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Browsing Tag

Cancer

Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month – September 2020

Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month – September 2020

September is Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month. This is an annual event created to spread awareness of…

Resources for Those with Experience of Thyroid Cancer

Resources for Those with Experience of Thyroid Cancer

There are multiple ways that someone can become hypothyroid, and one of those is via thyroid…

Thyroid Patients Explain Their Signs of Thyroid Cancer

Thyroid Patients Explain Their Signs of Thyroid Cancer

Thyroid cancer is the fastest growing cancer among women, by number of new cases and rates have doubled…

My Teenage Thyroid Cancer Experience

My Teenage Thyroid Cancer Experience

With September being Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month, I thought sharing a personal story would be a…

Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month – September 2018

Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month – September 2018

Today is the 1st September, which marks the start of Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month, an annual…

Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month - September 2017

Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month – September 2017

Today is the 1st September, which marks the start of Thyroid Cancer Awareness Month, an annual…

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theinvisiblehypothyroidism

I shared a post yesterday, about the frustrations

I shared a post yesterday, about the frustrations of learning how to live with a thyroid condition and what others assume it to be like.

In a bittersweet way, I’m glad it provided community for everyone to share their experiences and relate to one another.

I also received some comments saying they were sad to hear I was struggling, so I just wanted to clarify that right now, my health is really good. I live symptom-free, and only have flares when I get glutened, don’t prioritise what I’m eating, my sleep, stress etc.

The words I shared yesterday were most applicable when I was in the thick of it - the early days of my diagnosis. However, I knew they would be relatable to many others going through that part now.

I want to continue to share all aspects and all stages of living with hypothyroidism & Hashimoto’s.

And also keep in mind that we may continue to shift on this scale, moving backwards and forwards in terms of better or worsened health again, unfortunately.

Life can change things. Pregnancy, parenting, grief, work stress and so much more can change whether our thyroid condition is well-managed or not.

But for now, I’m in a great place where I hardly notice it. But we still need a voice for all those other stages so many others are still in or passing through.

- Rachel 🦋💙

(Photo from when I went out a few weeks ago to celebrate my book release of Thyroid Superhero)

We’re often told, whether by doctors, our friend

We’re often told, whether by doctors, our friends, family or other thyroid patients, to ‘just get on with it’ when we have thyroid issues.

“Push through it.”

“Don’t be weak.”

“Pull yourself together!”

“I’ve worked hard my whole life. Nothing will ever stop my work ethic. People are using their health conditions as an excuse to be lazy.”

Oh my, the ignorance. 🤦🏼‍♀️

Let me tell you something: I’ve BEEN the person who pushes them self to keep on going. I’ve refused to be ‘weak’ because I believed this idea that a thyroid condition cannot get in the way. And do you know where it led me?

To even worse health.

My health burned out. I ended up unable to work, bed bound and suicidal. That’s not helpful in any sense of the word.

Here are some facts (and yes, they ARE facts):

❗️Hypothyroidism really can reduce someone’s quality of life hugely. It’s a chronic health condition. If you don’t experience this, count yourself lucky.

❗️Thyroid disease affects people on a scale. Different people experience a varying degree of symptoms. To assume everyone experiences it in the same way is ridiculous and ignorant.

❗️People CAN live well with a thyroid condition, but it often takes time, a lot of trial and error to find what works and, crucially, locating the right thyroid jigsaw puzzle pieces, usually with the right medical practitioner.

I’m done being someone who refuses to listen to their health condition and go at a pace of life that everyone else decides for me.

I’m done living with thyroid disease in the way everyone else seems to think I ‘should’.

I’m done feeling lonely and struggling alone. We NEED this community.

I felt ‘done’ a few years ago. When I started publicly speaking about life as a thyroid patient.

You don’t get points for invalidating someone else’s experiences of a disease. You just end up looking like a fool. You also don’t get points for being a martyr and ‘pushing through’.

Your body doesn’t deserve that. It deserves being listened to.

•••

👇 Let me know how you feel about this in the comments and as always, follow me for more thyroid info and please check out the resources linked in my bio for more support.

- Rachel 🦋💙

⁉️Need some info to explain what hypothyroidis

⁉️Need some info to explain what hypothyroidism is to family & friends?! Here it is!

•••

🦋 Hypothyroidism means thyroid hormone levels are low.

🦋 Because these hormones are needed for everything, symptoms of hypothyroidism can be very far-reaching!

🦋 Even those on thyroid meds can still feel unwell. Due to not being on the right dose yet, the right type of thyroid med or perhaps even coexisting thyroid puzzle pieces of low vitamin levels, adrenal dysfunction, poor gut health, overexercising, diet sensitivities and more.

🦋 Living well with a thyroid issue can be like piecing together a jigsaw puzzle! Would you like another reel on that topic specifically? Let me know in the comments!

•••

⭐️ Follow me for more thyroid info and please check out the resources linked in my bio for more support!

- Rachel 🦋💙

❓Are you on thyroid medication? Which one? And i

❓Are you on thyroid medication? Which one? And if so, how is it working for you?

❓Did you know there are more options out there if your current ones aren’t really helping? Though getting these prescribed can be tricky. 🤨

•••

‼️ I never responded well to the T4-only med Levothyroxine. I only felt worse on it.

😱 But when I switched to an NDT medication, everything changed. My dry skin, fatigue, muscle pains, acid reflux and more all greatly improved or disappeared altogether.

‼️ However, the hardest part can be trying to get your doctor to prescribe anything other than T4-only medicine.

❓The vast majority of conventional doctors have been trained to stick to T4 synthetics, so many patients these days are unfortunately having to go private to see a doctor who will prescribe other medication options or even self-source it online, which carries many risks, just to get the medication they need to function like a normal human being.

❓In the US, trying many different doctors until you find one who is open to prescribing it is an option. In the U.K., NDT isn’t licensed, so you usually have to go private to obtain it, but a lucky few ARE able to get it from an NHS endocrinologist. Synthetic T3 (Liothyronine) is more easily prescribed on the NHS but still not routinely.

❗️T3 containing medications such as Liothyronine and NDT drastically improve many people’s lives however. And it’s one area of thyroid advocacy we need to keep shouting about.

✅ My medication type has changed a lot over the years to reflect what my body currently needs. Right now I am on 180mg Armour + 25mcg Levo.

👇 Let me know your experiences with this in the comments and as always, follow me for more thyroid info and please check out the resources linked in my bio for more support.

- Rachel 🦋💙

© Rachel Gask and The Invisible Hypothyroidism, 2015-2023. All Rights Reserved.

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