Could it be your thyroid?

Did you know that 30% of the population is suffering from thyroid issues and many of these people don't even know? Plus, did you know that women are vastly more affected than men and that the thyroid massively impacts your fertility, the development of your baby in utero as well as how you feel postpartum? 

This is huge, right? 

That's why I want to let you know about an upcoming documentary called The Thyroid Secret which was created by NY Times bestselling author Dr. Izabella Wentz who herself struggled with undiagnosed Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis for years. 

I recently watched a sneak-peak trailer and I have to say that I am beyond impressed with the number and quality of experts she interviews to gather the most comprehensive volume of knowledge and information on the thyroid. 

>>Reserve your seat here for The Thyroid Secret.<<


The reason I am so passionate about letting women know about this, is because:
1. I have so many clients who were struggling with their fertility and/or postpartum depression, but really had an undiagnosed thyroid problem, and
2. a few years back, after months and months of not really feeling like myself, I finally discovered that I had a sub-optimal working thyroid as well, meaning I was tending towards hypothyroidism. 

While I wasn't even fully diagnosed as "hypothyroid," I had the following symptoms: 

• easily irritated and anxious in my body
• slightly depressed, low on energy, and feeling "beaten up"
• extra weight around my belly that I could not lose no matter how hard I worked out or what I ate
• dry skin, hair and nails 
• cold feet and hands

Because I wasn't full blown hypothyroid, I wasn't perscribed medication but my doctor told me to come back and check my levels again in 6 months. There was no support or guidance on what I could do from a nutrition of lifestyle perspective to support my thyroid naturally.

The only advice was to go on living my life, get checked again in 6 months and basically wait for my thyroid to get worse until I qualified for medication. Thankfully my thyroid never got to that point and I didn't go back for more testing.

About 2 years later, when I came off of birthcontrol and my period was all messed up, I began to chart my cycles to get a clearer picture on what was going on in my body hormonally.

Part of charting my cycle meant taking my waking temperature every morning through which I learned that my temperatures were a bit lower than what was considered "normal."

This was an indication that once again, my thyroid wasn't working optimally and that that was likely a big part of why my progesterone levels were low as well. I worried about that because low progesterone meant that I was more likely to have a hard time getting pregnant and more likely to have miscarriages.  

The difference was that this time around, I knew what to do and how to support my thyroid function naturally. I was so relieved when I successfully boosted my thyroid levels and my waking temperatures started to increase. Not long after that my luteal phase also lengthened which was a sign that my progesterone was increasing as well.

I felt like a miracle was happening and I was in complete awe of how powerful nutrition and lifestyle changes can be in regulating the body's endocrine system. 

Since then, I have seen countless clients of mine who are dealing either with fertility issues or postpartum depression who are really suffering from an under-active thyroid, but had no idea and were not counseled on any of this by their doctors until I advised them to go and get (sometimes, demand!) certain tests. 

This is huge, because women are being treated with fertility medications and anti-depressants when in reality their thyroid needs attention. 
 

Discussing the thyroid in the depth that it deserves is beyond the scope of any email. But if what I am describing above is resonating with you and you have a hunch that your thyroid might be part of what is keeping you from feeling great physically AND emotionally OR if you suspect that it could be part of the puzzle of any fertility problems or postpartum issues you are experiencing, I want to highly encourage you to check out Dr. Izabella Wentz's docu-series, The Thyroid Secret so that you can take charge of your own health and well-being. 

Warmly, 

Caroline