Update #6 Clear Decks

Hi all 👋

Continuing on from my previous post here - healthunlocked.com/thyroidu... I am officially bareback… 😬 but don’t worry, it’s not for long. Phase 1 of the plan now begins!

It’s taken me about 5/6 weeks, but I have weaned down slowly from 2.5 grains NDT + multiple supplements to nothing. Originally I’d planned to keep 1/2 a grain of NDT but I decided to clear it out entirely. Some symptoms have certainly been worsening, others have improved.

I’ve little to report in terms of “progress,” but I have done some research into different devices to monitor my progress. For me, thyroid disease has been dominated by emotional problems with the physical problems certainly being an issue but paling in comparison to the mental health ones. This has often meant that judging progress has been extremely difficult, and I realise that doing this alone means I must monitor myself very carefully.

So I’ve been using the following devices and found these benefits-

🩸CGM - Dexcom continuous glucose monitor.

(£159 for 12 weeks, that’s about £13/week)

It has been a revelation to see how my mood, anxiety and irritability correlate so well with my blood sugar levels dropping. I am hypoglycemic multiple times a day and have modified my diet quite a bit to protect myself from lows.

I struggled from a young age with binge-eating sugar. Now I am watching my bloods in real time, I wonder if I was simply trying to self-medicate a blood sugar issue? It seems likely because I’d always experience such relief after eating 10 chocolate bars, where others would simply be sick.

⌚️ Apple Watch - model 8

Monitors BP, ECG, resting HR, sleep quality (it also does BBT, but I don’t see how a wrist will be able to provide useful data for that.)

🌡️ BBT with 2 x significant figures

I have been taking my waking temperature and logging it on the Health App on my phone, which plots it on a graph. The more I drop my NDT, the higher my waking temps are rising (eg. 36.8 degrees, which is absolutely unheard of for me and by no means is a sign of returning to good health 😅) I believe this rise is due to adrenaline, which can rise to try and compensate for poor cortisol when thyroid hormone plummets. I may not have this right… but this is my v basic understanding. Adrenaline is like the ultimate back up generator and runs quite hot.

🙏🥾🕯️Lifestyle changes -

We turn the Wi-Fi off at night, wear a sleep mask and blue light blockers, I go to bed at sunset & wake up around sunrise (as groggy as I feel) and try to get morning light in my frazzled eyeballs as soon as I am awake. Bare feet on grass, blue light filters on my devices. Meals are dictated more or less by the CGM, foods are dairy and gluten free, animal protein focused with root veg and a little saturated fat. I am no longer engaging in what I now see as “toxic wellness” behaviors. I don’t want to stand under a freezing cold shower, or try to meditate for 20 minutes or journal about how rubbish I feel or sit in a sauna losing my minerals or lift weights… so I just don’t. I am a lot happier for it. Along with those basic wellness tenets above, I watch a lot of TV, cuddle my dogs a lot and sleep a lot.

Adrenals & Insulin is the first part of the plan, so will report back on that in a month or so if it’s of any use to others 🙂 I’ve also found a private thyroid-literate GP who has agreed to work WITH me, prescribing what I request if I can provide sound reasoning and on the understanding I provide him the data I am collecting above.

Unconditional love to anyone blighted by this hideous disease,

Relentless x

[Regenallotment Ambassador]

wow go you!

I love reading your updates, wishing you success and enlightenment as you continue 🌱

[Hidden in reply to Regenallotment]

🙏 thanks Regen! I feel quite good about it, and desperately hoping that without the complexity of thyroid medication I will be able to introduce adrenal support without resistance/as much resistance! How are you doing? Are you still enjoying the benefits of the direct T3? X

[Regenallotment Ambassador in reply to Hidden]

yup all good, as long as I keep on keeping on with it all (diet, supplements etc) I’d say I’m pretty much back to normalish. Still some digestion weirdness but less than before, letting everything settle for a few months before I get to the bottom of that long running (18+years) symptom 🤣 wishing you the best 🌱

[TiggerMe Ambassador]

Puppy love will get you there 🤗🤗

[Hidden in reply to TiggerMe]

They are getting too big 😭 Pip no longer fits on an A5 paperback book 💔

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to Hidden]

Well that's just mean using him as a bookmark!

[Hidden in reply to TiggerMe]

😂

[Jazzw]

This is fascinating. I’m oscillating between being terrified for you and shouting “You go!” from the rooftops.

Let’s face it, scientists have been doing experiments on themselves since the beginning of time (before the word “scientist” was even a thing).

Is it wise? Probably hell no—but you’ve done so much research I’m not well placed to advise otherwise. And if this works (heck, even if it doesn’t), well, we’ll all learn loads. Shouldn’t have to go it alone but it’s not an option, is it?

So thank you and good luck. Looking forward to the next instalment.

[Hidden in reply to Jazzw]

thank you Jazz… my internal voice is definitely in chorus with yours… after 17 years of being unwell and 6 years of thyroid/adrenal trials I felt this was my only option. Thank you for your support 🙏 xx

[Imaaan]

Life is about living and learning and I'm wishing you all the best on your health journey.

[Imaaan]

..

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[Hidden in reply to Imaaan]

🙏❤️❤️

[Imaaan in reply to Hidden]

♥️

[arTistapple]

Watching! Wishing you WELL!