Elix’s Online Health Assessment Explained

If you have checked out Elix’s free Online Health Assessment, you may have noticed that it asks over 50 questions about your wellness. You might be wondering, “Why so many questions?” or “Why are you asking about my digestion and temperature?” or “How do I answer these if I don’t have a period?”

Why An Online Health Assessment?

Here, we explain why we ask so many questions about your health, how to best answer them, and how we use that information to create your tailored herbal blend based on your individual patterns of imbalance.

Your Pattern Diagnosis

To create your formula, we must first understand your underlying imbalances, the “why” behind your menstrual symptoms. Chinese medicine uses a system called Pattern Diagnosis to identify and group a wide range of symptoms into simple patterns of imbalance. Symptoms are your body’s way of signaling that something is not quite right in the body, something is out of balance. Your patterns of imbalance are the places where your body isn’t functioning as well as it could be. The answers you provide in the Online Health Assessment help us determine your body’s pattern (or patterns) and the support needed.

Why Do We Get So Personal?

Many of the questions are related to your period, not just because we are helping period pain, but the reason we get so in-depth about things like the frequency, color, and clotting of your flow is because all of this information gives us valuable insights into the state of your hormone health.

What If I’m Not Sure How To Answer?

What if you are on birth control, or don’t have a period? No worries! If you remember what your periods used to be like, answer these questions accordingly. If it has been many years, your periods were inconsistent, or you still feel unsure, we encourage you to meet with one of our TCM Health Coaches, who can help determine how to answer these questions most appropriately for your situation. They can also help you understand how Cycle Balance can support your unique menstrual cycle.

If your symptoms are inconsistent, we recommend answering how they are at their most severe, so we can be sure to address that pattern. We recommend tracking your symptoms so you can have more information about your cycle.

Why The Random Questions Not Related To My Period?

You may find there are other questions that are seemingly unrelated, and that is because TCM views the body as a whole, not as individual parts.  It’s all related in TCM, so seemingly unrelated symptoms in different organ systems can actually have the same underlying pattern of imbalance. Patterns of imbalance are not exclusive to just the period, so we take into account all aspects of the mind and body to build your formula for any contributing factors to your symptoms (i.e., stress, gut health, emotions). Just as our bodies shift and change, so do our patterns.

This is why we encourage you to retake the Health Assessment every three months by taking the Quarterly Health Assessment (located in your account portal). Some people stay on the same formula long term because it is what works best for their body. Others work through their patterns in layers; once something is balanced, something else may come to the surface, and we support that next. TCM is all about supporting the body where it needs it most at the moment.

What If I’m In Menopause?

Cycle Balance customized formulas support healthy hormones and menstrual cycles. If you are no longer menstruating but seeking support with hormone health, Elix recommends our Daily Harmony wellness formula. It’s based on a thousand year old, well researched formula (Free and Easy Wanderer) that has long been used to support symptoms associated with everyday stress, mood, energy, sleep, focus, and digestion issues. It is also featured on Memorial Sloan Kettering’s website for its ability to support symptoms associated with menopause.

Bringing The Clinic To Your Doorstep

Our Online Health Assessment is based on the traditional questions a TCM practitioner would ask if you were to see them in a private clinic to determine your pattern diagnosis. It is our way of bringing the TCM clinic experience to you. Our goal at Elix is to help you understand and take control of your menstrual cycle by making this type of tailored hormone balance supplement more accessible to all!

Still have questions? Book a session with one of our TCM Health Coaches today!

This article was reviewed by Dr. Elizabeth Fine.

Dr. Elizabeth Fine is currently the Dean of Clinical Education at Emperor’s College, the #2 ranked colleges for TCM. She has been practicing Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine for over 20 years, with a specialization in women’s reproductive health.