Author: Brenda Houdlette

Brenda Houdlette is a nurse coordinator at Coastal Pharmacy & Wellness. In addition to sharing health tips and hormone therapy expertise through her blog, Brenda offers patient consultation for peri- and post-menopausal women. She works to educate patients, and to help them and their practitioners develop individualized bio-identical hormone therapy plans. Call Brenda anytime at 207-899-0663, extension 223, to set up your own patient consult.

Understanding Our Hormones

Posted on May 2, 2016 by
Category: Women's Health

I thought we could review some basics this month about understanding the types of hormones in our body that are compounded and their functions.  To ensure the best results, bio-identical hormone replacement therapy prescriptions are customized to meet the needs of each individual with the goal of replacing hormones safely, at low levels and optimal... Read more »
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Choices for Menopause Symptoms

Posted on November 25, 2015 by
Category: Compounding, Menopause, Women's Health

As women grow older, hormones start declining, and without therapy, the symptoms of menopause grow worse. With the loss of estrogen, the vaginal epithelium becomes atrophic and physiological lubrication is reduced. Often, the result is vaginal dryness, irritation, itching, burning, and painful intercourse. All these can lead to decreased libido, creating distress for both the woman and her partner.
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bHRT for Menopause

Posted on September 19, 2015 by
Category: Women's Health

Hormone replacement therapy is a common treatment for women going through menopause. Gather information regarding all options in order to make decisions regarding how you would like to approach this time in your life. If you make the decision to take hormones, it is important to choose what may be the safest option.
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The Cache Study

Posted on October 10, 2014 by
Category: Women's Health

The current guidelines given by the FDA and ACOG (American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology) for hormone replacement therapy are to start it soon after menopause and use the lowest dose for the shortest possible period of time. This should be evaluated yearly by your doctor. I wanted to take some time to highlight the... Read more »
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Estrogen in the Body

Posted on March 15, 2014 by
Category: Women's Health

I thought we could talk about the actions and functions of estrogen in the body. Estrogen is actually a family of hormones that have over 400 functions in the body. We will discuss the primary ones that attract the most attention: It helps our heart and kidneys by protecting blood vessels against forming plaque and... Read more »
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Sex After Menopause

Posted on May 20, 2013 by
Category: Women's Health

  Happy Spring! After a very long, cold winter in the Northeast we all deserve some warmth and sunshine. Just knowing it is on the way makes us feel better and look forward to the beautiful weather to come. Any woman who is menopausal knows the vaginal tissue becomes dry, or atrophic, and lubrication is... Read more »
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Better Sleep

Posted on March 19, 2013 by
Category: Sleep, Women's Health

  Most women experience sleep disturbances around menopause, especially if hormone changes provoke hot flashes at night. Most of us require between 6 and 9 hours of sleep to function at an optimal state. It may be of some comfort to know that both men and women report less restful sleep as they age.  Many... Read more »
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Fighting a Fuzzy Memory

Posted on February 10, 2013 by
Category: Women's Health

How many of us experience memory problems and or “fuzzy thinking”? Most likely all of us have noticed at least occasional incidences and some probably notice it more frequently than we are comfortable with. We may worry we are on the road to dementia or worse Alzheimers disease. Thankfully this is usually not the case... Read more »
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Bio-identical Hormones and Compounding Myths

Posted on December 17, 2012 by
Category: Compounding, Menopause, Women's Health

  I thought this may be a good time to talk about bio-identical hormones and some of the myths associated with compounding. Bio-identical hormones, like all compounded medications, are made from FDA and USP registered materials used by pharmaceutical manufactures. Their preparation is well regulated by state boards of pharmacy and also must meet national... Read more »
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Help for Hormonal Imbalances

Posted on November 13, 2012 by
Category: Women's Health

Hormonal imbalances can occur at any age, before during or after menopause.  These imbalances vary widely and may be caused by environment, stress, heredity, aging or nutrition.  Although we tend to blame these problems on hormonal changes, we often need to explore these other areas as well.  Discussing lifestyle along with specific symptoms may help... Read more »
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