Last weekend I spoke to many hypothyroid and hyperthyroid people at a Health Expo in Rockingham. A huge hello to anyone reading who attended. It was lovely talking to each and every one of you.
When I talk to a stranger about being hypothyroid, I usually ask “Is it caused by Hashimoto’s”? I am constantly amazed and alarmed at the staggering number of people who either look at me blankly because they do not know what it is or just say “oh, I don’t know”. This right here is what I desperately want to change. Don’t get me wrong, you are not alone! I myself did not know either until I began my studies and a lecturer asked me that very question.
We all should know exactly what our illnesses are, what they are doing to our bodies, what our risk factors are for more serious disease because of it and if we can help ourselves in any way to fix it.
Doctor’s only need to know if you are hypothyroid.
So what is Hashimoto’s? It is the autoimmune version of Hypothyroidism and 90% of Hypothyroidism is caused by Hashimoto’s. That is a massive percentage of cases don’t you think? Now, the reason most people do not know what their individual case is caused by is because our doctors will not treat you any differently no matter what the cause. They only have one thing to help us – thyroxine. So because our doctors are also bound by hierarchy and bosses who get on their backs about running too many tests at Medicare’s expense, they don’t run the antibody test.
However, from a natural perspective, it is really important to know if your Hypothyroidism is caused by autoimmune disease, because that basically means your body is attacking itself. If you do not find ways to mitigate this ongoing attack, it leaves you open to other autoimmune diseases naturally creeping in. Common ones with thyroid sufferers are Celiac Disease, Rheumatoid Arthritis and Type II Diabetes, all of which bring their own burden to the body you call home.
Autoimmune Disease is essentially an immune system that is hyperactive and does not know how to turn off. It thinks it is doing the right thing by you, but has become confused as to what the enemies are and what the allies are. Our job is to stroke our immune system’s soul and help it to calm down and remember the friends and the foe.
Some things you can do to help autoimmune disease include avoiding gluten, dairy and soy plus any foods you have an intolerance to, making sure 50% of each meal is raw, meditating and increasing your gut health (your army of good bacteria).
So, the next time I ask you “Is it Hashimoto’s”? I can’t wait to see the certainty from each of you that you know exactly what has caused your hypothyroidism.