Hashimoto

I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism in 1996 I was 34 and I really have never felt myself since then.

I always try to live a decent life kind to others , help in my community and I’d rather be happy than mad or sad.

But ….. I still always felt fatigued, more tired than I should be.

Actually if I’m honest with myself it seems as if the symptoms just get worse more intense.

 

I have asked countless doctors over the last 20+ years to check me for Hashimoto Disease because the countless adjustments to synthroid , levothyroxine and now armour just isn’t helping , it helps for a couple months then adjustments happen and I just feel worse .

 

Finally tested and diagnosed

April 2018 w/ Hashimoto

 

Sure everyday I wake up happy

But I soon feel

exhausted

fatigued

sluggish

winded

My skin is dry, my eyes are dry, my mouth is dry, my hair is dry and thinning.

 

I have this constant feeling on my throat as if a thumb is pressing on it.

 

We won’t talk about the weight gain over the last 20 years. I mean really between this and osteoarthritis -osteonecrosis I just get overwhelming-some days

But what sucks is the inability to lose the weight

So time to change the way I eat again ….

I have already gone to mostly plant based now I have to try and go gluten free.

As Hashimoto is linked to gut as is most auto immune conditions.

Hashimoto vs Hypothyroidism

This common question can be confusing to even veteran thyroid patients.

 

Let’s clear up the main difference: Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is a disease; hypothyroidism is a condition.

 

In the United States, hypothyroidism is most commonly caused by Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, but the two terms are not interchangeable.

 

Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is an autoimmune disease that affects your thyroid gland. It is sometimes known as Hashimoto’s disease, autoimmune thyroiditis, or chronic lymphocytic thyroiditis. In Hashimoto’s, antibodies react against proteins in your thyroid gland, causing gradual destruction of the gland itself, and making it unable to produce the thyroid hormones your body needs.

Diagnosis

I had to insist on this test because I was blown off for years by several doctors when I asked for this test.

 

 

High levels of antibodies against thyroglobulin (TG) and thyroid peroxidase (TPO), detected via blood test

 

Hashimoto’s typically involves a slow but steady destruction of your gland that eventually results in the thyroid’s inability to produce sufficient thyroid hormone—the condition known as hypothyroidism. Along the way, however, there can be periods where your thyroid sputters back to life, even causing temporary hyperthyroidism, then a return to hypothyroidism. This cycling back and forth between hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism is characteristic of Hashimoto’s disease.

 

 

So, for example, periods of anxiety/insomnia/may be followed by periods of depression/fatigue/weight gain.

In some cases, the onset of Hashimoto’s and elevation of antibodies will be accompanied by a variety of symptoms, including anxiety, difficulty sleeping, fatigue, weight changes, depression, hair loss, muscle/joint aches and pains, and fertility problems, among others.

 

 

Ultimately, however, the autoimmune attack on the thyroid typically makes the gland slowly less able to function, and eventually, the thyroid becomes underactive.

 

So I wonder in 1996 did i have Hashimoto? When i was diagnosed with hypothyroidism ? Or did it morph into this…..

 

More to come as I learn to get this under control……