I know I should say Happy “Holidays” but I’m Catholic, I say Merry Christmas.  I’ve never been very PC and I’m not going to start now!

All I want under my Christmas tree this year is a bottle of progesterone, my estrogen cream, (which thanks to the progesterone I only need a dab every other day, thank you very much) and my fish oil and vitamins.  Maybe a couple pair of shoes.  I love shoes.  I think we women love new shoes because no matter how big our BUTT is, our feet still look good!

I also wish for all you gals and guys out there seeking treatment for your hormone issues that you find a qualified physician in your area and get started.  I know it is an investment and it stinks that insurance doesn’t cover it, but just do it.  You have to decide how much you’re worth- I’m worth every penny!  Ask your husband or wife, kids, boyfriend or girlfriend to make it your holiday of choice gift.  It is the gift that keeps on giving. 

I never expected to feel this amazing.  My hope was just to stop those brutal hot flashes.  I get it now why Suzanne Somers is so passionate about bioidentical hormones.  I feel so blessed to be a patient.  I want to shout it from the roof top!  For the first time in my life I look forward to each day.  In just 3 short months I am a new woman. We do not realize how bad we feel until we feel better.  I look back and wonder how did I function?  I work two jobs!  When I look at myself on that video of my first visit with Doc Lee - YUCK!  What a change!

So you see I really do wish for all women who want relief from menopause symptoms to find a way to take part in this miracle.  That’s right; to me this has been a miracle and an answer to a prayer.  I need to give back; if it’s just to spread the word of hope offered by bioidentical hormone therapy, that’s what I will do.

So Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Happy Festivus (I love Seinfeld!) to all.

May you have a blessed holiday season.

Judyb

Happy Friday All!

Since I hear Las Vegas calling my name to come out and play I’m going to make this post sort of short! The A4M Conference is going great; we listened to Patrick Savage, President of BodyLogicMD, make an amazing speech (learn more from the BodyLogicMD blog) yesterday and we’re headed out to some more seminars today.

Anyways, a couple weeks ago I introduced you to Pam H., a menopause maniac with a lot of spunk! She’s been so impressed with the result of bioidentical hormone therapy that she has referred many of her friends and even her sister to her BodyLogicMD physician in Phoenix, Dr. Eric Hottie, or sorry I mean Dr. Eric Honing (*wink wink*). Check him out here, don’t you agree?!?

Now, let me introduce you to Pam H.’s sister, Perri W. She started hormone replacement this past May because she was feeling just awful (now why does that sound familiar?!). Five months later, and Perri W. is enjoying relief from her symptoms of imbalanced hormones. She’s got her energy back, is losing weight, is less irritable, and she’s finally getting a good night’s sleep again! As always, it’s easier to let her tell you (plus I’ve got some gambling to do). I love that my family of bioidentical hormone sisters keeps growing!

I can’t wait to fill you all in on my exploits here, but what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas! Have a great weekend, I know I will!

JudyB

Hi BIHS’s! (bioidentical hormone sisters)

When I first went to see Dr. Lee to start bioidentical hormone therapy, and he uttered the words “you’ll need to change your eating habits,” I felt the word ‘diet’ coming like the Jaws theme song.  Seriously, I felt like he was going to try to rip away from me (not with any ease I might add) one of the only things Menopause couldn’t take away from me- sweet, delicious food.  If feeling better meant celery juice, wheat grass, and another failed diet, I was going to hang a ‘Welcome Home!’ sign for my menopause symptoms and my ass would be on its merry way.

But thankfully (for his safety) that ‘diet’ word never came.  Instead Dr. Lee said that it would be a lifestyle change.  He said that I would still be able to eat a lot of the same foods I eat now, with the exception of “anything in a bag or a can.”  And since chocolate wasn’t one of those, it was a parting that I could live with.

Still, my menopausal stubbornness wasn’t sure it was willing to part with comfort food just to lose a few pounds.  That’s when Dr. Lee said it wasn’t about losing weight (though it is one hell of an added benefit, 15 pounds and counting!), but instead it was about maintaining a hormonal balance and finally having relief from the menopausal hell I’d been living in.

The deal is this, it’s really important to keep sugars out of your system because it can make your old symptoms come back… as Dr. Lee likes to say, “there is a connection between mood and food.”   So, I needed a lifestyle change for this natural hormone therapy to work; a much better motivator than weight loss.

And, unlike some doctors I could name *ahem*, Dr. Lee didn’t just hand me a paper of demands for me to figure out by myself.  He worked with me, describing a BodyLogicMD nutrition plan, customized just for me (exactly how I like things), with the main purpose of avoiding foods that cause inflammation and other interactions in my system. 

I will say that it was a definite change from how I was eating before, but I always feel satisfied and full. I get to eat frequently because it’s important to avoid blood sugar spikes (ha! now I have an excuse!), and I am never STARVING like I used to be whenever I would go on some random diet. I’m losing weight and feeling better, I can definitely stick with this.

On that note, I think it’s time for some chocolate, doctor’s orders!

Hello to all my BIHS’s (bioidentical hormone sisters)!

I know I haven’t written in a while but my schedule has been jam-packed! I’ve been feeling great lately thanks to my bioidentical hormone therapy with Dr. Lee and have been able to pick up some extra shifts.

So until I can give you a more complete update on myself, I want you to check out this video of my bioidentical hormone therapy sister Pam H. Just wait until you hear Pam’s stories about her menopause madness, they’re crazy enough to compete with mine, well almost! She was on the same sinking boat as the rest of us, struggling to deal with menopause symptoms until she found Arizona’s BodyLogicMD Dr. Eric Honing. Since then, she has gone from menopause maniac to, as she puts it, “feeling like I am 19 again instead of 46!”

I know you’re going to love her as much as I do!

Judy B

Hey Everyone! So, I promised that you would meet my friend Ellen, who I took to see Dr. Lee. Ellen was feeling awful, experiencing tons of menopause symptoms, so I dragged her grouchy ass to BodyLogicMD!

Enjoy!

Judy B.

Hi All! So, I am past this point by a few more weeks, but here is a video of me detailing how I felt after five weeks on bioidentical hormone therapy. I went to Dr. Lee’s office to take my friend Ellen to see him (you’ll meet her later this week!) and while I was waiting for her I discussed how things were going for me.

When I watch this, I can tell a huge difference in my general mood and even in my appearance! It’s amazing how menopause symptoms can make a girl look and feel so tired.

Anyway, this should give some of you the extra push you need to find your local BodyLogicMD physician! If I can feel better, so can you.

Xoxo
Judy B

Hey all you Menopause Maniacs! I hope everyone is doing well, and hasn’t robbed their local gas station for all the Snickers and BBQ Lays… I know I wanted to from time to time.

A lot of you have been asking about insurance issues lately, so I went straight to the source at BodyLogicMD and got some answers for you. The main questions you’ve asked are why doesn’t BodyLogicMD bill our bioidentical hormone therapy treatments directly to insurance and what are the overall costs involved in treating menopause and andropause.

So here’s the gist, in the simplest way possible.

Most of us have insurance, and most of us have a co-pay with that insurance. In addition to that co-pay, we all have deductibles. When it comes to lab work your deductible most likely applies, meaning you pay the full price until your deductible is met. If you see the doctor as well, your usual co-pay applies also.

Secondly, a lot of the time lab work isn’t covered at all because it’s outside of your “standard lab allowance” – or what-the-hell-ever!  We find out, after we’ve had these labs taken, of course, that they aren’t covered and we pay out of pocket.

Additionally, the lab charges your insurance company an inflated price, which can be three times what they would charge if you didn’t file with insurance – so it’s rip off going through them in the first place!

What BodyLogicMD has done is negotiate a cash price for the same labs that your primary hospital or doctor use. Basically, the female hormone test panel that BodyLogicMD uses would cost $2,000 at your regular doctor. At a 20 percent co-pay  (that’s assuming you paid your deductible already) that’s $400.00 – that’s if your insurance company decides to cover the test! If you haven’t paid your lab deductible for the year, you could potentially pay the full $2,000. Scary.

Too often insurance companies pull some archaic rule out of some big book and decide to apply it to you randomly – leaving you frustrated AND with a big bill for the “uncovered test.”

BodyLogicMD’s price is $450. It is what it is – no funny business.  So, in my mind, hormone therapy at BodyLogicMD is worth it.

So, while it might seem intimidating to bypass insurance for these tests, financially speaking, BodyLogicMD’s prices are a much better value without any of the “unknowns” that your insurance provider is famous for.

Hope this helps!

Judy B.

Hi all my bioidentical hormone therapy sisters!

So, a few of you were curious about the BodyLogicMD fitness and nutrition plans. Well, to try and answer all your questions at once: they are both super easy!

Honestly, the fitness plan is perfect, even for a glamour girl like me who hates breaking a sweat. Plus, the diet plan really isn’t even like a diet. I feel really satisfied on it. Really, the main purpose of them is to support your hormone therapy program.

Here are some videos of Dr. Lee describing the plans to me when I went for my first visit.

Enjoy!

Judy B.

Lately you’ve all been asking about the different kinds of hormone tests I’ve taken and where/how to get them.

To answer, I am posting a video from my first visit with Dr. Lee. You will see how he explains my test results - and should be able to tell why I’m so obsessed with him.  He touches on everything from progesterone to sleep to my hysterectomy.

Contact BodyLogicMD directly for complete information on the types of testing they do. Hopefully these videos help some of you to decide to start bioidentical hormone therapy and start feeling normal again!

Xoxo
Judy B.

Well, as we all know I have started seeing Dr. Lee at BodyLogicMD of Miami. He has basically SAVED my life by treating me CORRECTLY and ACCURATELY with bioidentical hormone therapy.

Hear that all you idiot doctors I used to deal with?!?!

I digress.

I know a lot of you are curious about BodyLogicMD and what exactly goes on there, especially during your first visit. Here are two videos from my first visit with Dr. Lee, where he describes the results of my hormone testing, and a bunch of other good info.

Basically, I am in menopause hell during these videos. ENJOY!

xoxo
Judy B.