In this article I want to talk about one of the most common things I see in my patients: multiple hormone imbalance. In particular, I want to talk about those women who have low thyroid function (hypothyroidism) combined with symptoms of hormone imbalance in their Big Three Hormones: Cortisol, Estrogen, and Progesterone.
Thyroid hormone influences, and is influenced by, just about every other hormone in our body – from stress-based cortisol, to sleepy melatonin, to period regulating progesterone and estrogen. These hormone relationships play out in various ways for women with Hashimoto’s.
With 30-40% of women developing a thyroid condition in their lifetime, and rates increasing as we age, many women in perimenopause and menopause will be dealing with hormone imbalances in both these important systems.
So many women are experiencing symptoms that could be caused by thyroid hormone imbalances – fatigue, cold hands and feet, depression and low mood, and weight gain or difficulty losing weight.
If so many women have these symptoms, then why are half of all people with thyroid disease walking around undiagnosed? And why are
these people suffering unnecessarily??