74: Dr. Terri DeNeui: What Testosterone Has to Do With Mood, Brain Health, and Aging in Women

Most women are taught to associate testosterone with libido and muscle. So when they begin feeling depressed, anxious, emotionally flat, unmotivated, forgetful, or unlike themselves, testosterone may never enter the conversation. In this episode of Hello Hormones, I am talking with Dr. Terri DeNeui about why this hormone has a much bigger role in women's health than most of us were taught.

We get into the relationship between testosterone and mood, what Dr. DeNeui found during her doctoral research on depression, and why hormone changes may sometimes be missed in women who develop new symptoms after childbirth or during perimenopause. We also talk about vitamin D, thyroid function, hormone metabolism, and why a woman may not respond well to therapy when the rest of her physiology has not been considered.

Dr. Terri DeNeui is a hormone optimization expert, founder of EVEXIAS Health Solutions, author of Hormone Havoc, and a doctorally prepared nurse practitioner who has worked in the hormone space for more than 17 years. She explains the different hormone delivery options available to women, what hormone pellets are, how they work, and what to ask before trusting a provider with your care.

What's Discussed:

(00:51) Why testosterone belongs in the conversation about depression, anxiety, motivation, and mood in women.

(08:55) How symptoms, laboratory testing, vitamin D, thyroid function, and sexual health are evaluated together.

(10:54) The different hormone delivery options, including creams, patches, rapid-dissolve tablets, progesterone capsules, injections, and pellets.

(15:56) What a hormone pellet is, where it is placed, and how hormones are released over several months.

(23:21) The relationship between estrogen, testosterone, cognition, brain health, and quality of life as women age.

(28:24) Why hormone receptors throughout the body matter for the brain, heart, bones, muscle, urinary system, and more.

(36:24) How to find a trained hormone provider and why experience, follow-up testing, nutrition, gut health, and hormone metabolism matter.

Important Note Antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications should never be stopped or reduced without guidance from the prescribing healthcare professional. Depression and anxiety can have many causes, and hormone therapy is not a substitute for appropriate mental health care.