COGNITIVE DISTORTIONS - CHOOSE HEALTHY (THE MIND)

It is the first day of 2015; you have made the decision to be a healthier YOU! Congratulations! I have no doubt you will achieve your goals this year.

There is nothing wrong with self-improvement.  Improving yourself is perpetual for those with a  thyroid disease, for both the mind and the body.

Throughout my journey of wellness since diagnosis ten years ago, I sought care from an allergist, cardiologist, gastroenterologist, internist, gynecologist, mental health clinician, nutritionist, ophthalmologist, ortho doc, otolaryngologist, podiatrist, physician assistant, psychiatrist and rheumatologist. In some cases, I had gone through multiple specialists, hiring and firing, not wasting time with health care professionals who aren’t even bothering to “practice” medicine, more like...pretending. Yet out of the thorns, I have discovered a few roses.

One such rose came from a mental health counselor who helped me get through the tumultuous times early on after my diagnosis, when I would swing wildly from hypo to hyper. Hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism can cause severe mood disorders like depression and anxiety. She said the key to coping with any negative self-talk associated with mood disorders, is to have complete awareness of what is going on, and identify the distorted thinking, so you can understand the irrationalities.  Sometimes, awareness is all you need to help break the cycle of damaging behaviors, thus helping you correct thought patterns, thereby helping to improve conversations with others and to get through stressful situations.

Below are a list of cognitive distortions, these distortions can occur when we are not at optimal levels on the thyroid scale

1.    All- or Nothing Thinking: Viewing situations on one extreme or another. Seeing things in black or white as opposed to shades of gray. Using words like “always”, “every” or “never”.

Example: “If my child does bad things, It is because I am a bad parent.”

2.    Catastrophizing: Predicting only negative outcomes for the future,

Example: “If I fail my final, my life will be over.”

3.    Disqualifying or Discounting the positive: Telling yourself that the good things that happen to you don’t count.

Example: “My daughter told her friend that I was the best Mom in the whole world, but I am sure she was just being nice.”

4.    Emotional Reasoning: Feeling about something overrules facts to the contrary.

Example: “Even though Steve is here at work late every day, I know I work harder than him.”

5.    Labeling: Giving someone or something a label without finding out more about it/them.

Example: “My daughter would never do anything I disapproved of.”

6.    Magnification/Minimization: Emphasizing the negative or downplaying the positive of a situation. In some cases making a mountain of a molehill.

Example: “My professor said he made some corrections to my paper so that must mean I failed the test.”

7.    Mind Reading: Believing you know what others are thinking.

Example: “My house was dirty when my friends came over, so I know they think I am a slob.”

8.    Overgeneralization: Making an overall negative conclusion beyond the current situation.

Example: “My husband didn’t kiss me when he came home this evening. Maybe he doesn’t love me anymore.”

9.    Personalization: Thinking the negative behavior in others has something to do with you.

Example: “My daughter has been pretty quiet today; I wonder what I did to upset her.”

10.    “Should” and “Must” statements: Having a concrete idea of how people should behave.

Example: “I should get all A’s to be a good student.”

Which cognitive distortion do you most identify with while in the midst of a depressive or anxious mood?

_________________________

The top four things you can do to “ride the wave” so to speak, while you or your healthcare provider are working to get your thyroid hormones to an optimal level:

1. Recognize and isolate the thought. Absolute words, like 'always', 'never' or 'can't' are usually clues you've got a cognitive distortion going on. So are strong, negative words directed at yourself like, 'hate,' 'stupid' or 'loser.'

2. Write it down. Yes, take pen to paper. It makes a difference.

3. Then take your distress temperature. Zero to ten. Zero meaning your content and peaceful; ten that your misery is paralyzing.

4. Ask yourself: Is it reasonable to think that thought or is it unreasonable? Say the thought aloud. If a friend said that, would you agree or disagree?

 

 

 

As we take this journey of wellness together in 2015, I hope you can embrace the fact that working towards wellness takes dedication, hard work, and perseverance. I deliberately wrote about cognitive distortions as the first blog post of this New Year because so many of us fail in our minds before we even get started. In addition, we thyroid patients have the added disadvantage because our mood disorders can come as a result of a hormonal imbalance. Awareness of what is going on during this imbalance, can help us fight those pesky thought patterns, preventing us from achieving our goals.

We can do this

Get Ready Set Go....

Healthy Thyroid Lady

 

Here is a thought record template to help overcome cognitive distortions

More Tips to help deal with cognitive distortions


Resource
http://healthypsych.com/psychology-tools-identifying-cognitive-distortions/
http://draletta.typepad.com/explorewhatsnext/2010/06/how-do-i-stop-my-cognitive-distortions.html

DINE ON IODINE - PART II - IS IT JUST FOR THYROID HEALTH?

 

 

Wow, what a controversial subject. From patient forums to medical experts to holistic practitioners to nutritionists, many disagreements and dare I say it, wishy-washy stances on iodine. I have never seen so many not on the same page when it comes to something this essential to the body.

The controversies surrounding these chemical conversations, caused me to want a drink –a frozen margarita lined with iodized salt.

 

At the end of the last blog post (part one in the series), I ended with the question, “Why has iodine deficiencies increased?” This concern is not as controversial. Majority of the experts in the field agree that we are. Here is what has slowly occurred from the 1970’s until now.

·       Foods that used to be fortified with iodine, like milk and bread have been replaced with bromine. Some pesticides, flame-retardants and pharmaceutical drugs have bromine in them (Bromine also depletes the body of iodine)

·       In 1924, the government added iodine to salt, but because of the National Heart Association’s campaign stating that excess salt causes heart disease, many consumers have gone to low-salt diets

·       Salt companies have quietly gone away from iodizing all their product lines and began introducing other salt options without iodine -as iodizing was a strong government recommendation, not a mandate

·       Increased use of fluorinated prescription medication – Fluoride depletes iodine from the body

·       Fluoride added to water. This occurred in the U.S. in 1960, soon after Iodine deficiencies started to increase...hmmmmmm

·       Chlorination to our water supply – Chlorine deplete iodine

·       Poor farming techniques, the soils are depleted of iodine, which means the foods we eat, will also be deficient of this mineral

Bromine, chlorine, fluoride and iodine are all in the same chemical family called halogens.  Since bromine, chlorine and fluoride are in abundance, in just about everything we consume, the body thinks it is iodine and accepts it into body receptors. It thinks it is the essential element iodine because of their similar chemical make-up; meanwhile, the body has bromine, chlorine, and fluoride hanging out in these receptors that it has no business being in; in excess, they are toxic. Thus, not only are they bad for you, they are kicking out what actually needs to be there -iodine

Dr. Edward F. Group, an expert on nutrition, author of the book, The Green Body Cleanse believes the increase of thyroid related conditions, breast and prostate cancers are because of our decreased consumption of iodine.

Plus, with those three aforementioned bullies that are everywhere, environmentally and in most of our food sources, it is apparent we are in an iodine crisis.

To make matters worse, we cannot deny the increased use of prescription medication, some have bromine and fluoride in them.

Medications that deplete Iodine

Anesthetics (general)	Anti-fungal antibiotics	Appetite suppressants
Antacids	Antihistamines	Arthritis (rheumatoid)
Anti-anxiety	Antilipemics (cholesterol lowering)	Psychotropic (anti-psychotics)
Antibiotics (Fluoroquinolones)	Anti-malarial	Steroids/anti-inflammatory agents
Antidepressants	Antimetabolites (chemotherapy)

 

I have seen reports of anywhere from 10 to 75 percent of the U.S population has an iodine deficiency.  I would be more inclined to believe it is on the higher side.

Therefore, because of all the things out there that are kicking iodine out, sometimes your multi-vitamin supplement isn’t enough to push that evil bromide out and get the amount of iodine you need. 

Guess what, it is not technically the thyroid who is in charge of metabolism - it is iodine. Iodine is the big boss directing the thyroid hormones what to do. Iodine and the thyroid work very closely together. In fact, thyroid autoimmune conditions like Graves and some Hashimotos were once treated with iodine and quite successfully. (For Hashis people they had to be treated with iodine plus selenium). OK, so, if I were a doctor, the first thing I would do, when a thyroid patient dons my doorstep would be to check their iodine levels. The crucial chemical that controls it. Why is there a knee-jerk reaction, then to give medication or offer extreme, radical procedures? That was a rhetorical question, you don’t have to answer that...we both know the answer to that question.

Now we have the options to test on our own, we don’t have to rely on MD’s (who, chances are, won’t perform an iodine test). The best way to see if there is a problem, is test for it...right? Sidebar: For the life of me, I cannot understand, why, when a patient complains of heartburn, a doctor automatically prescribes antacids, without testing. Heartburn is also a symptom of low stomach acid...ummm, doc “So, why aren’t you running tests to check a person’s acid levels in their stomach first before prescribing?” By the way, antacids deplete iodine from the body.

Common symptoms that can occur with prolonged iodine deficiency include:

• Constipation
• Depressed mood
• Dry skin
• Fatigue
• Goiter (enlargement of the thyroid, creating a mass in the neck)
• Increased sensitivity to cold
• Menstrual cycle abnormalities
• Protrusion of the eyes
• Thickening of the skin
• Fibrocystic breasts
• Thinning and brittleness of the hair and nails
• Unintended weight gain
• Weakness
• Cysts
• Mental Impairment – Brain fog
• Decreased Concentration
• Difficulties losing weight
• Fibroid tumors
• Fibromyalgia

Serious symptoms that might indicate a life-threatening condition

In some cases, iodine deficiency can be life threatening. Seek immediate medical care (call 911) if you, or someone you are with, have any of these life-threatening symptoms including:

• Being a danger to oneself or others, including threatening, irrational or suicidal behavior
• Bleeding while pregnant
• Change in level of consciousness or alertness, such as passing out or unresponsiveness
• Change in mental status or behavior change, such as confusion, delirium, lethargy, hallucinations or delusions
• Chest pain, chest tightness, chest pressure, palpitations
• Respiratory or breathing problems, such as shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, labored breathing, wheezing, not breathing, or choking

http://www.localhealth.com/article/iodine-deficiency/symptoms

 

Iodine tests:

Simple self-test for iodine deficiency:

To check whether you have enough iodine on board, you can try this safe self-test at home. Simply dip a clean ball of cotton in inexpensive red-tinged USP tincture of iodine from any drugstore. Paint a 2-inch circle of tincture of iodine on soft skin tissue, such as the inner arm or thigh.

Now wait – if the yellow-orange stain takes more than 6 hours to disappear, you are likely to be replete with iodine. If the stain is absorbed quickly (within 1–3 hours), your body may need a higher iodine intake.

Other methods of testing

http://iodineresearch.com/ortholoadingtest.html

http://hakalalabs.com/testing.html

You can also go to your local independent lab to purchase an iodine test.

 

NEXT WEEK

 

Dine with iodine -Part III

I will address these main topics:

Supplementing iodine for people with autoimmune diseases.

What if I don’t have a working thyroid should I take iodine?

Taking iodine and the sickness (detox) that may follow.

How much iodine do I need?

And finally, iodine is not just for thyroid health

 

I am going for that margarita now, see ya

CTL

Again, I will post references at the end of the series (next week) I also emailed experts and they were nice enough to email me back with answers; I will have their responses next week.

 

 

DINE ON IODINE - IS IT JUST FOR THYROID HEALTH?

French chemist Bernard Courtois discovered iodine in 1811; little did this Frenchmen know, that subsequent to his discovery, this chemical element would have many uses in the years to come.

The early nineteenth century was the official discovery of iodine and its importance, however, ancient hieroglyphs illustrate how seaweed and other iodine enriched sea life was used to treat goiters (an enlargement of the thyroid gland).

Other uses for Iodine:

 

Iodine 123– Is the isotope of choice for nuclear medicine imaging of the thyroid gland.

Iodine 131- Is used to administer to humans only in very high doses, which will destroy all tissues in the body that accumulate iodine. This iodine isotope is used principally for the treatment of Graves Disease and certain thyroid cancers.

Iodine-127 - In a number of convenient forms (tablets or solution), this treatment may be used to saturate the thyroid gland's ability to take up further iodine, and thus protect against accidental contamination from iodine-131. Which can be produced by nuclear fission  accidents, such as the Chernobyl Disaster and more recently the Fukushima nuclear accident.

 Additional important uses:

·        A sterilizing Agent

·        Goiter prevention

·        Boosts metabolism

·        Fights harmful organisms

·        Aids Breast, Neurological, Skin, Eye, Reproductive and   

           Hair Health

 

    ·        Powerful antioxidant

·        Iodine douches are great for vaginitis

In the 1830’s, cases of goiters starting increasing due to the beginning stages of iodine depletion in our soil. By the 1920’s government decided to step in as more cases of goiters in the areas of the Great Lakes, Appalachia and the Northwestern region of the U.S were being reported. These areas were nicknamed the “goiter belt." In Michigan alone, the goiter endemic reached as high as 64 percent. These cases began to affect military drafting as those afflicted did not pass physicals for active duty. 

Ah ha, a threat to national security gets the government off their collective butts to do something about public health.

Resulting from this alarming health scare, on May 1, 1924, the U.S. government designed the Iodine Supplementation Program. They decided to supplement through salt as this was - at that time - the easiest, cheapest and most broadly used food source. The implementation efforts were a success as cases of goiters and thyroid-related conditions decreased. Also, during that time, Iodine could also be found in breads and milk. 

Yay!

But wait, it is happening again, Iodine deficiencies are, according to some experts silently becoming an epidemic again.

Find out why, next week - Dine on Iodine, is it just for thyroid health? Part II

Will show references at the end of this blog series.

CTL

DR. JECKYLL AND MR. THY…PERSONALITY CHANGES WITH THYROID DISEASE

Last week a co-worker emailed to me a link with one of those personality tests. This particular test is called “How Emotionally Intelligent Are You”.  She must have read my mind, somehow knowing I needed a little workday intermission. From time to time, any distraction is welcomed, especially during those times when you are heading into a comatose-can’t-concentrate-anymore moment. Getting up to sign for a FedEx package or doing the vending machine stare down (even though you aren’t going to purchase anything)…these are office respite techniques, helpful for resting the eyes and hopefully getting back into focus.

Although I have done a ton of personality tests – in high school, college, for jobs, and for fun it dawned on me, after receiving her email, that I had never done one post thyroid disease.

Some experts say that our personalities do not change significantly throughout our lives. My guess is that these so-called experts have never tracked subjects pre, mid and post thyroid dysfunction. I do not know what the scientific definition of personality is. To me, with CTL simplicity,  it means how we behave ourselves. The years while at the peak of my thyroid dysfunction, my behaviors changed dramatically.

I became extremely insecure, confused, argumentative, irritable, intolerant, fearful, pessimistic and on my really really bad days – apathetic. On those bad days, I wanted nothing to do with the human race. Interaction was kept to a minimum; I hid from the FedEx man.

The mental and physical changes occurring in people with thyroid disease are sometimes hard to fathom, even doctors don’t truly understand what all is going on in our body.

I wrote a little bit about my ten year saga in the previous blog post; looking back, though, I wish I would have taken several personality tests, doing my own informal study – perhaps, doing one each year, keeping a diary of any drastic changes as I battled to achieve optimal to remission.

I’m not sure, where you are with your healing journey, below is the link to the personality test, make sure you read the entire bottom portion after getting to your results. This could be an eye opening experience to those who haven’t made the thyroid/personality connection.

Tell me what you think. Do you think your personality has changed, due in part to thyroid disease?

How Emotionally Intelligent Are You

CTL

Wow Your Mom Really is Crazy - TV Inteview

 

If you haven't seen it yet, here is last year's interview of me talking about my thyroid book. The host butchered the title in my introduction, which messed me up in the beginning. LOL 

 

 

VENTING IS GOOD, LET IT OUT

Venting vs. Complaining

Venting is releasing bottled up frustrations

Complaining is releasing repeatedly, over and over again. A complainer’s issue is not bottled, it’s not sealed…it is not even loosely fastened. Complainers will unload 24/7. This is fine…if you have someone who will listen and be OK with the endless complaining. If so, you are lucky (I guess)

However, some are genuinely bottling up their emotional or physical problems stemming from their thyroid related illness. They have no one to turn to, no one who truly understands. Because, the thyroid affects so much, coupled with the fact that many health care professionals don’t even know how or where to begin to deal with us… this is frustrating to say the least.

I just had a random person email me this week, because a friend of a friend told her to contact me on Facebook. This person is having severe emotional problems because of her thyroid disease and has trouble expressing herself.

Last year, I talked to a woman on a plane who had a thyroid disorder. She had Radioactive Iodine Ablation or RAI, so I asked her, why did her doctor prescribe RAI, what was her diagnosis? She said her doctor did not make her diagnosis clear or give her a reason why…He just told her she needed RAI. She went on to say, she has had nothing but trouble ever since and didn’t know what to do…this sickened me. Needless to say, we talked the entire flight (my poor husband).

My point is, I know there are people who want to get their concerns off their chest and sometimes releasing what has been bottled up for so long, especially to someone who completely understands, can be very therapeutic. Releasing any type of stress, albeit big or small is always a step in the right direction in the healing process.

So, drop me a line, my email address is crazythyroidlady@gmail.com, vent away, release, let it go…It may seem like you are all alone, but you are not.

Love

CTL

 

 

 

 

THYROETRY - VALENTINE'S DAY SPECIAL

This poem is dedicated to my hubby, love you honey!

Roses are red.

My thyroid is pink.

But it is not working.

That sure does stink.

Sending a shout out to my special Valentine.

Please understand I must be in bed by nine.

No wine, no chocolate…too many calories.

The weight will stay on for several centuries.

I love you my hubby, thanks for putting up with me.

Yours truly, The Crazy Thyroid Lady.

Don't forget to get your copy of my thyroid book, Wow Your Mom Really is Crazy. Buy it on Amazon today.

NEW DIAGNOSIS - WHAT YOU MAY HEAR REPEATEDLY

It’s a New Year, so typically it’s customary for the resolutioners to start this and quit that.

But, for those of us who are seasoned autoimmunees and thyroid sufferers, our resolution…err um…perhaps… focus…is a better word, centers around our health.

With my health in the forefront of my mind every year, I have made huge strides in getting back to normalcy and in some cases exceeding my expectations…However, I do still have problem areas that I continue to work on with much effort (my eyes, skin and weight) Ah yes, the thyroid affects so much!

But enough about me, since this is a New Year, I want this blog post to center around those who just received a new diagnosis and who is beginning their journey of wellness in 2014.

To help you on your journey as a newbie, I want to highlight things that you will repeatedly hear from others:

1. “But you don’t look sick” Or “You look fine to me” OR “Are you sure you don’t feel like doing anything?” - Hearing this, can be frustrating at times, but try not to let it bother you…even though, you want to shout out to the world “YOU HAVE NO IDEA!!” Undue stress, is the absolute one thing you don’t need in your life right now. Stress will slow down your healing process for sure. Plus, it’s not their fault, they don’t have your affliction and don’t know what you are enduring…AND since you wouldn’t wish this on your worst enemy, I’m sure you wouldn’t want them to know what your illness actually feels like…right?...right? Hmmm, I can’t really hear you…

2. “It’s not thyroid related, that’s what happens when you get older” – How do you combat this? Well, unless you are Benjamin Button, you are, in fact, always getting older. Sigh…So, just know this is the stock answer you will receive from many healthcare providers who have no idea and are without any solutions to your symptoms. If you get this answer, quickly MOVE ON, to another provider, don’t waste your time. You aren’t supposed to completely fall apart during the aging process, I was given this silly answer by a doctor in my thirties.


3. “Do your own research”– You will hear this advice from others who have the disease. Most MD’s aren’t too keen on you doing research as they want you only to listen to THEIR suggestions about YOUR body. If you have an unyielding doctor who refuses to work collaboratively regarding your health…again, move on. I can’t stress this enough. When I first heard someone say that their healing began when they started doing their own research, they didn’t necessarily get hung up on their disease, but concentrated more so on what the thyroid controls. This is excellent advice because it causes one to focus on wellness instead of the sickness. Our disease is primarily what traditional doctors focus on. I wanted to focus on what a well thyroid does and work towards this functionality with fixing depletions, through diet and balancing hormone levels. THIS IS A LOT OF WORK, but worth it.

I raise my glass of healthy H20 and propose a toast, to my thyroid family new and old, may 2014 bring you much health, healing and happiness.

CTL

Don't forget to get your copy of my thyroid book, Wow Your Mom Really is Crazy. Buy it on Amazon today.

BLOODLETTING - LET ME HAVE MY TEST RESULTS!

It’s the phone call you’ve been waiting for…

“Your test results came back normal”

The only time I would cringe at these words is when I KNEW something wasn’t, well…normal.
“IT CAN’T BE NORMAL!”

And the hopelessness I felt would intensify because I knew what would come next…a rush by the nurse or doctor to get me off the phone. It felt like they couldn’t hang up fast enough, so they could yell out…”Got rid of another hypochondriac, before they could ask any questions, Woo Hoo!”

Who made up these “normal” or “in range” lab values? And what is even more puzzling is why it is so difficult to get a copy of YOUR results from the doctor’s office. I used to accept them not giving (or offering) a copy, but now, as a seasoned thyroid patient, not getting my lab paperwork is not an option.

Making it a rule to get your test results will:

1. Give you an idea of what is “normal” for YOU. If your thyroid levels were slightly out of range but you felt great, talk to your doctor about this. Bring to him/her your old tests outlining when you felt good and when you didn’t.

2. Help you to see if you are progressing with a certain medication or declining. Don’t leave it up to your memory.

3. If it ever comes to the point of needing to fire your current doctor and you will want to provide this information to your new one. I recently did this and my new doc was so impressed by this.

4. See if a mistake was made. (My sister was recently told by her primary care physician that her test results were normal. Later she was getting examined by her gynecologist who called up her results on the computer. “They told you your test results were normal? They don’t look normal to me”, said her gynecologist. – Obviously a mistake was made and this happens more than you think, it doesn’t hurt to double check.

They took your blood, and now it feels like it is also going to take sweat and tears just to get those results in your hands. Some doctor’s offices try to make it an all out war to give them to you, but here’s a couple of ways you can get them easily, bypassing the doctor altogether:

1. Many doctor’s offices send you to an independent lab, when you check in at one of these labs, before they draw blood ask them to send you a copy, as well as the doctor’s office. They should oblige, but may have you fill out a release form.

2. There’s been a recent trend where doctor’s offices have signed on as employees or contractors with large hospital networks. These hospital networks are starting to incorporate convenient, secure access to your medical information (including lab work) online. With a login and password, you can easily see your results.

BEWARE: Reading through test results is like trying to understand Algebra or interest rates. Don’t jump to any conclusions if you happen to see the results before your doctor goes over them with you. If you’re like me, you would be convinced you will awake with tentacles in the morning. No need to add undue stress, to an already “not all that fun” experience.

Good luck my thyroid brothers and sisters on your quest of maneuvering through the lab work labyrinth.

CTL