How I Stopped My Thyroid Meds

Tell your story

Our lives are a book. Plots differ and the conflict varies, but we each have a story to tell. A story that is filled with chapters.  A story meant to be shared with those around us. This is how we learn, grow and help each other. It's with that in mind I write this post. I want to share part of my story of healing my thyroid with the goal of sparking hope in you. Your diagnosis doesn't not have to be the end of the story. There is much you can do beyond medication to help your body function optimally, the way it was designed. 


The Short Story

Today I am flipping back the pages of my book to the chapter that started ten years ago. If you don’t want to keep reading and want the short version, here it is: I was diagnosed with hashimotos which led to hypothyroidism and put on thyroid medication for seven years. Thanks to lifestyle changes, my autoimmune condition and thyroid has recovered and I'm non longer on medication. I’m over-the-moon grateful for this! 

The end. Well, not really. Keep reading to learn what changes I made to get to this point. 

THE long STORY

The longer version of this story is that it didn’t happen overnight. It took years of making lifestyle changes. Disease isn’t like an injury. It doesn't happen in a day. Rather it takes years to show up. The symptoms usually start slowly, and unless you are paying close attention, you may not notice the signals your body is telling you something is wrong, until it's a full blown problem.

On the same note, healing doesn’t happen overnight either.  The truth is, I didn’t take the medication to heal me. I took it to relieve my symptoms. In my case, the synthetic hormones were replacing the ones my body wasn’t making.  It helped, but never completely.  It wasn’t a permanent fix. There was still a problem and I still wanted to fix it. I didn’t want to spend my life in a doctor’s office every three-six months, which was what I had been doing, and I didn’t want to be constantly tweaking the dosage of my meds to fit my body’s ever changing needs. I wanted to be off the meds altogether.  My goal was, and always will be, to heal my body from the inside out so I can live my best life. As long as I needed medication, I felt like I hadn’t accomplished my goal. 

I’ve come a long way in the past ten years and the story isn’t over, but a chapter has ended.  I’m not sure what conflicts will show up in the future chapters, but I now know I have more control over the storyline than I previously believed.  

The Health Plan That Worked For Me

  1. Used food as medicine. Eliminate inflammatory foods such as gluten, dairy, refined sugar, processed foods and highly refined vegetable oils. I adopted the paleo eating plan. I filled my plate with wholesome fruits, vegetables, quality protein and healthy fats. 

  1. Prioritized sleep and rest.  This is a must. Sleep is restorative, so I took time to slow down and rest. This was also important to control my stress levels. When I let stress get out of control, it taxes my adrenal glands and it increases the hormone cortisol. High levels of cortisol lead to all kinds of other problems. 

  1. Kicked the environmental toxins from my life. I stopped using over the counter room sprays and plug-ins. I threw away synthetic perfumes. I began using Young Living (quality matters) essential oils. I applied a blend called Endoflex over my thyroid daily and a blend called Joy over my heart. I also incorporated the habit of diffusing oils like lavender, peace and calming and cedar wood to help me sleep. Thieves essential oil became a staple in my home to support my immune system. The list could go on, but suffice it to say, my house never smelled so good and my body began to thank me for lessening the toxic load it has been carrying. If this is a change you want to make, then please go the extra mile and make sure the oils you get are not filled with the very same chemicals you are trying hard to eliminate . This is by far the highest quality you will find  Shop Here

  1. Began reading labels and understanding what’s in the products I use. Again, Young Living has been a great resource for all kinds of clean living products. Explore the link above to find all the non-toxic swaps, from household cleaning to beauty care. You an certainly DIY your own cleaners with things like baking soda and vienegar (which I certainly still do from time to time) or you can hit the easy button and bring Thieves Household Cleaner into your life. #youwillthankme #smellsthebest #worksoneverything

 5.  Acknowledged that I cannot compartmentalize my emotional, physical and mental health. One affects the other. Everything in your body is connected. Your brain. Your gut. Every organ, When one malfunctions, it's a ripple effect. This is why I'm still on a journey of healing. It takes time to address every area of my life and make the necessary changes that leads me to optimal health. 

 6. Learned the power of positive thoughts and beliefs. Toxic thoughts and negative emotion have the ability to sabotage my progress.

 7. Worked with professional functional and holistic providers to identify underlying issues that are affecting my overall health. After years of guess work and paying for endless doctor visits, I found someone willing to do all the things (extensive testing and bloodwork) to help me find the root cause of my disease.

 8. Healed my gut. This has been a game changer!

 9 Educated myself. I’ve spent years reading books and listening to podcasts.  Eat Dirt, The Paleo Cure, The Thyroid Connection, Grain Brain, and No Grain No Pain have been instrumental in my learning journey. I listen to podcasts, such as The Art of Being Well with Dr. Will ColeDanielle Walker, and Paleo Running Momma have been an excellent resource for recipes. I did my homework. 

10. Added high quality supplementsThis is unique to each person and is where a trusted professional practitioner can help. I tend to see out holistic and functional medicine. 



It’s been a long journey filled with celebrations and frustrations, but one of my greatest victories lies in the knowledge that I have some control over my health journey. I don't have to sit back and let things happen to me. Neither do you. The decisions you make day to day are writing the next chapter of your story.  I encourage you to take some time today to change the narrative. 

I hope my story has inspired you. I hope you heard the message I truly wanted to convey:  the trajectory of your health can be changed. Your story may not be mine, and you may have to tweak my suggestions to fit our own unique needs, but it can be a jumping off point for you to start researching and finding the plan that brings you closer to your own health goals. 

Here are specific products i use to support my Thyroid/endocrine system: 




How are you needing help on your health journey? I'm not a medical professional and cannot diagnose or promise any results, but I can certainly share more in depth what I've found to be helpful in healing my body. I can also help you get started with Young Living. contact me

Until next time
-jen


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