Could your chronic fatigue and other symptoms be autoimmune Hashimoto’s?
Do you have chronic fatigue or other mysterious symptoms that make you miserable? But does your doctor say your lab tests are fine and you’re perfectly healthy? It could be you have autoimmune Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism or another autoimmune reaction and don’t know it.
People can develop an autoimmune reaction to virtually any tissue, enzyme, or protein in their body. Autoimmunity means the immune system has failed to distinguish between foreign invaders, which it was designed to attack, and body tissue, which it was designed to protect. As a result, the immune system attacks and destroys specific parts of the body, such as the thyroid gland.
Symptoms of autoimmunity vary depending on which part of the body is being attacked, but they often include chronic pain, chronic fatigue, brain fog, poor neurological function, chronic inflammation, digestive problems, or poor mood. People with autoimmune Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism may also complain of cold hands and feet, depression, weight gain, constipation, and other symptoms.
A primary characteristic of undiagnosed autoimmunity is symptoms that seem irresolvable, despite “normal” lab tests and scans. Perhaps you even have been told your health symptoms are due to depression and you need to take antidepressants—this is not uncommon for people with Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism.
Autoimmune Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism may not be diagnosed or treated
What may be happening is that you have an autoimmune reaction to your thyroid causing hypothyroid symptoms, but the condition is not advanced enough to be diagnosed through conventional testing and qualified as a “disease.” Or you have been diagnosed with hypothyroidism and treated with thyroid meds, but the autoimmune component goes undiagnosed and unmanaged. As Datis Kharrazian, DHSc, DC, MNeuroSci, author of Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms? and Why Isn’t My Brain Working? explains, people can have symptoms years or even decades before being diagnosed with an autoimmune disease.
For instance, a person may have trouble controlling blood sugar despite a good diet because of an autoimmune reaction in the pancreas. However, not enough tissue has been destroyed for a Type 1 diabetes diagnosis. Or a person can have symptoms of multiple sclerosis, but not enough tissue has been destroyed for it to show up on an MRI. Or persistent and severe adrenal fatigue could be the result of autoimmunity in the adrenal glands that is not advanced enough to be diagnosed as Addison’s disease.
This is not to say you should assume a health problem is autoimmune in nature, but when it is persistent and stubborn, it is a possibility to consider.
You can test for and manage autoimmune Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism
Fortunately, we have autoimmunity testing today that can screen for antibodies against multiple tissues to determine whether an autoimmune reaction is causing chronic pain, chronic fatigue, or thyroid symptoms. Antibodies are proteins that tag a foreign compound for the immune system to destroy and remove. When you produce higher than normal levels of antibodies to certain parts of the body (it’s normal for old and dying cells to be tagged for removal), this means you are having an autoimmune reaction against that tissue or enzyme.
When a person presents with chronic thyroid symptoms, screening for an autoimmune reaction can help us determine whether Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism plays a role. If so, we then know we can work on balancing an overzealous and improperly functioning immune system. Also, if your test shows an autoimmune reaction but you have no symptoms, you now know that proper diet and lifestyle choices will help prevent the progression of autoimmunity. Avoiding gluten is especially important for those with autoimmune Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism, as numerous studies link the condition with a gluten intolerance or celiac disease.
Today we have many scientifically proven strategies to tame autoimmune Hashimoto’s hypothyroidism, improve thyroid function, and increase your well being. These include an autoimmune diet and nutritional compounds to balance the immune system and quench inflammation.
Ask my office how we can help you get to the bottom of mysterious conditions, such as chronic pain, chronic fatigue, or hypothyroid symptoms. Despite what your doctor may have told you, you are not making up your chronic symptoms or simply in need of antidepressants.
