This is a topic I feel incredibly passionate about as someone who was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Hypothyroidism back in 2016.
According to the American Thyroid Association “more than 12 percent of the U.S. population will develop a thyroid condition during their lifetime” such as hypothyroidism, hyperthyroidism, Grave’s Disease or Hashimoto’s.
Men are less likely to have thyroid issues, but I’ve seen a fair share of men struggling with them too.
I’m grateful that just 6 months after being diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Hypothyroidism, I was in remission and now my thyroid test results couldn’t be more perfect. I feel like myself again.
Unfortunately, not all women or men have their thyroid properly checked and those who are diagnosed with a thyroid disorder, aren’t always provided the right lab tests or resources to get their thyroid issues under control as quickly as I did, or ever.
Most people who are diagnosed are prescribed thyroid medication, which can provide relief for those who are suffering, but medication is not necessarily a long-term solution and it certainly doesn’t solve the root of the problem.
In fact, medication can become less effective over time as the thyroid continues to deteriorate as a result of the root causes not being addressed. Over-medicating can even trigger secondary hypothyroidism (check out Dr. Kharrazzian’s book Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms to learn more about this.)
Medication doesn’t address why thyroid hormone is low in the first place, and it doesn’t stop the body from attacking healthy tissue in autoimmune disorders; that’s simply not the mechanism of thyroid medication.
The good news is, there are natural ways to support your thyroid health, prevent thyroid issues from happening and even reverse an existing thyroid disorder.
Step #1 is to know your thyroid numbers.
Knowing your numbers is important for a couple of reasons:
- To understand the type of thyroid imbalance (hypo, hyper, autoimmune) you might have
- To evaluate risk or severity so you know how much support your thyroid needs
- To get a baseline to measure progress with different therapies you might introduce
Step #2 is to control what you can.
The majority of thyroid disorders are a result of lifestyle factors such as:
- Foods you choose to eat
- Quality and quantity of sleep
- Frequency and intensity of the exercise
- How you deal with stress and emotions
- Toxins and your body’s capacity to detox them
- Other underlying hormone imbalances, a sluggish liver, poor digestion, and an overwhelmed immune system
Which means you have more control over your thyroid health than you might think.
It’s impossible to be perfect every minute of every day when it comes to your food, sleep, exercise, stress, and environment. But you can become present. Start noticing what is going on in your lifestyle that might be impacting your thyroid health, and how you can make choices to support your body in the ways it needs it most.
There is more to thyroid health than the scientific approaches of modern medicine.
The study of epigenetics, frequency, emotional and vibrational energy has proven to us over time how health can be impacted by our beliefs and experiences.
After being diagnosed with Hashimotos, I immediately changed my diet, focused on sleep, dialed back my exercise, started meditating to offset stress, created an even more toxin-free environment, added in additional supplements to promote the healing process and tested for other factors such as viruses, parasites, bacteria, and yeast.
I nailed all the “scientific” approaches. But something was still slowing my healing process, and I remembered something I tell my clients all the time…
Healthy is a way of being, not just doing.
I was doing all of the “healthy” things, but the question was, “who was I being that led to a decline in my thyroid health?”
I started noticing the negative self-talk every time I looked in the mirror. How I judged myself for not doing better. I would blame my body for failing me. I needed to control everything, and yet I didn’t always openly or clearly communicate my needs.
That’s when the 3rd and final major step in reclaiming my thyroid health became very clear.
Step #3 is to trust and communicate.
In various Eastern medicine and healing modalities, the thyroid is related to the throat chakra which also rules the mouth, throat, and ears as well as our ability to express and communicate. Chakras are known as energy centers, located in specific places of the body that help to regulate processes such as organ function, the immune system, and emotions.
When the throat chakra is out of balance it might show up as:
- Over or under communication
- Inability to express self, stand up for beliefs or follow dreams
- Sore throat, asthma, and fatigue
- Struggling to find your words
- Thyroid disorders
As part of step 3, I engaged in some transformational personal self-growth work to rewire negative old belief systems and build my ability to communicate with confidence in an effort to rebalance my throat chakra to assist my thyroid’s healing process.
I also had to learn to trust my body again.
It hadn’t failed me. If anything, I had failed it in a way. I forgot to appreciate all the hard work my body and my thyroid did for me daily. I pushed the limits and resisted taking days of rest due to my own internal judgments, or what others might think.
Slowly I shifted my mindset, learned to trust my body again and grew my ability to communicate by:
- Looking in the mirror with appreciation
- Writing down 3 things I was grateful for daily
- Working with healers and coaches to realign my beliefs about my body and life
- Learning and using energy balancing modalities (Kundalini, breathwork, and tapping)
- Taking time to do one thing for me each day (meditate, long lunch, massage, etc.)
- Talking openly about my journey and letting those around me know how they could support me
Not everyone around me understood what I was doing, or could relate, but that was ok. Sometimes we have to leave people where they are (not behind) in order for us to move forward in pursuit of our goals and dreams.
Rebuilding the relationship with your body, taking responsibility and treating it with respect will help you forge forward in optimizing your thyroid health.
As a Functional Diagnostic Nutrition® Practitioner and Master Transformational Coach, trained in functional lab testing, data-guided health protocols, and neuro-linguistic programming, I help people reclaim their thyroid health in similar ways as I have so they can feel like themselves again (or for the very first time), and I hope this inspires you to do the same!
We would love to know what steps this inspired you to take to support and heal your thyroid, leave us a comment below.
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