Latest Update: August 30, 1999!
 | Send your questions to "Dear Mary: The Thyroid Mailbag" |
Dear Mary,
Thank you for recommending Dr. Arem's book. I visited by OB/GYN today and went over the many symptoms I continue to have even though I have been on Synthroid for approx. five years and my TSH is 1.04. So next month I have an appointment with an endo recommended by my Dr. and hope to get the T3.
Another symptom I have (that from all sources available to me is not related to thyroid) is heat intolerance. This occurs mostly in the sun. I cannot stand to be in the sun anymore. This condition has come on gradually the last 5 years but this year it is really bad. Yes I am about to go through menopause, my 50th birthday is next month. I take Demulen to help with the perimenopausal symptoms and 125 mcg of Synthroid. I read that one of the side effects of synthroid is heat intolerance. Do you have any insights?
Thanks!
Darla
Dear Darla,
Heat intolerance may be is a symptom of undertreated hypothyroidism, and can also be related to perimenopause. For
information on undertreated hypothyroidism, see:
"Is Your Hypothyroidism
UNDERtreated?"
I'm thrilled that you have Dr. Arem's book, for thyroid issues. For the whole hormonal picture, I highly recommend
that you get a copy of an EXCELLENT book for adult women of all ages who want to understand their hormonal
connections and relationships: Screaming to be Heard: Hormonal Connections Women Suspect...and Doctors
Ignore, by Elizabeth Lee Vliet, M.D. Dr. Vliet runs HER Place, women's health clinics in Dallas/Fort Worth,
Texas and Tucson, Arizona. I don't know anyone in the US who has a better grasp of women's hormonal issues
than Dr. Vliet. If you're interested in it, I have more info on both books at the Thyroid Bookstore.
Live well,
Mary
Mary,
I am a 28 year old female and was just diagnosed a month ago with hypothyroidism. I was very scared at first and my doctor sat with me and talked about it. I never even thought that I had this problem. I don't even know what made my doctor give me a test to check my TSH level - but it answered some questions my other question is this. Could being hypothyroid cause me not to have any kind of sexual drive? This is really starting to scare me. For the past year me and my partner of 10 years could count the times that we have had any type of sexual activity. I can remember when we use to have sex all the time. 3-4 times a night. Now I don't even want him to touch me sexually. Please give me some hope.
Thank you,
A Reader
Dear Reader,
Absolutely. Low sex drive, or the total absence of one, can be a symptom of undertreated or
untreated hypothyroidism. See an article titled: "Thyroid Disease and Sexual
Dysfunction" for more information on the prevalence of sexual dysfunction in the U.S., and
the relationship to hypothyroidism.
Live well,
Mary
Dear Mary,
I have Graves' Disease. I was treated with RAI about 4 years ago. I have been on Synthroid since shortly after that treatment. I am 37 years old. My question is with regard to foods and vitamins. Are there certain foods to be careful of? How about vitamins, any minerals to avoid? Any that are specifically good?
Dear Reader,
Two articles you should check out:
Thyroid Hormone
Replacement and Foods, Supplements and Other Drugs -- A Q&A on Interactions. This
article looks at key questions, including...Should you take your thyroid hormone with food or on
an empty stomach? What about iodine or kelp? And what about brussels sprouts and other
"goitrogenic foods? Vitamins with iron? Estrogen replacement or birth control pills while on
thyroid hormone?
Things You Should Know
About Your Thyroid Hormone. This article offers information thyroid patients need
regarding interactions of thyroid hormone with Zoloft and other antidepressants, calcium
supplements, and more.
Live well,
Mary
Hi Mary,I'm trying to find information on a yoga position (shoulder stand position) recommended by Dr. Andrew Weil to help thyroid problems. Can you tell me where to find info.on how that position is done.
Thanks --
Sharyl
Dear Sharyl:
Information on the shoulder stand yoga postures thought to help thyroid function can be found at:
http://www.holisticonline.com/yoga/hol_yoga_pos_shoulst.htm
And a good animated gif showing how the shoulderstand is done is featured at:
http://www.santosha.com/asanas/sarvanga.html
Live well,
Mary
| Send your questions to "Dear Mary: The Thyroid Mailbag" |
Dear Mary:I've heard some people on the Thyroid Bulletin Boards talking about a new thyroid book by a Doctor Arem from Texas. Do you know anything about this book, and what do you think of it?
-- Bob
Dear Bob,
The book you're talking about is The Thyroid Solution: A Mind-Body Program for Beating Depression and Regaining Your Emotional and Physical Health by Ridha Arem, MD. It was just published in June of 1999, and I've had a chance to read it carefully. Generally, I recomend this book, and have a number of thoughts about it.
I feel that people with thyroid disease face several critical challenges:
1. Recognizing their own various and seemingly unrelated symptoms as a potential thyroid problem, and getting their doctor to recognize the symptoms as well
2. Having the thyroid tests interpreted liberally enough to catch many low-level cases of thyroid problems.
3. Getting the right dosage of the right medicine.
4. Convincing the doctor to even recognize the symptoms, and test for a thyroid problem.
5. Once diagnosed, treated, at optimal thyroid hormone blood levels, and on the right mix of thyroid drugs...figuring out what to do you do if you STILL don't feel well?
Ridha Arem's book does an excellent, fairly groundbreaking job on points 1 and 2. Unlike the other currently available patient-directed books on thyroid disease, Dr. Arem's book talks honestly and openly about symptoms such as brain fog, depression, loss of libido, weight gain, anxiety, and many others. These are symptoms that all too frequently, doctors either deny, ignore, don't recognize, or attribute to causes other than the thyroid. Arem has also researched and analyzed the relationship of thyroid disease to brain chemistry, and resulting depression, anxiety disorders, mood disorders and other mental and emotional effects -- in great depth. This is a subject simply not covered in any of the current thyroid-related books available to patients. It is to Dr. Arem's credit that he has greatly added to the scientific understanding of the mind-thyroid relationship.
Dr. Arem also provides a good scientific grounding in why patients with low-level thyroid problems should be treated, with enough information that patients can show the relevant pages and references to their doctor and perhaps convince the doctor to treat them.
Where the book seems to be less pioneering is in its approach to the many millions of thyroid patients who get diagnosed, treated, are at optimal thyroid hormone blood levels, and on the right mix of thyroid drugs...who STILL don't feel well.
I hear from 500 thyroid patients a week here at my thyroid disease website, and of the thousands of people who receive my thyroid-disease newsletter, many write to me regularly, so I hear from people in the trenches with thyroid disease every day. I know that despite the best advice of the rare doctors like Arem who understand thyroid problems, most doctors simply don't have much of an understanding of the issue. For the majority of patients, even finding a doctor who will agree to thyroid testing, much less treatment, can be Job One. It is my fervent wish that these doctors will read Arem's book, and at least open their minds to Dr. Arem's interpretations of what is a "normal" thyroid test result, or what constitutes low-level hypothyroidism and warrants treatment. Where the book leaves patients -- including me, as I have Hashimoto's thyroid disease with resulting hypothyroidism -- hanging is that there are many people who have found that much more is needed than even just the things Dr. Arem recommends as the crux of his program -- T4/T3 drugs, therapy, mind-body exercise and complex carbohydrate diet.
Dr. Arem's book acknowledges that hypothyroidism can cause infertility or miscarriage, but doesn't address how thyroid patients themselves can help to increase the likelihood of a successful and healthy pregnancy. He also skims fairly quickly over the issues of relationships between thyroid disease and women's hormonal medicine.
Given its somewhat scientific style, Dr. Arem's book should be required reading for all doctors, who could benefit from the breadth of understanding Dr. Arem has about the symptoms of thyroid disease. Given the respectable, conventional endocrinology credentials of the author -- the book could be valuable ammunition for patients who need to fight for proper diagnosis and treatment with less enlightened doctors. Being able to point to the fact that a conventional endocrinologist has written positively about these previously shunned forms of diagnosis, treatment, and hormone replacement takes them out of the realm of "alternative" or "quackery," a development that is only good for all thyroid patients in our search for the best possible lives and health.
If you're interested in more info on the book, or want to purchase a copy online, you can click here. The Thyroid Solution: A Mind-Body Program for Beating Depression and Regaining Your Emotional and Physical Health.
Other books I personally recommend on thyroid disease are featured in my Thyroid Bookstore, and recommended videos are featured at my Thyroid Videostore.
Live well,
Mary
| Send your questions to "Dear Mary: The Thyroid Mailbag" |
Dear Mary,I am interested in trying Armour Thyroid, but I live in Australia. Is there any way I can get Armour outside the United States?
-- Patty
Dear Patrice,
The Broda Barnes Foundation holds the export rights to Armour Thyroid and they are the ones you need to contact regarding getting Armour Thyroid outside of the United States. They may be able to help you find a doctor who works with Armour as well.
You can reach them at:
Broda Barnes Research Foundation
PO Box 98, Trumbull, CT 06611
Phone: 203-261-2101 Fax 203-261-3017
Email: info@BrodaBarnes.org
Website: http://www.brodabarnes.org
Live well,
Mary
| Send your questions to "Dear Mary: The Thyroid Mailbag" |
Dear Mary,Are there any "natural" or "herbal" treatments for hypothyroidism? My doctor has prescribed Levothyroxine but before I fill my prescription and have to take a pill "for life" I wanted to see what my alternatives where. Thank you.
-- Janice
Dear Janice,
Not being an MD I can't offer a medical opinion, but I can tell you that I myself am a firm believer in natural, holistic and homeopathic medicine, but as for herbs, etc., so far, there is no "natural" thyroid hormone replacement. There's isn't anything that substitutes for the actual thyroid hormone needed by the body. If the thyroid dosen't produce it, you can "try" to get the thryoid functioning better to produce its own using herbs, and such, but it's very difficult. You really need to pursue that course under the treatment of a talented naturopath or holistic M.D.
So generally, I usuall suggest people look into using alternatives to treat symptoms that aren't resolved when taking thyroid hormone replacement, and discuss that with your health practitioner.
You might want to read my article, Vitamins and Nutritional Supplements for Thyroid Disease, which looks at the best information available on vitamins and nutritional supplements for thyroid disease.
I also report on new information and the latest findings in my free email news report, "Sticking Out our Necks." You can find out more and subscribe online.
Live well,
Mary
| Send your questions to "Dear Mary: The Thyroid Mailbag" |
Hi Mary:Thanks so much for having all this information here! I'm a 32 year old female and I'm pretty sure I am hypothyroid. I have the low body temperature, hair loss, weight gain, and total exhaustion (you know, sleep 8 hours, then feel like I could go back for another 3 hour nap!) I have a mother who has thyroid problems, and my sister had them when she had her baby a few years ago too. I had a blood test, and my doctor said that "everything looks normal." Is there anything else I should find out, because I still think that maybe something is wrong with my thyroid, but my doctor seems to think it's not that. Any answer you can offer would be much appreciated.
Thanks,
Cathy
Dear Cathy:
Not being an MD I can't offer a medical opinion, but I can tell you that many people with family history of thyroid disease and/or obvious symptoms of thyroid disease (see my Hypothyroidism Symptoms Checklist for a comprehensive list ) -- who ACTUALLY HAVE THYROID DISEASE -- have trouble getting a diagnosis or getting treated with thyroid hormone replacement for several reasons:
1. The doctor does not believe that high normal or low normal or borderline thyroid problems merit treatment. (Not all doctors have this position though.)
My doctor believes that a TSH of around 1 - 2 (on a normal scale at her lab of around .5 to 5.5 -- with over 5.5 being hypothyroid, and under .5 being hyperthyroid) is optimal for most people to feel well and avoid having hypothyroid symptoms. There is now research out that says that values above TSH of 2 may in fact represent abnormal levels. See the British Medical Journal article discussing this.
I know I feel terrible at 4-5, or at .3, but pretty good at 1-2.
To help in this area, I'd urge you to read my article "HELP! My TSH Is "Normal" But I Think I'm Hypothyroid".
If your doctor will only react based on conventional medical advice, you may want to show him/her a copy of a new book just put out by a very conventional, credentialed endocrinologist. The Thyroid Solution: A Mind-Body Program for Beating Depression and Regaining Your Emotional and Physical Health" is by Ridha Arem, MD. Arem talks about the importance of treating TSH levels over 2 for many people, and the need for T3 drugs for many patients to actually feel well. His book may be the official medical opinion your doctor needs to treat this more seriously.
2. The doctor goes strictly by TSH tests, and doesn't test for antibodies.
Antibodies usually indicate a thyroid that is in the process of autoimmune failure. Not failed yet, and often not enough to register in thyroid TSH blood tests, but in the process of failing. This may be enough to cause symptoms.
INSIST on having antibodies testing, and if you have been tested and show positive, find a doctor willing to treat you for high antibodies. Do not accept from a doctor that high antibodies has nothing to do with your symptoms, because there are doctors who believe this is not the case and will treat you, and many people find relief in treatment!
There are holistic docs, innovative and open-minded endocrinologists and other physicians who believe that the presence of thyroid antibodies alone is enough to warrant treatment with small amounts of thyroid hormone. You may with to consult with a practitioner that has this philosophy.
Dr. Elizabeth Vliet, an MD who runs Her Place, a women's health clinic at All Saints Hospital in Fort Worth, and author of Screaming to be Heard: Hormonal Connections Women Suspect...and Doctors Ignore, does not believe that TSH tests are the almightly indicator of a woman's thyroid health. Dr. Vliet says that symptoms, along with elevated thyroid antibodies and normal TSH, may be a reason for treatment with thyroid hormone. Here's a quote:
"The problem I have found is that too often women are told their thyroid is normal without having the complete thyroid tests done. Of course, what most people, and many physicians, don't realize is that...a 'normal range' on a laboratory report is just that: a range. A given person may require higher or lower levels to feel well and to function optimally. I think we must look at the lab results along with the clinical picture described by the patient...I have a series of more than a hundred patients, all but two are women, who had a normal TSH and turned out to have significantly elevated thyroid antibodies that meant they needed thyroid medication in order to feel normal. This type of oversight is particularly common with a type of thyroid disease called thyroiditis, which is about 25 times more common in females than males...a woman may experience the symptoms of disease months to years before TSH goes up..."For more info, I suggest you read my article on Thyroid Antibodies.
3. There are people who suffer from a peripheral conversion problem, and their blood test results show normal, but the thyroid is still hypofunctioning. To assess this, a doctor willing to do a TRH test, T3 tests and/or Reverse T3 tests is needed.
For THE pioneer on conversion issues, see Dr. John Lowe's site.
If you want to find the doctor to help you get to the bottom of your diagnosis, you can search for a good doctor recommended by our fellow thyroid patients at my Thyroid Top Doc Directory. The Directory features US and international doctors by state or country. If we don't have a doctor for your area, you can enter your request there as well.
There are also other options for doctor referral described in a recent article I wrote on finding a Top Doc yourself.
And don't underestimate the value of support. Support and info, ideas on doctors, and the knowledge that you are NOT alone is available at my active Thyroid Bulletin Boards, where thyroid patients get together to share information and support.
Live well,
Mary
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