You’re Not Crazy. Your Hormones, Gut, and Heart Are Connected

Meet Kajal, a 45-year-old homemaker who walked into our clinic feeling like a shadow of her former self. She had been battling anxiety, palpitations, and persistent fatigue for two years. Despite undergoing extensive conventional cardiac investigations, all her reports came back normal. Yet, her body told a different story.

She had undergone an oophorectomy (surgical removal of one ovary) and a hysterectomy for endometriosis two years ago, and life had not been the same since. Sleepless nights, gut sensitivity, emotional instability, and overwhelming exhaustion had taken over her days.

Asha's story reflects the struggle of many women whose symptoms are dismissed as "just stress" or "hormonal." Functional medicine offered her a new lens one that validated her experience and addressed the deeper roots of her health issues.

She presented with the following complaints:

• Anxiety and palpitations that began post-surgery, sometimes waking her up at night

• Constant overthinking and mental exhaustion

• Fatigue that interfered with her ability to perform daily chores

• Loose stools, especially triggered by new medications

• Suspected IBS, though never formally diagnosed; often just prescribed antibiotics

• Diagnosed with hypertension and hyperlipidemia, under medication

• History of depression and stress since her 20s, often accompanied by gut symptoms in new or stressful environments

• Currently relocated to a new place with no social support system

Conventional Diagnosis & Limitations

Asha had already undergone a battery of conventional tests:

• ECG, TMT, and ECHO: All within normal limits

• Medications: She was on antihypertensives and statins

• Gut issues: Historically managed with antibiotics and probiotics, but symptoms persisted

Despite these treatments, she continued to feel worse. Conventional medicine had ruled out major pathologies but hadn’t addressed why she felt so unwell. This is where functional medicine fills the gap.

Functional Medicine Evaluation

We took a systems-based approach to uncover the imbalances driving Asha's symptoms. Key findings included:

• Hs-CRP: 31.4 mg/L → Indicates high systemic inflammation and increased cardiovascular risk

• Vitamin D: 10.8 ng/mL → Severe deficiency, affecting mood, immunity, and bone health

• Homocysteine: Elevated → Suggestive of methylation issues, increased cardiovascular risk

• HbA1c: Borderline elevated → Early insulin resistance; important to note that recent studies show statins may contribute to elevated blood sugar

• Lipid Profile: Elevated LDL, low HDL, high triglycerides → Cardiometabolic risk

• Gut Health: Persistent IBS symptoms → Suggestive of leaky gut, dysbiosis, or food sensitivities

Root Cause Hypothesis

Asha’s story isn’t about one problem it’s a tangle of imbalances feeding into each other.

• She had been dealing with stress and depression since her 20s, which always triggered gut issues especially during transitions or in new environments.

• This long-standing gut-brain connection likely led to chronic inflammation, mood swings, and poor absorption of key nutrients.

• She later developed endometriosis, often linked to estrogen dominance which can be worsened by gut issues, inflammation, and poor liver detox.

• Post-surgery (oophorectomy and hysterectomy), her body suddenly entered a low-estrogen state, which threw off her heart rhythm, blood pressure, and mood regulation.

• And here's the catch: Estrogen isn’t just a reproductive hormone. It helps regulate heart function, blood vessels, brain chemistry, and even digestion.

So now she’s stuck in a vicious cycle stress affects her gut, poor gut health worsens hormone balance, low hormones amplify mood and heart symptoms, and round and round it goes.

This is what happens when you treat symptoms in isolation. But once we zoom out and look at the whole picture, the puzzle starts to make sense.

What This Means for You

• If your labs are "normal" but you still feel off, you're not imagining it.

• Hormonal surgeries like oophorectomy and hysterectomy can have ripple effects on your brain, gut, and heart.

• Inflammation, nutrient imbalances, and gut health can all show up as anxiety, fatigue, and heart symptoms.

• Functional medicine looks at the full picture to restore balance not just at your hormones, but your whole system.

Ready to Feel Like Yourself Again?

Are you experiencing fatigue, anxiety, or gut issues that no one seems to solve? It might be time to look deeper.

Your symptoms are not just in your head. They’re in your cells, your gut, your hormones, and your healing is possible. Functional medicine helps you reconnect the dots.

If Asha’s story sounds like yours or someone you love—don’t stay silent. So many women are suffering in the shadows, told it’s ‘just stress’ or ‘just hormones.’

I want you to share this post if it resonates with you.

 Share with your sister, friend, or mother who’s been struggling and dismissed.

 Let them know they’re not alone and that healing IS possible.

We’re building a movement of women who are done being unheard.

Let’s talk. Let’s connect. Let’s heal together.