My Journey with Hashimoto’s
In 2016 I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease called Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis. This is an autoimmune disease that destroys the thyroid cell by cell[i]. It involves the formation of antithyroid antibodies that attack the thyroid. The diagnosis takes time.
I remember vividly the journey to this diagnosis. I was tired; like not sure how to manage life tired. I had seen doctors and naturopaths trying to understand. We tried things but no real answers. We assumed I was overtraining (at the time I was running marathons and doing big distance triathlons) then I had kids and it was “normal” to be tired as a new mom. It was by fluke I got my diagnosis, I had been referred to an allergist to investigate a reaction I had and she ordered a gamut of blood work. One of the tests was the Thyroperoxidase (TPO); this is a test that looks at the number of TPO antibodies my body was producing. According to my family physician, this number should be under 60 and mine was over 4000.
I remember the day I heard my diagnosis. Tears poured down my face; both those of happiness; that finally all that I was feeling had been validated. Also, of frustration as my Doctor told me as of now, there is nothing they could do. My mind started spiralling- what? We do nothing and wait until my thyroid no longer functions, we wait until I have another autoimmune diagnosis…. My exact words were “when in life do we have a leak in a boat and do we wait for it to sink”.
I started reading and reading and reading. I knew that there had to be something that I could do. I approached my naturopath and she was very concerned that my TPO levels were so high. She told me we had to get those down. That became my focus.
It wasn’t been an easy road. We had three kids under 5 at home when I started. I had just returned to work after my 3rd maternity leave in 4 years; I had a very patient employer at the time. But my body was screaming for me to listen. I reduced my workload to help reduce my stress levels. I had dibbled and dabbled with a gluten and dairy-free diet over the years. But it was now time to take things seriously.
After 6 years of me fine-tuning, drifting and coming back to my goal I finally did it. Although my TPO levels are still not in optimal range they are now 454 which is a long way from over 4000. How did I do it?
It wasn’t one thing. Diet was a massive component- I committed to 6 months of following the Autoimmune Paleo Protocol (AIP). It was not easy; I had hired someone to support me through this transformation as I knew it would be hard, isolating and compliance would have to be 100% to achieve the results I was hoping for. This way of eating was unmaintainable for my life at that point, but the 6 months was the reset that my body needed. It allowed me to evaluate the role of food in my life, what foods serviced and which hindered my health and well-being. It showed me the power of food and if I was going to get to a place where I could enjoy each day to its fullest this was where I had to focus my time. I am now at the point where I follow a gluten and dairy-free diet exclusively. I limited caffeine and alcohol to times of sharing with others; I love having a cup of coffee and catching up with a friend or a delicious glass of red wine with my husband. Sugar well this one is tricky! I rose to this challenge and developed some delicious recipes that keep the processed sugars out of my day-to-day life and the times that I want to enjoy a treat I do. It’s been about remembering that we aren’t striving for perfection but balance!
I knew sleep and stress levels were a massive component. I dove into that next. We had young kids and I knew that sleep was a tricky one. I started having an earlier bedtime and I slept in a little later if I was tired. I would embrace any bit of quality sleep I had but the rest was out of my control. Realizing which stressors, I could control and which were out of my control was important. Three kids are chaotic and stressful but they aren’t going anywhere! Having them each in many activities and trying to be everywhere at once, I could control. Setting boundaries around how other people showed up and how they treated me. Feeling comfortable in voicing my concerns, my frustration and my thoughts; redeveloping the art of meaningful and effective conversation were important. The biggest and the hardest of all is letting go of expectations and the “should” of others. This one is still a work in progress!
I changed my outlook on my exercise, I loved getting up early and working out. I loved going to push myself physically. At times it was for weight loss then stress release, but in all reality this was hindering my body. This was another output of energy, another internal dialogue and another stressor on my body. I changed my mindset, I committed to daily movement! Honouring my body to move daily is important to me. It allows me to think, to process, to digest food, to let the sunshine on my face and to breathe in the fresh air. I said goodbye to the expectations of making it to the gym daily or striving for my body to look a certain way; my goal had become to be in optimal health and in this case that meant doing a little less.
While this journey is not the same for everyone. It is a journey. It’s not going to be easy or linear but it will be worthwhile and it can be done. Asking for guidance and knowing what you can do on your own is valuable. Learning to listen and trust yourself is the most important asset you can have!
Reference
[i] Mincer, Dana L. and Ishwarlal Jialal. “Hashimoto Thyroiditis.” StatPearls, StatPearls Publishing, 28 September 2021.
