Frequently Asked Questions
Honest answers to what women want to know before booking — about hormones, the programme, how it works, and what to expect.
Functional medicine looks for the root cause of symptoms rather than treating each symptom in isolation. In practice, this means Dr Lizelle examines your full hormonal picture — oestrogen, progesterone, testosterone, thyroid, cortisol and more — alongside your history, lifestyle and mental health. She builds a plan specific to you, not a generic protocol.
A conventional gynaecologist operates within the standard medical system — typically 15–20 minutes per appointment, using standard reference ranges, and treating symptoms as they present. Dr Lizelle is also a fully qualified OB-GYN, but she applies a functional medicine lens: she looks at the interplay between all your hormones, your thyroid, adrenals, sleep, nutrition, mental health and history — together, as a system. The result is a picture most clients have never had anyone sit down and actually look at.
Many women who come to Dr Lizelle have seen multiple specialists. The difference is scope and time. Conventional specialists focus on their area of specialty and work within standard reference ranges — they rarely look at the whole picture simultaneously. Dr Lizelle does. She also has the time and structure to go deep, rather than a 15-minute slot in a busy practice. If you've been told your results are normal but you still feel anything but, this approach often reveals what the system has been missing.
Yes. Dr Lizelle is a practising, HPCSA-registered OB-GYN with 18 years of clinical experience. She does not practise fringe wellness. Everything she does is grounded in endocrinology, clinical medicine and evidence-based practice. The functional medicine lens simply means she goes further than standard care allows — examining more markers, giving more time, and building a more complete picture. This is medicine with depth, not medicine replaced by wellness.
Yes. Perimenopause can begin as early as the late 20s or early 30s. It doesn't always look like hot flushes — it often looks like anxiety, irregular periods, sleep disruption, brain fog or unexplained weight changes. If you've been told your blood tests are normal but something still feels wrong, a functional medicine lens may be exactly what's needed.
"Normal" in standard medicine means within a reference range designed to identify serious disease — not to identify suboptimal hormonal function. A woman can sit in the "normal" range for every marker and still be experiencing significant symptoms. Dr Lizelle looks at the full hormonal picture, how all your markers interact, where they sit relative to each other — not just whether they fall within a broad range. This is one of the most common reasons women come to her after years of being told nothing is wrong.
Common presentations include: fatigue and exhaustion that sleep doesn't fix; brain fog and poor concentration; unexplained weight gain or difficulty losing weight; mood changes, anxiety or depression; irregular, heavy or absent periods; low libido; hot flushes and night sweats; sleep disruption; thyroid symptoms not fully explained by standard testing; and adrenal exhaustion. Many women present with several of these simultaneously and have been treated for each individually without results.
A small-group, in-person workshop in the Garden Route where Dr Lizelle walks women through perimenopause — what it is, when it starts, what to look for, and what options exist. It is designed to be educational and warm rather than clinical. Attendees can ask questions openly. This is the first of several planned workshops. Date: 16 May 2026. Places are limited. Enquire to reserve your place →
Your first session is a full-picture consultation. Dr Lizelle will go through your history, your current symptoms, any existing blood results you have and your lifestyle. It is not rushed. You will leave with clarity about what may be driving your symptoms and a clear direction for next steps — not a vague "let's wait and see." If you are joining the Whole Woman Wellness Programme, this is your 90-minute deep-dive intake session.
Yes — all consultations with Dr Lizelle are conducted via Zoom. The experience is completely effective — hormone assessment is based on your history, lab results and clinical conversation, all of which work perfectly on video. Geography is no longer a barrier to specialist care.
The WWWP is a 6-month, 26-session private 1:1 programme with Dr Lizelle. It begins with a 90-minute deep-dive intake, followed by weekly and fortnightly sessions. The programme covers full hormonal assessment, personalised nutrition and supplement protocols, sleep and lifestyle optimisation, mindset coaching and WhatsApp support between sessions. It is doctor-led, deeply personal and unlike anything available in conventional medicine. Learn more about the programme →
No. You do not need to have done any tests before your first appointment. If you have existing blood results, bring them — Dr Lizelle will review them in context. If you don't have any, that's fine too. She will identify exactly which tests are needed for your specific situation, and provide a clear lab request form. You won't be asked to do anything unnecessary.
At present, Dr Lizelle's functional medicine services operate outside the medical aid reimbursement system. This allows for the time, depth and personalisation that conventional medical aid consultations do not permit. Many clients submit receipts to their medical aid for out-of-pocket reimbursement — success varies by scheme and plan. Please enquire directly for the latest information.
The Whole Woman Wellness Programme is R 2,105 per month (R 12,630 total over 6 months), payable by monthly debit order or in full upfront. Lab tests are billed separately by the laboratory. Private consultations are priced separately — please enquire for the current consultation fee. Full pricing detail is on the pricing page.
South African clients pay via EFT or debit order in ZAR. International clients can pay via PayPal in USD. Exact payment instructions are confirmed on programme acceptance or booking confirmation. There are no hidden fees.
The simplest first step is to send an enquiry via the contact page. Describe what you're experiencing and what you're looking for. Dr Lizelle's team will respond within 48 hours with availability, next steps and answers to any questions you have. You are under no obligation to proceed — it's just a conversation.
If you haven't found your answer here, send a direct enquiry. Dr Lizelle's team responds within 48 hours and no question is too basic or too detailed.