Thyroid Disorders
Thyroid function is intricately connected to brain function through an area of the brain called your hypothalamus. An appropriate amount of thyroid hormone promotes neuroplasticity (or the brain’s ability to change and adapt), increases healthy brain function and decreases neurodegeneration. If the thyroid is playing a role in your neurological symptoms, we want to understand what your thyroid health looks like and how we can help.
Thyroid Function Starts in the Brain
The cascade for proper thyroid function starts in the brain with the hypothalamus, which is a relay center of information from the body to the brain, connecting the nervous system to the endocrine system and more.
The hypothalamus sends signals to the pituitary gland to tell the rest of our glands such as our thyroid, adrenals, ovaries, testes, pancreas and more to make hormones. In order for the hypothalamus to do its job properly, our brain and gut must be able to make adequate amounts of neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin and GABA.
With a full understanding of how the brain, thyroid and GI system work together, we’re able to get to the root cause of your thyroid , brain and immune issues.
Indications that you may have improper thyroid function affecting your brain:
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Tired/sluggish
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Cold hands, feet, or all over
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Require excessive amounts of sleep to function properly
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Increase in weight even with low-calorie diet
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Gain weight easily
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Difficult, infrequent bowel movements
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Depression/lack of motivation
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Morning headaches that wear off as the day progresses
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Outer third of eyebrow thins
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Thinning or excessive hair loss on scalp, face or genitals
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Dryness of skin or scalp
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Mental sluggishness/brain fog
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Dizziness
OR
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Heart palpitations
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Inward trembling
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Increased pulse even at rest
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Nervous and emotional
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Insomnia
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Dizziness
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Night sweats
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Tired but wired
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Difficulty gaining weight
Thyroid Evaluation
At Carolina Functional Neurology Center, we always run a full thyroid panel, including antibodies, to assess function and pin down the root cause of your symptoms. We recommend a full thyroid panel that gives you a comprehensive overview of the thyroid puzzle. The full panel includes TSH, T4, T3, Free T4, Free T3, Reverse T3, T3 uptake, TPO antibodies, TSI antibodies, Thyroglobulin antibodies and Thyroid binding globulin.
Diagnostic Testing for Thyroid Disorders
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Neurologial Exam
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Other specialty labs may be recommended by your doctor to further investigate the root cause of your thyroid dysfunction (ie. stool test to evaluate gut health)
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Blood Work
Thyroid Disorders Treatment
Treatment for conditions that involve thyroid dysfunction often start with nutrition, supplementation and lifestyle modifications. We will co-manage cases with endocrinology and primary care for those who require medication. We also discuss the benefits of other therapeutic modalities that we offer including hyperbaric oxygen therapy, red light therapy and bemer therapy.
Common Treatment Methods for Thyroid Disorders
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Diet and Lifestyle Changes
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Nutritional Counseling
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Individualized Supplementation
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Mild Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
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Red Light Therapy
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Neurological Rehabilitation
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Bemer Therapy
