Mamma Health

1. Fatigue Feeling tired after a long day is normal. The fatigue brought about by hypothyroidism is however completely different from what people feel after a long and tiresome day. This kind of fatigue is overwhelming. The body aches too and there is a great desire to sleep. The fatigue is due to the lack of the thyroid hormone. The underproduction of the hormone results in a slow metabolic process. The body does not generate enough energy for the normal daily activities and the woman constantly feels extremely tired. 2. Dry hair and skin Women with hypothyroidism have dry hair and skin. This is because the body produces less collagen for the hair and less natural oils for the skin. The hair becomes brittle and the skin appears to be flaky. Some women may experience hair loss and brittle nails. 3. Constipation The digestive system slows down because of the slow metabolic process. When the digestive system slows down, the food is not broken down properly and the digestive tract be...

Definition of hypothyroidism When the thyroid gland produces less thyroid hormone than it is supposed to, the endocrine disorder known as hypothyroidism arises. There are many causes of this disorder and the most common one is the hHashimoto’sthyroiditis. This is an autoimmune disease. The thyroid gland controls the metabolic process of the body and most of the symptoms of hypothyroidism are as a result of a metabolic process that has slowed down. Symptoms of hypothyroidism Weight gain. When the metabolic rate of the body slows down, most of the calories that are consumed are stored as fat in the body. A person may eat less food but still gain a lot of weight and experience difficulties in losing it. The person also still gains weight by eating the normal amount of food they are used to. Sensitivity to cold. When the metabolic rate of the body is high, heat is produced and the calories in the body are converted into usable energy. When the metabolic rate slows down, the body coo...

I was diagnosed Hypothyroid after the birth of my first child and even then was told I was a new mother and was tired because of the baby. The Endo didn’t believe I was Hypo but ran the test anyway. He sent me a note saying I was indeed well into Hypothyroid. Years went by and my symptoms never went away but was told my TSH was normal so it wasn’t my Thyroid and I believed them after all they were the Doctors. Over the years I’ve been diagnosed with MS, Panic and Anxiety and Depression and over the years have had numerous MRI scans and all showed no evidence of MS so what is it I would ask and typically they would write a prescription for anti-depressants which I knew in my heart wasn’t the answer. More time went on and I continued to struggle through life feeling awful and exhausted then I crashed and again MRI which showed nothing all blood work was good then I was diagnosed with Sleep Apnea so according to my Doc that was the answer and again I knew it wasn’t the whole answer and...

The condition of hypothyroidism or what is commonly known as underactive thyroid has the chance of happening at any age but it seems to occur in adults more. As per the Endocrine Web over ten million Americans have the condition of hypothyroidism. It continues to state that over the age of sixty five, six percent of the men and ten of women succumb to the disease. This statistics also indicate that hypothyroidism is the potential cause if vertigo in the same age set. Hypothyroidism A person is said to be suffering from hypothyroidism when his body cannot sufficiently produce enough thyroid hormone needed by the body. The cause of this deficiency is not quite known but some say it is due to an autoimmune disease like Hashimoto Thyroiditis. The signs of the condition include shivers, loss of memory, unwarranted exhaustion and weight gain. Vertigo Vertigo is a condition that makes one feel like they are moving but in reality there is no movement at all. This anomaly may occur anytime ...

My name is Sue. I was ill for many years, at first I didn’t notice much but the struggle got increasingly worse over time. I had my thyroid status checked more than most non-thyroid sufferers, due to a colloid cyst in my thyroid. Unfortunately, nothing was ever picked up by my endocrinologist, even though I was gaining weight at a steady rate for no reason. By the time I knew something was definitely wrong, I was suffering from brain fog so bad I couldn’t even remember how to spell simple words, I was forgetting to pay bills, falling asleep no less than 6 times in a day. I became ratty, intolerant, tearful, angry even. Nothing helped, I started getting rashes on my neck and face, puffing under the eyes, swelling on my tongue. My joints were terribly painful, I kept slipping discs in my lower back, I developed a bone spur on my hip and my knees hurt. I suspected my thyroid but could get nobody in the medical profession to take my suspicions seriously. I started putting my symptoms into...

I was sick with walking or atypical pneumonia.  For 3 months I couldn’t shake it I kept going to drs and getting more antibiotics during this time I gained about 30 lbs and was barely eating. I felt to tired so I slept as often as I could. Went to walk in clinic and.hospitals no-one seemed.concerned except for me.  I was referred once again to a different clinic.  Its a teaching community.outreach clinic.  Dr walked in took about a minute to.listen to my lungs and  look.me  over.  He says.how long has the lower part of your.throat been swollen. He gives me water I swallow. Yep your thyroid is swollen. He then calls in about 30 students to take turns feeling my.throat while.I.swallow.   Dr then sent me for testing.  I don’t even remember what but it was 5 tests then blood work.  Dr says your hypothyroid and wrote out a script he said this should help you lose weight and you’ll feel better.  Well nope I.got over my.pneumonia but ...

After 12 years of being treated for hypothyroidism , I found out 6 months ago that I actually have Hashimotos with TPO antibodies over 2000 . Although my endocrinologist had this information the entire time he didn’t deem it important enough to tell me as in his words ’ it’s not a big deal and the treatment protocol remains the same ’ My depression started the same time as my hypothyroidism diagnosis and after about 7 years of assorted medications like Zoloft , Prozac , Effexor , wellbrutin, lexapro , Remeron it was concluded that I suffered from ‘treatment resistant depression’ Then came insomnia and anxiety and a number of other meds that never really worked My endo is not willing to accept that my thyroid has anything to do with this. He bases everything on the TSH. I now do my own research online.. I found ldn and am slowly titrating up to 3mg to see if my antibodies decrease . I also demanded to be switched to armour thyroid and thankfully my doctor was reluctant but switc...

Ten years is a long time. A long time to miss my children grow. A long time to lay in bed and hurt. A long time sleep, just sleep a little longer. I have had good days, like I am sure we all have, but the pain and tiredness I have lived with daily has become who I am. Or better yet, who I was. After one week of getting off levothyroxine, my life is coming back. Back to me and my new husband and my wonderful kids. I get up from the chair now at work and I can walk without pain. I get out of the car now and feel like dancing across the parking lot. I actually do not dread going to the grocery store, I can walk those aisles like everyone else. This is after only one week. I no longer feel stressed beyond repair. I can’t believe the calm that I now feel. I am excited to wake up everyday and go to a job I love and spend time with my kids without having to say later, I don’t feel good right now. I am loving my new life! With all that being said, 10 years ago they took my thyroid . I was 32 ...

On exactly this day, 21 years ago today, I found my mother 9-days deceased. She had taken her own life with a combination of Alprazolam and Thioridazine. She had over 300 pills in her stomach that were completely undigested. She was 49 years old. She had been prescribed those medications for “depression” around her 44th birthday after she began having violent mood swings, insomnia, weight gain, hair loss, frustrating issues with repeated bladder and kidney infections/kidney stones, and overall instability. A few months prior to her death, she became totally isolated – and unknown to her family she’d stopped taking both the Alprazolam and Thioridazine on her own. During that time she purchased her medications, but saved them and eventually used several months’ worth of both to take her own life. Along the way, she also chose her casket, planned her service, picked out her music and paid for it all out of a savings account we were unaware she had. It was noted during her autopsy that ...

A few years ago in 2014, I found myself in a situation that had gradually worsened over the course of maybe 6 months maybe years. I don’t really like going to the doctors as I have found from past experience that more often than not they don’t know what is wrong with you and put it down to a virus, and I had been to the doctors with various ailments that were (I now know) thyroid related, only to be sent away thinking it’s just me moaning about nothing. However I had to admit that in this case, I needed some help, I had become very tired; achy; had feet and back problems; my eyes were swollen; I spent most of my time feeling like a fog had descended on my brain and my IQ had plummeted as I found it difficult to understand complicated things; I was having memory problems (this one being a big concern as my Nan had alzheimers); finding it difficult to concentrate, and I started to notice a large lump in my throat. (all these things together did not help me being a Mum of two boys age 4 ...

I have suffered intermittently with thyroid symptoms since puberty, I am 40 years of age, so quite some time spent ill! Back in my teens and the early twenties I had no idea this could be the cause of weight issues, feeling cold, fatigued, horrendous periods, random fainting episodes, sun allergy, endometriosis, large numbers of water infections etc etc. I visited doctors for each issue, and the visits climbed in number a few years ago when the signs/symptoms worsened. I was treated for each separate issue singularly, but never as a whole picture of health. A few years ago I dared to raise my concerns re hypothyroidism; thyroid problems are rife in my family, my mother, her sisters and some of my female cousins have thyroid problems. Each time I voiced my concerns about this fear, alongside discussing crippling fatigue, sore dry skin, feelings of coldness, repeat infections etc I was told my blood was fine so it couldn’t be this. I decided to research the condition, and also joined s...

Hypothyroidism in Pregnancy Hypothyroidism is a condition that may in some women develop during or after their pregnancy. In some cases it can adversely affect existing sufferers with respect to their ability to conceive. For women who currently have diabetes, their chance of developing Hypothyroidism after their pregnancy is increased by 25%. According to experts, the levels of TSH hormone vary during the different stages of pregnancy. There are the optimal thyroid levels during pregnancy in the following chart: Thyroid levels during pregnancy Hypothyroidism has been tentatively linked with increased frequency of miscarriage.  Health physicians sometimes suspect a miscarriage as an indicator that prior to the pregnancy, anti-thyroid antibodies were present.  This is not to suggest the antibodies were the direct cause of the miscarriage rather they correlate with immune system issues that can result in loss of the fetus. How Hypothyroidism Can Affect Pregnancy Hypo...

Causes of Hyperthyroidism Broadly speaking, there are four causes of hyperthyroidism—thyroid overstimulation, thyroid nodules, thyroid disruption, and miscellaneous causes. Diseases Associated with Thyroid Overstimulation : Graves’ Disease The most common cause of hyperthyroidism in the United States is Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disease characterized by some or all of the following: hyperthyroidism, goiter, eye changes, and skin changes. Autoimmune diseases are characterized by the presence of autoantibodies circulating in the bloodstream. Antibodies are proteins formed by the immune system to protect the body against foreign chemicals, bacteria, and viruses. In an autoimmune disease, antibodies are formed against the body’s own chemicals. Antibodies may be formed against a receptor, the specific site on a cell that captures a chemical such as a hormone. In Graves’ disease, antibodies are formed against the receptors on thyroid follicular cells that capture thyroid-stimulating ...

What Is the Thyroid Gland? The thyroid gland is an endocrine or hormone-secreting gland located in the neck. It is vital for production, storage, and secretion of two thyroid hormone – thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3). Thyroid hormones regulate the use of energy in the body. Hypothyroidism means too little hormone in the blood. Hyperthyroidism means too much thyroid hormone in the blood. The regular thyroid gland ( shaped like a butterfly) has two lobes connected by an isthmus and occasionally, a small pyramidal lobe rising upward from the isthmus. The thyroid gland is located in the lower part of the neck, in front of the windpipe (trachea). The thyroid gland moves with swallowing and is often visible, especially when it becomes enlarged. Understandably, the thyroid gland is more easily seen in people with long, thin necks than in people with short, thick necks. Ordinarily, the thyroid gland weighs less than an ounce and has the consistency of muscle. The right lobe of the...

Neonatal Screening The signs and symptoms of congenital hypothyroidism are seldom apparent at birth. However, delay in treatment of a congenitally hypothyroid infant can cause irreversible brain damage. Neonatal thyroid screening has led to a marked reduction in cretinism (mental retardation and short stature due to hypothyroidism) and untreated hypothyroidism in newborns. Acquired Childhood Hypothyroidism Although the development of hypothyroidism in a child before puberty is uncommon, it does occur, especially if there is a family history of thyroid disease. A child’s doctor needs to know if either the mother or father has a hereditary autoimmune disease, such as Hashimoto’s thyroiditis or Graves’ disease. The doctor will then pay particular attention to the child’s thyroid examination. The first signs that a child has hypothyroidism may be thyroid enlargement and a decline in growth rate. Most short children, however, do not have hypothyroidism. Tests for hypothyroidism are freq...

I wrote about my thyroid journey in this post, feel free to check it out also. It is important to take all the necessary nutrients required by your body in your diet.  The proper functioning of the thyroid gland can  be otherwise disrupted. Consuming these essential nutrients is only one side of the equation. The other side involves avoiding certain foods which can inhibit the functioning of thyroid gland. Which if not implemented, can lead to hypothyroidism. With that in mind, a well-balanced and nutritious diet is critical to maintaining healthy body and mind as well as your thyroid gland. What foods are you eating on daily basis that are damaging your thyroid and which foods do you need to be eating instead to help jump-start your thyroid and energy levels If you’ve done any research on how your diet can influence your optimal thyroid levels , you’ve likely stumbled upon some foods that can directly hurt your thyroid. For a hypothyroidism diet, just as important as k...