Hormone Fluctuations: How They Affect Women’s Lives

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by Constanze Loeffler

05/22/2022, 15:52

1 min reading time

Women are familiar with the ups and downs of hormones: through puberty, pregnancy, menopause and the monthly cycle for half a lifetime.

A life with hormonal fluctuations: Shortly before menstruation, many women are thin-skinned, full of desire to ovulate, and during menopause they are plagued by sleep disorders and hot flashes. Responsible for all this: the hormones produced by the ovaries, regulated by the superior glands in the brain. In a finely orchestrated mechanism, the messenger substances control each other and many processes in the female body.

How complex the hormonal control circuits are often only becomes clear when they do not function reliably – for example, when there is no menstruation or the desire to have children is not fulfilled. Even if hormone production drops with menopause, many women feel their hormone balance very clearly.

Little hormone science

  • Estrogens: The most important female sex hormones are produced by the follicles in the ovaries between the beginning of the menstrual cycle and ovulation. They take over central tasks in the cycle, stabilize bones and mood and protect the heart.
  • Progestogens: The best-known representative is progesterone. It prepares the lining of the womb after ovulation for the possible implantation of an egg.
  • prostaglandins: They ensure that the uterus contracts during the period and the mucous membrane is shed. Triggers reduced blood flow and thus pain, the sensitivity to pain increases.
  • Oxytocin: Also known as the cuddle or bonding hormone. It is mainly released during sex, childbirth and breastfeeding. Lowers the cortisol level and thus has a stress-reducing effect.
  • Testosterone: Plays an important role in female pleasure. If it goes down, the libido can weaken. Too much testosterone, on the other hand, leads to hair loss, excess body hair and pimples.

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