On the right track? I've been researching and it's complicated!

[Nunezhall]

Thanks in advance for any advice. I've been reading as much as I can to try and piece together exactly what might be happening to me. I have bipolar that ultra rapid cycles and Hashimoto's, and my life has been a complete mess because of it recently! Thanks to all those who've given me advice on this forum I am slowly starting to form a picture of what is wrong and what I can do about it.

Correct me if I'm wrong or if you think I'm missing something.

I have a Fructan intolerance. Years ago I did Atkins and felt more well than at any point in my life. I started to feel unwell in the later phase of the diet when I reintroduced onion and fruits etc. I also saw a nutritionist who advised I had fructan intolerance. Fructan intolerance and fructose malabsorption cause leaky gut leading to antibodies being released which mistake the thyroid as a foreign body and attack it = Hashimoto's. The food molecules also bind with tryptophan which is needed for serotonin and melatonin production = impaired mental health and poor sleep.

Hashimoto's may have been over-medicated (or I have undiagnosed Grave's). For whatever reason my thyroid has been going up and down rapidly leading to periods of sluggishness and depression followed by rapid heart beat, sweats and manic type symptoms. This may have triggered the bipolar episode I have just recovered from or indeed actually mimicked it. My psychiatrist has confirmed this.

Solution: stop eating fructan containing foods immediately. See an endo (if I can get my useless GP to refer me - they have refused so far). Get my Vit D and B12 checked and back to healthy levels as vitamin deficiency can also impair mental health.

It's all starting to make sense I think. :o)

[Nunezhall]

Oh and I've bought a Fitbit to monitor heart rate and sleep (and to get me exercising). Since reducing my thyroxin my average resting heart rate has dropped dramatically to 65 and there have been no more spikes of 130 bpm at rest.

[Heloise in reply to Nunezhall]

I bought one of those to see how much deep sleep I was

getting....very little I found.

Nunez, I've read some of your previous replies and agree with them.

There are three things I would add. First they are doing research about using T3 for bipolar. We know your brain needs lots of T3 and of course healthy fat. I don't know about these sensitivities, I do feel that somehow we don't produce the right enzymes to digest and lately I'm into biofilm. These infections are really detrimental to health but I digress. They could be the basis for lots of disease.

Healthy fats and also saturated fats are important and this latest article from Dr. Mercola is fascinating. You brain is almost all fat, right? articles.mercola.com/sites/...

Lastly the chiropractor I love on you tube, Dr. John Bergman (also has a good video about the brain) says that loss of neck curve, meaning your head goes forward too much, results in less fluidity between the head and spine and may be responsible for bipolar and Parkinson's disease. These are just theories but distinctly possible I think.

Well wishes!

[Nunezhall in reply to Heloise]

That's an interesting theory about neck curve - I positively stoop forward my head leans that much. Definitely worth looking into. Thanks.

[Heloise in reply to Nunezhall]

Look up Dr. John Bergman on you tube especially his video on Neuropathy and some videos on actual chiropractic work. He gave an exercise which I've been doing with a neck tie, tilting the head back while putting pressure on the back of the neck while pulling the tie forward.

[Marz in reply to Heloise]

Heloise - Sounds like the Buffalo hump that is connected to the Adrenals too - just a thought Am referring to the neck - that lump at the very top of the spine. Mine was quite bad before diagnosis of Hashimotos and has now recovered - but not completely. Have a feeling yoga may have evened it out !

[Heloise in reply to Marz]

Hi Marz, the first little pamphlet I ever read about Hashi was the effect on smooth muscles.....well those muscles can probably reshape your body. I wish there were more information about it and if I ever find out more I will be posting it for sure.

You are doing a good thing with Yoga. I should get a video. Is there anyone you recommend or are you making your own:):)

[Marz in reply to Heloise]

Ah - thank you for that.

I started studying yoga from a book back in the 70's. Bought from BBC Publications by a lady called Lynn Marshall. Sadly she has passed away - she was a ballerina and worked out her own fusion yoga - some of which I still follow. My classes are now based on Hatha yoga with some of Lynn's Fusion thrown in

I am really into anatomy and physiology and how the body works so concentrate on the stretching aspect - giving the reasons why as I go along. I find Ray Long an excellent guy to follow - a Yogi who is also an orthapaedic surgeon.

bandhayoga.com

Happy to answer questions

M x

[SAMBS in reply to Marz]

Marz, I tried yoga nearly killed me - same lady who did the class also did Tai Chi, before taking her yoga one. the tai chi was great for me it was much gentler and still stretched muscles. I'd recommend anyone who can't do Yoga to try Tai Chi -

Shame no-one does it where I live now, it's always more fun doing something like that in a group class if possible, than alone.

[Marz in reply to SAMBS]

Think you must have been trying too hard if the yoga nearly killed you Always good to work within the limits of your body - and the Teacher needs to observe if you are struggling. Glad the Tai Chi suits you. Have not tried it !

[SAMBS in reply to Marz]

I didn't try too hard, my wording really, I already had foot problems and joint issues, I did end up doing what I could for a while sitting on a chair at her suggestion - no she was a better teacher (being a UK qualified Therapist) than I was pupil. I preferred Tai Chi also because it was more gentle, holding on to a chair back for my balance when necessary. I probably gave the wrong impression with my original answer

[SAMBS in reply to Heloise]

Helouise I've also seen Dr B on YouTube! found him because on my BRain Injury not Thyroid!

What you say about neck curvature is also v relevant to the spinal fluid flow. I bet it affects more typists and desk wallahs, than any other job , especially those of us who are older now, b4 H&S regs came in for office equipment to be relevant to posture adopted!

Sadly I think that now with mobiles, PC's and tablets it will be an ongoing problem - you watch any one sitting or walking along the road using their tablets or phones and they are all looking down - not straight ahead!

We need eyes under our chins also

I now sit indoors on a straightbacked garden chair, cushion at my back with my tablet on a small round garden table, which means I'm looking stringent ahead because I use the type of cover/holder that allows the tablet to be angled towards me - with light scarf round back of my neck if necessary. The protection and warmth scarf gives, means my neck no longer aches, yes it still creaks, now much less than it used to, because I've had more years as an office wallah sitting in the wrong position with it!

Another benefit now, means I'm not having to use a gel or take painkillers - so no chemical ingredients being absorbed by the skin, or lying in my stomach. Some ideas I'd recommend others think about and try.

[Heloise in reply to SAMBS]

People probably don't think about using their devices properly until they start having problems. I like the idea of eyes under the chin along with a couple in the back of my head!

Dr. Bergman has such a vast knowledge of the body....something we all should strive to learn. I think a massage every day to remove tension would be such a luxury.

Glad to hear you are doing better, Sambs.

[SAMBS in reply to Heloise]

couldn't agree more with you Heloise - I'm catching up on what I missed at school, such a long time ago now but I always did like Human Biology and Sciences as well as English. I was always rubbish in the other subjects - think going to 7 different schools didn't help

I think Curriculums should be standardised UK wide, then it wouldnt matter how often any child moved or changed school! Just as long as they could all read write and do arithmetic properly by time they left Primary School! A thought for Education Ministers perhaps?

Leave the Human Biology till they start secondary education. a massage every day would be good though 🤓

[SAMBS]

hi Nunezhall - yes does sound like you may be on the right track. like you I've been researching, my my whole health history from birth. all the links connected, I have 2 autoimmune diseases, TB and Hashimotos confirmed by blood tests, scan. I also have Vitiligo and Thrombocytopenia. other research has thrown up fact my right foot/toes deformity, which has over a period of decades meant 3 ops to correct problems, may be what is called Charcot Marie Tooth disease. (C.M.T) my left foot toes are also now deforming.

Strangely though, before all this has come to light - let's face we just seem to accept what happens to us as individuals, although I tried the Atkins Diet for a while, in 90's it came out didn't it? I didn't stay on it long - the no Protein bit of it didnt agree with me and re sugar substitute, we used Splenda then on cereal rather than Canderel, because Splenda didn't have Aspartame in it! I don't drink coffee only unsugared tea since I was 15 (69 now).

All above not long before I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism in 2000. My husband ended up being diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes just before my Thyroid one - Is there also a connection there, because we did eat the same cooked evening meals, his portions bigger than mine, and both had cereal for breakfast? perhaps just conincidences - Who Knows!

I hadn't thought about the Atkins diet though in my research, just known health issues!

In more recent months though, I have taken to using Honey on my cereal. it is also not supposed to affect the taste of coffee, just sweeten it. I also, in an effort to detox my digestive system, still take an Arkopharma natural ingredients product which has honey, Ginseng And Royal jelly in it. Having started with their Fortifying product. both are small liquid doses in ampoules, which hen opened I just pour into a little water. so yes I used probably far too much Canderel over the years, for cooking and recipes that used sugar!

Just another piece of the jigsaw possibly or probably!