So why does your doctor usually tell you your thyroid is fine?
In conventional medicine there is a standard test to either confirm or deny that your thyroid is working properly. They check your TSH and if they see that it falls in the normal range, they assume everything is good.
The problem with standard testing…
Over the years I have learned a lot about thyroid. Personally, I was on thyroid medication for 6 years and then after some changes in they way I was doing things, I no longer needed the medication. But because of this, I developed a strong interest in all things thyroid.
I have also treated thousands of people for sub-optimal thyroid function. Most of those people fell in the normal range. Most of them had already been tested and some, to me also looked from first glance that their thyroid might be functioning just fine. But because I don’t just test TSH (Thyroid stimulating hormone), I can really see what is going on with the thyroid.
Did you know?
Gut health, liver health, nutritional status, infections, mood/pituitary function, adrenals and sex hormones all have an influence over thyroid hormone functioning. So how could you look at just one number, TSH, that is not even released by your thyroid and determine that everything is fine? Well, then answer is, you can’t. It doesn’t give you all the answers.
The solution.
Comprehensive thyroid testing and thyroid symptom assessment. When I am doing a workup with a patient, I always check for these things:
- TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone) – released by the pituitary
- Total T3 and T4
- Free T3 and T4
- T3 Uptake
- Reverse T3
- Anti-thyroglobulin
- Anti-TPO
From these numbers you can see whether there is enough free T3 – the hormone that makes your body function really well. You can tell from Reverse T3 if your liver is not converting well. You can tell from T3 Uptake if there may be sex hormones or drugs that are interfering.
Every single cell in your body has a thyroid receptor, and when you don’t have enough free hormone some cells don’t get the stimulation that they need and that translates as symptoms for you.
One thing to know is that if you are already on something like Syntroid or levothyroxine, you may not be converting well to T3 and still have symptoms.
Some of the typical thyroid symptoms:
- fatigue
- weight gain
- impossible weight loss
- anxiety/panic attacks
- depression
- headaches
- irritability
- heart palpitations
- excessive ear wax
- water retention
- muscle pain
- insomnia
- infertility
- PMS
- painful periods
- reduced sweating
The biggest issue is that all of these symptoms could be prescribed different medications when one solution would work for all of them. It is so important to look at things holistically so that you don’t miss the obvious.
If you suspect that something is going on with your thyroid but you’re not getting the answers you’re looking for, consider asking for a complete thyroid panel. Just make sure your doctor knows how to interpret the results!