Many women experience a medley of hypothyroid symptoms, yet the standardised testing comes back as normal?
This article is to reassure that you are not crazy, it's the gaps in your testing that are wrong, NOT YOU!
The thyroid is a butterfly shaped gland in your neck, it's role is to provide energy to every cell of the body. If the thyroid slows down every cellular process slows down, causing fatigue and weight gain.
Research has documented that 80% of the adult population has some level of thyroid dysfunction; therefore, a full thyroid function screen is very important for everyone. The standard blood testing only tests for 1 thyroid marker - TSH - this is not accurate enough to assess thyroid function.
Have you been to the GP with fatigue, weight gain, hair loss, muscle aches and pains, low libido, only to have your thyroid tested and be told everything is 'normal'?
This story is all too common.
80% of the Adult population have some kind of thyroid dysfunction. Full screening is essential to assess thyroid function accurately. Thyroid could be the underlying cause of your symptoms of brain fog, weight gain and fatigue!
My clinical experience has shown an overwhelming number of women to be experiencing undiagnosed thyroid issues and suboptimal thyroid function, this can cause debilitating symptoms:
Common Symptoms...
Hypothyroid (Under-active)
Tiredness & Sluggishness
Dryer Hair or Skin
Sleep More Than Usual
Weaker Muscles
Constant Feeling of Cold
Frequent Muscle Cramps
Poorer Memory
More Depressed
Slower Thinking
Puffier Eyes
Difficulty with Math
Hoarse or Deeper Voice
Constipation
Coarse Hair/Hair Loss/Brittle
Muscle / Joint Pain
Low Sex Drive / Impotence
Puffy Hands and Feet
Unsteady Gait
Gain Weight Easy
Outer Third of Eyebrows sparse hair
Menses More Irregular
Heavier Menses
Carpel Tunnel Syndrome
These symptoms can be experienced to varying degrees from mild to severe. If you are experiencing 5 or more of the listed symptoms, it is highly probably you have an undiagnosed thyroid condition. The only way to accurately diagnose, is through deeper essential testing. Correct treatment is essential to support the thyroid to function optimally, and to overcome and alleviate symptoms.
If the thyroid is over secreting, hyperthyroid, everything is the body speeds up causing:
Decreased appetite
Heart palpitations
Bad Digestion and bloating
Loose bowels, especially when under stress
Anxiety
Sweaty palms and armpits
Insomnia
Increased irritability
Brittle Nails
Shakiness
Many women can experience symptoms that swing between over and under-active thyroid - this is common with the presence of thyroid antibodies, an underlying autoimmune disorder that causes thyroid tissue damage and impacts functioning and hormonal secretion.
Essential Thyroid Testing
A full thyroid panel should cover these factors, then corrective treatment can be given. Please note, GP's and endocrinologists are not trained in nutritional medicine, therefore can't offer the same type of treatment as a naturopath. If you have been told your labs are normal by your GP, that means you need someone who can provide deeper testing and screening, treat sub-optimal imbalances with correctional doses of nutrients.
Thyroid must have testing: TSH, FT4, FT3, RT3, Anti-TPO ab., Anti-TG ab.
TSH: Thyroid stimulating hormone (Pituitary hormone)
FT4: Thyroxine (secreted by the thyroid gland - non-active)
FT3: Converted from FT4 in the liver and muscles, active hormone)
RT3: Reverse T3, non - active, blocks T3, causes hypothyroid symptoms, caused by adrenal stress and inflammation
Anti-TPO ab: Anti-Thyroid peroxidase antibody, indicated in Hashimoto's, autoimmune thyroid condition)
Anti-TG ab: Anti-thyroglobulin antibody, indicated in Hashimoto's, autoimmune thyroid condition
To get a complete picture of the thyroid story, other factors to check include; inflammatory markers, methylation status, nutritional testing and food intolerance.
Adrenal health and stress hormones
Sex hormones: oestrogen, progesterone, testosterone
To determine any other underlying hormonal imbalances that need to be addressed as part of the treatment.
Thyroflex Testing: is currently the only non-invasive tool available to accurately measure thyroid function at its cellular level. The standard blood test used to check for proper thyroid function is a good tool to establish a baseline thyroid function, but is often misleading in cases of ongoing treatment of patients with subclinical hypothyroidism.
This is the key essential testing to accurately determine your thyroid function, not the stand alone TSH marker from the GP.
If you suffer from any of these thyroid symptoms, I cannot stress enough the importance of an in depth testing of your thyroid function. You deserve the answers to why you are feeling as you do. You can start to feel amazing and love your life again with the right treatment for YOU!
For a FREE 30 minute 1:1 consultation:
For healing solutions; Read: 8 key steps to healing your thyroid