(hormone replacement therapy) & shedding light on why perhaps it works great for some and not so well for others...
HRT: A deeper conversation that needs to be had...
As I transition to 46 in a couple months I have absolutely noticed some changes in my own body that couldn't be ignored.
While I take great care of myself, and I am in better shape than I was in high school & I generally feel great....I do live in a city, have a medically complex non speaking special needs teen (and a wild toddler), a mom who is confined to a wheelchair & relies on me - run my own business - 2 podcasts & see clients privately. 😅
So let's just say I deal with my fair share of stress (which is a mitochondrial toxin so to speak). So as much as I care for myself and my mitochondria - I am not immune to stress and aging.
I also work with many many women around my age (younger and older) - and my job is always to LISTEN when they tell me things are not going well.
So today's newsletter is based on the information I have gathered from my clients, private community, doctors who are friends of mine - that I speak withregularly (who also work with patients - not just internet famous with no clinical experience 😉) - as well as my own experience.
I'm also sharing my free perimenopause/menopause guide again in case you missed it...Keep reading for more ⬇️
3 Quick things:
1️⃣Quantum Nutrition 2.0 is on Presale and price increases on April 15th - Click here to check it out and save $100(includes special modules on perimenopause/menopause, fertility, PCOS, thyroid, autoimmune & so so much more)
Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) has long been a subject of both interest and controversy in the medical community and among the public. Despite extensive research and discussions, several aspects remain underexplored or misunderstood.
Today I want to have a "real life" conversation about the topic - the good & the bad. Of course with the caveat that I am not a medical doctor or a hormone doctor.
1. Revisiting the 2002 Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) Study
The 2002 WHI study significantly impacted perceptions of HRT by associating it with increased risks of breast cancer and cardiovascular events. However, subsequent analyses have identified flaws in the study’s design and interpretation.
Recent critiques suggest that the initial conclusions may have overemphasized the risks, leading to a decline in HRT usage and leaving many women to cope with severe menopausal symptoms without effective treatment.
2. What I actually see in my community
Here's where it gets interesting (to me anyway 😉)
There’s a lot of buzz about hormone replacement therapy (HRT). More women are waking up to the reality that menopause is not just hot flashes and mood swings—it’s a full-body transformation that deeply impacts quality of life, metabolism, cognition, and more.
Metabolism shifts (due to loss of estrogen - we become less carb tolerant & WAY more prone to blood sugar issues and Leptin Resistance)
Mood & Nervous system & sleep needs more support (lowered progesterone) & women can suddenly start dealing with insomnia - mood swings & rage that feels like it comes out of nowhere.
Muscle loss and bone loss can accelerate - again creating a shift in the metabolism (shifting testosterone & estrogen)
Aches & pains -frozen shoulder - joint pain - tinnitus - loss of collagen (shift in estrogen - and NO it's not just from oxalates 😉) - these can appear seemingly out of nowhere.
These things sound awful - right? (I have dealt with many of them personally in the last year....more on that another day - as I plan to make a video on all of this soon & my personal experience). I will say that - while I was skeptical - the lifewave patches have gotten me 100% pain free for now & I plan on continuing to use them regularly .
But here’s what almost no one is talking about:
You can’t supplement your way out of mitochondrial dysfunction.
Let me explain.
1. Your Hormones Start in Your Mitochondria
Every hormone cascade begins with one critical step: the conversion of cholesterol into pregnenolone. This happens inside your mitochondria.
If your mitochondria aren’t working properly, you literally can’t make pregnenolone—which means you can’t make progesterone, estrogen, testosterone, cortisol, or DHEA. It all starts with this upstream signal.
Now imagine this:
You’re exhausted, inflamed, and stressed. Your mitochondria are sluggish—starved of light, overloaded with artificial inputs, and underpowered. And then someone puts you on HRT, flooding your system with a new signal.
The result?
2. Hormone Chaos Without Hormone Intelligence
Your body is intelligent—but it depends on real-time feedback loops.
If your mitochondrial signaling is broken, then your hormone receptors, hypothalamus, and liver won’t be able to interpret the sudden flood of synthetic or bioidentical hormones correctly. The feedback loops get confused. Detox pathways get overwhelmed. Receptors may downregulate or become resistant. You may feel worse, not better.
This is why so many women say:
• “HRT didn’t work for me.”
• “I felt crazy on it.”
• “It helped for a bit, but then I crashed - and gained weight"
3. It’s not always the hormones—it’s the system they’re entering.
We’re Lacking ENERGY - especially as we hit midlife and we often live in a pressure cooker (like what I described in my introductory paragraph about my life).
Mitochondria are not just energy factories. They’re also:
• Environmental sensors (picking up on circadian rhythms, red light, stress, food quality)
• Decision-makers (triggering cell death, repair, or reproduction)
• Steroidogenic hubs (literally the birthplace of your hormones)
If your mitochondria are underpowered, you’re not just tired. You’re hormonally disconnected.
4. HRT Without Mitochondrial Support CAN be Like Pouring Water Into a Leaky Bucket
This is why quantum biology - circadian biology & nutrition has to be part of the hormone conversation.
• Are you starting your day to give your Mitochondria the most optimal signals to make pregnenolone (your master "mother hormone" - that converts into cortisol - progesterone - estrogen - testosterone & DHEA?)
• Is your blood sugar a mess due to sub optimal food choices? This can create a cortisol issue & pregnenolone steal
• Are you getting morning sunlight to trigger dopamine, cortisol, and circadian rhythm regulation?
• Are you protecting melatonin at night so your mitochondria can repair and detox?
• Are you supporting your redox state so your cells know whether to rebuild or shut down?
• Are you eating in sync with the light cycle so leptin & your brain can talk to each other?
If not, then you might not get what you are looking for from HRT.
Bottom Line: HRT Can Be Powerful, But if you skip the foundations - you might get frustrated.
Foundational is:
• Mitochondrial health
• Circadian rhythm
• Light environment
• Blood sugar balance
• Mineral balance
• Redox status
• Detox pathways open
• Leptin sensitivity
When these are in place, your body is primed to either:
1. Make its own hormones more effectively, or
2. Utilize HRT wisely and safely if you choose to go that route.
PS - I do plan on continuing this conversation - as well as creating a database of providers who "get it" to support women (and actually listen to them). So make sure you are subscribed to get that information when I have it ready!
