Help a worried lady!

[Creepsyme]

Can anyone help on what I can do to regain my glowing skin back as it has been messed up by thyroid disorder, so dark, dull and dry and my skin cells would not regenerate. Pls help a worried lady.

[fuchsia-pink]

Welcome to the forum.

I'd say the best way is to get your meds and nutrients right

That means free T4 and free T3 nice and high in range, and good rates of ferritin, folate, vit D and B12.

It is possible, so don't despair

Do you have any recent blood tests to share so we can see where you are now?

[Creepsyme in reply to fuchsia-pink]

Thanks dear for your respond I feel so comforted already, my result is yet to be out, I will do that as soon as I lay my hand on it.

[NWA6]

Nothing you can do unless you’re optimally treated. I know for sure because the same happened to me. Strangle you should post this today as I saw a friend earlier who I’d not seen in a while and she remarked at how well I looked and that I was ‘glowing’ 🤗

Best to post your latest results and we may be able to steer you right. Just click on the 3 little dots on your post to ‘edit’ and repost.

[Creepsyme in reply to NWA6]

Thanks very much I do appreciate and I feel comforted.

[Marz]

A gentle exfoliating product can help to remove dead skin cells which can cause dullness . Massaging the product into the face can stimulate blood flow - creating improved colour. Once removed you can use a moisture mask ...

Thyroid issues slow the metabolism and so the turnover of skin cells can slow down - a process that normally takes around 3 weeks.

Maybe a Body Scrub for the rest of the body followed by a good body oil or lotion.

Hope you are glowing soon 🌟

[Creepsyme in reply to Marz]

Thank you Marx, I have done all the scrubs and exfoliation to no avail, I use creams containing hydroquinone still nothing, I used oils containing vit A, vit B and vit C still nothing, I am beginning to despair don't know what else to do.

[NWA6 in reply to Creepsyme]

I thought you’d probably have ‘tried everything’ before posting here which is why I said nothing will work only optimal treatment 😞

[Marz in reply to Creepsyme]

The skin is our biggest organ and can reflect the state of our gut - how's your diet ? Water consumption?

[Creepsyme in reply to Marz]

Thanks and glad to know you left a response, I drink minimum two litres of water daily, and I try to take fruits and vegetables in my diet, with homemade probiotics and I also take a lot of prebiotics

[Lora7again]

I use apricot skin scrub on my face (it is quite well known) and I also use a herbal lavender repair mask once a week. For my body I use a body brush a couple of times of week and moisturize with coconut body butter or coconut oil. I have been doing this for years and my skin doesn't look too bad for someone who is 60. Also I don't put my face in the sun and wear a high sunblock on my face and body factor 30. However because I need to get my vitamin D up I have spent about 30 minutes sitting in my garden to catch some rays without sunblock but not in the hottest time of the day.

[Creepsyme in reply to Lora7again]

Thanks dear I appreciate.

[yolobrass in reply to Lora7again]

Hey

Which herbal lavender repair mask do you use?

Thank you

[Lora7again in reply to yolobrass]

elemis

[Creepsyme in reply to yolobrass]

None dear.

[parsnip888]

I use the Tropic skincare range as it doesn’t contain gluten and there are no preservatives in the products so nice and fresh, also vegan... my skin is now in great condition....

[Creepsyme in reply to parsnip888]

Thanks dear.

[MichelleHarris]

I use Franks Remedies. Its organic x

[parsnip888 in reply to MichelleHarris]

Does it have gluten in it ? or any preservatives ? Tropic is gluten free, great for thyroid and scores 0 on the think dirty app... all products have a use by date...

[posthinking01]

Hi sorry to hear you are suffering like this - this illness takes away so much from us all. Try Vitamin C - your adrenals will grab the vitamin C from your body to enable them to work at optimum and won't care it has left your skin looking less than perfect. But make sure you drink plenty because Vitamin C can be an astringent.

[Creepsyme in reply to posthinking01]

Thanks so much

[Helcaster]

My skin is so dry and dull too. Around my mouth cracks and it always looks red, I'm experimenting with vaseline there, which does help. For the rest of my skin I use Aveeno for very dry skin. It's got rid of all the little red dry bumps on my forearms too. It's cheap and it lasts well. I feel moisturised all day with it.

[bookish in reply to Helcaster]

Hi, your vaseline comment reminded me of something Micki Rose wrote - I quote:

'Cracks at the corner of your mouth are usually a sign of vitamin deficiency. You most likely need to take a good B Complex supplement and possibly some iron. You should be able to get both in a general good quality multivitamin and mineral supplement. Foods rich in B2 (the most common culprit) are mackerel, spinach, broccoli and eggs. For more iron, eat almonds, seeds and prunes. Drink lots of water and oily fish.

Don’t be tempted to use Vaseline or cheap lip salves. Most are petroleum based and over time will draw even more moisture out of your lips. Those of you who use them already will no doubt have noticed that you need to use it more and more often. Instead, chose a non-petroleum based one that doesn’t contain mineral oil or simply use a little sunflower oil or honey at night. I’ve also found Weleda Skin Food or their Handcream works wonders.'

I like her website, which is purehealthclinic.co.uk/ if you ever want a look. Personally I've used mainly olive or coconut oil, but rarely need anything on my skin now I've got diet and vits/minerals much better. I use minimal toxins as react to everything so basically only a pure olive oil soap for skin and hair, a crystal deodorant and a non-fluoride toothpaste - everything else got thrown out a couple of years ago! My partner's mum uses Aveeno and reckons it is really good. Cheers

[Helcaster in reply to bookish]

My skin isn't healthy anyway bookish, I get psoriasis in my armpits, but this has improved on thyroid meds. It's been dry ever since I can remember, I saw a dermatologist once. I wash in doublebase. I think the lack of oestrogen post menopause doesn't help at all. I always take B complex every night because the corners of my mouth used to split. I'm always bottom of the range for iron, I'm trying to increase this but it's difficult. I do notice when I take iron I'm less pale. Before I was diagnosed even my eyelids would peel. I was told by the dermatologist to moisturise and cling film the worst affected parts. I have a heaped teaspoon of coconut oil every day, and eat good fats.

Thanks so much for your helpful reply.

[bookish in reply to Helcaster]

Sorry that you've got so much to deal with. I don't have huge faith in dermatologists although I've only seen three - none of them thought diet had anything to do with skin and I've been prescribed all sorts over the years. My problem was gluten and now skin is just fine. Not sure if your thyroid is Hashi's/Graves - if autoimmune I guess you may already be GF (and psoriasis is AI, linked strongly to coeliac I believe).

If you are struggling to get your iron up, that is an early and classic sign of gluten malabsorption (although of course there are other reasons). Might be worth investigating, if by any chance you haven't. The good fats help so much. Best wishes x

[Helcaster in reply to bookish]

I was strictly gluten free for two years, but just got fed up with it. My diet is very restricted anyway with interstitial cystitis. I regret it now because my energy levels are worse, but some of this is because I'm pre diabetic. I always get less tired not eating too many carbs, and absolutely no sucrose. It's miserable!

[bookish in reply to Helcaster]

It is tricky. IC is also autoimmune and linked to coeliac (about 12%) with another 15% gluten intolerant and getting improvement on GF. Coeliac testing is so hit and miss too. Anecdotally people are reporting improvement after stopping dairy, even if gluten doesn't seem to be a major benefit to them (and dairy cross-reacts with gliadin). I was (functionally) pre-diabetic but all dropped back once I went on autoimmune diet although I still try to be aware of keeping a balance. Gluten seemingly affects the pancreatic cells making diabetes more likely. Because I felt so thoroughly unwell and no-one seemed to be able to tell me why or what to do about it, I generally have coped quite well with the change of diet because it was my choice and something I could do and got obvious immediate benefit from. It would be harder if you didn't get that. Sometimes I do get miserable when I think about foods/meals that I can't share and cooking for partner or family is tricky because I can't taste it, so they usually get recipes that I've cooked for years! I haven't inflicted my limited diet on them! It was getting things like corn out of my supplements, and realising it is in sticking plaster, eye drops, glue on envelopes....infuriating. And carrageenan, in HPMC. Horrible stuff! Because I have histamine issues and FODMAP (had reflux problems) as well as being truly GF with a dodgy liver, I ended up with a spreadsheet of foods with ticks for 'yes, can eat' against each condition. Sad! At least there are a lot of vegetables to go at! Best wishes

[Helcaster in reply to bookish]

I had a blood test for gluten intolerance that was negative. I didn't know at the time you have to eat a lot of gluten before the test! I know they aren't that accurate. I always had profuse diarrhoea if I ate things like shop bought scones, white flour made me extremely bloated and uncomfortable. I didn't though notice any improvement with my IC going gluten free, I just felt overall much more energised. The only gluten free products I bought was gluten free oats and a high fibre gluten free bread. I had no idea that oats were raising my blood glucose so much, so I've stopped eating them. I now have things like omelette for breakfast, I don't like eggs much though! One great thing of cutting carbs and sucrose is weight loss, and I have a long way to go on that.

I read there is also a link with low vitamin D and diabetes too, interesting.

Yes gluten is everywhere, you have to be so careful. I know I need to switch back. Dairy is another matter, I crave milk. I was drinking 2 pints a day, now for some months now I'm down to 1/2 pint. I added up the calories and was shocked!

It sounds like you have this sorted 😁

[bookish in reply to Helcaster]

Yes I seem to eat a lot of eggs now - fortunately I don't seem to have a problem with them (possibly because I didn't like them much so didn't eat them often). I lost a huge amount when I started as can't digest much, but have put most of it back on so am working on getting some sort of balance. I wish I had it sorted! Definitely a work in progress....

Vit D deficiency is linked to diabetes and just about all AI conditions I would think. Getting that one sorted made a big difference.

I'm afraid you may find that dairy is your trigger, if you crave milk. It commonly happens that way. I loved milk but craved bread, as did my mum. We used to joke that we must have been bakers in a former existence. Unfortunately she really craved bread when she was pregnant with me (not my elder sister). Sis has no apparent gluten (or dairy) issues and is AI free and I'm not, having had both from childhood. Mum definitely did have, but no-one identified it and it didn't end well. Only part of these complicated, multi-factorial illnesses, but interesting.

Proteins in grains (gliadorphin) and milk (casomorphin) act on the opioid receptors in the brain causing an endorphin 'high' and strong, addictive pain-relieving activity. (Which can make getting off either quite problematic for some, although you can help by reducing either or both very slowly). Coming off can also change your requirement for medication, including thyroid.

There are other private tests as you are still eating gluten or you could always try the gluten genetic testing once off. I didn't do either as the reaction was so obvious. GP did insist on doing the coeliac test although I told her that I had been off for 11 months - she was convinced that I would be so bad at it ('because no-one gets it all out') that it would still show! I had made very sure I done it properly(!) but it did still show low level issues as did a gut test I did privately for other reasons. Cheers x

[Creepsyme in reply to Helcaster]

Good! Thank you.

[Lora7again]

Blimey ... I never thought of using one of those. I usually use a body brush which probably does the same thing. 🧜‍♀️

[NWA6]

Crickey Scrmbler! Lol just use the shower gloves leave the scourers for the pans! Lol

[Popoff]

Just a small contribution here. Normalising your thyroid function may well be the first step in sorting out skin issues caused by thyroid dysfunction. Both hypo and hyper affect the skin, hence as a matter of priority I would ensure that the thyroid function is as good as it can be using tests and symptoms. Once this is corrected you will notice an improvement to the skin condition. Of course there is nothing to stop you trying other remedies but correcting thyroid function should be at the top. I hope that this helps and good luck.

[Creepsyme in reply to Popoff]

Thanks a lot I appreciate.