Dear Elitefts,
I am a young powerlifter (16 years old) and have Hashimoto’s disease. This results in me having hypothyroidism and a lot of other thyroid hormone related problems. I was just wondering if anyone else out there has something similar and could give me some insight on how to deal with it.
– Thank you, Jake
The following letter was written in response to the Jake’s inquiry. I want to preface this by saying that I am not a doctor and I don’t have formal medical training. However, since being diagnosed with Hashimoto’s in early 2009, I have done quite a bit of research and spoken with many doctors and Hashimoto’s sufferers about the subject. Nothing I say below is new or mind-blowing, but hopefully it can give a little direction to someone who has been diagnosed with Hashimoto’s or someone who is having similar symptoms, but can’t figure out what is going on. And this goes without saying, but please contact your Doctor before making any changes to your diet, training, prescription medicine regimen, etc.
Dear Jake,
I have Hashimoto’s as well, and it’s definitely no fun. I have been in the training industry for almost eight years and have competed in both figure and powerlifting. Needless to say, I am pretty “in-tune” with my own body. Before I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s, I was dealing with lack of motivation, unexplained weight gain, extreme fatigue, and depression (not in the “sad” sense, but in the sense that getting out of bed or doing anything felt like an insurmountable task). I have also been diagnosed with PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) and Adrenal Dysfunction, so I believe those contributed to my symptoms as well. I definitely know where you are coming from. The good news is there is hope! There is a light at the end of the tunnel and you can feel better!
First and foremost, finding a good doctor is CRUCIAL! It may be hard since you are only 16. I would imagine you are on your parent’s insurance and have to find a doctor in your “network” and seeking out help from specialists might be out of the question. If it’s not, go here: http://www.functionalmedicinedoctors.com/
It’s a directory of functional medicine doctors. While the website is not comprehensive, my personal FMD in not listed on there, it should give you at least a couple of options in your area. You also might be wondering why I am recommending an FMD instead of a regular doctor. In my experience, FMD’s are interested treating the whole person and getting you healthy from a holistic perceptive and not just giving you prescription medication to treat the symptoms. Also, in my experience, FDM’s tend to be more concerned not that your levels are “normal” but that they are optimal. There is a huge difference between those two.
I would also recommend going 30 days without gluten and dairy, if possible, to see how you feel. It’s not fun, but there is a HUGE gluten/autoimmune connection and dairy can also be very inflammatory. To learn more about this connection, listen to these interviews:
- http://bit.ly/bSbbDx
- http://bit.ly/f6oEKT
- http://bit.ly/cdE4sB
- http://bit.ly/fr3BFo
One of those links is an interview with Robb Wolf of the Paleo Solution. I know, “Paleo” is a hot-button topic right now, but we have seen drastic improvements in our clients with autoimmune disease (and ourselves) when they switched from a normal “healthy” diet to a Paleo-type diet. In fact, we have one client with several autoimmune diseases and she tried numerous diets with no noticeable positive impact on her autoimmune issues. She did a Paleo diet for around 18 months and under the supervision of her doctor, is off almost all of her medications. I believe she was on eight different medications.
A couple of other things to research or ask your doctor about: low-dose Naltrexone. It’s an amazing immune-system booster and many doctors don’t know about it. If your doctor does choose to prescribe you medication like synthroid, you should talk to them about taking both Synthroid AND Cytomel. Many docs will prescribe only synthroid, but from talking to FMD’s and speaking with other people with Hashimoto’s, they feel much better taking both synthroid and cytomel. If you are someone who does not want to be on medication forever, talk to your doctor about coming up with a long-term plan to get healthy and possibly come off your medication in the future. But never, ever start or stop taking prescription medication without discussing it with your doctor first.
Lastly, make sure that you are taking good care of yourself in general. You can do this by making sure that you are getting enough sleep, getting enough sunlight (or supplementing with vitamin D), eating as little sugar as possible, and taking some time each day to relax and clear your mind. The less stress your body experiences, the better your immune system will function. You should also look into taking a probiotic to improve your gut function as 80 percent of your immune system is in your gut.
Well, Jake, I realized I just threw a lot of information at you. In summary, follow these steps listed below and you should be well on your way to feeling much better very soon.
- Try and find a good Functional Medicine Doctor in your area, if not possible, find a doctor who talks to you about lifestyle changes not just prescription medicine.
- Listen to those podcasts I linked above.
- Definitely try and cut our gluten and dairy for a month to see how you feel.
- Look into taking a high quality probiotic and supplementing with Vitamin D if you don’t get much sun and/or have a dark complexion (Hispanic, African American, etc).
- Try to get eight to nine hours of sleep per night and try to spend a little time every day just relaxing and clearing your head.
Again, I really hope this information is helpful. It’s definitely an uphill battle, but one you can win if you take care of yourself and listen to your body. Good Luck!
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Molly Galbraith is a former figure competitor who turned to raw powerlifting in 2009 after some health complications forced her to give up figure. Her best lifts in competition include a 237-lb squat, a 341-lb deadlift, and a (beasty) 148-lb bench. She is also co-owner of Red Point Fitness where she runs group training classes in Lexington, Kentucky (
Dear Molly,
I am that 16 year old and I would just like to formally thank you after your advice and 100 mcg of cytomel later I feel like a human being again. I can not thank you enough for all of your help. I am now squatting 360 benching 260 and pulling 445 at 189 thank you for helping me get my life back.
-Jake Simmons
What an awesome reply! amazing advice indeed, nice numbers as well Jake!
Molly,
Thanks for the information. I have Raynaud’s Phenomena, I have negative for any other immune disorders but from what I understand Raynaud’s is sometimes a precursor. I am looking into going paleo and I was just curious what you or your clients do for PWO? Protein powder and oatmeal are staples for me…thanks!
LM
What would you recommend as a good probiotic?
That is awesome information. I have some of the same issues, including Hashimoto’s and Celiac Disease, that went undiagnosed for so long. One recommendation I would like to add is ask your doc about a compounded desiccated thyroid or Naturthroid (which I’m currently on). Your body absorbs these natural thyroid hormones much better than the synthetics, and you’re getting both T3 and T4. My awesome doc decided to try it with me and it has made a world of difference.
Hello,
thank you for insightfull article. My girlfriend has Hashimoto’s (she’s on T4 already) as well and she decided, that she could try this “paleo” approach to diet (no gluten, no diary), because she does not feel very good, and often she holds water or have upset stomach with no serious reason (it seems, at least).
It would be very helpfull, if you could provide us some list of your meals (breakfast, lunch, etc.), as droping diary and gluten seems to leave us with very few meal choices.
Thank you very much.
Read “Wheat Belly” and you will find that it is more than gluten.
I wish I had read this article 5 years ago! I have Hashimoto’s, and have found that everything you recommended are the things that work (it took 5 years of trial and error and research to learn it all myself!) Going Paleo 6 months ago was the final key to the puzzle after doing all of the other things. I now recommend Paleo to all of my patients who are dealing with inflammatory problems – I had been gluten free for 2 years, but it wasn’t until I cut out all grains and legumes that I am finally feeling like myself againthese past 6 months. I am back to rock climbing and hard bodyweight training after 5 years of not being able to work out without awful pain and fatigue. Great, concise response to this question!
I am so thankful that my brother, Zach sent me this article. I have been suffering with all of the symptoms of Hashimotos disease and haven’t found anything that works. I gained 50 pounds and I have been struggling to get it off. I seriously have tried every diet under the sun and nothing seemed to work. I am going to give the Paleo diet a try and see if I can get the Cytomel also. Does anyone know a good place to find gluten free recipes? Also, for the people that have tried the Paleo diet, how long was it before you started to notice a difference in the way that you felt? I am hopeful that this will work, I have tried a lot of different tactics and nothing seemed to work so I have my fingers crossed! Thank you so much for your post
!!!
Jake – you are more than welcome! I am so glad to hear that you are feeling better! Please keep me updated on your progress!! =)
Julian – thank you!
Lathan – I usually just have real food and try to keep it a meal lower in fat to get the desired insulin spike PWO. Chicken and a giant sweet potato or white potato (I don’t eat the skin of the potato as it can irritate the gut). You could also do lean white fish, turkey, egg whites (save the yolks for another time when you want yummy fat), you can do fruit as well. Of course many people argue that fruit is not ideal post workout as fructose is preferentially stored as liver glycogen and not muscle glycogen, but I have not seen a noticeable difference in the “real world” with clients who consume fruit post workout versus those who consume other types of sugar/carbs post workout. Hell, most people can’t even get to the gym consistently or stick to their nutrition program… so they don’t need to be worried about post workout fructose vs. glucose vs. blah blah blah. =) Also, you can do protein powder occasionally. I guess technically most people don’t consider it Paleo, but Mercola makes wonderful products and he is a complete stickler when it comes to the quality of his products:
http://proteinpowder.mercola.com/Pro-Optimal-Whey-Protein.html
(It’s definitely expensive, but I believe it’s worth it… especially for those times when you can’t lug whole foods around with you to have post workout).
Amanda – I agree it’s definitely something you should discuss with your Doc. Mine decided that for my particular situation, the desiccated thyroid was not my best option… but I am super happy you are having good results with it!
Bartek – I must admit… I am not much of a creative cook so I will outsource this answer =):
http://paleodietlifestyle.com/paleo-diet-recipes/#recipes
http://www.paleoplan.com/recipes/
http://everydaypaleo.com/category/food/
ENJOY!
Ann – thank you so much for the kind words! I am so happy to hear that you are feeling better and are able to train without fatigue and pain! HOORAY! Please pass this article along and let people now there is HOPE!
Bailey – I am thankful he sent it to you as well! See the links above for the Paleo recipes… there are TONS online. Most of my clients noticed a difference within 2-3 weeks, but for some people it can take up to 6 months. Another thing to realize is that sometimes you start to feel better so slowly that you don’t notice you are feeling better until you wake up one day and BAM! You realized you aren’t struggling to get out of bed, you don’t dread taking your dog for a walk, you have the energy to play with your kids, etc. Also, for some people it takes re-introducing the non-Paleo foods to realize how crummy they actually make you feel. If I have gluten I get foggy-headed, tired, my eyes feel heavy, and my body aches. =-/
Good luck and please keep me updated on your progress!
I have been off dairy, all flours except corn flour, and refined white sugars, processed foods. With having Hashimotos thyroid, I feel much worse on synthroid or armour, and am only on vitamins at present.i have been trying to find a doctor who can help me for years now, but all they want to do is put me back on synthroid! I won’t take again, ever! Is it best to find a doctor who can just remove the thyroid? So I can feel better again?