Better Identification of Hashimoto's Disease

Better Identification of Hashimoto's Disease

 If you are reading this blog, you probably suspect that you have or have been diagnosed with Hashimoto's thyroiditis. You're probably looking for answers because you can't figure out why you feel so bad. Hopefully, this blog offers you some answers that give you hope that treatment is available and that your symptoms can be managed, your thyroid blood test numbers can be improved (even autoimmune markers!) and you can get your life back!  First, currently on thyroid meds but still feeling terrible with worsening anxiety symptoms, sleep problems, brain fog, constipation, acid reflux, sweating, weight gain, fatigue, palpitations, and the list goes on he could go on and on. . The patient can't figure out why their thyroid symptoms are getting worse, but their primary care tells them their labs are normal and their thyroid looks fine. Most of these patients have had their thyroid medication adjusted several times but still feel unwell or have only mild relief of symptoms. In these patients, only their low thyroid function was identified, but a potentially persistent autoimmune disease called Hashimoto's thyroiditis was not identified. The second scenario we often see occurs when the patient has already been diagnosed with thyroid autoimmunity and hypothyroidism (aka Hashimoto's). Both their immune system and thyroid function continue to decline as the autoimmune disease progresses. These patients were prescribed thyroid medication for low thyroid function and were told that they were being treated effectively. For patient education in these cases, not a single mention of the immune system is typical. As their symptoms progress, patients experience palpitations, anxiety, and sleepless nights. This is because only the symptoms of Hashimoto's are treated, but most likely very little attention is paid to what could be causing the dysregulation of the immune system. So no matter which category you fall into, if you only have low thyroid function, or if you have autoimmunity along with a thyroid problem (aka Hashimoto's), the treatment is the same! Does that seem strange to you? Both of these conditions will continue to develop without a little education about what could be causing thyroid and immune problems. The lack of answers and treatment options is incredibly frustrating for most patients. Many of these patients eventually come to us hoping to find answers to why, and yet they are defeated, sick, and frustrated. Some staggering statistics: Did you know that Hashimoto's disease occurs in 13.4 to 38 percent of the population? Over the last 3 years, synthetic thyroid hormones have risen to the top of the list of best-selling drugs. With stats this high, it makes a lot of sense that there is something more going on in our bodies, our environment, or our lifestyle that is causing these stats! Since this problem is so common, you'd think that modern medicine would be better at diagnosing it. However, the unfortunate story is that many people, especially women, are living with either an underdiagnosed hyperthyroid or an underactive thyroid. Often, these people were diagnosed but subsequently treated incorrectly. For example, in a December 2010 UK survey of 1,037 people being treated for hypothyroidism who agreed to have their hormone levels rechecked - about 37.2% were using the wrong dose of hormones; 19.8% too much hormone, and 17.4% too little. Why is this important? Poor management of this condition or misdiagnosis will end up making the patient feel worse, not better. If they are prescribed too much thyroid medication, they can end up with the inability to sleep, anxiety, panic attacks, sweating, hearing voices, palpitations, and increased resting heart rate. If they take too little, they usually end up still experiencing all the original symptoms they experienced before, such as sluggishness, weight gain, constipation, temperature dysregulation, acid reflux, etc. What if we told you that the bottom line is that it doesn't just cause problems with poor thyroid function but autoimmune disease? The number one question I get when we find TPO antibodies in lab work is what is Hashimoto's? Unfortunately, Hashimoto's is a condition where the immune system begins to attack the thyroid gland as if it were an external pathogen to be dealt with instead of just another body system. These constant immune attacks eventually make the thyroid gland unable to perform its functions and eventually unable to produce the hormones the body needs.