When it comes to understanding your body, one hormone plays a crucial role in how you feel physically and emotionally—estrogen. Whether you’re navigating puberty, pregnancy, postpartum recovery, or menopause, estrogen influences many aspects of your well-being, especially your pelvic health. So, let’s explore what estrogen is and why it’s essential for every woman to know about.
What Is Estrogen?
Estrogen is one of the primary female sex hormones, and it’s produced in your ovaries, adrenal glands, and even fatty tissues. It has a wide-ranging impact on your body, far beyond just reproductive health.
What Does Estrogen Do?
- Supports Puberty: Estrogen is key in developing female sex characteristics during puberty.
- Maintains Skin and Tissue Health: It helps keep your skin, tissues, and joints hydrated, elastic, and healthy.
- Strengthens Bones: Estrogen plays a major role in maintaining bone density.
- Regulates Cholesterol and Heart Health: It helps manage cholesterol levels, contributing to heart health.
- Mood Stability: Estrogen impacts mood regulation, helping you feel emotionally balanced.
- Menstrual Cycle: It regulates your cycle, triggering ovulation and supporting overall reproductive health.
How Does Estrogen Change Throughout Your Menstrual Cycle?
Estrogen doesn’t stay the same all month; it rises and falls depending on where you are in your cycle. During the follicular phase (when your body prepares to release an egg), estrogen gradually increases. This is why many women feel more energized, have clearer skin, and experience a better mood during this part of their cycle.
As oestrogen peaks, it triggers the release of luteinizing hormone (LH), which causes ovulation. After ovulation, oestrogen drops sharply, marking the start of the luteal phase, when many women feel symptoms like bloating or mood changes. Right before your period, oestrogen levels are at their lowest.
Estrogen During Pregnancy and Postpartum
In early pregnancy, your ovaries (specifically the corpus luteum) produce estrogen and progesterone. Once the placenta forms, it takes over hormone production, and estrogen levels rise throughout pregnancy, supporting your growing baby and body changes.
However, after giving birth, estrogen levels drop significantly as the placenta is expelled, contributing to many postpartum symptoms like mood swings, night sweats, and even changes in your pelvic floor function.
Estrogen and Menopause
As menopause approaches, estrogen levels gradually decline, eventually leading to the end of ovulation. This hormonal shift brings along common symptoms like vaginal dryness, mood changes, night sweats, and hot flashes. These changes also have a significant impact on your pelvic health.
How Does Estrogen Affect Your Pelvic Area?
Estrogen plays a crucial role in maintaining pelvic health. Here’s how:
- Blood Flow: It promotes healthy blood flow to the pelvic organs and tissues.
- Bladder Function: Estrogen helps keep bladder and urethral tissues healthy and flexible, which is essential for optimal bladder control.
- Pelvic Floor Muscles: It supports the strength and elasticity of your pelvic floor muscles, helping prevent issues like bladder leakage or pelvic organ prolapse.
- Vaginal Health: Estrogen maintains moisture and lubrication in the vagina and urethra, reducing the risk of dryness, irritation, and even incontinence.
Treatments for Low Estrogen
If low estrogen is affecting your pelvic health, there are treatment options to help restore balance:
- Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT): HRT provides systemic (whole-body) effects by restoring estrogen levels during menopause.
- Vaginal Estrogen: For more localized treatment, options like vaginal creams, gels, suppositories, or a slow-releasing ring can help improve vaginal health, directly addressing issues like dryness and discomfort.
Written by our amazing women’s health physiotherapist Anastasia – click here to book with her