Screaming to be Heard: Hormonal Connections Women Suspect ... and Doctors Still Ignore

by Elizabeth Lee Vliet

In this book, Dr. Vliet continues her crusade to debunk myths and misinformation on women's health.

Genres: Health, Nonfiction, Medical

670 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Liss · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a primer on the basics of the endocrine system for the layperson, this was a helpful text. It focuses mostly on the reproductive hormones and is sadly out-of-date with regard to the latest information on the superiority of bio-identical hormones, but it's still helpful. A big drawback is Vliet's unfortunate embrace of the health-sapping lowfat diet. I realize the low fat nutritional dogma was strong when she wrote this book and she no doubt believed it, but counseling women struggling with hormonal issues to lower fat intake and increase whole grain carbs is a serious mistake. For me the most helpful aspect of Screaming To Be Heard was Vliet's refreshing acknowledgment (quite unlike the info to be found online) that progesterone is hardly a cure-all for ailing women with hormonal imbalances. It is, in fact, often something that will worsen the symptoms of depression and cause hunger. Only in absurdly large doses does it help to remedy insomnia. Even in ovulatory women progesterone is only present during half the cycle. Progesterone, if it is used at all, should be approached with wariness. Estrogen is the hormone that is likelier to help remedy memory problems, mood woes and fatigue. I also love that Vliet points out different forms of birth control pills and hormone therapies can cause vastly different outcomes. Not all "estrogens" are alike. To sum up: helpful basic information with super candor about progesterone, but lack of latest info on bio-identical hormones and optimal diet for women suffering hormonal imbalance.

[T.K. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the campy title, the author (who is an M.D.) directs her book to the medical savvy. If medical science is not your background, you may struggle at times to follow her (as I did). But her assertions were pure epiphonies for me, helping me recognize my medical issues and get the treatment I needed.

[tammy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have pcos. Finally. A book that talks about how hard it is to make people hear you. Over the years I've looked for books based on Pcos. Very few. This one is great.

[Dawn Hinrichsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must read for every woman and every person with a daughter!

[Rachel]

Read in 1996; my review from then: This book encompasses the best and worst of what I've read. She correctly says that doctors ignore or pooh-pooh it when women ask whether a problem might have a hormonal connection, and whether their hormone levels can be tested. She can and does test hormone levels. She presents a good case that may problems may be related to hormones. The bad news is, hormone treatment is her cure-all. From migraines to chronic fatigue to fibromyalgia, it's usually related to the pre- or peri- or just menopausal estrogen level getting lower. Treatment is usually estrogen (at least she doesn't like Premarin), sometimes a little testosterone. She makes no reference to things like women who were damaged by DES (an estrogen) or problems due to intake of environmental estrogens. She says out front that she doesn't mind participating in CME programs partially sponsored by pharmaceutical companies. Still, the book has some good information about how the body works. You do have to put up with tons of boldface, italics, quotation marks, and items in boxes - she likes to emphasize at least a few words in almost every sentence. [This edition of the book and my review were written before the studies that found problems with HRT; I don't know if or how she changed her viewpoint in later editions.]

[Kathy Gill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Purchased after, not before, my almost-emergency hysterectomy. Would have truly appreciated owning it beforehand, but I didn't think I was ready for such.

Possibly dated now (2015) but at the time was refreshingly candid and chock-full of research insights as well as practitioner insights.

Predates the (flawed) women's health initiative that pretty much ended research for post-menopausal supplemental estrogen. Read this and understand why you want bio-identical estrogen and not estrogen derived from pregnant mare's urine (PremPro).

[Kali · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book had so much information -- it is a huge book, and it is a lot of science regarding the body and the brain to take in. i just read the parts relevant to me, but doubt i will change my treatments because of anything i read because there seems to be so much unknown about hormones. quite a bit of vliet's treatment ideas come from her own experience as a doctor, sort of a gut instinct, with no research or evidence to back it up.

[Mira · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finally! Somebody is talking about the varied symptoms, and whole-body connections, involved in hormonal disorders! I would have given this book 5 stars, yet the doctor completely neglects holistic medicine. The ONLY effective way to treat diseases like PCOS, for example, is through herbal remedies, etc.

[Joanne Van · Rating 3 out of 5]

It had a lot of information but I found it hard to read as a lay person and not a doctor. She also expected you to remember everything you read as you continued further in the book. I did appreciate her advocating for women to speak up and communicate with their doctors and if their doctor doesn't seem to be listening to them then they should go find one who will listen.

[Niihaus · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me a while to really get into the nitty gritty of this book. It's a little wordy for me. But I felt so compelled to make an appointment with this doc. So, in that respect, it's a good book.

[Biogeek · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title says it all. Sometimes the medical profession can be pretty stubborn. The importance of understanding women's endocrinology is emphasized in this book.

[Kiri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A valuable resource for any women who feel that something may be off, but get little help from their physicians.