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Hypothyroidism, anyone?


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Sue, you'll have to post your food so someone can eyeball it.  A few tweaks might really help you.  I'm curious what you've been eating, too. 

 

My meals are almost all based around the recipes from the Whole30 book. Here's a sample day:

 

M1: 3 eggs scrambled with bell peppers & onions (eggs mixed with 1 tablespoon compliant coconut milk) - vegetables are around 1-1.5 cups. Plus 1/2 avocado on the side.

 

M2: (Usually driven off leftovers from M3 the day before) Chicken, spinach, apple, cucumber salad with blackberry vinegarette dressing from whole30 book (replaced raspberries with blackberries).

 

M3: Steak, sauteed spinach with garlic & olive oil, sweet potato mash

 

I'm a purist about following the meal template to make sure I'm getting enough protein and vegetables at every meal. There are always healthy fats and I read & reread any labels. My bacon is definitely compliant too.

 

I've just been feeling worse and worse in this last week. Today is Day 25 and my energy is soooo low. :( 

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  • 3 weeks later...

Ah, I'm so glad I found this thread! I did a successful Whole 30 two summers ago and then paleo for three months. Felt great, ran some awesome races, did CrossFit, and then my eating disorder came back into my life and I gained all the weight and then some back. Now I've just finished my first year of law school and failed at three separate attempts at another whole 30 (some on the third day or the 26th). My weight has gotten higher than ever and I was training to be a competitive lifter. I went to the doctors for a regular checkup and had a horrible visit (not a great bed side manner) but she took my blood and ran a bunch of labs. Turns out I am severely Vitamin D deficient, possibly diabetic again, have microscopic protein in my urine (could be a sign of kidney issues), and my TSH was 5.2. This is the first time at any weight or point in my life that my thyrooid has ever come back high. My mom has hypothyroid and because of how quickly I gained weight as a kid she's been having it checked my whole life. Under 18 years old it was checked every three to six months and since whenever I get bloodwork done and its never been high or even outside the reference zone. I go back to the doctor on the 29th for another blood test to see if it was a fluke but if it isn't I'll be put on medication. This whole ordeal finally made me realize how fragile we really are and how badly I didnt want these chronic illnesses to be my life. If the TSH comes back high again I'm okay with being put on medication because I dont think its ever worked properly and they never checked it at the right times. But if it doesn't then I need help to lose weight and regain my life somehow. So, yesterday I committed to a Whole 90. I got one day down and forgot how much the carb flu sucks. Todays day two and I know I can make it once I get through days three and seven - those are the worst days for me.

 

So grateful to find this tag and be able to see what you all wrote!

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Did your doc, by chance, measure free t3 and free t4 as well? Those labs are much more useful than TSH, and if that's all your doctor is testing, chances are you won't be treated properly. My two cents from someone that had a PERFECT TSH for 15+ years despite a long list of hypothyroid symptoms. It's so incredibly frustrating, but you can feel so much better when treated properly! (You can also feel much, much worse if treated indirectly.)

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Hi Karen -

 

I'm getting blood redrawn on the 29th to check T3 and T4, they weren't checked on the original blood test on July 2nd. My mother (a physician) said usually they aren't because they aren't included in regular labs. So now they will to check, but my mom has checked it every so often and its always normal, which is so frustrating. I feel like this is one of those things you get a window for and I'm hoping this is mine. I've hypothyroid issues my whole life but no diagnosis cause my numbers were never abnormal. All I've noticed since the beginning of the month is that I'm exhausted. I was in law school as a first year and did mediocre exercise (towards the end I started training as a powerlifter and doing much more strenuous stuff) and I barely drank coffee and was fine, tired but normal tired. And now its summer time and I work three days a week and can barely lift because its all too heavy. Things I was working out at are too hard to even do as a warm up now. So that's a bummer and I want to figure it out. I'm glad I'm not the only one on here with something like this!

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Hi Karen -

 

I'm getting blood redrawn on the 29th to check T3 and T4, they weren't checked on the original blood test on July 2nd. My mother (a physician) said usually they aren't because they aren't included in regular labs. So now they will to check, but my mom has checked it every so often and its always normal, which is so frustrating. I feel like this is one of those things you get a window for and I'm hoping this is mine. I've hypothyroid issues my whole life but no diagnosis cause my numbers were never abnormal. All I've noticed since the beginning of the month is that I'm exhausted. I was in law school as a first year and did mediocre exercise (towards the end I started training as a powerlifter and doing much more strenuous stuff) and I barely drank coffee and was fine, tired but normal tired. And now its summer time and I work three days a week and can barely lift because its all too heavy. Things I was working out at are too hard to even do as a warm up now. So that's a bummer and I want to figure it out. I'm glad I'm not the only one on here with something like this!

 

Check out the site stopthethyroidmadness.com for lots of thyroid info. They break down what the labs really mean and what you should be testing for. I've been reading a TON since discovering their site. I found out, after a successful Whole30, that my labs just got worse - I also discovered I'm deficient in Vit. B12, D, and iron. My autoimmune labs escalated and my thyroid labs look worse. I'm trying to get in to see a functional doc because my Endo refused to consider any sort of thyroid problem. Hoping that you're able to get some answers but seriously check out the site - it's a wealth of info!

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Hey Whole Sue! I definitely will look that site up! Thank you for that. I have PCOS and am severely Vitamin D deficient and finally started the eight week meds. I am hoping doing this Whole 90 will help heal things up or at least jump start the healing. I might need a ton more days but that's where I'm starting. I know autoimmune disorders run together - once you have one you can have more - so I just want to make sure its being treated properly. I've been hearing a lot about functional doctors and there are a few in my town I might try and see. I hate my GP and my nurse practitioner - super callous woman and GP doesn't listen - and I got dropped from my endo because she left the practice. I'm going home to Miami and there's a supposedly excellent endo there that I'm going to try and get into to see. My mom is extremely warry of having family doctors track my hormones and wants me in with an endo. She has autoimmune disorders and she sees a homeopathic physician so I might see if I can get in with him when I'm home too. When I go I'll have finished the first Whole 30 of the three so hopefully I'll have better labs or at least be feeling better. The way I'm thinking about it is if I'm eating exceptionally well and exercising gently and I still have terrible labs then there is more going on and its not related to my eating disorder. Or maybe that's not even correct because it takes a long time to heal after eating a SAD diet coupled with being a binger.

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With autoimmune conditions, don't be surprised if labs look worse. I had high hopes that my labs would look better on day 31 (and I had spent months of dietary elimination before I was officially on Whole30 - so my diet wasn't "bad" beforehand) and my labs were all worse, which was especially surprising to see vitamin deficiencies. That was hard to take. I want to lose weight but I truly believe I should have seen improvement on my medical conditions and that simply didn't happen in 30 days. I'm travelling soon but when I get back I'm going back to the strict rules of Whole30 for a much more extended period of time and continuing to track blood work. I think what this has exposed is that there is clearly more to deal with than diet can handle alone. That said, I've read some articles that indicate improvement in diet can improve immune system function which can actually make autoimmune conditions worse (the immune system can be in such a poor state that the autoimmune disorder isn't able to be as aggressive - which seemed counter intuitive at first but if I can find the article again I'll post it because they do a better job explaining it than I ever could).

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That would be awesome! And I know. I committed to this really cause I know its the best option. I can be ridiculously sick and have more issues by eating junk or I can eat well and deal with just one disease and its issues. I don't know if that makes sense. I'll find out the 29th what my issues are after two weeks of Whole 30 (which I know they won't change that much) and then I'll get them done at the end of the 90 days and see. And that must be really frustrating! I know with PCOS I read a lot about how some women got worse before they got better and it took time to reverse the inflammation...like a lot of time...like years. Which is even more frustrating, but hopefully the functional doctor will be able to help! And thank you for all the advice its really helping me.

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  • 2 weeks later...

If you have hypo from hashis (which is an auto immune disease) you should take the meds. Your thyroid is fighting a losing battle. By they time your TSH is that high, you already have damage to the thyroid. I probably had hashi's for a long time, I was always told my TSH was 'high normal'. Of course I have found that I need to be at about 1 to feel good. I have been on 100 mg of Synthroid for years now. I was finally diagnosed by my gyno when she did a full hormone panel and the antibodies were found. And AI diet can help a lot. And if you have one AI condition, you can get others, so an AI diet makes sense.

 

As others have said, synthroid for a thyroid patient is like insulin for a diabetic. It's something your body can't make and you need it. A TSH of 4 is high, the new range is .01-3.

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If you have hypo from hashis (which is an auto immune disease) you should take the meds. Your thyroid is fighting a losing battle. By they time your TSH is that high, you already have damage to the thyroid. I probably had hashi's for a long time, I was always told my TSH was 'high normal'. Of course I have found that I need to be at about 1 to feel good. I have been on 100 mg of Synthroid for years now. I was finally diagnosed by my gyno when she did a full hormone panel and the antibodies were found. And AI diet can help a lot. And if you have one AI condition, you can get others, so an AI diet makes sense.

 

As others have said, synthroid for a thyroid patient is like insulin for a diabetic. It's something your body can't make and you need it. A TSH of 4 is high, the new range is .01-3.

 

I am definitely interested in taking a medication for my thyroid if I end up having it. I went to the doctor's yesterday and was told that she won't give me medication unless my TSH is around 7 or 8 and my T4 is out of whack. Granted, shes a primary care provider so I need to find a good endocrinologist, hopefully a functional doctor who does endocrinology. I had my TSH, T4, and thyroid antibodies redrawn yesterday so we'll see what that says. Hopefully I'll get some answers soon!

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Hello!

I know that I am joining this thread very late... months behind you all... but had a few thoughts.

 

When I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism, my TSH was already 198.  I was on synthroid, but still felt sluggish 12 months later when my TSH had been stabalized.  I then found a new great doctor who looked at my micronutrients as well as all the different thyroid related blood tests.  Turns out I had Hashimoto's, and I was very low in many vitamins, etc.  We switched me to a version of natural (desiccated pig thyroid) and a bunch of vitamins.  It has made all the difference.  I soooo recommend the natural thyroid above the synthetic versions.  My doctor also checked for celiac, which I am positive for, so I have been gluten-free for six months.  Between the natural thyroid meds and being gluten-free, I lost about 15 pounds without even trying.  Also I have tons more energy.

 

I am starting my whole30 this week (yesterday). One of my major symptoms for both diseases has been some pretty major digestion issues for the last couple of years, that just don't seem to go away! I will be following the AIP (Auto-Immune Protocol) version of eating plan - hoping I can get to the bottom of the digestion problems and heal my unhappy gut.

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So in 17 days of Whole 30, and two weeks of the same SAD diet as before, my TSH went down and my thyoid antibodies and T4 are normal. GP is going to check it again in October after my Whole 90 and I'm still going to follow up with a functional doctor and endocrinologist but its looking like this might not be hypothyroidism!

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Hi I have hypothyroidism.  Mine problem came on after taking Lithium for an extended period of time to treat my bipolar disorder.  I currently take Levothyroxin.  I'm trying to get my doctor to switch me to Nature Throid or Armour Thyroid since it is more natural.  I don't know if you have ever tuned into a TV channel called Zliving (it use to be Veria).  It's chalk full of information on fitness, health, food, yoga, meditation, mindfulness, etc with a holistic approach.  On that channel I came across a woman named Andrea Beaman.  She talks about how her doctor wanted to radiate her thyroid and she decided to cure it by changing her diet.  She did all this research and got herself credentialed.  She avoided radiation and basically cured her thyroid problems.  I don't know how successful others have been but it's worth looking into.  

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I currently take Levothyroxin.  I'm trying to get my doctor to switch me to Nature Throid or Armour Thyroid since it is more natural. 

Hi Laura,

 

I know a number of people who have been really helped by going on Nature Throid or Amour Thyroid - including myself.  Good luck with those conversations!  In case its helpful, the Nature Throid website has a section to help people find doctors in their area for prescribing natural thyroid medication.

 

Good luck!

Olly

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  • 3 weeks later...

I have hashimotos, and i'm on day 27 of my first w30. I feel a lot better, and have more energy. I did see a new dr just after I started and she found that I have been overmedicated for about two years(!!). I have been on new dose of levaxin and free T3 for two weeks, not sure if this is contributing to the energy, or if it's too early to see any changes from that. I'm planing a round two, but not sure if I should continue w30 or go for aip. Any thoughts? :)

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  • 5 months later...

Be careful with DRs they do not know very much about this and don't know how to treat it. I have hypothroidism and hashimotos, which is autoimmune thyroid disease. The doctors didn't even know that I had this or what it even was until I requested the blood work for it because my mother was diagnosed with hashimotos.  My advice to you is to do your research and be well armed with knowledge. I have seen about 10 doctors and none of them have helped me. There is a range that your TSH should be in and I believe that is between 2-4.5. I feel best when I am right around 2. My DR at least admitted he knew nothing about this and sent me to see a specialist. The 1st specialist said that this is no big deal just take a pill every day and dont worry about. The 2nd said that my thyroid had nothing to do with my inability to lose weight. The 3rd and 4th were just as helpful. I work out 5-6 days a week and eat like a saint and cant lose about to save my life. I have actual been suggested by DRs to take diet pills or have surgery. Both are not an option for me. It has been a difficult 3 years for me and I have had to do all of my own medical research myself.

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When you aren't happy with the medical service you're getting, it's time to shop around.

 

Most doctors are normal general practitioners, they're not specialists and their knowledge in some fields can be limited.

Ask around for a recommendation from someone who was satisfied with their service.

 

Keep copies of your blood work results, so you can share them with other doctors, also be aware that some testing services can contribute to the problem as some only provide a vague result like "in range", without any actual numbers (so doctors will have no idea if you're right at the top or bottom of the range).

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