How Does BioTE Treat My Menopausal Symptoms?

Menopause — or the end of menstruation and female fertility — is something every woman can expect to experience. Most women reach menopause naturally in their early 50s after a years-long transitional state called perimenopause, and some women enter menopause directly because of a health-saving hysterectomy. 

The hormonal changes associated with both perimenopause and menopause can give rise to bothersome symptoms that may vary in nature, severity, and duration from one woman to the next, often without much rhyme or reason. While completely normal and natural, menopausal symptoms can also be quite irritating and disruptive. 

Here at Panhandle Obstetrics and Gynecology in Amarillo, Texas, our team of board-certified women’s wellness experts offers BioTE® hormone replacement therapy to help counteract severe menopausal symptoms and improve your quality of life. Here’s how it works. 

When menopause symptoms are severe

Most of the symptoms that emerge during perimenopause and menopause are directly related to the significant and sustained decline of two female reproductive hormones: estrogen and progesterone. As your ovaries make these hormones at ever-dwindling rates, you may begin to experience: 

• Hot and cold flashes; night sweats 
• Weight gain and slowed metabolism
• Persistent fatigue and low energy 
• Sleep problems and mood changes
• Chronic vaginal dryness; low libido 
• Discomfort during sexual intercourse
• Thinning hair; drier, thinner skin tissues
• New or worsening migraine headaches

Mild to moderate menopausal symptoms often improve with targeted lifestyle changes, such as getting plenty of exercise, eating a cleaner, healthier diet, staying well hydrated, improving your sleep hygiene practices, and finding ways to keep your stress levels in check. 

When menopausal symptoms are severe or persistent, however, lifestyle changes don’t always deliver the kind of effective relief you’re looking for. In such cases, BioTE hormone replacement therapy may be the answer. 

Easing menopausal symptoms with BioTE 

Using a prescription blend of plant-based, bioidentical hormones that have the same molecular structure as your natural hormones, BioTE hormone therapy alleviates severe, persistent menopausal symptoms by restoring hormonal balance to your system. 

Your hormone prescription is custom-compounded to meet your precise needs and delivered to your system through a steady-release hormone pellet we implant just beneath the surface of your skin, usually in your upper buttock area. The implantation process is quick and painless, and the rice-sized pellet begins releasing hormones in a controlled manner right away. 

While you may experience diminished symptoms in as little as a few hours or a few days, it can take up to four weeks to attain substantial symptom relief, and full hormonal optimization can take up to six months. Many women report feeling the most symptom improvement after their second pellet insertion. 

Each BioTE pellet lasts for 3-6 months, depending on your body weight, absorption rate, and the amount of hormone deficiency that’s present at the time of insertion. Based on your personal needs, we reinsert new pellets 2-4 times per year to keep your hormone levels optimized and your menopausal symptoms at bay. 

Is BioTE hormone therapy right for me?

To determine if BioTE hormone replacement therapy is right for you, we conduct a thorough medical evaluation that includes:

• A menopausal symptom checklist
• Complete hormone-level testing
• A comprehensive physical exam
• A full health and medical history

Even if your menopausal symptoms and lab tests confirm you’re a suitable candidate for BioTE hormone therapy, your health history helps us determine if hormone replacement is safe for you. We may advise against BioTE hormone pellets if you:

• Have a history of blood clots
• Have diagnosed cardiovascular disease
• Have a history of breast or ovarian cancer
• Reached menopause more than 10 years ago

To schedule a visit or learn more about BioTE hormone replacement at Panhandle Obstetrics and Gynecology, call our office at 806-359-5468 today.