Bonnie's Story

I used to feel at the absolute mercy of my hormones. I never imagined I would specialise in female hormones and fertility.

There was a time when I was completely disconnected from my hormones and what it is to be a woman. I was on the pill for around 10 years continuously. I first went on the pill for birth control and loved the convenience of skipping my "period." So I stayed on the pill year after year.

I didn't have any issues before the pill. I didn't suffer painful or heavy bleeds. Like most women I didn't have any understanding of my hormones or menstrual cycle. It wasn't until I started studying

naturopathy that I learnt the side effects and consequences of being on the pill for so long.

So I came off the pill and everything changed. All of a sudden I had hormonal issues and despite my studies I still didn't understand what was going on. I felt at the absolute mercy of my hormones and it was awful and really hard and foreign to me. I had bad PMS - mood swings, so teary and emotional, extremely painful breasts and my skin would breakout.

Around that time was also when my gut issues really escalated, so my gut was my focus in terms of my personal health. I now understand that the two issues are connected but at the time I was early into my naturopathy degree. I struggled each month premenstrually but I really just put up with it and deemed female hormones too difficult. I assumed I'd excel helping people with gut issues or skin conditions when I finished studying. Never in a million years did I imagine that female hormones or fertility would become my passion.

After graduating, I moved to Darwin and met my wonderful partner Greg. I knew I didn't want to go back on the pill or any kind of hormonal contraception so I started to revise and delve deeper into my understanding of hormones and the menstrual cycle. With a new found interest (and motivation) I began to understand the things that were influencing my hormones and I learnt how to track my fertile window for contraception. I harnessed the power of my hormones and had control over my fertility and body. I finally felt connected to my body and felt balanced. Don't get me wrong, it took time and lots of additional reading, research and training but ever since then working with women with hormonal issues has been an absolute joy and my driving passion in clinical practice.

I feel my early experience is similar to many women. It's rare that we are taught about our hormones. Even worse, social programming misleads us into thinking that PMS or period pain is normal and all part of being a woman. Understanding your hormones and menstrual cycle brings a whole other level to body awareness. I'm a firm believer its an essential part of optimal health.