Symptoms, and whether this is for you
What symptoms do you actually help with?
Usually some combination of the same things. Tiredness that sleep does not fix. Sleep that breaks at 3am. Brain fog, low mood, or anxiety that feels new. Periods that have changed. Weight that has settled around the middle. Hair thinning, joint aches, feeling the cold when nobody else does.
On its own, each one has an obvious explanation, which is exactly why they get waved away one at a time. Together they are usually a pattern, and the pattern is the useful part.
My GP said my bloods are normal. Why would this be any different?
A reference range describes a population, not you. It tells us whether your result is unusual compared with thousands of other people. It does not tell us whether it is right for you, at your age, with your history.
We read your numbers alongside your history and your symptoms, and we watch how they move over time rather than judging you on one snapshot.
Who is this for, and who is it not for?
Our services are for adults aged 18 and over, and everything we do is built around female reproductive and hormonal physiology, from the panels we choose to the way we read a result. That is a limit on what we are set up to interpret safely rather than a judgement about anybody. The full wording is set out on the blood test page and in our terms.
Is this evidence based, or is it wellness?
Evidence based, and sometimes that means telling you something popular does not hold up. We will say when a test is unlikely to change what we do next rather than selling it to you, and we will not offer a supplement to fix something a supplement cannot fix. Where the evidence is genuinely thin, we say that too instead of dressing it up.
What if you cannot help me?
Then we will say so, early, and point you somewhere that can. We would rather lose the appointment than take your money for something that is not going to help you.
Testing
Do I have to start with a blood test?
No, though most women do, because it gives us something real to work from. If testing would not change what we do next, we will tell you that rather than sell it to you.
What is the difference between the two blood test options?
One is a kit posted to your home that you use yourself, which is quicker because it needs no appointment. The other is a phlebotomist who comes to your address and takes a sample from a vein in the usual way. Some markers can only be measured properly from a venous sample, and we will tell you if yours are among them.
Is the at home kit difficult, and does it hurt?
The kit uses a small device that sits on your upper arm. It punctures the skin to collect a few drops, so it is not needle free, but there is nothing going into the crook of your elbow and nothing you have to watch, and it is designed to be used without any training. If the markers we need cannot be measured that way, we will say so and arrange a phlebotomist instead.
If you have ever fainted having blood taken, tell us before you pay. The phlebotomist route is the safer choice, because somebody is with you.
Does it matter when in my cycle I test?
For some markers it matters a great deal. That is why we ask for 3 dates and for the first day of your last period rather than simply posting a kit out. We reply within 2 working days with the date that is right for what we are measuring, and we tell you exactly how to prepare then, so you are not left guessing.
Can I just buy a test without a consultation?
Yes, and your written report is included either way. What we would rather you did not do is collect another number that nobody reads against your story, which is usually what people already have. If you want it talked through, a 20 minute results review can be booked separately.
When will I get my results, and what happens if something needs attention?
The laboratory takes 3 to 5 working days from receiving your sample, and your written report follows once it has been read against your history. The report is included and it is yours to keep.
If something in your results needs saying out loud, we say it when we send them, and we tell you who can look at it properly and how you reach them. A result on its own is not a diagnosis, and none of this replaces your GP. If you feel unwell and it cannot wait, contact your GP or NHS 111.
Please also know that your GP is not obliged to act on a result from a private test, and some will not. If that happens, tell us and we will tell you what the alternatives are and what they cost.
Treatment
What can you actually offer once you know what is going on?
It depends on what is found, and we will not pretend otherwise. Broadly, that means correcting things that are genuinely low, targeted work on food, movement, sleep and stress, medication where it is the right tool rather than the first one reached for, and a plan that is reviewed as you change rather than handed over once.
Where something sits outside what we can do, we tell you who can look at it and how to reach them, and we write it down for you.
Can you prescribe me anything?
We do not write prescriptions. What we do is work out with you what you need and put the reasoning in writing, so that your GP, or a prescriber we can point you to privately, has something to act on rather than your account of a conversation. If the private route costs anything, you will know the figure before you commit to it.
Do you prescribe hormone therapy?
Hormone therapy is one of the things that may be discussed, and whether it suits you is a clinical decision reached with you rather than something any clinic should promise on a website. We do not write prescriptions ourselves. Where a prescription is appropriate, it is written by a qualified prescriber after their own assessment.
It is also worth saying plainly that hormone therapy is not the answer to everything, and quite often the more useful conversation is about what else is happening at the same time.
How long before I notice a difference?
That depends on what is found and what is causing it, so anybody offering you a number on a website is guessing. Some things move in weeks and some take months. What we will do is tell you honestly which one you are looking at, rather than letting you assume the quick version and lose heart when it turns out not to be.
Is this instead of my GP?
No, and we would not want it to be. We work alongside NHS care, never in place of it. Where something needs a service we cannot provide, we tell you who can look at it and how to reach them.
Appointments
Who will I actually be seeing?
Your care draws on prescribing and clinical review, laboratory testing and interpretation, and nutrition and lifestyle medicine. These work from one shared record rather than as separate appointments that never speak to each other.
Some services are delivered with third party companies and practitioners, and we will always tell you who they are and what will be shared with them before anything is shared.
Do I have to travel to be seen?
No. Everything here is online, so you can be seen from wherever you are in the UK, and blood tests happen at home too. We do not currently see patients in person. The only person who ever comes to you is a phlebotomist, and only if you choose that option for your blood test.
How long is an appointment?
An initial consultation is an hour, because the history takes time to take properly. A follow up is 30 minutes and focuses on reviewing your results and adjusting the plan. A lifestyle medicine appointment is 45 minutes, and a results review is 20.
What do I need to have ready?
Any recent blood results you have, a list of the medicines and supplements you take, and anything you know about your family history and at what age things happened. If you have none of that, come anyway. We will work with what you have.
What does it cost, and how do I pay?
Every price is shown on the page for that service, and you pay on this website when you book. The price on the page is the price you pay, and nothing is added at checkout. Klarna is available if you would rather spread the cost of the Restored Programme; the total is the same either way, and Klarna's terms are between you and Klarna. 18+, UK residents only, terms apply, missed payments could affect your ability to borrow.
What you have paid us in the last 60 days for a blood test, a results review or a consultation comes off the Restored Programme if you decide to join it. Ask us for your code before you join.
Do I have to commit to anything ongoing?
No. Every step stands on its own and you can stop after any of them. Nothing renews on its own and nothing books itself. The Restored Programme exists for women who want their plan followed over months rather than looked at once, and if it is not right for you we will say so.
Records and privacy
What happens to my information?
Your record is held securely and used to look after you. It is never sold, and it is not used to train artificial intelligence systems. Our privacy policy has the detail.
Can I get a copy of my records?
Yes, of course. They are yours, and you can ask for them at any time.
Anything urgent
This clinic does not provide emergency or out of hours care. If you are unwell and it cannot wait, please contact your GP, call NHS 111, or in an emergency call 999.
Changing, cancelling and refunds
Can I change my mind after I have paid?
Yes. Because you are buying at a distance, you have 14 days from purchase to cancel, for any reason and without giving one. If you have asked us to start within those 14 days, you still keep the right to cancel and you pay only a proportionate amount for what has actually been provided by then. The full wording is in our terms.
Can I move my appointment?
Yes. More than 24 hours before your appointment you can reschedule or cancel it. Between 24 and 12 hours before, you can reschedule but not cancel. Under 12 hours before, we are not able to do either, because the time has been held for you and cannot be offered to anybody else. Nothing in this removes the 14 day right above.
Can I get a refund?
If you cancel more than 24 hours before your appointment, you are refunded in full. Inside that window the fee is not refundable, because the appointment was held for you.
What happens if I miss my appointment?
Before an appointment is recorded as missed, a member of the team will try to reach you up to 3 times. If we still cannot reach you and the appointment goes ahead unattended, and you then ask for a refund, 50 per cent of the fee is refunded to you.
If something went genuinely wrong and you could not get to us, please tell us. We will always listen, and we would rather hear from you than assume.
What if you have to cancel?
If we cancel or move an appointment for any reason, you are offered the choice of a new time or a full refund. That is true however close to the appointment it happens.
What if I need to stop the Restored Programme partway through?
For 14 days from purchase you can cancel and pay only for what has already been used. After that the programme is committed, because the testing, the appointments and the kit are bought up front. If at any point we conclude we are not the right clinic for you, we will say so, refund the part you have not used, and point you towards what does fit.
Still have a question we have not answered? Just ask us.