I was taking a History from a pleasant, somewhat hypothyroid woman when she said, “…and then, I got the Period from Hell.”

 

“Excuse me, ma’am?” I said as I looked up from my notepad. “Well, they are crampy, painful, and you hemorrhage for about 12 days each month. Then, you pass things that look like calves’ liver” she replied. At that moment, I decided that mine was NOT the tough gender…I don’t think that there is a man alive who could deal with this pain and carnage on a monthly basis, and carry on as usual.

 

One of the most common complications of Hypothyroidism in women really are “Periods from Hell.” This fact was known, and effectively treated in 1899, by Dr. Eugene Hertoghe, of Antwerp, Belgium. By the early 1900’s, his treatment had spread to the United States. (Langer, MD in Hypothyroidism: The Unsuspected Illness).

 

Yet, I have lost count of the number of women who have come in, after their Hysterectomy for Periods from Hell, and who I found to be Hypothyroid. When I first discovered this, I thought about the huge number of Hysterectomies done for painful, hemorrhagic periods. I wondered why physicians in the 1900’s knew about the relationship between hypothyroidism and menses; but this connection seems unknown to doctors, today. I spent a long time wondering if this was Ignorance or Greed or just one of those “Oversights” that cause countless patients pain, suffering, and sometimes death.

 

If you, or anyone you know, have painful and / or heavy periods, it is critically important that you be given a good trial thyroid medication before you undergo what might be unneeded surgery. Blood tests do NOT always detect subtle thyroid abnormalities that are serious enough to cause problems with menstruation. 

Your Thyroid Gland regulates the metabolism of virtually every cell in your body. Each cell in your body must have some Thyroid Hormones "hooked" into to it in to permit its burning of calories into energy. Because so many cells depend on Thyroid Hormones, symptoms of inadequate thyroid function are as variable as the function of each cell. 

Most cells function poorly until the Thyroid Disorder is repaired; and people can have Fatigue, Fibromyalgia pain (in muscles, joints, and connective tissue), Depression or Anxiety, Sexual difficulties, Infertility, Thinking Difficulties, Heavy or Painful Menses, Elevated Cholesterol and / or Blood Pressure, Accelerated Atherosclerosis, and a host of other problems. Usually, these problems improve if the deficiency has been mild and of a short duration, when thyroid replacement is right.

There are, however, some cells that can be seriously damaged by Hypothyroidism. Important among these cells are the ones in the Adrenal Cortex. The Adrenal Glands are the System's Emergency System, and they provide hormones, such as Hydrocortisone,  that allow the body to cope with Stress. When one is Hypothyroid, the Adrenal Glands don't have all the energy needed to cope with high levels of Stress. If one is Stressed while the Adrenal Glands are low on energy, the Adrenals can be damaged. Damaged Adrenal Glands can make it impossible to cope with even minor stresses, until the Glands recover.

Because of the frequent associate of Adrenal Disorders with Thyroid Problems, it is important that both problems be addressed. In the 1940's, Mainstream MD's routinely gave Adrenal Support to patients who had severe Hypothyroidism, to help accomplish a full recovery to Health.

Unfortunately, few Mainstream Physicians address a problem that was widely understood 70 years ago. Interestingly, Veterinarians, Naturopaths, and a handful of other physicians still address this problem. At our clinic, we make an evaluation and adequate treatment of the Adrenal System a high priority.

Depression, Chronic Fatigue, and just being too tired to enjoy Life, are symptoms that seem to affect almost everyone. Tragically, the underlying cause of these problems is too often overlooked, and doctors ignore or prescribe antidepressants for a more serious problem.

The first symptom of Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid function) is often Depression or Chronic Fatigue. Likewise, a significant amount of Anxiety or even Psychosis can be due to Undiagnosed or Inadequately treated Thyroid problems.

Not solely my opinion; the effect of Hypothyroidism on Mental Illness was first documented in the 1830's in London. The notion of "Myxedema (Hypothyroidism) Madness" was well recognized and taught as recently as the 1950's. Beyond an occasional obsolete, and marginally useful blood test (TSH), even Psychiatrists often fail to explore this well recognized cause of Mental Illness.  

When treated promptly, Hypothyroid related mental problems resolve nicely and in a very cost effective manner. If Depression, Anxiety, or other Mental Illness related to Hypothyroidism is not treated; long term expense and suffering comes to the patient, and countless dollars flow into the Medical-Pharmaceutical Complex.
 
Before anyone is casually put on a psychotropic medication, all likely medical causes need to be ruled out or treated. 

Doc Don

 

Thyroid hormones are not miracle drugs, they are not expensive, and they rarely get advertised to either physicians or patients. They are not a topic of many conversations, and yet thyroid insufficiency can cripple, maim or kill as surely as any other serious illness. The diagnosis and treatment of thyroid illness has been a mainstay of good medical care until too many tried to use the laboratory tests  to replace clinical skill.

 

 Too many people have suffered from a disease that has been called the most under diagnosed and under treated serious illness in America. Too many people are being treated for the Symptoms of Hypothyroidism, rather than for the illness.

Hypothyroidism is a frequent, if not the most frequent cause of Atherosclerosis that can damage the Heart, Brain, and virtually every vital organ in the body. This is not a new finding, and it is well documented in books such as "Solved: The Riddle of Illness" by Langer, MD; and in "Hypothyroidism: The Unsuspected Illness," by Broda Barnes, MD, Ph D.

Likewise, Hypothyroidism plays a major role in Depression, Chronic Fatigue, Fibromyalgia, Sexual Dysfunction in men and women, Infertility, Periods From Hell (a term I first learned from a patient who suffered many years with painful, heavy, clotty menses), and Miscarriages.

This Blog will explore some of the many facets of illnesses related to the thyroid, and attempt to help people get what they need to get well.

Doc Don (AKA D. Michael, MD)