Why Thyroid Patients Should be Grateful to Oprah Winfrey
Thyroid patients should be grateful to Oprah Winfrey. As a thyroid patient myself, as well as an advocate for other patients, I am personally and professionally grateful. I know that this sounds strange, coming after a week during which I've publicly criticized Oprah, and the focus of her show last week, which talked about thyroid disease and women's health with guest Christiane Northrup. Oprah and Dr. Northrup took a metaphysical, New Age approach to health, and suggested that thyroid problems and hormonal imbalances result when women fail to take time to properly care for mind, body and spirit. During the one hour show, seeing a doctor, getting the thyroid evaluated, thyroid testing, and medical treatment for thyroid disease were never mentioned. The serious health implications for women who aren't treated for thyroid conditions were also never discussed.
But still, we should be grateful to Oprah for going public with her thyroid condition, and dedicating a show to women's health issues. Consider the alternatives. Oprah could have kept her health challenges private -- and no one would never have known that she had a thyroid condition. Or, after mentioning it in her magazine column, we might never have heard another word about it. This might have implied that thyroid disease is something to be ashamed of...that thyroid disease was something to dismiss.
If Oprah had not done the show talking about her thyroid problems, we wouldn't have hundreds of articles, news stories, entertainment shows -- not to mention our friends, family and colleagues -- talking about thyroid disease right now. Maybe they don't get the facts right, and sure, they skim over the important details and gloss over the treatments -- sometimes, they get it all totally wrong -- but you know what? They're saying the word THYROID.
We should be grateful because in more than a decade of patient advocacy, I've never seen a week like this -- where the word "thyroid" is on everyone's lips. Frankly, I don't think there has ever been a week in history when thyroid disease has been in the news to this extent.
We should be grateful because there are millions of undiagnosed thyroid patients out there who watched Oprah's show, read her magazine column, or have seen news coverage of her thyroid condition. And some of those millions will hear the words "exhaustion, weight gain, thyroid, etc..." and they will make that critical, life-changing connection. And they'll seek help.
And for most, it won't be "blowing kisses at yourself, eat well, go on vacation" kind of help, it will be medical help -- they'll go to their doctors for tests and treatment. Oprah's announcement has put them on the path toward feeling and living well again.
We should be grateful because even if their doctors don't recognize thyroid symptoms, some of those millions will feel empowered enough to say, "Hey, doctor, I have the same symptoms as Oprah, so maybe I have a thyroid problem. I want to be tested!"
We should be grateful because some of the many thyroid patients who still don't feel their best, despite treatment, will think about doing other good things for ourselves in addition to medical treatment. Because eating well, getting rest, and caring for our minds, bodies and spirits can only help -- and in the end, being healed is the goal, even if we can't be cured.
We should be grateful to Oprah because the next time a thyroid patient tells someone else, "I have a thyroid condition," maybe that person won't look at us like we have two heads. Maybe they won't quickly assume, "Here's a whiny, overweight, middle-aged woman looking for an excuse for being fat."
Maybe they'll think, "Hey, that's the disease that Oprah has, and thyroid problems even made HER tired and gain weight, and it took her many visits to different doctor visits to get diagnosed."
Let's face it. A strong, empowered, wealthy celebrity like Oprah had to gain 20 pounds, be exhausted for months, and go to multiple doctors before she could get a proper diagnosis of thyroid disease.
This fact might encourage those who are still struggling to get properly diagnosed to stay in the game, and keep fighting for diagnosis. And it might make others a bit more sympathetic to the difficulty so many go through as thyroid patients, suffering with symptoms, and trying to get diagnosed.
And that's more -- much more -- than we had before.
I may wish that Oprah had done it differently...but she did it. And I'm grateful.
Read all of Mary Shomon's About.com Thyroid site coverage of Oprah Winfrey's thyroid condition here
Photo: Paul Hawthorne / Getty Images
Comments
I agree! This has gotten the ‘THYROID’ word in the news and maybe the docs won’t brush us under the rugs – and hopefully this will give more people the backbone to stand up to their docs and say “test me”.
I myself have experienced all or most of the Hypo problem ending up with removal of a goiter, thyroid tissue, and a cyst that had encapsulated cancer cells within it. What I`m trying to say here is that more doctors and patients should come forward and discuss all of the procedures and treatments that are there for thyroid disease`s. The more informed the public and patients are to the problems a person faces the better people will see that the sooner you get help the better it is, in a way I was lucky to have been in the health care field so had more knowledgeable help at hand. Thanks!
Maybe next time about.com and its ‘experts’ won’t be so quick to judge and criticize folks who have different viewpoints and approaches to health. There is a bright side to everything
Holistic or alternative or metaphysical treatment for ANY condition never hurts, and in the end, if it helps the patient, its all good.
I say thank you to Orah and Dr. Northrop for showing us there is more to treating illness than just drugs and blood tests!
Incomplete and incorrect information is never a good thing – just think of all the people who would (and DO) continue feeling sub-par because they took the initiative to have tests done only to be told they don’t have a thyroid issue because their results are within the normal range. We know where that road leads….. most of us have been down it!
I believe that there are many ways to heal as well – certainly a better show would have been a panel of guests who came at it from different directions who outlined the medical information, range of drug treatments, pitfalls, symptoms, and then go into the metaphysical, diet, excercise, etc treatments that make a complete program for being well. Thant would have been something to smile about.
Thank you Mary, that was much more positive!!!
Most doctors use a blood test for thyroid. A SALIVA test is much more accurate. It detects the levels of T3 (Very Important thyroid), which a blood test usually misses. Also, most doctors prescribe a SYNTHETIC thyroid treatment, which supplies T4, and usually does not meet quality standards or potency standards. There are two NATURAL thyroids on the market:
West-throid and Armour thyroid. For further information check out this site: http://doctortalk.com. Also, do your homework!! Research!
Thank you Mary for saying something about Oprah. After watching her show I was mad. I have had a thyroid condition since I was 16. 14 years now. I have felt like crap a lot. With a lot of doctors not being very understanding. I have had 2 miscarriages all because of my thyroid. Yes Oprah made people think about the word thyroid, but I am sorry I am not going to get better with just a little less stress in my life.
I often think the journey, although at times was awful and painful, is part of the self-discovery process. In retrospect, I needed a combination of blind confidence, the holistic approach and western medicine to finally diagnose me with Hypothyroidism. It was strange to be so normal one year and literally 8 months later be 30 lbs heavier, sweating for no reason, tired, heart palpitations, sudden high cholesterol, my nails looked terrible, I became depressed and a family who was asking, “What is wrong with you? What happened?” The only thing I did differently was that I tried the birth control pill and got off of it after a year and after that, everything changed.
I started seeing a doctor at UCLA who thought I was pre-diabetic, even though my sugars were normal. She put me on Metformin immediately hoping that would tip the scale in my favor. Didn’t work so she recommended I see an endocrinologist. The tests read that I didn’t have a thyroid problem, in fact, if anything, I was more on the hyper side of thyroid. The tests also read that I don’t quite have PCOS so really I must have the “Metabolic X” syndrome. He left me on Metformin and cut out my carbs, which I had already done on my own, so really, I was back at square one.
Between those doctors and my own gynecologist, their comments and lifestyle suggestions were, “You need to find your home (which probably meant, quit drinking and settle down since I was 27 at the time. If she only knew, alcohol was not a part of my life!),” or “You need to stop closet eating,” or my favorite, “You need to accept the fact that you’ll never be Barbie…” Being an athlete my whole life with the ability to play 3 hours of tennis before even getting tired, I started to succumb to my new body, falling into a mild depression with the acceptance that “maybe I won’t be Barbie after all…never wanted to, but it would be nice to be me again.”
A few months later, I found the energy to attend party where the celebrity hostess loved psychics and aura readers and hired all the best for her famous annual holiday party. An aura reader stopped me and said, “You have the most beautiful aura, but no energy is coming from your throat.” I knew a little about auras so I just figured I wasn’t being assertive enough and needed to speak my truth, so I read in a self-help book. This “reading” prompted me to go the “natural route” since the western route wasn’t really working. AND I really did become more aware of my voice and started speaking my mind, no matter how uncomfortable it was at the time.
I heard about a “natural” doctor who practiced acupuncture and has cured many people from things like Crone’s Disease and IBS. It was expensive but the “zing” from the needles made it seem like something was happening. He asked me to take my temperature everyday for 10 days upon waking up. So I did. Interestingly enough, the temperature never reached 98.6 degrees, in fact, it never reach 97. I told my “natural doctor” what the other doctors said and he replied, “It is simple. You are Hypothyroid!”
Finally, a diagnosis! So 4 appointments later and 80 million pills a day that cost me 80 million dollars, I couldn’t afford him anymore and I was really bad at swallowing all those pills. In fact, I choked on one and had to give myself the heimlich while alone in my house. I needed a more simple solution so I googled all Thyroid Specialists in Los Angeles. Dr. Boris Catz came up and had so many stellar reviews so I decided to see him.
I walked into his messy office with books and trinkets piled everywhere, and admittedly, I was a bit nervous. He was simple and didn’t have a fancy office. He had been studying thyroid his whole professional life. He measured my neck, looked at my hands, asked me what my ethnicity was (I am half Filipina so apparently hypothyroid is common but it doesn’t run in my family) and demanded I get yet another blood test and a thyroid sonogram. I thought he was the Yoda of doctors. I did everything he said and sure enough, I had an enlarged thyroid that had nodules all over it. He put me on Synthroid at .125, told me to take it on an empty stomach with folic acid. He told me to stop eating soy and seaweed (sushi) which was ironic because all I was eating were soy products. He said that in Japan alone, they have more than 40 centers dedicated to thyroid and he thinks it is because of their diet. It has been a long year but since then, I’ve lost 20 lbs, my neck has shrunk, I am not depressed, I don’t sweat at odd times. I am still tired but not like before. It took about 9 months to see weight loss and I’m actually eating more than I used to. I am 5’4” and weighed between 120 – 125 lbs for years suddenly and went to 160 lbs in less than a year and now I am at 135.
This was a very long personal account but in discovering thyroid, I discovered myself, what I am capable of, I have a level of empathy for a myriad of women’s health issues and this issue has redirected my career toward women’s health. Any awareness, no matter who it comes from, creates more awareness, more questions, more research and more women pushing for more solutions. Everyone is different and will need different solutions. But this journey forced me to be more aware of my health, physically, emotionally and spiritually. Everything truly does happen for a reason.
Mary, you are wrong. Oprah did a disservice. Thyroid conditions were never that much under the radar. Everyone I know knows some one whom has a thyroid problem. Now all she did was once again make people feel as if a disease is something people brought on themselves. You are wrong. And I can only wonder if you yourself needed psyco therapy if you believe that clap trap stuff.
P
I agree with Pat. Oprah’s show makes it worse. As a skinny person all of my life until I started to feel bad in my 40’s. It’s bad enough Medical Doctors don’t take you seriously (it took 7 years for a proper diagnosis,) now it is made worse because you have someone presenting medical information and basically saying that “it is all in our heads.” Was my TPO score of 850 and a TSH of 27 in my head. How about the tumor on my pituitary was that in my head. Did I bring that on from “swallowing my feelings.” I think the Oprah show makes it WORSE! Now the great and powerful OZ has spoken so it MUST BE TRUE!
Sarah
So,,,does this mean Oprah is just going to vacation away the thyroid problem and feel better? Or, is she going to rely on sound, scientific medical advice and perhaps take medication to get her thyroid back into check? If she thinks going to a spa is going to make this problem go away and if it truly were that simplistic, I would have done that many, many years ago. Oprah’s show made the situation worse. I fear that there will be many women who will NOT seek proper medical attention and try to “spa” away the thyroid problem and what a travesty that will be, not only their bodies, but also on their families. This is not just a “personal” journey one goes through, it involves the entire family.
Dear Mary,
Being in the HealthCare Profession, I thought perhaps Ms. Winfrey, should have taken a much different approach, and as a result of her latest depiction of her “middle age guru get in touch with your self proclamation” those of us who have suffered long and hard were done a enormous disservice. Having a thyroid issue means lots of missed everything. Never being able to be who you really want to be. Synthroid helps but surely never cures. As a former athlete, model, mother, CEO, and Healthcare professional, I can tell you I will never be the same, and have been told so by the world most accomplished physicians on this subject. It certainly is not a “new” condition, just one that now has exposed, for it is the underlying condition of many of the secondary conditions it causes:, depression, weight gain, constant fatigue, muscle ache, fibromyalgia like pain, and severe headaches to name a few.
I do hope as I suggest in my letter Ms. Winfrey has the decency to get the real experts in this field out in the for front and lets get this disease the time and professional diagnoses it deserves.
Sincerely,
Mary M. Grace
Dear Ms. Winfrey, and Executive Producers, and Researcher Management of the Oprah Winfrey Show,
I had the fortune of not watching your October 16th show, where you had Dr. Northrop ( a menopause guru, not an accredited endocrinologist nor rheumatologist) incorrectly explain the perils and reasons Women predominately get an AUTO IMUNE DISEASE called HYPOTHYROIDISM. I am in dismay at the lack of research and information your staff obtained and YOU allowed to be carelessly shared with over 50 MILLION People.
I know you can do better, and will do better. As a CEO in the Healthcare Industry for the last 15 years, a woman who HAS Hypothyroidism, and has suffered immensely, to the point of being Hospitalized many times, may I suggest you call in your famous Dr. OZ, one of the doctors I have worked with for over ten years at NMFF, and in my opinion, would take the time necessary to responsibly do the research to provide accurate and unbiased information to your audience on how you get this disease and the proper ongoing treatments necessary to live with it.
Should you need assistance in finding an accredited physician who specializes in the area of Endocrinology, or Rheumatology, or the Pain Specialists necessary to treat the aforementioned disorders, I would be happy to find you an accredited EXPERT that will correctly explain the conditions, manifestations, and ultimately the treatments necessary to minimize your pain and suffering due to your diagnosis of Hypothyroidism. It is so not just about the weight gain.
I am sure you are aware Ms. Winfrey most of us are not financially able to take a month off let alone a week, where we have the luxury to do nothing at all and a staff to deal with life’s daily routines.
All of us working women struggle and suffer, and do the best we can. Most of us single mothers more so. The person I hold most dear to my success in this life works for you, her name is Elizabeth Yore. I am quite sure she is capable of telling you that a working mother with children whether she has a husband or is single, cannot escape for a month let alone an hour some days. Due to the numerous responsibilities she has, this absolutely does not mean she is responsible for the onset of an AUTO IMUNE DISEASE. Would you say this if she got Breast Cancer? Where do you draw the line?
Although I don’t have the luxury of watching your show daily, I have been home watching for the last two months due to pneumonia, and at first I was impressed with the level of experts you have had on your show, and the research your staff had obviously worked on to produce good health pieces. But using some menopause guru/idiot to suggest your weight gain is your fault and subsequently the other 60 million women’s who suffer thyroid problems because they do not get the opportunity to pamper and take care of themselves to the extent necessary (one month according to you) is irresponsible and bad Medicine.
I have had a Thyroid Disorder and Fibromyalgia for the last 7 years (they Very often go hand in hand) and weight gain was my first clue. I have always maintained a very healthy and balanced mental/physical physique. I became lifeless, unable to eat anything and yet I lost no weight, a sure sign something was wrong. I went to TWO doctors to get help both telling me I was in perfect condition, and within the “Normal” thyroid range! By the time I went to my third doctor, a NMFF, OBGYN physician, she made me aware I had EVERY SIGN of HYPOTHYROIDISM, and of course my test showed so. Today the Thyroid scale has been adjusted even further because of the severe repercussions of not diagnosing this disease immediately.
Please correct your colossal mistake, and take the time necessary to explain this very complicated and debilitating disease as soon as possible so both women and men know the initial signs it presents and can immediately combat this disease at its onset.
Mary M. Grace
CEO
E HealthSystems, INC.
.
Kudos to you Mary M. Grace! Well said! I look at this situation with such dread and dismay – Oprah did a huge diservice to all women, not just those who are hypo-thyroid. Now, we have one more “expert” preaching the mantra that it is all in our (women’s) heads. That is what is wrong with our western medicine. The medical community is so biased against women, and ignorant on how to effectively treat our complex nature and intricate hormonal balance, that if anything, I repeat ANYTHING, is wrong within our systems, it must be due to something we are thinking. Ex: I was told by a cardiologist that heart attacks and heart disease in women is very uncommon and shouldn’t be a concern when I expressed palpitations, tightening of the chest, and extreme exhaustion apon rising and little exertion. These are theeee classic signs for women and heart attacks and heart disease. But he put my “mind” at ease, stating that it was highly unlikely the case because women are at a lower risk than men. Research states that heart disease is the number one killer of women – and it is very much so underdiagnosed. Shame on Oprah. So many women look to her as a role model. She just told women to swallow their health issues, that it’s all in their heads! Yepper, “ladies, don’t go to the doctor for your health, just relax and you’ll be all better…” I believe it did ALOT of damage, really. Now, even more people will look at those of us with thyroid problems and state that we are nothing more than emotional basketcases and need prozac to take care of our ailing thyroids. This lack of understanding can breed unnecessary judgment and contempt. tsk, tsk, tsk! I don’t think it brought thyroid issues to the forefront. People aren’t that eager to understand as they are to judge.
Mary, I appreciate your gratitude, and I am grateful too that Oprah has said the word “thyroid”, but now we need her to say the word with some accurate, factual, information on a show regarding thryroid diseases.
I agree alot with Mary Grace also, and Thank you Mary for your wonderful letter to Oprah. I also wrote Oprah or Oprah’s people. In the letter I pratically begged them to have a detailed show on Thyroid disease and invite other Doctors along with Dr. Oz. I would be willing to come on the show with my doc (NP) too.
I went undiagnosed for years also, nothing aginst male Doc’s but I had several that never diagnosed my symptons of fatigue, sudden weight gain, constipation, freezing in Hawaii when it was 80 degrees?? hmmm, no one got it.
I walked in for my very first appt. with my NP and she took one look at my neck, felt my thyroid and said have your doctors ever tested your thyroid? Asked a few questions, tested my blood, simple as that I was diagnosed hypo thyroid in one quick visit
after suffering for years.
It would be great if the leading lady in talk shows, (since she has now brought up the word thyroid) do a complete show . This is my hope. I think we should all continue to write and explain why we think it is so important, that once you have brought up the issue that you give details to people out there watching. I read, and read, search internet, buy books, and yes watch Oprah searching faithfully for more information to help me manage with my Hashimotto’s thyroid disease.
Just think of all the people she could help with a detailed show on the subject.