The connection between nature and the human body is fascinating. The thyroid gland is shaped like a butterfly. Butterflies are known to be a symbol of transformation and rebirth. Anyone dealing with a thyroid-related condition is encouraged to embark on a journey of self-discovery to achieve better health. I had a feeling I had Hashimoto’s before even receiving my diagnosis. I already had hypothyroidism, but with other noticeable symptoms I knew it was more. The biggest issue I faced was figuring out if it were actually true or made up in my head. So many symptoms are general, such as fatigue and joint pain. I mean, name an adult who isn’t fatigued. I work from home on a computer all day, I’m sure my joints aren’t getting the proper care, right? Unfortunately it’s more complicated than that.
My goal of this is not to diagnose, but to bring some insight to someone wanting to learn more or inspire someone to get their thyroid checked. To be clear, I am not a doctor. You should absolutely consult a medical professional of your choosing about your own health and before starting any treatments. This is just my personal experience. (Please view our Disclaimer’s page). I want to write the article that I so desperately wanted to read when I was first diagnosed. Not one with the scientific Hashimoto’s definition and textbook symptoms, but real experience with real description.
So, what is hashimoto’s?
This will not be the most thoroughly-researched Hashis article you’ve ever seen. If that’s what you’re looking for, try something like this article instead. This is purely based on the understanding I’ve gained from reading numerous medical pages, scientific articles, and countless Facebook posts from others with this condition. Ivy Leagues won’t be calling me anytime soon for my “medical” opinion, but I do intensely research health and wellness.
Hashimoto’s is a form of chronic autoimmune disease. Unfortunately you technically have it for life, but you can basically “put it into remission”. I’ve done a lot of healing work and can proudly say that I feel a million times better.
Hashis typically expresses itself in the form of hypothyroidism, but can also act as hyperthyroidism depending on a person’s experience. I typically saw the hypo symptoms, and many will be listed below. The overall concept is that the immune system, for some reason, has recognized the thyroid gland as a “foreign object”. The well-intended immune system then tries to attack this “intruder”. Problem is, your thyroid gland assists in the vast majority of bodily processes. The gland is slowly destroyed over time since the body is constantly attacking it. If undiagnosed forever, the thyroid gland can become useless. Some people who get to this point have it removed.
How does this Come About?
If you discover you have this, it more or less means you had a genetic predisposition for it plus a trigger of some sort.
The lovely part about this question is that you may never get a concrete answer. I still don’t have a solid answer on why I have mine even though I’ve done so much healing. Many people find a diet change is all they need, such as the cause being unknown sensitivities to gluten, dairy, sugar, alcohol, or other random food triggers. Some people can’t handle nightshade foods, like tomatoes. For others, Hashimoto’s can be triggered by mold, a parasite, or an intense bacterial or viral infection. Stress is often a problem factor in many cases, occasionally even the main issue. Insulin resistance can play a role as well.
Based on what seemed to help me, I think a parasite, stress, and insulin resistance all encouraged the Hashimoto’s flare I was having. I was blessed to not have any major food triggers. Although I don’t know the exact cause, I’m aware of the key players in my health problem.
My Hashimoto’s Experience
My path began with a hypothyroidism diagnosis. I received the typical thyroid medication to boost my thyroid hormone levels, which helped temporarily. Time passed and I wasn’t feeling any better. Luckily my doctor noticed my symptoms and decided to check my thyroid antibodies. I had high TSH levels and exceptionally high thyroid antibody levels. The ideal thyroid antibody level is zero, while a level of 60 is considered to be on the verge of Hashimoto’s. My thyroid antibody level came in at 1,260. Not the high score I was hoping for in life. Sadly this can go undiagnosed for so many people if their doctors are not willing to listen. Many doctors won’t even treat a patient for Hashis until their levels are exceptionally high. At that point, the gland has been damaged regularly for quite some time.
After my medical doctor gave the diagnosis, I was ordered to continue onto an endocrinologist. I did call to make the appointment, but the desk staff was rude and something was telling me it wasn’t the path I should go. I had this feeling I would be seen by the endocrinologist and leave feeling unaccomplished. This isn’t a blanket statement for all medical professions, just the thought I kept having during that time. I ended up looking into a naturopathic doctor for holistic medicine and never looked back. I’m so thankful I did because I don’t think I would be in nearly as good of health as I am today. I mean, I’m no picture of it, but I at least don’t have the same symptoms I used to.
My Main Hashimoto’s Symptoms
This is going to be a lengthy section as I want to provide the symptom with an in-depth description of my experience. I think it’s so easy to dismiss symptoms of anything when there aren’t examples of what it is. To reiterate, everyone’s Hashimoto’s experience is different and my symptoms can be entirely different from someone else’s.
Fatigue
This was one of my worst symptoms. I would wake up barely able to function. The bare minimum would get accomplished, but not much else. Fatigue like this was previously something I had never experienced. No amount of caffeine would fix the problem. I’d start with my morning couple cups of coffee and have to rely on an energy drink in the afternoon. This created a vicious cycle for my Hashimoto’s since neither of those were doing me any favors. I was able to quit the energy drinks, but I still need my coffee fix.
Trouble Concentrating
Lack of concentration made work an absolute nightmare. I’d try reading an email and couldn’t get past 3 sentences. This also hurt my social relationships as well since I’d struggle to follow stories and struggle to pay attention. The most embarrassing part was I’d be telling a story myself and lose my train of thought mid-sentence. Fortunately everyone around me is patient, but it was very frustrating.
Poor Memory
This was also a tough symptom when dealing with work and social relationships. My mind used to be a steel-trap – there was very little I’d ever forget. After Hashimoto’s I’d forget things like work tasks, important events, actual words, and more. In many conversations I’d struggle to find the word I was looking for.
Emotions
The emotional toll that Hashimoto’s took was easily the hardest symptom for me. I’ve always been a very happy and bubbly person. I used to bartend and absolutely loved socializing. After my thyroid started to struggle, I suddenly had zero desire to connect with anyone. I experienced the dichotomy of wanting social interaction but also wanting to be alone. A depression I had never experienced suddenly consumed my daily life. Any passions I had no longer mattered to me. Each day seemed purposeless and I didn’t want to do anything I once found fun. Also unlike me, I was constantly filled with rage and felt like a ticking timebomb. I spent each day trying to keep myself even-keel so I could function how I needed to for everyone around me. This furthered the exhaustion.
Hair Loss
I would lose quite a bit of hair each time I washed my hair in the shower. I also lost a bit of eyebrow hair. One common sign of a thyroid problem is that many people lose the outer-third of their eyebrow. My eyebrows are still thin, but they’ve finally filled in more.
Puffy Face
My face constantly looked inflamed and puffy. Not puffy in an allergy-sense, but just inflamed enough where it made me feel like a balloon. I’m still working on this, but it keeps getting better.
Weight Gain
This was rapid and unexpected. I hadn’t made super crazy life changes, yet my weight climbed to new heights. Any efforts I made proved to be worthless. I estimate that I gained a quick 40 pounds, but I don’t regularly check the scale. My naturopathic doctor and I discovered this is due to insulin resistance, which I’m currently working on.
Bloating & Digestion
Any meal I used to eat would make me bloat and uncomfortable in any pair of jeans. Some jeans would fit me one day, and be too tight to button the next. My digestion was also suffering as my body couldn’t tolerate raw vegetables very well. I was in cycle where I could only tolerate carbs and protein, which isn’t good for insulin resistance when you need vegetables.
Joint Pain
As a girl in her early 20’s I felt like I had the joint pain of someone mature in age. Anytime I’d walk my ankles would ache and pop. Some days it would be so bad I wouldn’t want to do anything outside since it would flare up and hurt. This ended up being one of my first symptoms to get better. My ankles also used to pop constantly, especially going up and down stairs. Lucky for me, I haven’t heard this sound in a long time.
Female-Specific
I’ll try to not TMI this, but my cycles were all over the place. Sometimes I would skip, other times it would happen randomly. I also dealt with intense PMS symptoms that would have me wanting to lay in bed.
Feeling Cold and Hot Flashes
Oh my goodness gracious were the temperature changes something terrible. This started when I only knew I was hypothyroid. My doctor explained that when my thyroid was sluggish, I would feel cold. Then when it would try to work, it would kick into overdrive. This would cause me to have the hot flashes. Overall I was typically cold at this time, but it could flip on a dime. I’d go from shivering to sweating like a sinner in church, lickety split. I used to get so cold I’d put on a hoodie, sweatpants, and Chris’s super-thick construction socks. Five to ten minutes later, I’d be stripping down so fast to put on a t-shirt and shorts because I drastically overheated. I still get the hot flashes at times, so I hope these go away as I heal.
How I’m Feeling Today
In the beginning I thought I would never feel better. However, once I went to my naturopathic doctor, I started to heal. As of right now my bloodwork numbers aren’t 100% perfect, but I’ve made drastic improvement and I feel it too. It’s important to focus on healing as a whole-body approach instead of symptom-treating. I can happily say all of my symptoms are pretty much gone. They only return in periods of intense stress, and even then they’re very mild compared to before. My life is a big cycle of numerous supplements and getting proper nutrition, but I’ve come to love it.