The thyroid, which is a small gland in the endocrine system located in the neck, coordinates many bodily functions. Some of these include weight loss and gain, mood regulation, and sexual libido and functioning. When a person has Hashimoto’s disease, his or her immune system attacks the thyroid and causes it to produce an uneven level of hormones.
Hyperthyroidism and Your Underactive Thyroid Gland
Hashimoto’s disease, also called chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis, is one of the most common causes of hypothyroidism and is the medical term to describe an underactive thyroid gland.
The disease typically develops at a slow rate with a gradual increase in symptoms. That is why people have difficulty recognizing it and tend to seek treatment for individual symptoms instead. The chronic thyroid damage eventually causes thyroid hormones present in the blood to drop. This hormonal imbalance is most common in middle-aged women at or near menopause, but it also occurs in men and children.
Your Symptoms Checklist
Weight gain averaging 10 to 20 pounds, most of which is water weight. When you have a balanced thyroid, the metabolism also works better, which makes it easier to lose the excess weight. Your doctor can recommend hashimoto treatment and weight loss, benefits.
Menstrual irregularities — Women may experience menorrhagia, which is heavy and prolonged menstrual bleeding. Since the thyroid hormone plays a significant role in regulating the reproductive system, BHRT can help periods return to normal.
Joint stiffness — This is especially prevalent in the knees and joints of the hands and feet. Hormone balance can help relieve this problem by ridding the body of excess fluid that can cause pain and swelling.
Depression — Long-term thyroid hormone deficiencies can lead to severe depression that puts people at risk for suicidal ideation.
Unexplained fatigue — Feeling fatigued is different from being tired. The latter is the result of lack of sleep, while fatigue is a persistent feeling of low energy despite adequate sleep.
Puffy face and hoarse voice — These symptoms may not seem as serious, but they can indicate another underlying health condition in addition to Hashimoto’s disease.
Other common symptoms of hypothyroidism include cold intolerance, constipation, muscle aches and weakness, and a weakened immune system.
Do i have Hyperthyroidism?
If you recognize some of these symptoms of thyroid issues, the first step is to schedule an appointment with your doctor and request that he or she complete a laboratory test to obtain your thyroid values. If the test comes back normal and you still don’t feel well, it’s possible that your doctor is using an outdated model to evaluate thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH).
It always pays to seek a second opinion with a holistic healthcare practitioner. These professionals often use more sensitive testing equipment and have more time to listen to you describe your symptoms. You can then evaluate the test results from both and ask about the options available to help you relieve these symptoms.
