It’s time for an update on the thyroid struggles here. I know this may be boring reading for many, so feel free to skip this post. It’s just that when your thyroid quits working and you are looking for information, reading valid personal experiences is of great help. It reassures you that you are not losing your mind, for one thing, and it is for that reason I am posting about my own experience.
Carrots cooked in an iron skillet with olive oil, ground ginger, brown sugar and a dash of sea salt, basically cooked over low-medium heat until they are candied. That black stuff you see is just like candy. Yum.
Where in the world do I begin? There’s so much — so much information to choose from and so little known about why my body decided to attack my thyroid. I’ll start here: food. We truly are what we eat and before overindulging in any one thing, it might be a good idea to find out exactly what we are eating and what it’s doing for us — good and bad.
My mind keeps going back to one question: when did this begin and why did it happen? I look back through the years and remember vague symptoms, not realizing at the time that they were pieces of a larger puzzle that would not be clear until years down the road.
Roughly two years ago I worked for a year in the bakery at Whole Foods. It was a job that I loved and I would happily work there again, but it makes more sense for our family for me to work from home (not to mention the money and benefits are better here). That said, the last few months I worked at Whole Foods my nose would run frequently. You know, the clear sort of runny nose that comes from allergies. I was constantly exposed to wheat, slicing 100s of loaves of bread each week in a huge slicer. Stocking bread shelves, sweeping floors and wiping down counters exposed me to a steady stream of wheat dust. On top of that, I consumed more wheat. I have always loved and eaten whole grain breads, but I can easily say my wheat intake increased greatly while I worked at Whole Foods.
Here’s an article I find signifiicant. It mentions the link between gluten (a protein found in wheat, barley and rye) and Hashimoto’s disease.
I probably don’t even need to tell you that I am now eating a gluten-free diet. Do I feel better? Yes. Why?
Well, now let’s talk about skin.
Over the past three months my skin has gone haywire. If you have never seen the rash known as dermatitis herpetiformis (DH), you can google it and see how horrible a rash it is. My rash began on my shins, moved to my arms, then to my shoulder blades, and then to my hip bones/sides. I cannot overemphasize how itchy this is. It looked remarkably like DH. So much so that my dermatologist did two skin biopsies, one just a regular biopsy and one for immunofluorescent staining to test for DH. Surprisingly to me, the results were negative for DH and positive for atopic dermatitis/eczema. BUT, my dermatologist talked to me about how revved up my immune system is and how that any protein I consume is likely to be perceived as an invader and therefore staying away from gluten may make me feel better. I also want anyone who finds this post to know that you can have a mean, mean eczema with Hashimoto’s disease.
I am not a doctor and I am not a scientist, but what my dermatologist told me reinforces for me that there is somehow a protein(gluten?)/autoimmune (thyroid?) connection. I began to pay attention to how I would feel in the 24 hours following a large meal and always after eating heavy wheat flour-based foods like pizza or noodles, my skin would rage with itchiness! It’s enough to drive one crazy. I have now been gluten-free for about a week and a half and my skin is calming down and healing, though I know it’ll take time for this to completely go away. I’m eating a lot of fruits and vegetables, staying away from gluten and decreasing dairy.
Here’s another article about gluten and its direct connection to the thyroid:
My hope would be that as my immune system calms down, my thyroid can work again, but I’m not sure that will happen, as with all autoimmune diseases (and I’ve been typing medical notes for nearly 20 years) often the doctors are stumped as to why some go into remission and many do not.
I do not want this post to be overwhelming so I’ll bring this to a close soon. The other major thing I’ve been reading about is adaptogens. In the herbal medicine world, adaptogens are the plants that “adapt” themselves to whatever it is your body needs and they are particulary known for helping the endocrine system balance itself out. There are many plants that are adaptogens, though I feel I need to be careful which ones I take because my blood pressure and heart rate are still low (90/58 and 58 at my last visit, and that’s after walking around). From what I’ve read about adaptogens, they will lower high blood pressure but not lower an already-normal blood pressure; still, I’m cautious.
A tea that I have found to be wonderful for me is Celestial Seasoning’s Tension Tamer. It has lots of B vitamins, which thyroid disorder sufferers usually need, and Eleuthero (Siberian ginseng), which is an adaptogen. I’m in love with this tea. Green tea is OUT, and I’m a bit sad because I really loved green tea, but green tea is a plant that can absorb fluoride into its leaves which ends up in your body which then “tricks” your thyroid into thinking it doesn’t need the iodine you ingest.
I’m taking a B supplement every day. I’m also taking selenium 200 mcg every day. There are actually medical studies that indicate selenium may decrease the levels of antithyroid peroxidase in Hashimoto patients.
I’m still on the fence about whether to ingest kelp, bladderwrack, and other sea vegetables. Some sources say do it, others say it may aggravate the immune response.
As far as herbs for my heart, I think Motherwort is not good for me right now, but Hawthorn (berries from a large tree) probably is.
Here’s another good article about foods to eat:
Hashimoto’s Disease: Food that helps
There’s so much more. And more yet to come. I just want to keep posting where my thoughts are and what I’m doing, in hopes that it may help others with Hashimoto’s disease. **
By the way, after one month of levothyroxine, my TSH has fallen from 43 down to 2.72 (in the normal range) and I have dropped 7 pounds as my metabolism has gotten back to normal.
I am not saying that wheat caused my Hashimoto’s or that green tea caused my Hashimoto’s. I have been under much stress over the last 10 years, but I can’t say that stress caused my Hashimoto’s. I think a combination of things (and let’s not forget genetics) worked together to create a situation.
Lynn
**I am under the close supervision of an M.D. and she is aware of everything I do naturally and diet-wise and she will be the one who helps me come off of levothyroxine, if that ever ends up being possible. This blog is in no way trying to give out medical advice or take the place of a visit to a physician. This is just a place where personal experiences are shared.
for you to leave a comment, but you can also e-mail me at lynn AT thehealthyhomeschool.com
Thanks to all you women out there who have posted! I have recently been diagnosed with Hashimoto’s and am just beginning to wade through the sea of information out there. I am hoping that with the help of a good health care practitioner (I am scheduled to visit both a homeopath and an accupunturist in addition to an endocrinologist) I can regain some of the vitality that I had a couple of years ago. I was personally so thankful for the diagnosis, because I thought I was just getting older (I’m only 42) and feeling like it was normal for me to be achy, short tempered, cold, forgetful, etc every day. Anyway, it is very helpful for me to read about all of your experiences. I’ll post more later after I’ve tried some diet and alternative approaches.
Warm regards and best wishes to you all,
Stephanie
Dear Stephanie, while I am sure none of us is happy about any of us having this illness, isn’t it so comforting to know you are not alone? Big hugs! I remember sleeping “like the dead” the first few days after my diagnosis. For one thing, I was so relieved to finally have an answer. I could finally rest, knowing that something was being done to help my deteriorating body! The second thing, I believe, was that my body was so thirsty for the levothyroxine I was finally on! Whew. Good changes started to come after I got on my med, and the rest was all a learning curve and beginning to take care of myself in a new way! Best wishes to you and I hope you’ll bookmark my blog and keep in touch!
xoxo
Lynn
Lynn and to all who have written, God Bless you all…
I was diagnosed with hashimotos in may of last year, and what a roller coaster it has been.. I am so frustrated with the medical comunity, all the docs I do go and see, say there is nothing we can do, we have to wait and let it die on it’s own
I have sevear GAD and Panic dissorder on top of everything else, and I had some bad things happen with medications and getting back on track, infact still trying to get better, and it’s all hard to deal with!! and that is putting it mildly, but with support and God, I will get through this, and it is a slight comfort to know that we are not alone in all this. I can so relate to Lu in what she is or has gone or going through! because Im there alot and it’s one of the hardest things Ive had to deal with, next to my son’s car accident… and haveing to take medication for years for anxiety and panic dissorder, which haveing and being diagnosed with hashis, just through the monkey wrench in that I did not need,but I will not give up!!! and I am being or trying to be proactive in my health once again and am trying to get healthy again…. I have gained some weight, which is really hard becuse 2 years ago, I lost over 40 LBS and it’s creeping back up on me again 
and I can’t take the meds for the thyroiditits, cause it makes me go hyperthyroid and I have really bad anxiety with it, 
so I’m still looking for a soloution whew what a ride.. anyway I will keep you all in my prayers and pray for us all to get better and be healthy… By the way does anyone know if the rash is red and small circle looking?? its all over my legs, back, arms, chest??
Thanks
Danette
Oh, Danette, I know so much how you feel. It is scary. It is hard. To be blunt, I felt like crap a lot of the time the first year after I was diagnosed. Really. That was the only way to put it. Like I could not breathe. Scared. Anxious. Tired. Sad. Gaining weight even though I was trying not to eat as much. Too tired to exercise. The list goes on! I do believe you will get better. You say you cannot take the medication for thyroiditis. Do you mean synthetic thyroxine such as Synthroid? I take a low dose, I guess, compared to some people. I am only on 50 mcg a day and have been since I was diagnosed over two years ago and that much still works for me. I do know that when my doctor upped it, I got hyperthyroid which is also no fun!! One of the things that I believe makes us feel bad is the allergic response that is going on while our bodies are busy killing off our thyroid glands. For me, cutting out gluten COMPLETELY and taking some key supplements has really helped the most. One of the supplements that is supposed to help with inflammation and antibodies is quercetin. Now, I am NOT a doctor, nor am I prescribing this for anyone. I learned about it from my doctor and she prescribed it for me. You could ask your doctor about supplements. I will link an article that talks about supplements for hashi’s. I also feel better if I limit/cut out dairy and just use coconut and almond milk.
http://www.livestrong.com/article/397592-supplements-for-a-healthy-thyroid/
A lot of my anxiety got better when the doctor put me on citalopram. I also felt better when I made sure to take my calcium, magnesium and zinc every day. I make sure to get potassium in my diet from bananas and potatoes and other potassium rich foods.
At any rate, Danette, I do hope you begin to feel better! As far as the rash, the dermatitis on my legs hung around for months and it was sort of scaly, intensely itchy, and I actually had sores from scratching. In addition to that, I sometimes broke out in itchy round red bumps/dots across my back and stomach, especially at night. That would come and go, and I always wondered if something that I ate was triggering it. Maybe gluten or dairy or something, that then triggered antibodies. Best wishes, and please do keep in touch!
Lynn
Hi, have you visited stopthethyroidmadness.com? Please have a look, it could change your life.
God bless,
Renate
Hi, Renate! You know, I have stopped in there before. But it has been a good while. I will stop back in and see what I can glean again. I am sure it would do me good! Thanks! Lynn
Hello,
I found this article very interesting, I have Hashimotos and recently after taking Levo thyroxine for a few years now have started to feel awful again. The dietary advice is good.. I find much of the info out there confusing as to what I should and shouldn’t eat. The clinic where I am registered means I see various GP’s and none of them remember or seem to care about my history. I almost feel like they are fobbing me off. I will try the selenium and the Ginseng and B vits…infact, all of what you outlined above sounds like a good place to start, so thankyou. Most helpful article.
Hi, Melly. Thanks for stopping in and sharing. I continue to follow with my doc for vitamins, etc. I do not take a ginseng supplements, but just enjoy what I get of the Eluthero from the Tension Tamer tea! Take care and check back to update us if you get the chance!