Your thyroid gland and babies!

Fourteen years ago I gave birth to our beautiful daughter Milagro, which in Spanish means “miracle.” Little was I to know, that her birth would be the beginning of my saga with my thyroid gland, and my mental, emotional and physical health.

 So what does pregnancy and birth have to do with the thyroid gland?

A lot!

As it turns out about 10% of women develop this disease called,  “Postpartum Thyroiditis” after they deliver a baby.

Before we continue, let me define some terms:

1.     Thyroiditis – inflammation of the thyroid gland

2.     Thyrotoxicosis – high levels of thyroid hormone in the blood

3.     Hypothyroidism – low levels of thyroid hormone in the blood

4.     Hashimoto’s Disease - an autoimmune disease of the thyroid gland

5.     Postpartum Thyroiditis – inflammation of the thyroid gland as a result of giving birth

Women who develop Postpartum Thyroiditis, usually first develop Thyrotoxicosis. This means our thyroid gland is producing too much thyroid hormone.  We are the women who often “bounce back” from having a baby. When you have too much thyroid hormone in your system, you can feel like you have too much energy. You can also suffer from insomnia, diarrhea, anxiety and rapid weight loss.

Some women never develop thyrotoxicosis, but rather, beginning around four months after the delivery, move into the hypothyroid phase. This phase can last up to a year, and 20% of these women actually remain chronically hypothyroid. When you are hypothyroid, some of the more common symptoms are:

Weight gain, or inability to lose weight, depression, brain fog, inability to concentrate, constipation, dry skin and hair, brittle nails, hair loss, and intolerance to cold.

Did you notice that one of the symptoms of hypothyroidism is depression?

In fact, many women who are hypothyroid, are misdiagnosed with Post Partum Depression.

This is exactly what happened to me after the birth of my daughter Milagro. After the delivery, I thought I had gotten back on my feet pretty well for an old lady of 42 years. Then, when Milagro was about six months old, I crashed, and struggled for the next year or so.

At that time, I started seeing a Naturopath, and she suggested I begin taking a natural thyroid extract.  Within a week, I began to feel much better. However, a friend of mine who was a Physicians Assistant warned me of the “impurities” of natural thyroid extracts so I went to my regular doctor and he prescribed a synthetic form of thyroid hormone. And, without questioning, or doing more research, I took his advice.

In my opinion, that was a huge mistake.

In my next blog, I will explain why, and I will explain how the health of your thyroid gland is intricately tied to your mental and emotional health.

Stay tuned!