When was the last time you enjoyed a truly delicious night of restful sleep? You know the kind: drifting, deep, and restful? When was the last time you woke up feeling refreshed and rejuvenated?
All too often, many women can’t even recall the last time they had a good night’s sleep. That Americans have trouble sleeping is evidenced by the number of sleep aids currently on the market. Instead of addressing the underlying cause of sleep disturbances like insomnia, we settle for medicated sleep, which at best gives us poor-quality sleep often accompanied by a host of side effects. You don’t even realize how much you depend on restful sleep until you have trouble sleeping. Sleep is absolutely essential to your health.
Did you know that hormonal imbalance can be the underlying reason why you have trouble sleeping? As a child, sleep wasn’t even given a second thought because it came so naturally. However, as we age, the hormone balance of childhood, which kept us sleeping soundly, declines. Whether your trouble sleeping involves insomnia, difficulty falling asleep, waking up frequently, or waking up not feeling refreshed despite a full night’s sleep, correcting hormonal imbalance could be the key to getting back into a regular pattern of refreshing sleep.
Progesterone has a soporific, or sleep, effect and generates a sense of calmness when taken before bedtime. Low progesterone is often a culprit behind insomnia and anxiety.
Estrogen—Oftentimes, estrogen deficiency can cause sleep disturbances, mainly due to night sweats and hot flashes. The use of bioidentical estrogen must be balanced with bioidentical progesterone
.
Testosterone—In men, testosterone is important for quality deep sleep, and the less sleep a man gets, the lower his testosterone levels become. It’s a vicious cycle. Low testosterone can also play a role in sleep apnea.
Thyroid—In addition to giving people more energy and regulating your metabolism, thyroid hormone also improves the quality of sleep, allowing you to spend more time in the deep phases of sleep. Thyroid hormone is also beneficial in helping those who wake up frequently during the night from snoring or sleep apnea.
Canary Club AdvancedPlus Profile
This innovative combination is recommended by Dr. Richard Shames, MD, who is a specialist in endocrinology hormones. Dr. Richard Shames practices as a Consulting Physician and Personal Health Coach, focusing on thyroid and adrenal disorders and their many related conditions, offers a more cost-effective assessment of the major hormones produced by the thyroid, adrenal, and gonad glands, along with an evaluation of Vitamin D levels. This consolidated approach streamlines the testing process offering greater value
- Sex steroid hormones (in saliva): Estradiol (E2), Progesterone (Pg), and Testosterone (T)
- Adrenal Hormones (in saliva): DHEA-S (DS), Diurnal Cortisol (sampled 4x to show your full daily cortisol cycle)
- Thyroid hormones (in blood spot): TSH, fT3, fT4, TPOab
- Vitamin D (in blood spot): 25-OH, Total (D2, D3)
Your Hormone Management Testing Plan
- Step 1: Start by selecting and ordering your desired test(s). You will receive an at-home testing kit that fits your unique concerns and needs. No prescription or visit to the doctor’s office is required. Your test kit is delivered directly to your front door.
- Step 2: Take the test to establish the starting hormone baseline at the beginning of your plan. Consider developing your plan alongside:
- a licensed health care provider for medical conditions, especially for severe "out of normal range" results
- or a Health Care Coach for nutrition and supplements that will support your desired results
- Step 3: Develop a plan based on your hormone test results, establishing a one-year or more outlook.
- Keep logs of your intakes, and daily routines related to your hormone test results.
- Keep logs of your intakes, and daily routines related to your hormone test results.
- Step 4: After 6-12 months of actively working on your plan, take the same test again to determine your progress.
