So, what got me so into Functional Medicine? About 9 months after the birth of my first daughter, I was 7.5 months back to work at the hospital and in my private practice.
I was long back to my prepregnancy weight and loving motherhood, but I locked myself out of my office on several occasions, and had to, more than once, mail a cab driver a check because of a forgotten wallet (compassionate souls). One day, I stood at an ATM, at a total loss for what my PIN had ever been. I’d gone through an excessive amount of cocoa butter lotion that winter and remember trying to reassure myself about the tremendous and unrelenting hair loss.
On a routine physical, there it was, in black and white: Postpartum thyroiditis or Hashimoto’s with a TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone) of 20 and antibodies in the thousands.
Having been robustly healthy my whole life, I was not about to sign up for lifelong treatment of a chronic disease. I went to a wonderful naturopath who reached out a hand and ushered me into the gentle, hopeful world of self-repair.
Four and a half years and one pregnancy later, I am prescription free with normal antibodies and optimal TSH…I’m allowed to brag because it required persistence and commitment to a new lifestyle, and I’ve never looked back. Here’s a bit of what I’ve learned:
Thyroid Disease as a Psychiatric Pretender
- So Much More Than Synthroid: The thyroid is responsible for producing T4, T3, T1, and T2 and cells are responsible for converting the storage form of hormone, T4, into its active form, T3. This is a process dependent on optimal cortisol and nutrient availability such as iron, iodine, zinc, selenium, B vitamins, C, and D.
- It’s The Immune System Dummy: Autoimmune thyroid conditions such as postpartum thyroiditis are not fundamentally thyroid problems – they are manifestations of a dysfunctional immune system; one that is misrecognizing the body’s tissues as foreign. Many doctors don’t even screen for antibodies because their presence doesn’t change the intervention, which is typically a lifetime of varying dosages of synthetic T4.
- Are You Really A Mental Patient? Thyroid imbalance can cause anxiety, depression, cloudiness, weight gain, poor concentration in addition to cold and exercise intolerance, dry skin, and hair loss. You’re wearing socks to bed, pooping once a week, and penciling in your eyebrows. In postpartum thyroiditis, this presentation is typically preceded by a period of hyperthyroidism where women can feel over-energized, suffer from insomnia, diarrhea, anxiety, and precipitous weight-loss – these are the women who “bounce back” quickly after the baby only to be peeling themselves off the ground 9 months later.
- Whole Body Ills: Low thyroid function impacts the ability of cells to use energy (hence low body temp), metabolize cholesterol, and to properly use B vitamins for an important cellular process called methylation. Thyroid dysfunction can cause or be the result of other bodily imbalances.
- Pregnancy/Postpartum: Reportedly, 10% of women develop postpartum thyroiditis. In my practice, it’s about 85% of my patients who come in with postpartum complaints. A number of interesting studies like this, this, and this have implicated autoantibodies in the development of postpartum mental illness. Psychiatry has a well-established precedent for the use of active thyroid hormone, or T3, for the treatment of depression, so we have bidirectional reasons to consider appropriate screening in this population.
Healing The Body
Heal the gut! Elimination of food allergens, but always gluten. The premise of Functional and Naturopathic Medicine is healing the gut first.
The seat of >70% of our immune system and our most vulnerable interface with our environment, the gut is a powerful site of communication about what is “ok” and what needs to be attacked. Fascinating research by Fasano et al has helped to elucidate just how wheat/gluten grains can promote intestinal permeability or “leaky gut” allowing peptides through this precious barrier where they go on to stimulate the brain and immune system. A concept referred to as “molecular mimicry” underlies the direct relationship between these peptides and immune response agents that end up attacking tissues that share amino acid sequences with the offending intruder (i.e. bagel).
This is not about celiac disease (it’s usually about “non-celiac gluten enteropathy”) although the link between celiac and autoimmune thyroiditis has paved the way for our understanding. An elimination provocation diet is the best way to determine what foods your body hates, but I focus on processed dairy and gluten for the purpose of initiating gut healing. Believe me, raised on homecooked Italian food, and addicted to dairy, kissing lasagna good-bye was not easy.
Suffice it to say that the more you learn about processed dairy and gluten-containing foods, the less tasty they become.
Endocrine disruptors
Another primary theory behind epidemic rates of autoimmune dysfunction in our population is the prevalence of environmental pollutants, pesticides, and household chemicals that are “endocrine disruptors”. What gives them that name is the fact that they stimulate our immune systems and act as hormones in our systems.
Some lock into hormone ports like pesticides do with estrogen receptors and others, like fluoride, interfere with production of hormones. My post here is a good starting point for cleaning up the house with a focus on filtering water, air, eliminating pesticides, and plastics.
Adrenal Repair
When trying to resurrect thyroid function, you can’t ignore the adrenals. Adrenals are little glands that sit over your kidneys and make a variety of hormones that help you respond to every day demands including cortisol, dhea, aldosterone, norepinephrine, and epinephrine. There are stages of response to stress, acute and then chronic, that describe exaggerated and then diminishing returns on adrenal hormone functioning. To respond to thyroid hormone well, the pattern of cortisol over the course of the day must be optimized.
This requires stress management, low sugar diet, and sometimes, B5, B6, and vitamin C. Adaptogenic herbs like Rhodiola can also be helpful in balancing the body’s response to stress.
Check the right labs and body temp In my practice, I test for TSH, freeT3, free T4, reverse T3, total T3, and thyroglobulin antibody, thyroid peroxidase antibody, and thyroid receptor antibody to get a more complete picture of thyroid functioning.
I also listen to the patient above and beyond the labs. There are known limitations of these lab parameters.
Checking body temps 3 times a day and looking for a temp below 98 can also be an indicator of hypofunction.
Helping the body correct with supplements and prescription hormones. Supporting the immune system’s correction and thyroid hormone production is truly an exercise in holistic medicine. That said, zinc is essential to the conversion of T4 to T3. Zinc at 30mg with 2mg of copper is a typical dose. Selenium is critical to antioxidant enzymes and immune reactivity. 200 mcg/day is a typical dose. Iodine, while somewhat controversial in high dose applications (>3mg daily), is essential for the production of thyroid hormone, and when used with selenium, can play an instrumental role in recovery. Other agents for immune system balance include Beta glucan, a friendly yeast, saccharomyces boulardii, curcumin, N-acetylcysteine are other more personalized considerations. Some patients opt for hormone replacement in the form of compounded T4/T3 or a prescription called Nature Throid or Armour, and others are interested in protocols like this which flush out reverse T3 and stimulate proper glandular functioning.
Some pioneering work has also been done with immune modulation through a low dose prescription of naltrexone.
Perhaps one of the most important reasons to correct thyroid dysfunction and associated autoimmunity is the heightened risk of developing other autoimmune disorders. We live in a very “stimulating” world and it is difficult to predict whose system is going to rebel against it. Once you address diagnoses like these from the ground up, your entire body, hormones, gut, neurochemicals, and immune system are primed for optimal performance – taking control of your health for future vitality.
This post originally appeared on The Healthy Home Economist as Thyroid Disease as Psychiatric Pretender.
Thank you for a very informative article. This has helped me understand a lot about my how my thyroid works. I developed postpartum thyroiditis with all the symptoms you’ve described on your website, and am just beginning to explore other remedies to treat it, as several years of T4 medication haven’t alleviated symptoms.
Questions about Rhodiola: is it safe to take while breastfeeding? Can you recommend a dose?
Hello! There are no reported adverse events; however, there is very little data on Rhodiola in breastfeeding. Dosages from 100mg-300mg are typical.
I meant to add that my nursing child is 4 and only nurses a few times during the day and at night. Is Rhodiola safe for extended breastfeeding? Thanks!
Kelly,
Your article hit home with me. I now see the interconnection of things that I thought were totally unrelated. I use very few products with chemicals, plastics and cleaners in my house. We eat organic food and my children are well educated on eating and reading labels. One thing I am not big on are supplements, apart from some daily probiotics and vitamin C. Are there any foods you can recommend that would help support thyroid function?
Brazil nuts for selenium, pastured beef liver for b vitamins, iron, antioxidants, and vitamin A, and oysters for zinc!
What do you recommend for increasing iodine intake?
I have been taking Armour Thyroid or Nature Throid for nearly 15 years. Do you believe I could be prescription free even though it has been so long?
I found your website last week and just want to say THANK YOU for sharing your holistic approach to women’s issues. This type of approach is too seldom applied in modern medicine and greatly valued and appreciated. Having very recently been diagnosed with hypothyroidism 5 1/2 months postpartum (and currently exclusively breastfeeding, with plans to continue one year), I am searching for natural and lifestyle treatments to foster recovery. My doctor prescribed Synthoid, and I wanted to gain your opinion on using that drug to treat low thyroid postpartum (my level was 4.4). In addition, I am beginning a new prenatal vitamin with natural folate (New Chapter Perfect Prenatal), prioritizing daily exercise, and looking for ways to lower stress and eliminate environmental toxins. I am also intrigued with the info you have shared on gluten/gut health and will be considering dietary changes (I already limit dairy due to infant reflux). Any input you can provide on this course of treatment is greatly appreciated!
Excellent article. According to my lab tests and sonography Iam fine, but I feel most f the symptoms.
I m overweight and Ive been lost two pregnancies. I have a daughter aged 15, and postpartum of her thyroid starter to suffer.
Question…what’s to be done for hyperthyroid patients who have had their thyroid irradiated? Labs to check? Supplements that are critical?
Thanks so much for such an informative article. I have the same question as Natalie above. I have been taking Armour Thyroid for about six years after taking Synthroid for two years. I’m wondering if there’s any hope of ever being free of Armour. I would also like to know if it’s best to take Armour three times a day broken up instead of once, altogether in the morning.
Thanks so much
Under endocrine disruptors, the “here” link does not work. Thanks to functional medicine, I did not start the prescribed synthroid and have baffled the doctor with my now normal TSH and Free T4. Now to see if I can get him to check antibodies and see how well I am really doing.
Fixed! Thank you!
When it comes to coffee and the health of your thyroid, it doesn’t get any more obvious than this. Coffee has been shown to have a direct effect on the health of your thyroid gland.
Research has shown that coffee drinkers have a significantly lower incidence of both benign and malignant thyroid disease, including thyroid cancer.
I learned this and much more about hypothyroidism by watching this video:
http://www.journalofnaturalhealth.com/hypothyroidism/
What about Tyrosine supplements to strengthen the Thyroid?
I am truly thankful you take the time to share your experience. Congratulations on your book (i ordered mine!) I’m sure you are very busy but I hope you see my comment. I have post partum thyroiditis and have a friend who is encouraging me to do a iodine protocol of 15mg. You briefly mentioned that it is controversial over 3mg but could you provide more information? Have you seen people get worse with iodine supplements? Could it be that it is too low? I’m told the 15mg is so the body reaches a point that it produces iodol lipids, they say if you go too low you could create an issue with your thyroid like hashimotos. I will go with what you say but just wanted to get your advice. Thank you!
Thank you so much for your book. I started listening to it on my way to work and stopped on my way home to buy a copy for my teenage daughter who struggles with anxiety and depression. I had my thyroid removed about a year ago and currently take synthroid. Is there anything you recommend in addition? After reading your article I feel that removing my thyroid was a huge mistake. I wish I had your article before I made that irreversible decision. Thanks again for your great book.
I would appreciate it if someone, if not you Dr Brogan, could look into the possible negative (long-term) side effects of the drug called Harvoni.
Two years ago, I was in a very good place, both physically and emotionally, even though I had been diagnosed with Hepatitis C, over 40 years prior. I had cleaned up my diet and drank pure water for several years before going into to get a lab test, as I was about to embark on a “Natural Cure” that I found on the internet. All my other tests and weight were fine. My viral load was two million, (but I felt GOOD except for mild fatigue) and I allowed myself to be talked into taking this new drug, with the promise of 95% cure rate and NO side effects.
8 months after being cleared of Hep C, all the physical problems of my past started coming back, including terrible digestive disorders and now, what I recognize as extreme Thyroid Dysfunction.
I am saying this not only to “complain” but to share the possibility that this is NOT the great drug it is cracked up to be, especially at the present cost of over $1100 a pill!!
It should be obvious to you especially Dr Brogan, that no one in the AMA or Pharmaceutical Industry is going to look into my claims. My physical and mental health have deteriorated and the fatigue and depression make it difficult to do all the things necessary to heal or even take care of myself on a daily basis. I am on this computer now, only because I took a Guarana capsule for short term energy. I will collapse in a few hours, but at least, I was able to “do something” for a short time.
Hi Dr Brogan I had a part thyroidectomy some years ago and I am taking 50mcg of Eltroxin which is levothyroxine but I cannot lose the weight I have put on despite exercising everyday also not eating very much and I suffer extreme anxiety and pains in my legs. I’m am in my early 60s. I would like to read your book but I live in Ireland and have not seen it I. Bookstores as of yet.
Regards
hi… Kelly Brogan
thank you so much for your helpful post. it is a really informative and nicely share your experience.
Dr Brogan, thank you for this arctice, very informative. I am now 58 yrs old and was diagnosed with hypothyroidism in 1985. treated with Synthroid for a short time Armor Thyroid no improvment i requested full panel labs with adrenal she refsused that, went to other dr we decided to try Compound dessicated (swine) 4 month now no improvemet so referred to more functional medicine dr full panel labs found I have hashimotos, vit D deficient, T4 5.2, T4 1.08, T3 89, TSH.18, TPO 7600, Cortisol 12.2 Suggested WT (forgot actual name) WT rather than Nature Throid, probiotics, Metanx (folate) fish oil D3 10,000. Cutting out gluten sugars pasta ect.. Are the suggested vit /nutrients things I can do on my own from Whole Food Store. Thank you!
I was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism and have been on a synthetic thyroid medication for about 30 years, but would like to discontinue the medication. Would it still be helpful for me to take the Thyroid function tests: TSH, free T4, free T3, reverse T3, TPO, and TGA while already on the thyroid medication? Will that provide me with the data I need or do I need to wait until off the medication to get accurate results of my thyroid function?
Karen, Dr. Brogan says that these tests can be taken while on thyroid medication, and it is essential to get all of the tests before understanding the nature of the thyroid pathology.
Greetings Dr. Brogan,
Are you seeing new patients? I have been diagnosed with borderline hypothyroid since my early 20’s and have managed to avoid taking drugs by exercising and regulating my diet. Now I’m in my mid-40’s and feel I need a second opinion. I just had my annual physical and was prescribed 25 mcg Levothyroxine for blood work results of hypothyroid. I read and researched STTM and found you in their Yahoo Natural Thyroid Hormone Group of recommended MDs. Please advise if you are seeing new patients, I would like a consultation and more lab work to accurately diagnose my thyroid issues. Your website and articles are extremely informative and really discuss health issues women are facing. I hope to meet you. Thank you. Paulina Bemporad
Dr. Brogan has an application process for new patients. Please email office@kellybroagnd.com to receive an application from our office.
Thanks for the useful information.