What kind of doctor/care provider does one use for thyroid disorders?
herblovinmom
Posts: 437 Member
What kind of doctor or care provider does one diagnosed with thyroid disease use for treatment? I’m generally curious what the majority of the public does and who they see. I personally was first diagnosed by my family physician D.O. Then I moved to a specialist an Endocrinologist. Now I find myself thinking maybe I should seek care elsewhere. I’m still not quite where I want to be with my disease progression and management. I’ve been with the endo for 3 years now. Her treatment plan did get me to where I am today which is a great progress from 3 yrs prior but just not good enough I guess. They keep adding medications and/or upping them. Not my thyroid meds either 🙄cause those are apparently in a good range even though I still have a mirage of symptoms. Seems as though my disease is progressing despite being medicated and following diet protocol and lifestyle recommendations. I feel like I gave conventional medicine a good ole try, it may be time to go the natural route. Does anyone see a functional medicine doctor? Or a naturopath? For the treatment of their thyroid disease.. It took me 11 yrs to get this far, I’m really scared to backtrack and start over again with a new provider. But I can’t keep getting worse despite all my hard work. 😢
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My vote is for functional because "thyroid" conditions can be way more complicated than the average endocrinologist can manage. I really understand, "this far is still not enough", I go further, There has to be more to my life than this!!!! I only really made progress when I started with the BANT nutritionist with a functional approach but its UK only. STTM the site does have a list of doctors internationally who really helped people with thyroid conditions.
My fear is you do not know if you are low thyroid function or have Hashimoto's. General medicine to generalise across continents tends to stick to the tsh being between this and t4 being so and so as sufficient, they tell you, your numbers are "within normal range" not what is normal for you. Then as for t3 they, from my experience, they don't give a jot for yet its fundamental for ones wellbeing. Conversion from t4 to t3 requires a raft of essential minerals and vitamins but they never tell you this.
STTM the website does have a list of potential doctors. As does Hypothyroid Mom. Personally I read from those two sites as well as all I could from three American Functional Practitioners, Kresser, Jockers and Axe. They all have different ways of expressing the same information. This gave me the clue for where I needed to look for help. I did have the benefit of meeting the Regional Professor in Immunology who said he felt my history/condition/symptoms put me at the "edge of (the then) science" only to be told by the local endo and allocated doctor that was total rubbish, t4, levo was the only answer I needed!!!!!! Scientific understanding moves with knowledge and this knowledge needs to be applied to the ordinary person in the street. (If only the greater number of persons affected by "thyroid conditions" were men because more would be done for Mrs average because they knew from Mr average that these dots should join up but it might be a little different! Is it 12 women to one man or so who need treatment.) I confess to being bitter because I spent till well into my 60 before I started to get my life back, I'm sure had I not I'd be pushing up daises or worse in a dementia home.
Endocrine function covers how the different parts of the system work together, I think its 7 glands, with the best of luck in unison the difficulty comes when the feedback loop between the glands feeds through the thyroid, including the liver, Pancras, adrenals and the others fail to keep in unison, for which there could be a myriad of reasons. A functional practitioner will join the dots from your symptoms between the glands and see where your personal gremlins are then apply the best they can for you, it could be in part dietary, in Hashimoto's or Graves which I know little about, it could also be vitamin and mineral supplements too. My knowledge comes from profound self interest.
General medicine treats poor dietary hypothyroidism exactly the same as the Autoimmune conditions I've mentioned but there is a world of difference between poor diet and a system malfunction. So much is still to be discovered as to the reasons for autoimmunity. Key to many instances of autoimmunity involve digestive malfunctions but which comes first is hard to know its an ever decreasing circle in my view. Mostly the best efforts are to eliminate all dietary allergies and intolerances along with increasing the digestive biome which tightens the links between the segments of the digestive tract which become slack and permit inadequately digested food particles which enter the blood stream only to be discovered by the immune system and this then goes into swift action trying to eliminate the offending particles only for it not to differentiate between this finely ground substance with the persons own cells. In Hashimoto's the immune system erodes the thyroid itself, in MS for example it breaks down the sheath which should protect the nerves themselves. Other autoimmunity has similar but different "own tissues damaged".
My treatment for hashi was sort my intolerances out, sort my digestive flora out, replace thyroid tissue and other gland tissue while supporting liver and pancreatic functions, I almost forgot lowering my coper levels which are usually higher in women particularly vegetarian women though some medications and contraception can also influence things. Coper needs to be balanced by Zinc to keep the body comfortable, a diet including meat tends to be more balanced because meat has the correct ration of these minerals. High copper can be involved in candida issues which often are systemic. My deepest hope is you will be able to find a functional practitioner, possibly naturopath or similar who will take a functional perspective join your dots and serve you well for a long, comfortable as well as happy future. Read as much as you can related to your symptoms and find someone who will be there for you.
Along with my husband both in our early 70's, we mind one of granddaughters in care work, her two under 4's. In the week one now has two days at nursery. Alone I could not do it, without the supplements I take daily, I'd not be able to. Their father is home to put them to bed on her 12 hour days. My daughter, grandma and Grandad cover the weekends as much as possible, we run a tight ship.
I truly hope you can achieve your good life.
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@Fuzzipeg
Thank you for the great info and advice and well wishes. Yes Yes Yes to so many of your questions and concerns. I do have a functional medicine and naturopath near by that I’m capable of seeing as I pay for my own care, it’s one benefit of being under insured. Confirmed Hashimotos. Currently on my journey I am eating Gluten free, dairy free, low carb (ish), low sugar, anti inflammatory, grass fed, free range, wild caught, pasture raised, organic. The endo definitely tests a complete thyroid panel 2x yearly. She also tests my adrenals, hormones, antibodies, insulin, glucose, and next up she says she will check my pancreas and cholesterols levels. She’s a great doctor and I honestly feel bad that my body doesn’t respond the way she expects. Like it’s not good enough. And Yes , sometimes I stray from the recommended diet and lifestyle, but I don’t give up and go right back to healthy living. I am wanting to go the more natural route but it’s scary and I know I don’t want to be unmedicated cause that was way worse than currently. I also take a whole bunch of supplements… daily, collagen, b’s, p5p, 5 htp, magnesium, liver formula, digestive enzymes, vitamin c, occasionally melatonin.. maybe I should add in zinc.. that’s not in my list..and on top of all that. I treat most acute issues with herbal medicine. I think my expectations from my body might be too high… it’s a journey for sure. 😉0 -
Its more or less impossible not to have the occasional instances when doing what "most" people can do, have to happen. Getting right back into what has brought you this far shows an overall commitment to your health.
I think your endo is doing what she can, addressing your obstacles as they show their heads. Someone some where likened getting ones health back like, peeling an onion one layer at a time.... The pancreas is key to controlling blood glucose levels, ties into resolving carbs and that line of thought. I can't bring to mind what I read the other day I wish I could, it related to a vitamin which could be helpful. If your predominantly vegetarian then yes, add zinc but read up on it because you want to balance the coper and zinc for best effect. Yes, all the items you mention are spot on some need more others less. High quality organic foods too. I had to bight the bullet of needing glandular, there was nothing else. I can't say I'm totally happy, I try to say a "thank you" with each pill, for the life lost to help me, and others........... Sometimes animal products are the only things which really reach the point, I'm thinking Omega 3 and b 12.
Reading recently in the New Scientist, my husband takes it. The article questioned why "milk" alternatives are called milk, they say its controversial being extracts of the named grain or pea/bean suspended in water. Ns says the products are lower in protein , b12, iodine, plus other essential vitamins. As the food of babies it contains, calcium, iodine, selenium and much more. (Bovine, cow dairy has a higher level of most because it is intended for a larger animal and has a different dominant casein. Goat is designed to feed an animal which is much the same weight as a human when grown. Goat milk is most like human milk having type 3 casein as dominant. Using goat can make any lactose issues disappear. Casein intolerance is more common than lactose intolerance. Cheeses are not spared the critism being made from extracts of soy, pea and other plants as milk. The use of the two words is possibly misleading leading one to think they contain more nutrition than they do. Many of the new vegan meal product are higher in salt, carbs and lower in protein than the foods they are designed to replace. Some of us will always function best on historic animal foods when the whole animal was used not the chosen bits. High animal welfare/ food standards have to be paramount.
I hope you find your way to become very well, be as healthy as you hope to be. Hashi reduces the volume of the thyroid or is it kills off the gland might equate to the same, so it can't function as well as it did before autoimmunity which caused the damaged.
All the very best1 -
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