My doctor did a blood test and says my thyroid is fine. Why am I still sluggish, cold, constipated and depressed?
Your blood test may have been measuring TSH only, and the picture is more complicated than that. Or the doctor may have done a more complete thyroid panel and you fall in the normal range. However, those ranges are too wide and include people who are not feeling fine in the normal range.
Therefore, a thyroid blood test which includes TSH, T4 and T3 gives information which, correlated with symptoms, can guide treatment with medication.
I am treated for a low thyroid condition. Why would I need further testing?
If you still have low thyroid symptoms, we want to know the cause. Further testing for thyroid antibodies comes up positive in 90% of adult hypothyroid patients, according to a 1988 study. That is worth investigating, because when the immune system is balanced with natural remedies, the autoimmune attack stops and the thyroid gland’s function is preserved.
What is the thyroid and what does it do?
The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland in your throat which makes hormones that regulate every organ, every tissue, every cell in your body. It is the master of your metabolism – how you create energy in your body.
If the function is low, you feel tired, need more sleep, feel cold – especially hands and feet, and can have dry hair and skin. If the function is high, your heart races, you lose weight, sleep less, and can be nervous.
What are the symptoms of low thyroid function?
Ask yourself – how much:
- More tired and sluggish?
- Drier skin and hair?
- Sleep more?
- Weaker muscles?
- Colder than others?
- More muscle cramps?
- Poorer memory?
- More depressed?
- Slower thinking?
- Puffy eyes?
- Math more difficult?
- Hoarser or deeper voice?
- Constipated more often?
- Coarser hair?
- Puffy hands and feet?
- Unsteady gait?
- Gain weight easily?
- Thinning outer third of the eyebrow?
- More irregular menses?
- Heavier menses?
My dose of thyroid medication has increased over the years. Why?
This is common when there is the autoimmune condition called Hashimoto’s. As antibodies attack the thyroid gland, it is destroyed little by little. Then there is less thyroid gland to make the thyroid hormone, so more thyroid hormone is needed to be replaced in order to have normal function.
Why is low thyroid so common a condition?
In certain parts of the world, a lack of iodine is the major cause.
However, in the United States, excess iodine supplemented in foods and environmental toxins which are chemically similar to iodine are to blame. Mercury and perchlorate are absorbed through processed foods, pesticides on produce and poor-quality water, for example.
The older you get, the more toxins accumulate in the thyroid, and disrupt its function.
Why not call Dr. Kasdorf now?
She is available for a free 15 minute get-to-know-you consult by phone. Dr. Cheryl Kasdorf knows exactly what to do to get your energy back. Call her at 928-649-9234.
