Imagine walking into your OB/GYN’s office with a detailed symptom log. You’ve been tracking all your weird sleep, mood swings, irregular periods, and all the other weird sh*t that happens when you turn a certain age as a woman. You’re begging for help, asking for a full hormone panel, but you’re met with a lack of concern and just a nod to the ever-trending term: perimenopause.
They don’t offer any tests or bloodwork. Just a prescription for birth control, something that every forty-something woman wants, right?
This exact scenario happened to TikTok creator @imnotmessyimbusy. She shared her frustrating experience on the social media platform, and now, she’s racked up 226,000 views.
In her video, she explained how her doctor wasn’t really helpful about her troubling symptoms, and when she went back to the office, she tried again to get help.
She told the nurse practitioner, “I would like to get my hormones checked before we start treating whatever’s going on. Like, how are you treating something and you have done no tests?”
She recalled, “I was in tears. I was so frustrated. I still am. Like, and I said to her, ‘If I go to Quest [Diagnostics], I can purchase this test for like 500 bucks. So, why can’t you write it for me?’ And she said, ‘Well, we are treating the symptoms.’ What? That’s such bullsh*t!”
“You are not going to see a cardiologist put someone on a statin without doing any sort of test or EKG,” she said. “Not for women, apparently. Not us.”
“What does it take to get a full hormone panel, like a full workup as a woman, without having to pay however much it costs, out of pocket, or go to a holistic practitioner?” she asks, desperately.
Several women in the comments shared the OP’s frustration.
“I’m 34. I told my gynecologist I’m almost certain I’m perimenopausal. I listed all those symptoms you named. She basically laughed in my face. I even told her my mom went through full blown menopause at 42, and peri starts 10 years before. She still completely blew me off,” one user shared.
Another said, “Unfortunately you have to tell them it’s for family planning. My obgyn was nice because I told her I wanted to check my hormones bc I was 29 and technically was wanting to check my fertility so she ran the hormone planning under ‘family planning’ it sucks but it works. I think it’s also an insurance thing.”
One user said, “Unfortunately perimenopause isn’t diagnosed using labs. It’s diagnosed using symptoms. Hormones rise and fall all throughout the month in different patterns. Also you can have a ‘normal’ lab and still have symptoms.”
Others mentioned something called a Dutch test.
“You gotta go to a holistic or hormone therapy practice. Get a Dutch test which can cost about $300. Unfortunately OBGYNs just brush us off and don’t do this test.”
“If you work with a dietitian who specializes in hormones we can run it for $50!! I also can order DUTCH test with a provider discount,” another said.
One user wrote, “The Dutch test but getting a doctor to do it is really difficult”
What is a DUTCH test?
According to Allara Health, DUTCH stands for Dried Urine Test for Comprehensive Hormones. The DUTCH Complete panel tests sex hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone, adrenal hormones like cortisol and DHEA-S, hormone metabolites, and additional markers for nutrients, gut health, and more.
How does a DUTCH test work?
First, you collect four to five urine samples on filter paper over 24 hours. No needles. Once the paper has dried, you mail it back. Results typically take two to three weeks, after which a healthcare provider walks you through what it all means.
How is a DUTCH test different from a regular blood draw?
According to the official DUTCH Test website, unlike a regular blood test, which only shows a small snapshot of your hormone levels at one point in time, the DUTCH test analyzes urine samples over the course of a day — or even a full month with the Cycle Mapping option. The DUTCH Cycle Mapping™ test provides a detailed graphical view of the patient’s entire menstrual cycle, allowing providers to accurately track ovulation, identify causes of mid-cycle spotting or hormonal migraines, and assess ovarian function.
Basically, the DUTCH test shows how your body produces hormones, uses them, and eliminates them. So, the test isn’t just about measuring hormone levels, but what your body is doing with your hormones.
How much does a DUTCH test cost?
The major bummer here is that while the DUTCH test seems impressive and helpful, it is usually not covered by insurance or even ordered by a typical primary care doctor (or specialist).
The baseline DUTCH Complete test will run you $500, and the prices go up from there.
So basically, the DUTCH test isn’t exactly a miracle tool, and it’ll cost you (Thanks, America!), but for women who’ve been dismissed, told their labs are “fine” while feeling anything but, or handed a prescription before anyone even looked at their hormones, it can get you somewhere. We deserve something more concrete than just a prescription for birth control or “Suck it up — that’s just life!” mentalities.
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