Women - Coping With Sex Hormone Symptoms
Some cancer treatments can lower the levels of sex hormones in the body. The main female sex hormones are oestrogen and progesterone.
Low levels of sex hormones can cause hot flushes or anxiety, making sleep difficult. Coping with other symptoms can feel worse if you are not sleeping well.
On average most adults need around 7 to 9 hours of sleep a day. But some people may need more while others manage with less.
Insomnia is when you have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep at night.
An occasional night without sleep will make you tired the following day. It won't affect your health, but it can make concentrating and decision making more difficult. Coping with other symptoms may feel harder if you are not sleeping well.
Understanding why you are finding it difficult to sleep will help you to find possible solutions.
difficulty falling asleep
difficulty staying asleep
waking up often or too early in the morning
feeling tired when you wake up (poor quality sleep)
Go to bed and get up at the same time each day and reduce naps.
Do some light exercise each day to tire yourself.
Make sure the room is not too hot or too cold.
Relax before bedtime, by taking a bath or listening to music.
Avoid alcohol, caffeine and smoking for about 6 hours before going to bed.
Don't go to bed hungry. Sometimes a light snack before going to bed can help.
Reduce screen time on mobile phones, tablets and TV at least 2 hours before going to bed.
Calming apps such as 'Calm' or 'Sleepio' may help before sleeping.
Meditate, practice mindfulness or try deep breathing at bedtime.
Minimise noise and light in the bedroom.
Try putting a few drops of lavender oil on your pillow or use a lavender cushion.
Tell your GP or specialist nurse if you have tried these tips and they haven’t helped.
There are treatments and therapies that might improve your sleep, these include:
cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBT-I)
tablets to help you sleep
complementary therapy
CBT-I looks at your thoughts, feelings and behaviours that may contribute to your sleep problems. Therapy involves:
habits that promote quality sleep - this is also called your sleep hygiene
relaxation techniques such as meditation
sleep restriction – limiting the amount of time you spend in bed
stimulus control – linking your bed and bedroom with sleep only and not with being awake
You can read about meditation in our complementary therapies section.
Go to our information about meditation
You can also read about meditation on the Headspace website.
Your doctor might suggest a short course of tablets if you’re finding it very difficult to sleep. You usually only take these for a short amount of time. This is because sleeping tablets can have side effects.
Speak with your doctor if you think you need sleeping tablets. They can talk it through with you.
There are several types of sleeping tablets and they work in different ways.
Medication to help with sleep include:
benzodiazepines (lorazepam, temazepam)
non benzodiazepine hypnotics (zopiclone, zolpidem, eszopiclone)
melatonin (if you are over 55)
Go to more information about sleeping tablets on our difficulty sleeping page
Some complementary therapies may help improve your sleep.
Acupuncture and reflexology
Studies have looked at acupuncture and reflexology to see if they might help with insomnia in women with menopause. They showed that acupuncture and reflexology may be effective.
Read more about complementary and alternative therapies
One way to help control hormonal symptoms is to take hormones to replace the ones your body is no longer producing. is an effective treatment for many women. But some treatments for breast cancer aim to either stop the body producing sex hormones, or block their action. If you are having these treatments, you can’t unfortunately take HRT.
Doctors don’t routinely recommend that you take HRT if you have a cancer, such as breast cancer. Even if you have finished treatment there is concern that HRT may increase the risk of cancer coming back. Talk to your specialist if you are finding it difficult to cope with your symptoms. They can explain the risks and benefits of HRT and if this is an option for you.
Struggling with sleeping problems can be difficult. It can help to talk to someone about how you feel. Speak to your GP or specialist nurse for advice.
You can also call our nurse freephone helpline on 0808 800 4040. They are available from Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. Or you can send them a question online.
Last reviewed: 10 Jun 2025
Next review due: 10 Jun 2028
Cancer treatments can cause changes in sex hormone levels. Symptoms can include hot flushes, memory problems, tiredness, and loss of sex drive.
Insomnia is when you have difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep at night. Insomnia can be a side effect of treatment. It can also be caused by the stress and worry of having cancer.
There are organisations to help you cope with symptoms and side effects caused by cancer and its treatment.
Some cancers or cancer treatments can change the amount of sex hormones the body produces. Sex hormones include oestrogen, progesterone and testosterone. Changes to the levels of these hormones can cause symptoms. But there are things you can do and treatments to help you cope with these symptoms.
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