Mar 15, 20235 min read

Estrogen Dominance, Heavy Menstruation, and...Broccoli...???

Do you ever remember being told as a kid, "You better eat your broccoli."? I don't know if I remember hearing that exact line from my parents, but I feel it's a common line observed in sitcoms and movies with scenes of mother and child at the dinner table. Now that I am older and wiser, I wish-- if I were told, I would've listened a little sooner.

When I was a teenager--awkward, horrible bangs and braced teeth, you would think it couldn't get much worse--however, I dealt with really heavy periods. When I say heavy, we are talking a super absorbency tampon with an extra heavy long pad over a couple hours and I'd be scrambling to get to a bathroom for the next change out. I always had painful cramping and outings while on my period always left me with overarching anxiety, for fear of bleeding through my outfit--as if the self-consciousness of normal teenage woes weren't enough. Unfortunately, I faced this bloody horror story on more than one occasion, but I will spare you the details, and simply say someone should've stopped me from swimming that day. <cringes>

Fast forward from 14 to 36. At 36, after having 4 kids--as much as my body had been through and as many changes as it saw with each recurring pregnancy

--and the periods just hung on like a leach on skin...literally sucking the life out of me once month.

Breastfeeding and pregnancy was always a period of respite from the un-invited monthly guest. Unfortunately, I began to have other symptoms surrounding my period. I begun to notice my breasts becoming extremely sore the week before my period. I would also have spotting the week before. At that point--like most would, I started googling first, trying to self diagnose. What could be the causes? Was it endometriosis, PCOS, Fibroids, uterine cancer?1?! My mind was reeling after the deep dive into the ethernet.

Like most any sane adult, I knew it was time for a trip to the doctor. I was in my gynecologist's office within the week. After bloodwork, pap smear, and finding out I was too young to have a mammogram done, the doctor's conclusion was that everything "appeared normal".

"How can this be normal?", "What can be done to stop this?", "Do I have any options to stop some of these uncomfortable and inconvenient issues?"

I left my doctor's office feeling less than cared for, and maybe even more confused than when I came in, because at least before I came in, I had hope that I would find an answer and the answer would lead to a solution.

In the coming weeks, I talked to a lot of my girlfriends about what was going on, and my unfortunate consult with the doc. One of my girlfriends told me about hormone replacement therapy. It sounded really optimistic and gave me hope. So, following up with that, I went to the clinic she told me about. At the appointment, they ran bloodwork, I told them all of my symptoms and they really tried to sell me on receiving a testosterone pellet. They sent me home with a notebook stuffed to the brim with well selected articles and studies done regarding testosterone pellets use in women.

I did my due diligence, as I have had bad experiences from "jumping" on what appeared to be great opportunities, like this. For example the time I got a copper IUD... that's another story for another time.

After reading all the information they sent home with me, I did my own internet researching. I wanted to know the good and the bad, the ugly. Of course, after a deep dive, I knew, testosterone pellets would not be an approach that I felt comfortable with. So, there I was-- left at square one.

A few weeks went by, and my bloodwork results were in. I did, in fact, have higher estrogen levels than what had previously been seen in my bloodwork. So, I began researching natural solutions to ridding my body of its excess estrogen. (Links provided to research at end of blog)

DIM or Diindolymethane is a substance found in cruciferous veggies--broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower.

--YOU MEAN I SHOULD'VE JUST LISTENED TO MY MOTHER ALL ALONG???

Everything I could find to read about DIM and how it helped women with PCOS, Endometriosis, and even certain types of cancer, was all the convincing I needed to at least give it a try. At that point, I was desperate, but the evidence was compelling enough to give me hope. I found a cheap supplement with decent reviews on amazon. After taking it for a month, my mood was noticeably better and I even lost a couple pounds to boot. So, I continued the regimen--for me, being a little less snappy with my hubs and kiddos made it worth 23.95. However, it didn't appear that my periods had lessened.

Fast forward a few months. I hear about this company called 1st Phorm. Their products kept popping up in my feed, likely because I was beginning a regular workout/nutrition regimen and the algorithm was reading me like a book.

I combed over the products on their website and opti-greens 50 particularly peaked my interest. #1 I'd read about phytonutrients and their benefits when doing some of my researching and #2 it also included broccoli extract in the ingredients list... interesting...

I considered whether or not I should try it for some time. Mainly because, with a price tag of 69.99, it was nearly triple the price of the amazon supplement, not too mention, I've always been a bargain shopper-- just ask one of my best friends who has me listed as "thrifty whitney" in her phone. No, that's not a joke.

Like any desperate person, I bit the bullet. Once again deciding-- that, if it worked, it would be worth it. Upon opti-greens arrival, I decided to just do a "half" dose. Opting to only do 1 scoop a day to see how things panned out, mostly because of my thrifty nature, I was just hoping to make it last longer if it did work. Within the 2 months that it lasted, the spotting before my period had stopped and my breasts seemed to be less tender the week before my period. So, I bought another bag when I ran out. By the time I completed my second bag, my period went from 6-7 days, down to 3-5. I also no longer had large blood clots. Finally, the miracle I had been waiting for!

Opti-greens 50 has phytonutrients, digestive enzymes, probiotics and a host of natural herbs that have proven in studies to help reduce glycemic response in patients with diabetes.

I don't know if it's only the broccoli extract or if that has nothing to do with why it helps me. It could be the synergistic effect of the whole combination of awesome properties that each ingredient carries. To be honest, I don't care as long as it continues to provide this same relief. I haven't felt this good in years energy-wise, and I don't ever remember a period not being a blood bath. So, I'm going to keep up the regimen.

Try Opti-Greens 50 yourself. Maybe if you take the leap to give it a try like I did, you might find it helps you too.

#heavyperiods #heavymenstruation #PCOS #Estrogendominance #nutrition #diindolymethane #whitneytomlinNASMCNC #monkeybarfan