It often starts subtly: a little more fatigue than usual, a heavier period, increased bloating, or more frequent yeast infections. Then it builds. Mood swings intensify. Brain fog becomes harder to shake. Energy tanks. You’re told it’s stress, perimenopause, anxiety, or maybe just “getting older.”
But for many women, these symptoms aren’t just hormonal. They’re the downstream effects of something deeper, something most conventional doctors aren’t trained to look for: chronic, low-grade infections that quietly disrupt the body’s regulatory systems.
The Hidden Role of Infections in Hormonal Imbalance
When we think of hormone imbalances, we often look to the ovaries, thyroid, or adrenals. While those systems matter, they don’t operate in isolation. The immune system, nervous system, liver, and even your gut microbiome play critical roles in hormone regulation. And chronic infections can throw all of them off.
These are not necessarily infections that knock you out with fever and chills. Many are stealth pathogens — like Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), Lyme and co-infections, mold-related mycotoxins, candida, or low-grade bacterial overgrowths — that linger undetected in the body. They create persistent inflammation, burden detox organs, and keep your immune system in a constant state of overdrive.
This immune burden can disrupt the body’s ability to metabolize and clear hormones properly, interfere with receptor signaling, and even alter how the brain communicates with the endocrine system. The result? Hormone chaos: irregular cycles, fatigue, anxiety, PMS, thyroid issues, and more.
Why This Hits Women Harder
Women are uniquely vulnerable to the effects of chronic infections for several reasons:
- Monthly hormonal fluctuations naturally stress the immune system.
- Estrogen dominance (common in today’s environment) worsens inflammation.
- The gut microbiome, often disrupted by antibiotics and birth control, plays a major role in estrogen clearance.
- Toxic load from skincare, plastics, and food can impair the liver’s ability to filter out both pathogens and hormones.
When you layer in hidden infections, the burden can become overwhelming, but it rarely shows up on standard lab panels. And so women are dismissed, misdiagnosed, or medicated for symptoms rather than root causes.
Clues You Might Be Dealing With a Hidden Infection
If you’re experiencing any of the following, a chronic infection could be contributing to your hormone imbalance:
- Recurrent yeast infections, UTIs, or bacterial vaginosis
- Fatigue that doesn’t improve with rest
- Painful or irregular periods
- New or worsening anxiety, especially around your cycle
- Brain fog or memory issues
- Skin issues like rashes or breakouts
- Worsening perimenopausal symptoms despite normal hormone labs
Many women who come to us have already seen multiple specialists, tried hormone therapy, cleaned up their diet, and still feel off. That’s because when infections are in the background, the body is constantly in a defensive state. It cannot rest, reset, or regulate properly.
The Root-Cause Approach: Going Deeper Than Symptoms
At Castro Integrative Medicine, we don’t stop at hormone levels. We ask why your hormones are imbalanced in the first place. We look for hidden infections, toxic burden, nervous system dysregulation, and immune system confusion.
Some of the tools we use to get to the root include:
- Ozone IV Therapy to improve oxygenation, support immune modulation, and help the body clear out lingering pathogens
- Low Dose Immunotherapy (LDI) to help retrain the immune system to stop overreacting to chronic infections, mold, and food triggers
- Chelation therapy to remove heavy metals that disrupt hormonal and immune balance
- Procaine IV Therapy to help reset the autonomic nervous system, allowing the body to shift out of fight-or-flight and into healing mode
- GI testing and microbiome support to restore gut health and hormone clearance
We also understand the emotional toll of being told “everything looks fine” while your body is clearly not fine. Our approach combines clinical insight with compassionate listening. Because healing isn’t just about lab results, it’s about helping women reconnect with their bodies and find answers that make sense.
You’re Not Crazy. You’re Just Not Being Heard.
If you’ve been told your symptoms are normal, if you’ve tried treatment after treatment without results, or if you feel like your body is working against you, you’re not alone. The connection between chronic infections and hormone dysfunction is real, and it’s finally getting the attention it deserves.
At Castro Integrative Medicine, we specialize in uncovering the hidden drivers of chronic symptoms – from persistent fatigue and hormone imbalances to unresolved infections and detox challenges. Whether you’re searching for ozone therapy in Charlottesville, support for hormone imbalance, or a truly integrative medicine approach, we’re here to help you find the answers you’ve been searching for.