You know that feeling when you wake up in the morning and just seem out of whack? For those suffering from a thyroid disorder, this is their reality, day in, day out. It’s estimated that 10% of New Zealanders have thyroid disease – and in many cases, it’s undiagnosed, with sufferers thinking they’re just tired and rundown.
They commonly experience symptoms such as a lack of energy, bloating, fogginess, forgetfulness, insomnia, weight fluctuations and anxiety.
“All the symptoms are non-specific and can overlap with other common conditions, including stress, which is the main issue when trying to diagnose a thyroid problem,” explains endocrinologist Dr Katherine Tonks. So how can you tell if you’re suffering from burnout or something more serious? Read on to uncover the key symptoms of common thyroid disorders and the treatments that will help get you back on track.
What is your Thyroid?
It’s a small butterfly-shaped gland in your neck, near the base of your throat.
It’s responsible for making hormones that help control many of your body’s processes, from metabolism to heart rate, blood pressure, weight and temperature. When it stops working properly, whether by producing too much or too little of the thyroid hormones, you may experience physical symptoms that can often be mistaken as the side-effects of stress.
Hypothyroidism: An under-active thyroid
What is it?
Foggy, sluggish and heavy. These are the words hypothyroid sufferers use to describe their day-to-day battle as an underactive thyroid slows the entire system down. Symptoms can spiral too, with weight gain, constipation and low mood caused by a thyroid gland that’s simply not producing enough of the thyroid hormones.
One common cause of hypothyroidism is Hashimoto’s disease, an autoimmune condition that causes your body to directly attack your thyroid gland.
“Luckily, the diagnosis is made with a simple blood test,” tells Katherine. She suggests asking your GP to test your levels of TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) and if yours are above four, it’s worth investigating further.
Who suffers from it?
Model Gigi Hadid, and actresses Zoe Saldana and Kim Cattrall all suffer from Hashimoto’s. “I’d always had a lot of energy, but it dropped and I knew something was off – and I had some hair loss too,” explains Kim.
How to treat it
“The short answer is you need thyroid hormone replacement medication,” says Katherine. “It’s essentially the same thyroid hormone your body makes, but it’s obviously made in the lab.” The other key is ensuring you have enough iodine in your diet. “For women and children, iodine is especially important – low levels in pregnancy can lower IQ in babies.” Good dietary sources include fish, seaweed and iodised salt.
Hyperthyroidism: An overactive thyroid
What is it?
While not as common as an underactive thyroid, symptoms can overlap with other conditions and become tough to diagnose.
“Your thyroid is responsible for your metabolism, so when it’s overactive, it can feel like you’re running a marathon 24 hours a day,” explains Katherine. “You’re burning lots of energy, so you feel exhausted, sweaty, suffer weight loss, heart palpitations and hair loss or thinning.”
The most common form is Graves’ disease, an autoimmune condition that forces the thyroid to produce too many hormones.
Who suffers from it?
Kelly Osbourne and Oprah Winfrey have both battled an overactive thyroid, and songstress Sia has been outspoken about her struggle with Graves’ disease. “I’m not crazy! I have Graves’ disease! The shakes, the nerves. The crazy! Goodbye thyroid, I will kill you with radioactivity,” she wrote on Twitter.
How to treat it
“The treatment is anti-thyroid medication, ablation using radio-iodine or removal with surgery,” says Katherine. But rest assured, although these treatment options sound extreme, it’s a step-by-step process. “You’d try the medication first, and a third of cases improve after a course of medication,” she adds.
“If that doesn’t work, radio-iodine is used as a form of non-surgical thyroid removal. It’s really simple – you go in, take a tablet and go home.”
Did you know
Thyroid disorders are especially common after pregnancy. “Women feel tired and put it down to the fact they have a young baby. But don’t assume it’s just because you’re busy and not sleeping,” urges Katherine. “Request a blood test – it’s so easily treatable.”
Test yourself
If you answer yes to one or more of the following questions, you could be suffering from a thyroid disorder:
• Do you regularly feel fatigued?
• Have you noticed hair loss or thinning?
• Do you feel depressed or anxious?
• Have you experienced unexplained weight gain or rapid weight loss?
• Do you have difficulty sleeping?
• Do you have muscle cramps and aches?
• Are you often constipated?
• Do you feel cold even when it’s warm?
Words: Penny Lewis