The Hormonal Hassle

These days people are plagued with various forms of hormonal issues. For me, it's been gradually becoming more worrisome as I age. With my first pregnancy I gained 85 pounds. At her birth my hormones decided to take a Thelma and Louise trip throughout my body. After her birth I went about 4 months without my menstrual cycle. Believe me, at the time I was not complaining but little did I know it was the start of my hormonal hassle. A little over the 4 month mark, I got my cycle, or a close simile anyway. Then I had that cycle everyday for the 4 months. This became the norm; four month off, four months on. By the time I really wanted to visit these issues it was three years later. At an gynecologist visit we decided it as time to have a test done to see what was going on. During the amenorrhea, he felt I was not ovulating and that is why there was no cycle. During the cycle he thought my body was over compensating for the lack there of. So we scheduled a test on a new machine he just got in the office. The day of the test and the standard pregnancy test took place to make sure I was not pregnant, and lo and behold during a 4-month period absence, I was indeed pregnant. It's a strange question when your ob/gyn. says to you, "how did that happen?" My quick response, "well doc it all started with the birds and the bees...."
The test was never done and with the birth of my son came some "normalcy." Cycle returned, I had little to no weight game with his pregnancy, and I felt good.
How does all this play into why I am over weight? Here's my train of thought.My hormonal imbalance never really went back to normal; the new normal, after the birth of my son was as normal as I was going to get, 30 days, one week. First two days real heavy, after that normal flow. But you see this was not MY norm. My body never recovered from the significant weight gain from the first pregnancy. It has been 10 years since my son was born and I am  not an ounce heavier or lighter. I ate okay, got a work out with the kids being so little, and joined Weight Watchers. So my okay eating habits became good eating habits. But nothing changed, and I got frustrated. Within years I even saw a family illness pattern developing. Darn genetics. My then 25 year old sister was diagnosed with colon cancer; yes at 25 years old. Through her bout (and she is still in treatment), my mom developed a brain tumor and lost her battle with that 6 months later. My older sister was diagnosed diabetic and I was diagnosed diabetic a year or so later. Now even my other sister has been diagnosed diabetic (the 40's are rough on us sisters). Yes I am one of four sisters all together. That colon cancer, brain tumor, diabetic rampage may be all related. The tumor throws me off a little in the sense that we are really not sure what caused it, all I know is it was probably developing for years before we ever saw any of the symptoms appear. Same for my sisters colon cancer. My daughter had juvenile arthritis since the age of 1 and is now, as a teenager, heading into more of a fibromyalgia trend and I have a niece diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome. Are these genetic issues or could they be more environmental in nature? How does a twenty-five year old get a disease that is most common in people over the age of fifty? Could it be the food we eat? The air we breath? The water we drink?I know there are studies out there but those studies are not related to my situation at all. I need to seek my answers, for me and my family. That's what I aim to find out. How do a person's hormones play out to environmental issues? Why are there more incidences of autism, arthritis, diabetes, birth defects then ever before? I am willing look for answers! Next up, What is the environment up to and how can we fix it? Until then, peace love and happiness my friends!