampoos, lotions, make-up, etc are all filled with xenoestrogens that mimic hormones when absorbed into your body. I’ve switched to all natural products and check them before I buy with the Think Dirty app, which rates them on toxicity. When you think about all the products you use in a day and then read the labels, you’ll be appalled about what you’re putting on your body.

I Stopped Using Toxic Cleaning Supplies

Just like self care products you don’t want on your skin, you don’t want them in your home either. I used to LOVE Clorox wipes. I would use them almost every day. Yes my hand would smell like Clorox and I didn’t realize that it was because all those chemicals had leached into my skin. The same goes for laundry detergent, dish soap and air fresheners. Now my favorite cleaning products are from Seventh Generation. I’ll be posting about my favorite safe cleaning supplies later this week.

I Stopped Drinking Out of Plastic Water Bottles

Before my cysts came out full force, I had only been drinking out of plastic water bottles for 6 weeks straight. The plastic in these water bottles is BPA, which leeches into the water as micro-plastics and then we consume them. BPA is a known endocrine disrupter! It’s also found in plastic food containers, which is why you should never heat food up in them. I switched to glass Tupperware and reusable stainless steel water bottles and haven’t looked back. Plus, it’s better for the environment.

I Eat a Plant Based Diet (for the most part)

Switching to a plant based diet for me as been a big adjustment, but it’s been so worth it. I feel so much better overall and feel better knowing I’m fueling my body with the nutrients it needs. I learned how to not focus a meal around a cut of meat and introduced foods like beans, chickpeas, and beets into my diet that I never used to eat. No, I don’t eat a salad every day. In fact, I really don’t even eat many salads at all. Instead of reaching for a processed meal, I get creative with fruits and vegetables and fuel my body for success. For great hormone balancing recipes, check out hormonesbalance.com

I Take A Ton of Supplements

My supplement regime has been key in my hormone balance. My absolute musts are a B Complex vitamin, Vitamin D, a probiotic, magnesium, a multi and Balance from Dr. Jolene Brighten. The last one has liver detoxification aids which clear out excess estrogen.

I Track my cycle

I use the Natural Cycles app to keep track of my period, mood, anxiety level etc. to see if my cycle is irregular. At first, it was all over the place…but it’s been evening out the last couple months, which means my hormones are balancing!!

I Limit my stress Levels

Stress hormones like cortisol can throw your reproductive hormones out of whack by stalling or starting your period early. To help battle this, I use prayer and meditation to keep my stress levels at bay.

As you can see there are so many components that go into hormone balancing. Even if you just start off by doing one thing (like not using plastic water bottles!) you’re on your way to reducing your exposure to xenoestrogens and balancing your hormones.

If anyone is struggling with ovarian cysts and have come up with other natural remedies for hormone balance, or if you have questions, please comment or message me!

xo,

Gina

#hormonebalancing #wellnessblogger #ovariancysts #ovariancystnaturaltreatment