Butterflies and Brain Fog

Today I want to talk about a disease that affects many people, myself included. It's a disease that can affect you in subtle ways. It's a disease that can completely shut you down in many other ways. Put simply, Hypothyroidism is having an under-active thyroid gland. The result of this being that gland not producing enough of the thyroid hormone in the blood. The thyroid is a butterfly shaped gland at the base of your neck. When thyroid hormone levels are too low, the body’s cells can’t get enough thyroid hormone and the body’s processes start slowing down.

 As the body slows, you may notice that you feel colder, you tire more easily, your skin is getting drier, you’re becoming forgetful and depressed, and you’ve started getting constipated. The symptoms for hypothyroidism seem endless. Exhaustion, hair loss, brain fog, weight loss, weight gain, depression, anxiety, cold intolerance, hot flashes, skin changes, diarrhea, menstrual changes, body sensitivity, loss of want of intimacy, these are just a tiny list of the many things people with hypothyroidism can experience and it can all be extremely frustrating.  Because the symptoms are so variable and non-specific, the only way to know for sure whether you have hypothyroidism is through blood tests. Your doctor will test the TSH level in your blood to determine your level of thyroid hormone and what degree of medication to start you on.

There is no cure for hypothyroidism. Most people who suffer from it will have to deal with it for the rest of their life. Medication, once adjusted properly, can control hypothyroidism. The more serious effects of the disease can lessen for a much happier and healthier lifestyle. Over time, if left untreated, it can cause morbid obesity, infertility, heart disease, mydexoma coma, and Peripheral neuropathy. Hypothyroidism is not something to be taken lightly. It is something that can shorten your life span. 

Hypothyroidism is huge and there is just so much surrounding it. One of my favorite blogs to check out is HypothyroidMom.com. She has so much information about hypothyroidism and how it plays a part in everyday life. Her blog makes me feel like I'm not alone. I especially love reading her articles about basically being healthier while dealing with these horrible thyroids. 

My hair is thinning. My skin is horrible. I deal with brain fog all the time. Depression and anxiety are a 24/7 thing for me. The weight gain sucks so bad. But, this year, as part of my New Year, New Me, I'm gonna kick my thyroid in the rear. I'm gonna get on a proper medicine regime and get my thyroid stabilized. I will not let that little butterfly shaped sucker get the best of me. I hope this blog has been somewhat informational. I know it is short but there is such large area to cover when it comes to hypothyroidism that it would take many blogs to cover everything. Do you deal with hypothyroidism? Tell me how you feel about it and how you deal with it in the comments below.