Get to know about your hormones

Local author discusses her first book

By Dr Mary Ryan

‘It’s probably your Hormones’ is my first book and I wrote it to educate men and women about their hormones.

Hormones control our emotions, our sleep, our desires, our moods and our immune system. Yet very view understand them.

By educating the public about their hormone health, they will understand why we ask patients to go to bed at 10pm when our sleep hormone is at its highest and to get up early at around 7am as light increases production of our happy hormone, serotonin, which is why we all love blue skies and sunny weather.

By understanding our hormone health, we will understand why we should eat healthily and how good nutrition helps our hormonal health.

Hormones control all your muscles and your immune system and when your hormonal control centre is well recharged, it does best, just like our phones that work best when they are charged fully.

We must understand that with an appreciation of how important our hormones are we can help take control of our heath. By taking better care of hormonal health, your metabolism is normal, your energy levels are normal and you sleep very well.

Hence, in this book I deal with hormones from puberty to beyond menopause and talk about what is a normal period and what can be done to help if it not.

It explained how, with early intervention, we can prevent suffering from heavy periods and potential problems in relation to fertility down the road.

The days of young girls suffering with six or seven-day periods that almost crippled them are gone and we are now empowering parents to get early intervention for their daughters if they have a problem.

Polycystic ovary disease is discussed as well as endometriosis, and because I was the doctor who started all the discussions on perimenopause and menopause I discuss that too.

I also discuss how to help men with erectile dysfunction, which is a common problem and the book explores libido, thyroid disease, diabetes, fertility and sexual problems.

There is a very interesting section about “the gut brain” and the importance of maintaining a good diet.

To have high self-esteem means we have better boundaries and good hormonal health, so I discuss that also.

Thanks to Sarah Liddy, Gill Books, Fiona and Mia from Gill Books and Jen Steven. Thanks also to Fiona Brennan, Positive Habit, Lorraine Keane, Oonagh O’Hagan, Laura Dowling, Mary Rose Devereux from Menomin, my wonderful family and friends who have supported me in this endeavour.

Thanks also to Noelle Morrissey Eason, Nenagh, for the launch of the book.

The first launch was in Dublin, but as I am a home bird I wanted a Nenagh launch and the turnout was amazing. Musicians Kathleen Costello and John O’Brien entertained and a hugh crowd attended, for which I am truly grateful.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr Mary Ryan, who lives in Nenagh, is a Consultant Endocrinologist who practices at the Bon Secours Hospital at Barringtons, Limerick, and Aut Even Hospital, Kilkenny. She is a Senior Lecturer in University of Limerick Medical School.