So Hormonal: Essays About Our Hormones

by Emily Horgan (Editor), Zachary Dickson (Editor)

‘One of the books this year we are most excited about.’ – Lighthouse Bookshop

‘This powerful and timely collection shines a light on hormones and their relationship with our bodies, our lives, our selves and the stories we tell to make sense of it all. We would recommend So Hormonal to anyone with a body.’ – Authors Abigail Melton and Lilith Cooper

So Hormonal is a collection of personal essays detailing the various roles that hormones play in our daily lives. With over 30 authors from almost a dozen countries, this anthology strikes a balance between raw truths, tough challenges, and improbable elation.

Prefaced with a foreword from the author of Please Read This Leaflet Carefully, Karen Havelin, contributors discuss topics such as periods, steroid use, chronic illness, transitioning, men’s fertility and menopause with refreshing openness and honesty.

Expect pieces that celebrate the wonders and joys of hormones, while also challenging the stigma and discrimination routinely faced at the intersection of hormonal experiences. Compiled and introduced by Emily Horgan and Zachary Dickson, So Hormonal is an open call for new conversations about our hormones.

Essays include:

Foreword by author Karen Havelin

No Country for Neurodivergent Women: Addressing Undiagnosed ADHD and Cluster Headaches by Donna Alexander

The Waiting Room: Fighting For Trans-Inclusive Healthcare by Hidden Ink Child

Getting Off the Back Foot with Male Fertility Health by Tyler Christie

The Self-Made Body: Personal Growth and Steroids by Michael Collins

Notes from a Medical Menopause: There’s a Tea for That by Alexia Pepper de Caires

‘Man... I Feel Like a Woman’ A Trans Woman’s Oestrogen Therapy to Treat Gender Dysmorphia by Kacey de Groot

Roaccutane Tubes: On Navigating Puberty Hormones and Bodily Changes in the Wake of Sexual Abuse by Madeleine Dunne

Withholding: An Experience of Diabulimia by Clare Marie Edgeman

Don’t Tell Me to Calm Down: The Politics of Stress, Rest, and Lion Taming by L C Elliott

Telling Hormonal Stories by Sonja Erikainen, Andrea Ford, Roslyn Malcolm and Lisa Raeder

Meron: Breaking Free From the Maria Clara Ideal in Filipino Culture by Rita Faire

Dear Lexi: A Letter to a Friend About PMDD by Tomiwa Folorunso

Let’s Make a Baby (With Science) by Erica Gillingham

The Feminine Chaotic: Endocrine Disorders, the Feminine Identity, and Queer Culture by L j Gray

Blood is Back: How my Knowledge and Experience of Periods was Revolutionised, While I Wasn’t Having Them by Rachel Grocott

My Anxiety Is Part of My Identity by Toonika Guha

Wanna See My Party Trick? *Stops Taking Testosterone* by James Hudson

An Impersonal History of Self-Medication by Kate Kiernan

I’m Wearing Docs, Michael: On Thyroids, Tallness and Teenage Suffering by Aifric Kyne

Spinning through Fog (High Salt Content): Addisons’s Disease and Hormonal Treatment by Ali Maloney

Everything and Nothing: On Pregnancy and Depression by Fiadh Melina

Ten Years in the Making: Conversations with Partners About Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome by Sonali Misra

Clot: Pulmonary Embolisms and the Pill by Rachel Moss

Mood Swings and Misunderstandings: The Complexities of ‘Teenage Hormones’ by Cathy Naughton

Period, the End: Sixty Years of Learning by Sigrid Nielsen

What If I’m Not Just a Massive Bitch? Redefining Self with Severe PMDD by Heather Parry

‘Wait. I’m Not Finding a Heartbeat’ Speaking Out on Baby Loss by Laura Pearson

The Puberty That Wasn’t Supposed to Exist: Navigating Growing Up Intersex by Maya Posch

Blood and Bone: Osteoporosis at 23 by Georgia Priestley

What a Difference a Day Makes: How my Middle-Aged Zest for Sex was a Catalyst for Change by Lins Ringer

A Period Piece: On PCOS, PMDD and the NHS in 2020 by Jo Ross-Barrett

Change: The Bitter Pill Medicine Must Continue to Swallow by Annabel Sowemimo

If Rabbits, Why Not Women?: Living in a Woman’s Body Shaped and Kept Together by the Inventions of Men by Jeanne Sutton

Three Magic Days: Celebrating the Curious Power of Hormones by Alice Tarbuck

Banana-Leaf Poultices: Black British Attitudes to Healthcare and Medication by Rianna Walcott

LLETZ, a Locus: Reconfiguring My Body as a Body That Will Bleed by Anna Walsh

Genres: Nonfiction, LGBT, Health, Essays, Transgender, Gender, Short Stories

368 pages, Paperback

Published August 20, 2020

Reviews

[Melisa Korkut · Rating 5 out of 5]

My god this book... EVERYONE needs to read it. I mistakenly (and now, I feel, ashamedly) picked it up assuming it to be on the subject of periods, and periods alone. It was not, of course, as even people who do not have periods are "so hormonal". I learned so much; not only facts, but also about how some people can feel and have felt in certain situations regarding their hormonal health that one can never truly understand unless they have also lived through the same situation. It really opened my eyes to how every single one of us has their own story regarding their personal health journey. There were some essays that stuck out to me more than others, these being the first one written by a woman with ADHD and cluster headaches, another on a trans man's experience in a doctor's waiting room, one on navigating friendships while having 'Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder", and one on a charity which provides period products to asylum seekers and refugees. The "What next?" sections at the end of each essay was also interesting and I feel are important in providing further help and information if you felt connected to a particular essay. I was inspired, angered and enlightened reading this book and, if it wasn't obvious already, I highly recommend it.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm really honoured to be included in this book, which is as thoughtfully curated as it is beautiful. It contains a wealth of human experience here and is as educational as it is enjoyable. I particularly enjoyed the essays on trans and intersex health care and the writers' experience of it; these pieces can't fail to impress upon us the need to make healthcare inclusive and easily accessible to all, especially the most marginalised amongst us.

Huge congrats to Monstrous Reg and the editors; a total success!

[Siobhan · Rating 5 out of 5]

So Hormonal is a collection of essays about hormones and the varied roles they play in people's lives. With essays covering periods, menopause, transition, steroid use, and fertility amongst other things, there's a wide range of topics covered, with personal anecdotes and reflection alongside highlighting key information about health conditions and experiences. Each of the 36 essays ends with a suggestion for following it up, either with reading or websites for charities and support groups, giving people action to take if motivated by the content of the writing.

This is a gripping collection that provides insight into a huge range of issues and realities, forcing you to reflect on bodies, medical care, and how we understand ourselves. It's hard to pick certain ones to highlight, but there was some particularly enlightening looks at comorbidity of conditions affected by or affecting hormones and on the complexities of things that some people might think are simple. The essays around the complexity for trans men and non-binary people when accessing healthcare for gynaecological problems were also interesting, and it was good to see essays on hormones not just written by or focusing on cis women. Some of the essays also challenge particular ideas, for example around 'teenage hormones' or steroid use, which are good chances for readers to reflect on their own assumptions.

There are a lot of essays in So Hormonal, a lot more than I was expecting, and this brought welcome variety and the chance for a wide selection of voices—I wouldn't have wanted it to be any shorter. It's the sort of book you want to recommend and lend to other people seeing as it is both insightful and will contain essays that different people will find relatable in different ways. The inclusion of further information at the end of each essay makes it a starting point rather than the final answer, and it's good to have collections like this coming out.

[Leoniepeonie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection is stunning. It's so so ambitious in its breadth but it doesn't feel like there's any compromise on depth going on. It was moving and strong and brave and beautifully written all at once, and I loved how I could be swept from an essay that made me laugh out loud to one that made me cry. The whole book compelled me to race through it and I had to force myself to read it slowly and soak up each piece of writing and reflect on everything it shared. My own lil personal highlights were Wanna See My Party Trick?, Notes From a Medical Menopause, Let's Make a Baby (with Science), What If I'm Not Just a Massive Bitch? and What a Difference a Day Makes. I'll keep coming back to this and all the wisdom and wow-I-feel-so-understood-ness it brought. Suuuuper.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

'[My] hormonal cycle is like a storm tide - it washes up strange blessings on my shore. I am grateful for the way it has carried me through my adult life. Always strange. Always unexpected [...] To be in my body is a curious magic, and I am glad of its strangeness.' ('Three magic days', Alice Tarbuck)
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This collection of essays brings together a diverse range of experiences of bodies, hormones, illness and health. It evidences the specific challenges people face, whether in terms of conditions such as endometriosis or PCOS, in navigating puberty, sexuality, fertility and gender, and in receiving healthcare that is appropriate and meets our needs. A readable and powerful book.

[Giulia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went into this hoping to learn more about myself - I did not - but that was just due to my misunderstanding of the content of the book. Regardless, it was very illuminating about different experiences and conditions.Some essays were extremely moving and had me tearing up on the overground! A few chapters were less good than others, which is natural given the quantity and variety of writers, but overall the essays were very well written. I especially appreciated the length of the chapters - just enough to get some depth, but short enough to make reading through the collection effortless and interesting.

[Sami · Rating 4 out of 5]

am i finally going to get around to writing that essay about my chronic illness i've always wanted to write because of this book? perhaps....

[Mary Morrissey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thirty six individual stories on specific healthcare challenges may seem like an unusual topic yet these individual perspectives are well highlighted in a gripping read in the book ‘So Hormonal’ . It gives voice and expression to anyone who has a unique and particular condition. It provides further direction for anyone who has been effected by reading about the issues with information on where to seek further resources. It is a beautifully detailed, concise and honest account of people’s experiences of the impact of certain hormonal features. Many of the areas are very specific e.g diabulimia, dyphoria.
To some extent the issues people speak of are on the margin yet it is a busy margin of people who have suffered in navigating and accessing services for their complex conditions. Through the stories they reveal their strength and resilience to overcome, endure, heal and blossom.
Emily Horgan and Zachary Dickson have done a fantastic job in bringing this collection of true experiences to a collective informative body. Coordinated and clear with a flow of autobiographical stories which enlighten and educate. ‘So Hormonal’ is an important resource and a gift to those who read this book and the insights we gain.

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book to dip in and out of, a selection of essays about hormones, from stories about periods (every kind), trying to get pregnant, menopause to taking hormones as a trans person. I really like the inclusive nature of this book and that there is such a broad variety of essays for cis, trans and non binary people, as well as a wide variation of ages. Some essays are moving, all are scientific with lots of research and useful information about how hormones affect our bodies at all stages of our lives. I don't think I've come across such a comprehensive book of essays before.

[Sarah Parkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't know how essential this book was until I started it. The essays are beautifully written, raw and honest, veering from affirming to heartbreaking. Talking about issues that are still frustratingly overlooked across society, it feels strangely personal for me: everyone has a body but we don't talk about them in the ways that the writers do here. I hope other readers get as much from this as I am.

[Dimity Hubbub · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is vital and has been both written and curated with great care. It has made me laugh and cry, and given me insight into so many diverse experiences, as well as resonating deeply with my own experiences. A treasure of a book.

[Ang Dixon · Rating 4 out of 5]

From menopause, to addisons, to steroid use, to infertility and hormonal replacement in the trans community, this collection of thirty-six individual essays explores each author's experiences of one or more of the many hormones that can affect the human body. These essays challenge; they aim to change our perspectives, and demand that we never assume how someone else's body might be working, and how deeply their day to day is affected. These authors pose such a variety of views: their hormones are powerful. They are sometimes life-affirming, sometimes life-wrecking forces that are completely unique to them. It's not a text book, and I think it would be disrespectful to the deeply personal voices of these essays to describe it as such. That's what makes this book so important: it gives voice to normal people whose experiences we very rarely get to hear. Some of these stories felt very familiar, some made me laugh and some were heart-breaking. A couple of them made me bristle and I think it's these ones I'll be coming back to: why else do we read stories if it's not to gain a better understanding, to walk in someone else's shoes and become more sympathetic? This is a lesson in listening, a call to be more honest about what our bodies face every day, and a demand for those of us in healthcare communities to do better.

[✨arrianne✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Similar in structure to the Bi-ble 1 & 2, this is a collection of essays on a topic but in this case it’s all about hormones. It’s wide and varied - lots of periods, menopause, some more niche stuff like Addison’s, experiences of trans lives - and rather than a textbook, it tells how these things affect people’s lives. One big theme running through is how the medical establishment doesn’t always come out smelling of roses in its approach to patients’ experiences.

The second-last essay on Black British attitudes to healthcare was perhaps my favourite, a fascinating insight a lot of which I was clearly aware of but lots of new information that will hopefully be personally useful to me at work to provide better care.

Thoroughly enjoyed this, would absolutely recommend.

CW: childhood sexual abuse, disordered eating, baby loss, mentions of suicide or suicidal ideation (these CWs are mentioned at the start of the book so you can avoid the relevant essays).

[Erin Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really tough but informative and eye-opening book to read. It shocked me how little I knew about hormones and how the precarious battles each of us face with them are often dismissed as a cruel fact of life.

Really excellent inclusion of women and the LGBTQ+ community, with a particular focus on women's bodies are still so under researched and misunderstood, and the dark histories of the medical profession that continue to deter people from using it.

[Lenka · Rating 5 out of 5]

This anthology is something truly special. I love the diverse spectrum of stories and I couldn't put it down. I feel like I learned a lot and reading this provided me with new perspectives on experiences that I've never heard about before.
Definitely recommend for anyone!

[Louise Smillie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loved the concept, just felt the chapters should have been longer to give the authors some room to talk about their subject in depth

[Kenn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this essay collections! (Or, more correctly, I liked most of the essays--there were a few that weren't up to par with the others, but ultimately not enough to change my overall recommendation of the book).

Favorite essays: "The Self-Made Body" by Michael Collins (incredible!!!), "Man...I Feel Like A Woman" by Kacey de Groot, and "The Puberty That Wasn't Supposed to Exist" by Maya Posch. Several others were also great, but these were (to me) the standouts/my favs.

[Leo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great range of stories