Thyroid Problems

Nearly three years ago I was over at my mother in law’s house and she noticed that my thyroid was enlarged. I was instructed to go to the doctor as soon as possible which of course, I didn’t do. Since then it has come and gone- sometimes very large and even itchy, other times looking completely normal.

I went to the doctors a few months ago, and she sent me for a blood test, which of course, I didn’t get (I HATE needles).

When I was listening to coast FM the other day they had a naturopath, Lisa Mitchell ND, speaking about the thyroid. Naturally I was interested, and on Saturday I went along to a seminar on the tyroid at the Myddfai Wellness Centre.

I really like the idea of a naturopathy- an alternative medicine that focuses on natural remedies and the body’s vital ability to heal and maintain itself. To me, as a christian, it makes a LOT of sense. I know from my work in education that the brain is an amazingly complex part of our bodies. It would make sense that, with the right support, our body would be capable of equally amazing things.

I wrote some notes while I was at the thyroid seminar and through I would share them with you here.

Thyroid

1 in 5 women have thyroid disease.

Everybody is different and needs individual help.

Thyroid gland- makes hormones (thyroid hormones and calcium hormones) thyroid hormones dictate the rhythm of our entire body. Sometimes illnesses are misdiagnosed and it is really the thyroid that causes the problem.

Thyroid diseases: Hypothyroidism (low thyroid hormone) Hyperthyroidism (high thyroid hormone)

Low is more common then high.
When your thyroid is low: you might be slow, tired, dry skin, flaky nails, thin hair, sensitive to cold. Sometimes you might be puffy- holding fluid.

How to know if you have a problem: temperature check first thing in the morning. Take temp for a few mins.
36.5->36.9 regular temp. Should be between these.
Take temp on day 2-9 of menstrual cycle.

Tests you can get (from the doctor):

TSH: thyroid stimulating hormone. This hormone is produced by the brain, and makes more to wake up your thyroid. You can test to see if you do/don’t have this.

Free T4: This checks your T4 levels. Thyroxin. This doesn’t have a huge effect on our bodies becuase we have to convert this to T3 in our liver and kidneys.
Free refers to bound (to protein-not active) vs free. Free is active.

Reverse T3- incase of stress/ inflammation get this test. Might be accidentally making this.

Thyroid Antibody: ‘homemade’ antivirus. Immune system check. Immune system is cultivated a lot in our gut.

Vitamin D. Get from sun- you need this to help your tyroid.

Foods and thyroid health.

Thyroid hormones made of Tyrocine which is essentially protein. Eat more protein. Nuts, legumes, meat etc. in REGULAR amounts.

Iodine. Iodine important for brain, ovary function, breast tissue etc. You get this from FISH. Seaweed. Sardines, salmon etc. More ‘fishy’ fish.

Zinc- one of the most important. Helps convert T4 to T3. Eat: eggs, seeds, whole grains.
Affects our tastebuds etc.

Sallenium. Helps with conversion of T3/4. Best way to get it: Brazil nuts. 3-4 each day.

Avoid:
Goitrogens. If you have all the nutrients you needs these aren’t important to cut out. But you do need to cut them out while you’re building up your nutrients.

Brasicas: Cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, kale etc.
Soy: soy milk (whole soy bean not such an issue). Peanuts. When they’re raw and you’re nutrient levels are low it is bad.

Chemicals: fluoride and bromide. Similar to iodine and therefore compete with it.

Fluoride: Found most comonly in toothpastes. Choose Fluroide free toothpastes.
Fluoride protects our teeth is sweet/acidic environments. Better to avoid sugar/softdrink and not need the fluroide.
Bromide: flame retardants etc. Open the windows/doors so that they don’t build up. Indoor plants help clean the air. Anthuriums are v. good.
Less processed and more organic foods. Grow your own.

Tags: food, health, healthy, natruopath, thyroid

New Years Resolutions.

I’ve been thinking and praying a lot about New Years resolutions. I usually will have none of it at all. But I’ve bookmarked a few blog posts in my delicious, which either have concepts on New Years Resolutions, or actual resolutions that I like.So I’ve decided to do it this year, and to set achieveable goals.

My theme for 2009 is: Priority.

I’m sick of doing pointless things, and wasting time. This year I am taking life seriously, and making the most of the time I have. It also involves segregating certain aspects of life- not letting work take up all my time, and not letting the internet take too much time either.

1. Focus on God. I probably say this every year, but I am serious about it now. Luke and I are going on a pilgrimage to Israel in less then two weeks, which will be a great kick start to the year.

2. Love. Spend more time with Luke, just us, spend time with family, and making sure I let people know that I love them. Letting LOVE exude from my character, and showing love even to those people who annoy me. I need to make love a priority in life.

Also, to let work be work and life be life. I work at my parent’s house, so it’s really quite hard to sometimes just ‘hang out’, and it’s easy, because it’s so close, to just spend lots of time there working, and not enough time with Luke.

3. Tell the truth. I like to make stuff up, so this year I’m going to make sure I always tell the truth, even when I’ve done the wrong thing.

4. Be more involved online. I want to spend more time networking, both with my eLearning work, and my personal stuff. This means making the effort to comment on more blogs, maintain my ela blog, bookmark in delicious, post photos to flickr and deviant art, and stay active in twitter, and my personal blogging. I’d also like to make this blog reflect more a ‘whole’ of me- not just the personal side of me.

I’m making a good start to it by being involved in the group twitter365 on flickr.

5. Be healthier. Loose some weight, eat whole foods, exercise regularly, etc. etc. I’m going to go for walks with Pepper, and if I don’t do that, then spend some time on the wii fit. This last month I’ve actually been a lot better at it, so here’s hoping that January is better still!

6. Focus of photography. I’ve found a great site that gives you assignments every week, so I’m going to try to be part of that more, and really learn more about how to increase my skills and knowledge, and learn some new techniques. This means being a regular on Deviant Art, and learning from my photographer friends, like Cam.

So those are my main goals. This year I hope to update monthly on how they’re going, and review them. I also want to spend time doing more crafts and painting if I get the chance, and some more money.

Tags: 2008, 2009, deviantart, ela, elearning, flickr, health, Internet, newyears, online, photography, wii