Hi! I promised myself that I would come back and write here if I managed to "naturally" put my thyroid levels and my Hashimoto’s back in their place, in case it could help someone else fix theirs. My TSH levels are now perfect and my Hashimoto's is pretty much in remission as my antibodies are pretty much gone and so are my symptoms. BTW, by “naturally”, I mean without thyroid medication no longer doing the work for me.
This is my experience, and not medical advice, and we are all individuals who function differently, but we also have a lot in common, so it may help in your venture to fix your thyroid.
When I first signed in to HealthUnlocked, only a few years ago, I had just been diagnosed with Hypothyroid, and Hashimoto's being the cause of my hypothyroidism. My TSH was at 8, my T3 was just a little low and my T4 was normal for conventional medicine but on the low end for functional medicine. My TgAB (Thyroglobulin antibodies) were around 50, and my TPO (thyroid peroxidase) were at 90. I could barely get off the couch, I was beginning to flirt with the idea of suicide as I no longer found anything in life exciting, not even food, or music, which used to heal me in down times.
The endocrinologist that diagnosed me put me on 50 mcg of Levothyroxine medication and told me I had to take it for the rest of my life. I asked her if there was anything I could do to reverse this and she said no, and she insinuated it only gets worse with age, so to come back every few months to possibly increase the dose.
I had not gone there to test for Hashimoto's, as I had never even heard of it, nor to check on my thyroid, which back then I had no idea was such a vital gland for all of our organs to function. I went there to test for Rheumatoid Arthritis and Alzheimer's, as my most significant symptoms were severe joint pain, and cognitive decline, plus Arthritis run in my family. I was having a hard time sleeping with joint pain, and having conversations without remembering everyday common words. Sometime I even had to take a pause to be able to introduce myself, as my own name did not immediately come to mind! Frankly I had been going to all kinds of doctors, and orthopedic surgeons regarding my symptoms for 2 decades, so someone could have diagnosed me at least 20 years before that! I had been diagnosed with Psoriasis, another autoimmune disorder, in my early 20's, but back then I'm not sure people were as aware as today about the curse of autoimmune disorder: once you are diagnosed with one, you are prone to a hundred others.
Prevention was not ever mentioned to me, as conventional medicine attempts to take care of symptoms, but not to prevent from related issues, so I just kept going about my life making no change of my old habits until the second autoimmune diagnosis came in: Hashimoto’s.
I did follow doctor’s orders, against my will, and took the thyroid medication for about 2 years plus. It helped me function and not be so depressed and sluggish all the time. And it helped me start to do research to make lifestyle changes. Once those lifestyle interventions started to work, I slowly weaned myself off the medication (a little less than a year ago now).
To keep this story somewhat short: Today, without taking any thyroid meds, my TSH=2.2, my T3&T4 free are within range, my TPOs are fully gone, disappeared, and my TgABs are only at 13 (so I'm almost at full remission!)
How I got to this point:
I went off gluten (the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life!)
I made a point of getting proper sleep each night (8 hours minimum).
I removed all toxins that I was aware of from my immediate environment, and my kitchen, and my bathroom shelves.
I tested for intestinal permeability (commonly known as Leaky Gut), was positive, and I had antibodies showing “leakage” or “holes” or ulcers, throughout several areas of my digestive system, not just some missing or loose intestinal wall cells.
I tested for a bunch of parasites, bacteria, and viruses, that could always be the underlying cause of autoimmune disorder. I was positive for Heliobacter Pylori. If you read about this bacteria, you'll know it causes ulcers, and left untreated can lead to all kinds of gastrointestinal issues, including liver, colon, intestinal, stomach cancers of all sorts. But it is HARD to get rid of it, because it has such survival instincts, that it even changes your intestinal PH (alkalinity or acidity) of your intestines so it can survive! So basically it disturbs your microbiome like a hurricane went through your intestines!
To get rid of the freaking bacteria, I first tried the natural way, with herbs and strong ailments, and it didn't work. So I went on to really harsh antibiotics, and finally got rid of it.
In the meantime I had finally succeeded at becoming radically gluten free, which is helpful in healing a Leaky Gut. It was not without effort I quit gluten, I even had horrible withdrawal symptoms like one who quits a drug! I thought I'd end up in a white looney's shirt in a mental institution with the cravings and desire to quit quitting gluten. But being off gluten helped tremendously with the symptoms of joint pain and brain fog, so slowly I stopped wanting to get back to it. I was already feeling better, less tired, foggy, and achey.
After I got rid of the H. Pylori, and due to the harsh antibiotics, my Leaky Gut had to be addressed even further, so I went on a very strict food protocol called the AIP (Autoimmune Paleo). Also because I needed to find out if I had other food sensitivities apart from gluten. This food protocol is sometimes also called the Reintroduction Diet, as you remove ALL posible allergens known to man, and reintroduce them later one by one, 72 hours apart, so as to sense any biological changes within you that could mean a reaction to that food.
I had attempted the AIP before, but I didn't stick to it strictly, as I kept eating chocolate, caffeine, and night shades. But after being off gluten, and what a battle that was for me!, I felt capable of following through any diet in the world; after all, the hardest part was done! Mind you, I grew up being a picky eater who devoured a packet of chocolate cookies a day! And sometimes only craved bread and butter for a meal. Sometimes I’d buy a huge Tiramisu and ate the whole thing in one go. I loved Cheetos, UTZ, candy….
I felt much better without gluten and on the AIP diet. I had gained alertness, my speech and memory was slowly coming back, basically my symptoms were disappearing, but my TSH levels and Hashi antibodies were not improving yet. It was not until I got the H. Pylori out of my system, that I didn’t see my numbers decline positively. In the midst of all this, at one point I fell off the wagon, went back to eating normal food, my cookies, croissants, pasta, my etc, then all my symptoms came back. So I went back on the AIP again but full on strict for 3 months, then after 3 months I reintroduced only a few foods back, and here I am now without either symptoms not antibodies and with perfect TSH levels, and I got all my energy back, and I am better at remembering things, talking, and understanding. By the way, I sound horribly unhealthy, but amidst all these processed junk food I liked, I did make myself a ton of salads, vegetable dishes, etc... I also enjoyed healthy eating then, but it was always easier and faster to just eat food that you didn't have to prepare or pay so much money for. I also wasn’t aware of how addicted I was to certain foods that were providing no nutritional value to my life.
Now, if you are a vegetarian or a vegan, and wanted to try this diet, you can too, just skip the animal protein part, and follow everything else to the dot. A friend of mine with hypothyroid went on it as I did, but I ate animal protein and she didn’t, and we both had our thyroid stabilized. She also went on to do other things such as infrared saunas, and she removed her mercury amalgams and what not, so her cause was metal toxicity, while mine was bacterial and food sensitivities and allergies. So you need to find out why your are hypothyroid, but the food aspect of it was beneficial for both of us no matter the cause. If you do AIP the vegetarian way, do not fall into the trap of reintroducing nightshades until later on in the protocol, or nuts, or beans, just because you are accustomed to eating them.
I learned so much about myself doing the AIP. It turned out I was allergic to eggs and almonds, which I had never suspected of, and sensitive to gluten, corn, dairy, and soy. Just because you don’t have a stomach ache after you eat doesn’t mean that you don’t react negatively to foods. Being tired after eating, or getting bloated, or headaches, or getting tongue blisters after you eat can also mean you react negatively to meals, there are hundreds of symptoms that can hint at it. You should have the same energy level before and after eating a meal. I became a lot more tuned with my body during the reintroductory face of this "diet" because you have to listen to all these signs and symptoms happening in your body, that you usually think of as normal (just because you've been having them all your life, and so does everyone else!). You also learn about who cares for you and who doesn’t, because you are going to have a lot of people discouraging you, while what you need is support.
I know that some people's thyroid levels may be worst than what I started with, I'm sorry if that is the case, but there is still a lot you can do to improve your thyroid health and it is worth giving it a go. You'll have to do even more work at digging deeper into your health and finding the culprit for your unregulated thyroid. I have literally focused in my health for the last 3 years, made it my priority and it paid off. I brought with me every single meal and snack that I took to work, and that was against all odds since my job doesn't make it easy. I have changed my sleeping habits, my eating habits, my stressing habits, even who I hang out with. I pay attention to every single thing I put in my body, as it all affects health, even body lotion, deodorant, and toothpaste. I spend 3 times the amount of money in food now, as I buy everything organic/bio and all my animal proteins are as clean as possible from hormones and other endocrine disruptors. Technically I cannot afford my eating standards for what I make, but I figured in the long term I was saving my health and I cut it off from other less important aspects of my life. Luckily I caught my thyroid destruction in time to help it heal back to healthy again. Even-though I gave it 42 years of abuse before remediating.
There are even more great details to my story of other things that were saved and rejuvenated along the way, but that’s enough details.
I think disposing of that horrible H. Pylori bacteria, along with not eating grains, dairy, and soy, was the key to my success. Maybe yours is the same, similar, or different, but you have to be your best advocate for your heath and find out. Dig!
Very important is to note that you will at some point also have to get a micronutrients test done, it is a must, so you can compensate lack of nutrients absorption by taking the right supplements for you. If you have a thyroid disorder, you are quite likely missing key nutrients. So test to address vitamin or mineral deficiency correctly (don’t take any supplements for 72 hours before the test so you get correct levels). If you do try to do the AIP, you’ll be missing some key nutrients in the process for a while and you’ll have to compensate. Although, my deficiencies prior AIP were many, Vitamin D, a bunch of the B vitamins, Selenium, Magnesium, Zinc, glutathione, and DHA & EPA levels were off, and now I have no deficiencies anymore. Interestingly enough, I kept a lot of the AIP habits in my current eating. I learned that eating healthy is just as addictive as eating unhealthy. Fixing my gut and my microbiome, must have helped me absorb nutrients better, which in turn also help me think and move better.
I just wanted to tell my story in case it inspires anyone to try digging into their root cause as to why they have a thyroid disorder. Sometimes it is toxin accumulation, food allergies and/or sensitivities, leaky gut, metal toxicity, bacteria, viruses, or bad habits. For me it was a combination of most of those. The root cause almost always involves a digestive disorder. I do believe in that old Hippocratic saying that all disease begins in the gut. It turned out to be true for me, as I probably got that bacteria from my mother, as she was positive too, and also my friend's metal toxicity started with her mercury amalgams in her mouth which is the first door to the digestive system.
Find out what it is for you. It was again not without effort and sacrifice that I managed to get here, I no longer eat "breakfast items", I do three nutrient dense meals a day instead. I had to relearn to be, and even change my social circle to only keep those friends who supported my change in lifestyle, with whom I didn't need to drink or party to stay in touch with, etc, etc. You will need all the support in the world, and an environment that does not hinder your change and development.
I want to wish everyone the best health, and don't let any doctor tell you, that your health issue is irreversible, because it is! if you got there, you can get back! It is however much harder to fix things, than it is to destroy them. Good luck, and remember what Einstein said: insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.
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