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Browsing Tag

Women’s Day

International Women's Day and How Thyroid Disease is a Feminist Issue

International Women’s Day and How Thyroid Disease is a Feminist Issue

Originally published on 8th March 2018  Last updated on 8th March 2023 The 8th March marks…

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theinvisiblehypothyroidism

theinvisiblehypothyroidism

😶‍🌫️ You may relate to these top brain f

😶‍🌫️ You may relate to these top brain fog moments of mine:

🫤 Using my house key but it wasn’t working. Then realising I was trying to get in to a neighbour’s house.

🫤 Putting lipstick on my eyes.

🫤 Whilst in the bath, squeezing conditioner on to my hand then running it all over my face as if it were face wash.

•••

⁉️ What Causes Thyroid Brain Fog?

There are quite a few possible causes, so we’ll dive in to them below!

1️⃣ Low Thyroid Hormone Levels

Thyroid hormones T3 & T4 have major influences over virtually every brain activity. So if you don’t have enough of these thyroid hormones, brain fog can occur to varying degrees.

T3 has an important role in the health and optimal functioning of your brain, including cognitive function, the ability to concentrate, mood, memory and attention span.

2️⃣ Inflammation

Inflammation in the body can mean:

A leaky gut / poor gut health
Gluten sensitivity
Adrenal dysfunction
Hashimoto’s / high thyroid antibodies

Looking at quieting the immune response by lowing thyroid antibodies can be helpful since it means the condition is in remission.

3️⃣ Low Iron, Vitamin D and Vitamin B12

They are notorious for causing brain fog, and come hand in hand with thyroid issues all too often.

4️⃣ Blood Sugar Spiking!

Symptoms of blood sugar issues can include headaches, feeling faint, dizzy, hungry, tired, irritable and foggy minded.

Since realising that I needed to adjust my diet to allow more protein and fat (and less sugar and carbs) in order to balance my blood sugar and avoid spikes and dramatic drops, the irritable moods, groggy feeling and brain fog were no more.

Healthy fats play a big role in our mood and brain function.

5️⃣ Sleeeeep

Poor quality sleep, not enough sleep and overexerting yourself can cause or exacerbate brain fog.

•••

👇 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 🦋💙

An excerpt from my upcoming book. 💞

My book “Thyroid Superhero” will be released tomorrow, 25th May!🦸‍♀️

💥 Amazingly, you can already preorder it! Available on Amazon - link also in stories + bio!

❤️‍🩹 This book talks about their grown-up’s flares, medication and more! Perfect for children 2+.

👇 Drop any questions below and I’ll answer them! I’m also doing an insta live on Thursday at 4pm U.K. time!

- Rachel 🦋💙

“A thyroid gland sits inside the neck with many

“A thyroid gland sits inside the neck with many different jobs to do. It’s important for energy, our brains and well-being, this butterfly-shaped has much to do!”

An excerpt from my upcoming book. 💞

My book “Thyroid Superhero” will be released this week, on Thursday 25th May!🦸‍♀️

💥 Amazingly, you can already preorder it today to get it for Thursday! Available on Amazon - link also in stories + bio!

❤️‍🩹 This book talks about their grown-up’s flares, medication and more! Perfect for children 2+.

👇 Drop any questions below and I’ll answer them! I’m also doing an insta live on Thursday at 4pm U.K. time!

- Rachel 🦋💙

Sometimes we know what triggers our flares and som

Sometimes we know what triggers our flares and sometimes we don’t.

Sometimes they come flying out of nowhere and hit us in the face.

🤔 What is a flare?

A thyroid flare is defined by an increase in thyroid symptoms. It usually lasts for up to a few days but can last up to a few weeks.

Symptoms may differ from person to person, although the most commonly reported are:
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
🦋 Fatigue
🦋 Heaviness (as if your body is being weighed down)
🦋 Worsened mental health
🦋 Brain fog
🦋 Migraines
🦋 Flu-like symptoms (aches and pains)
🦋 Dizziness
🦋 Switching between feeling really cold and hot

Common triggers include:

〰️ alcohol
〰️ eating poorly or eating foods you’re sensitive to (consuming gluten for example)
〰️ overexertion (mental and/or physical)
〰️ illness (colds, viruses)
〰️ not getting enough sleep and rest
〰️ being pregnant, on your period or due your period (hormonal fluctuations)

However, if you avoid your triggers and still experience a flare, please be kind to yourself. ❤️‍🩹

We don’t always know what has caused a particular flare up in symptoms and can’t always control them. This is frustrating but what our body needs is a chance to rest and recuperate.

I’m gluten-free in order to better manage my thyroid health but if someone else glutens me and causes a flare, it’s not my fault.

❓Were you aware of thyroid flares?

There is a whole chapter on flares in my book “Be Your Own Thyroid Advocate”, as well as in the flares highlight on my page.

I was the first resource to ever discuss thyroid flares. When first diagnosed, I searched for info on flares with hypo and Hashi’s but it didn’t exist.

Note: if you’re feeling that a flare is going on much longer than a couple of weeks, it may not be a flare up, but a permanent dropping of your thyroid hormone levels. After all, flare ups are not associated with a drop in thyroid hormone levels, but are more a reaction to overexertion which takes your body a day or two to recover from. Speak to your doc.
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
👇 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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