Hormone Problems — How to Talk to Your Significant Other About Getting Help
- Hormone problems can be bad enough when you’re the one suffering from them—but when you’re watching a family member suffer, when you suspect that their hormones might be the culprit behind their strange, hurtful, or concerning behavior, it can be emotionally and mentally draining.
It can even destroy relationships.
You see, when someone is suffering from severe hormone problems, the symptoms can often manifest as (what looks like) other issues.
For instance, if your significant other has low testosterone, they may start to become anxious or depressed. They may suddenly have a lack of energy, or seem weak and fatigued all the time, all of which can exacerbate their mental symptoms.
For low testosterone especially, their sex drive may disappear (for men and women), and they may experience erectile dysfunction (for men). I probably don’t have to tell you what a profound impact this can have on a relationship.
On the Opposite End of the Spectrum, Hormone Problems or Imbalances Can Be Just as Bad
To stick with testosterone as our example hormone, if your significant other is experiencing high testosterone levels, they may exhibit hypersexuality, aggression, or risk-taking behaviors.
None of this is good for anyone in the relationship, and though rare, relationships can (and do) fail because of what appear to be “insane” behaviors on the side of one member of the family.
To me, this is profoundly sad. Though it is not always the case, hormone imbalances are often easily fixed with proper and attentive treatment. Now, I do want to stress that not every hormone problem can be easily fixed. In some cases, an underlying issue (like a pituitary tumor or a chronic illness like PCOS) may complicate therapy.
However, there are plenty of cases where simple hormone therapy can quickly address the hormone imbalance that one member of a relationship is experiencing.
So, How Do You Bring Potential Hormone Problems Up to Your Significant Other?
This is the difficult part, of course, and the answer to this question varies from person to person and relationship to relationship.
The best advice I can give here is this—if love is the guiding principle behind the conversation, you’re moving in the right direction. If resentment at your significant other’s behavior is motivating the conversation, it might not go so well.
Try to put yourself in their shoes—ask yourself how you would want to be approached if you were experiencing what they’re experiencing. In many cases, hormone problems can profoundly affect a person’s mental state, making them irritable or defensive.
That’s why I think trying to put your own resentment (if any) aside before having the conversation is so important—it makes it easier to handle any negativity, sensitivity, defensiveness, or outright anger coming from your significant other.
It’s also critical that you go into the conversation armed with the facts. You can browse this website for everything you ever wanted to know about hormone imbalances, like high estrogen or low testosterone, but you need to walk into the conversation ready to discuss why you think their behavior or symptoms align with possible hormone problems.
Don’t Diagnose Your Significant Other — That’s the Medical Provider’s Job
I think it’s very important to divorce yourself from any conclusions related to the potential hormone imbalance your significant other is experiencing. In other words, don’t diagnose them.
That should be your ultimate goal here — to get your significant other to a medical provider of some sort who can run some tests and start moving you down the path to a solution.
Try to be open to whatever the medical provider has to say (they’re the expert after all) and not to settle on a diagnosis based on only on your experience or what you’ve been convinced of based on your observations.
This is not to discount what you think, your experience, or what you’ve seen in your significant other, but rather to say that you may be too close to the situation or too emotionally involved to be able to see clearly what’s happening.
If You Think Your Significant Other Is Suffering From Hormone Problems, Get Them a Free Consultation
Symptoms mean little without context—that’s the point of the free consultation.
Sometimes, just being able to talk to someone about the way you’re feeling can have an extraordinary effect and get you moving down the right path.
If your significant other is interested, have them click the button below to sign up.
I look forward to meeting them and you.
Sincerely,
Glenn Steponaitis, PA-C
