Article by Tara Pettit for Catalysta, the online publication.
“Are you suffering from weight gain, low libido, adrenal fatigue, hormonal imbalance”… and the list of symptoms goes on… into infinity. That’s because with hormonal imbalance, anything and everything in the body is impacted and as society is becoming more aware of the effects hormonal imbalance is having on their bodies, it has perpetuated a national obsession while infiltrating media, advertising, and conversation. We hear these advertisement phrases regurgitated almost on a daily basis today as the topic of hormonal imbalance continues to make health news headlines as a catalyst of research and study.
Unfortunately, when it comes to mainstream belief, discussion and treatment of hormonal imbalance, medical doctors (and as a result, society in general) have a very limited scope and knowledge of what’s really going on in millions of women’s bodies as they continue to simply treat the symptoms at the cost of healing the body as a whole.
For Lyn Hogrefe, It was this ignorance of truth regarding hormone health, as well as her own experience dealing with the detrimental effects of hormonal imbalance, that compelled her to reach out to women with purely natural and organic alternative methods to hormone replacement therapy. Out of this determination to spread the word that health and wellness can be achieved for women throughout all the stages of their life, the Happy Hormone Cottage was born.
Operating out of Dayton, Ohio, the Happy Hormone Cottage- a clinic working to diagnose, treat, and facilitate a natural regimens to improve hormone imbalance- is the fruit of Lyn’s labor of love and mission to educate women about how healthy hormone balance works and help women to triumph over hormonal issues in natural ways. The business’ goal to “strive to love and validate women” has spread its reputation of truth and compassion in the Dayton community and beyond.
“We filled a niche with Happy Hormone Cottage,” Lyn Hogrefe, owner and founder says. “Women just started showing up and it was really fun.”
Lyn’s journey to hormone health outreach and a career that allows her to daily pour into women’s lives began with a personal journey of her own to achieve hormone health. Later in life, Lyn was discovered having a fibroid tumor in her uterus and underwent a dramatic hysterectomy, a procedure that most often traumatizes the female body and leaves women with intense hormonal symptoms. At the time of the procedure, her husband, a pharmacist, desired to see Lyn overcome the tragic outcome of having her surgery, and became certified as a compounding pharmacist to help Lyn along a recovery path that involved Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy (BHRT). This alternative method of hormone replacement (the method that Lyn now uses with her clients at the Happy Hormone Cottage) uses physiological dosing of each individual’s natural hormone makeup at the tissue cell level to replace depleted hormone levels and to maintain those optimal hormone levels for life- a process that Lyn refers to as “refilling your hormone tank.”
“Luckily my doctor agreed to give it a whirl and the rest is history. Not only did I not develop the symptoms typical of gaining women having hysterectomies, but I found that as I replenished my hormone levels customized to what my body used to make, I became hormonally balanced and regained optimal health,” Lyn says.
Lyn was transfixed by her own hormonal transformation and the idea that she could not only proclaim the truth of how women can improve their health, but help them on an individual level to regain the youthful, energetic, and balanced version of themselves that had been ravaged by depleted hormone tanks. She worked to align her previous 6th grade teaching background and passion for education with her newfound desire to see women healthy and happy.
“I have always been service-oriented in my past,” Lyn says. “But you have to have passion, compassion and a heart for what you do. From that, women would gravitate towards me and the work I did.”
From beginning her career in women’s health by hosting discussion circles, to finally opening and marketing The Happy Hormone Cottage with its unique and natural approach to hormone replacement, Lyn has earned the love and respect of all women she comes into contact with and expanded her clientele to cities all across the country as the clinic now has six locations in different parts of the U.S.. Her business strategy is founded on her philosophy of seeking truth and bringing that truth into the light for all people to know and incorporate into their lives.
“The biggest thing women have to understand is you have to know the truth about your body and seek wellness- not medication to alleviate, but whole healing. You must challenge your doctors and look at the root cause of your issue. It’s a daily awareness of your body and daily ritual of taking care of yourself.”
At the Happy Hormone Cottage, Lyn takes care to examine women’s biological makeup on an individual level, while connecting with them on a personal level as well, to offer a customized program of BHRT, nutritional supplements, lifestyle recommendations, exercise regimens, and proper diet goals. She also acknowledges how misinformed women are about their health and offers personalized consultations to learn how each woman’s body functions to treat their imbalance appropriately.
Lyn utilizes many avenues for “getting the truth out there,” all which have helped her spread the word about hormone health and connect with all different types of women in their many stages of life. She is intimately involved with the health of women who see her regularly at the Happy Hormone Cottage for biological treatment, however, through her blogging and writing she is able to expand her message beyond the cottage’s doors and to connect with an even younger generation as she diligently pursues women’s education and awareness about their physical health and the “functional medicine” that is the only true path to whole healing. Not only does she educate the misinformed about how hormone health can be achieved, but she also strives to spread awareness about why hormone health is so important.
“Hormone balance is key to overall wellness. If we do nothing to fill our hormone tanks, we have no hope for health. I know I want to be healthy, have sex, and be viable when I am 90 years old. We have not been taught the best way to take care of our bodies and I am trying to change that. Someone has to. Why not me?”
Lyn is asking for support for her current endeavor, the Women’s Health Initiative Foundation. She recently published a book about her work with hormone imbalance: Own Your Journey To Optimal Hormone Balance.
