Anatomy & Physiology
Clues From Our Thyroid – part 1
Two key reasons:
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Innocent until proven guilty. It’s estimated that perhaps 18-25% of women have an underlying thyroid disorder (It’s somewhat less common in men). This still means that 75-82% of us (women, for statistical ease) do not. Become well acquainted with your body so that you may better decipher the clues you are being given, and remember that there are many possible causes for almost every clue the body gives. Cluster clues for the win!
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Thyroid disease is overwhelmingly mistaken and/or overlooked in favor of other disorders (often mental health related) by the corporate owned medical community. Thyroid diagnosis often requires intuition (Holy Spirit discernment), patience, persistence, and attention to details. If you feel “off”, and yet your doctor tell you “everything looks good”…. Who do you believe? I hope you pointed a finger back at yourself just now. You believe what you know about your body and your refined detective skills!
Function of the Thyroid
Symptoms of thyroid deficiency might include:
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Chronic fatigue or tiredness.
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Muscular fatigue
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Puffiness or evidence of fluid retention
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Difficulty regulating body temperature (chronic feelings of being hot or cold. Recall the posts on body temperature)
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Development of Reynaud’s Syndrome
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Reduced pulse pressure and blood pressure
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Heart rate fluctuations
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Angina and/or feelings of breathlessness
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Higher cholesterol. People with subclinical hypothyroidism often have higher levels of LDL cholesterol. Thyroid disease is a major contributor to cholesterol problems.
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Arteriosclerosis (decreased elasticity of arteries)
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Changes in bruising or clotting (generally, bruising will become more common)
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Depression and/or anxiousness
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Difficulty gathering thoughts, memory, focus and concentration
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Headaches with unknown origin
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Moodiness or lack of enthusiasm in life
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Peripheral neuropathy
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Carpal tunnel (there is a strong link!)
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Random shooting pains in the hands and feet
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Osteoporosis (chronic hypothyroidism can be a contributor)
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Visual problems: dry eyes, age related macular degeneration, primary open angle glaucoma
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Loss of the outer eyebrows
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Chronic constipation
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Increased incidence of gallstones (thyroid hormones affects the composition of bile and how well it flows)
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Poor digestion of fats and proteins
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Decreased stomach acid resulting in poorly digested foods (If this clue is on your radar, grab your YL Essentialzyme and give your body digestive support!)
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Bloating, gassy
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Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO)
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Insulin resistance (and therefore) increased risk of developing Type II Diabetes
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Thicker tongue, perhaps even with scalloped teeth marks on the sides of the tongue.
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Changes in how food tastes.
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Periodontal disease
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Development of a husky or hoarse voice
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Infertility or difficulty maintaining a pregnancy
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Heavy periods (There is often a link between hypothyroidism and PCOS)
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Sex hormone imbalances (progesterone, estrogen and testosterone in women)
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Loss of libido
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Postpartum depression (very common)
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Premature menopause
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Dry skin
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Deep cracks and scales on the bottoms of the feet
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Deep lines on the palms of hands or soles of feet
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Yellowish orange or reddish color on palms of hands or soles of feet
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Reddish spots, bumps, or rashes that come and go
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Acne (often seen in conjunction with testosterone level disturbances)
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Brittle, flaking nails or nails that fail to grow well
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Hair loss (on the head) or gaining hair in all the wrong places elsewhere
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Getting sick more often, especially upper respiratory tract infections and in women, persistent urinary tract infections.
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Bedwetting in kiddos
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Delayed wound healing
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Gaining or losing weight without trying
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Poor sleep
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Iron deficiency anemia (roughly 50% of people with thyroid disease struggle with this)
Does Trauma Really Hurt My Body -part 2
Health Clues from Low Body Temperature – part 2
Tracking Body Temperature
Temperature Too Cool?
What might mind, body, and spirit care look like? To each person it will look a little different because of our individual uniqueness.
Health Clues from Temperature-part 1
Body Temperature Part I: The Truth about 98.6
Usually when we talk about temperature it’s generally in relation to illness or fertility. You’ve heard people say, “My body temperature just runs low.”, and we accept that as “normal” for them. Heck, I was one of those people too, until I learned the truth.
I’m no physics expert, but we’re gonna talk about some very basic physics and biology “laws” for just a hot minute. I promise to keep it simple. Understanding these principles will help seal this information into your memory.
Temperature is an indicator of heat in a system.
Heat is energy.
Vibration produces heat.
Cells vibrate, and in doing so, produce heat.
Every cellular reaction in the body occurs optimally (key word!) at a specific “heat” level.
Energy (heat) produces cell voltage (imagine a cell has a battery) which alters the pH of the body.
The vibration of molecules within cells is measured electrically. The “hertz” unit is used to measure electrical vibrations (known as frequency).
If the production of energy (heat) drops in the body, cellular vibrations have slowed down and frequency (measured in hertz/ Htz) and pH are affected.
Low frequency and an acidic pH are associated with cancer, chronic disease, and mental health issues.
How’s that for a nutshell version of a basic Law of Thermodynamics and its relationship to mammal biology?
Beyond the microscopic view of body temperature, there are certainly other factors at play:
The hypothalamus (located in the brain) directs the opening and closing of blood flow to the skin. It works in tandem with the thyroid and other tiny but mighty glands and organs. Damage to any of them may affect body temperature.
Stress also interferes with, and drives down body temperature. Cold hand and/or feet are often a reflection of stress response. Conversely, warmer hands/feet indicate relaxation. We can grow used to living with chronic stress, but the body doesn’t lie.
Adrenal fatigue or insufficiency
Hormone imbalance (commonly low progesterone or estrogen dominance in women, or low testosterone in men)
Unresolved emotional trauma
Heavy metal or chemical toxicity (including medications)
Some people may be born with a lower body temperature. This may be due to any of the above. Do not minimize the generational impact of toxins, unresolved emotional trauma, energetically dead food, and poor water quality on babies!
Chronic low body temperature is often a common clue or symptom of a known (or yet unknown) disorder or distress. Dr. David Jernigan writes, “The colder a body becomes, the slower the electrical oscillatory rate and therefore the thicker, more viscous, or syrupy the body fluids become. The more viscous the fluids become the more difficult it is for the body to push the fluids through the body. The lymph fluids that are normally supposed to bathe the outsides of all of your cells become progressively stagnant as it is too thick to move efficiently.”
Jernigan’s illustration above is a graphic description of what happens when body fluids become stagnant. If low body temperature becomes a chronic issue, several things begin happening:
The body becomes a home for viruses, certain bacteria, and chronic infection
Gradual cellular death (without regeneration) begins to happen
Actions of enzymes, vitamins, minerals, hormones, neurotransmitters and other body essential chemicals are compromised
Acidity of the body increases and serious disorders and diseases begin appearing.
Frequency of the body drops and negative emotions begin to predominate
It becomes even harder for the body to spit out toxins
Smooth muscle tone is affected and fluid begins leaking out into tissue and edema results
Can chronic low body temperature be corrected? You bet it can, and we’re going to discuss that next week!
Remember, the wall around Jerusalem didn’t get destroyed in a single day and it wasn’t rebuilt in a single day either! And, Nehemiah didn’t do it alone. He sought out a community of like minded people with different skill sets to help him rebuild, and they persevered… even despite toxic (both physical and emotional) onslaught in the process. Your life is a story of clues, and although God is the ultimate author of each of our stories, the choices we make play a huge part in the writing of it!
xoxo~ liz
#checkyourtemp#sharingiscaring#98point6isgoodmedicine#ditchthetoxinsifyouhaventalready#thanksYL#youarethecoauthorofyourstory#becomingyourownhealthdetective