Is This a Hypothyroid Symptom?

[firebreather]

I take 3 Grains of desiccated thyroid daily and my hypo symptoms have improved somewhat since starting 2 years ago but I'm nowhere near back to normal.

Before I was diagnosed i was constipated most mornings but now I don't have a problem going once per day.

However when I do have a bowel movement in the morning I feel like I didn't empty completely and it's right there but it doesn't come out.

Is this a typical hypothyroid symptom or a symptom of some other problem?

Thanks for the input

 

[Sea]

All symptoms are a result of hypothyroidism.

You may need more calories, salt, caffeine, or all of the above.

 

[firebreather]

post 106862 All symptoms are a result of hypothyroidism.

You may need more calories, salt, caffeine, or all of the above.

Thanks for the input.

That's hard to digest. There was a time last year when I was eating 5,000 to 6,000 and sometimes more per day and i still had this trouble along with most of my other symptoms. I did this for about 3 months.

And a TON of salt.

The problem with coffee is that it seems to make me have to urinate a lot and I fear that may be part of my problem with the need to urinate in the middle of the night.

 

[Brian]

post 106890

post 106862 All symptoms are a result of hypothyroidism.

You may need more calories, salt, caffeine, or all of the above.

Thanks for the input.

That's hard to digest. There was a time last year when I was eating 5,000 to 6,000 and sometimes more per day and i still had this trouble along with most of my other symptoms. I did this for about 3 months.

And a TON of salt.

The problem with coffee is that it seems to make me have to urinate a lot and I fear that may be part of my problem with the need to urinate in the middle of the night.

What were you eating to reach 5-6000 calories?

 

[firebreather]

Thanks for replying.

I would say I was eating "Peatish" but limited dairy.

Dairy always gives me congestion problems.

Real foods with a healthy dose of salt and sugar and somewhat trying to limit PUFUs.

post 106892

post 106890

post 106862 All symptoms are a result of hypothyroidism.

You may need more calories, salt, caffeine, or all of the above.

Thanks for the input.

That's hard to digest. There was a time last year when I was eating 5,000 to 6,000 and sometimes more per day and i still had this trouble along with most of my other symptoms. I did this for about 3 months.

And a TON of salt.

The problem with coffee is that it seems to make me have to urinate a lot and I fear that may be part of my problem with the need to urinate in the middle of the night.

What were you eating to reach 5-6000 calories?

 

[Brian]

Thanks for replying.

I would say I was eating "Peatish" but limited dairy.

Dairy always gives me congestion problems.

Real foods with a healthy dose of salt and sugar and somewhat trying to limit PUFUs.

I imagine quite a bit of that was fat? One thing I'm really beginning to appreciate is the importance of insulin sensitivity and having low free fatty acids. Unless you were involved in professional athletics at the time, mixing carbs and and large amounts of fats usually doesn't work. In most cases I think the resulting insulin resistance will cause a cascade of systemic problems including endotoxin which will greatly contribute to lowered metabolism via elevated estrogen and serotonin eventually shutting off thyroid hormone production.

So, how sure are you currently that you are insulin sensitive and have low free fatty acids? I would start there. Bowel movements that seem poorly formed or incomplete is what I usually associate with endotoxin, but the root in my experience has been insulin resistance.

 

[bluewren]

post 106812 I take 3 Grains of desiccated thyroid daily and my hypo symptoms have improved somewhat since starting 2 years ago but I'm nowhere near back to normal.

Before I was diagnosed i was constipated most mornings but now I don't have a problem going once per day.

However when I do have a bowel movement in the morning I feel like I didn't empty completely and it's right there but it doesn't come out.

Is this a typical hypothyroid symptom or a symptom of some other problem?

Thanks for the input

This has really helped me: http://www.squattypotty.com/shop/

 

[firebreather]

post 106904

post 106812 I take 3 Grains of desiccated thyroid daily and my hypo symptoms have improved somewhat since starting 2 years ago but I'm nowhere near back to normal.

Before I was diagnosed i was constipated most mornings but now I don't have a problem going once per day.

However when I do have a bowel movement in the morning I feel like I didn't empty completely and it's right there but it doesn't come out.

Is this a typical hypothyroid symptom or a symptom of some other problem?

Thanks for the input

This has really helped me: http://www.squattypotty.com/shop/

I actually just started using that 2 days ago so I'm hoping that it helps

 

[firebreather]

post 106899

Thanks for replying.

I would say I was eating "Peatish" but limited dairy.

Dairy always gives me congestion problems.

Real foods with a healthy dose of salt and sugar and somewhat trying to limit PUFUs.

I imagine quite a bit of that was fat? One thing I'm really beginning to appreciate is the importance of insulin sensitivity and having low free fatty acids. Unless you were involved in professional athletics at the time, mixing carbs and and large amounts of fats usually doesn't work. In most cases I think the resulting insulin resistance will cause a cascade of systemic problems including endotoxin which will greatly contribute to lowered metabolism via elevated estrogen and serotonin eventually shutting off thyroid hormone production.

So, how sure are you currently that you are insulin sensitive and have low free fatty acids? I would start there. Bowel movements that seem poorly formed or incomplete is what I usually associate with endotoxin, but the root in my experience has been insulin resistance.

That's very interesting although I don't fulling understand all your saying.

Yes I'm sure there was a very healthy amount of fat there.

And all my symptoms got much worse 3 years ago when I started eating low carb which was also high fat.

What do you mean by the question, "So, how sure are you currently that you are insulin sensitive and have low free fatty acids? "

Does blood sugar show insulin sensitivity.

My fasting blood sugar and an 1 to 2 hrs after meals has always been withing range or on the lower side.

How do I know if I have low free fatty acids? Does that have to do with cholesterol?

 

[Brian]

That's very interesting although I don't fulling understand all your saying.

Yes I'm sure there was a very healthy amount of fat there.

And all my symptoms got much worse 3 years ago when I started eating low carb which was also high fat.

Usually any prolonged stress, including low carb, will force the body to liberate fat into the blood stream through higher cortisol. This was the start of my metabolic problems too.

What do you mean by the question, "So, how sure are you currently that you are insulin sensitive and have low free fatty acids? "

Does blood sugar show insulin sensitivity.

My fasting blood sugar and an 1 to 2 hrs after meals has always been withing range or on the lower side.

How do I know if I have low free fatty acids? Does that have to do with cholesterol?

I'm not much of a blood test kind of guy and prefer to go by feel. What I associate with insulin resistance is low muscle glycogen. The muscles will feel deflated and I will feel low energy after and in between meals.

If I eat a meal of potatoes and wake up the next day with inflated muscles, this is how I know I'm insulin sensitive enough to efficiently store the glucose as glycogen.

Eating any kind of high carb low fat meal should result in a feeling of energy with a higher temperature and sense of well-being with a kind of involuntary joy. If not, there's something interfering with the efficient metabolism of the carbs. The common culprit is free fatty acids in your blood getting in the way.

There's lots of valid ways to lower them, but eating lower fat (usually less than 50 grams per day) at least temporarily is a key part of the process. Therapeutic use of aspirin, niacinamide, thiamine, and biotin can sometimes be necessary to get carb metabolism working optimally again.

 

[firebreather]

post 106918

That's very interesting although I don't fulling understand all your saying.

Yes I'm sure there was a very healthy amount of fat there.

And all my symptoms got much worse 3 years ago when I started eating low carb which was also high fat.

Usually any prolonged stress, including low carb, will force the body to liberate fat into the blood stream through higher cortisol. This was the start of my metabolic problems too.

What do you mean by the question, "So, how sure are you currently that you are insulin sensitive and have low free fatty acids? "

Does blood sugar show insulin sensitivity.

My fasting blood sugar and an 1 to 2 hrs after meals has always been withing range or on the lower side.

How do I know if I have low free fatty acids? Does that have to do with cholesterol?

I'm not much of a blood test kind of guy and prefer to go by feel. What I associate with insulin resistance is low muscle glycogen. The muscles will feel deflated and I will feel low energy after and in between meals.

If I eat a meal of potatoes and wake up the next day with inflated muscles, this is how I know I'm insulin sensitive enough to efficiently store the glucose as glycogen.

Eating any kind of high carb low fat meal should result in a feeling of energy with a higher temperature and sense of well-being with a kind of involuntary joy. If not, there's something interfering with the efficient metabolism of the carbs. The common culprit is free fatty acids in your blood getting in the way.

There's lots of valid ways to lower them, but eating lower fat (usually less than 50 grams per day) at least temporarily is a key part of the process. Therapeutic use of aspirin, niacinamide, thiamine, and biotin can sometimes be necessary to get carb metabolism working optimally again.

Now you're really getting my attention.

I often feel like total crap after meals, most often lunch and sometimes breakfast, and on occasion dinner.

Less than 50 grams per day that sounds difficult - so much for the idea of liberal coconut oil to restore metabolism.

I've actually tried low fat before thinking that the higher fat low carb was what got me to feeling like crap (plus sleep deprivation from my job) but didn't notice much of a difference so stopped too early probably.

Any specifics for carbs and protein amounts?

And any general guidelines for Therapeutic use of aspirin, niacinamide, thiamine, and biotin?

Thank you sooooooooooooooo much for this insight.

I'm dying to get a decent night sleep and feel energy during the day again.

 

[Brian]

Now you're really getting my attention.

I often feel like total crap after meals, most often lunch and sometimes breakfast, and on occasion dinner.

Less than 50 grams per day that sounds difficult - so much for the idea of liberal coconut oil to restore metabolism.

I've actually tried low fat before thinking that the higher fat low carb was what got me to feeling like crap (plus sleep deprivation from my job) but didn't notice much of a difference so stopped too early probably.

50 grams isn't that hard to do, you can get most of that from food plus some coconut oil throughout the day. It's not an exact amount. You may be able to get by with more using coconut oil. You'll have to experiment and find what works best for you. You should be able to tolerate more fat as your carb metabolism improves, but for now 20-50 grams per day should be a safe starting range.

Stick mostly to low fat dairy (greek yogurt, milk, cheese), 1-3 eggs, seafood(shrimp, oysters) and lean-ish beef and other low PUFA meats for protein.

Any specifics for carbs and protein amounts?

Carbs can be to taste ad libitum with or without protein. Protein usually between 20-30 grams per meal, at least three times per day (at least 80 grams per day), always combined with a satisfying amount of carbs.

And any general guidelines for Therapeutic use of aspirin, niacinamide, thiamine, and biotin?

The doses are pretty individual and can vary from day to day, so I would just buy all of these in powder form, with the exception of biotin, 1mg capsules would probably be easier. Allithiamine (a fat soluble form of B1 is worth checking out too for restoring tissue levels). They don't taste great so have them with juice. Do some searches on the forum to learn more about what each of them do, so you can get a better idea of what doses might be appropriate for you. If you'd rather just use an all-in-one supplement for your b-vitamins at first Haidut's Energin product works good.

Aspirin can be a potentially very useful tool for reversing insulin resistance and lowering free fatty acids if used correctly. I don't have much experience with it yet, but do a search on "aspirin + insulin resistance" to get a feel for it and ask for advice from someone who has tried it for that purpose. The best way to to take it is dissolved in water with baking soda until it fully reacts. Also take some vitamin K1/K2 to balance out it's blood thinning. I took a 1 gram dose a few mornings ago and that night I slept 10 hours solid and deep. Pretty great stuff when used wisely.

Thank you sooooooooooooooo much for this insight.

I'm dying to get a decent night sleep and feel energy during the day again.

Other things I have found helpful for sleep is getting as much sun as possible after sun rise and as much as I can the rest of the day. Also eating a good chunk of my daily calories in the morning and eating my last protein meal at least a few hours before bed. These all seem to help with getting cortisol in the right rhythm so that I fall to sleep effortlessly.

Also listen to the Generative Energy Podcasts with Haidut and Danny Roddy if you haven't. It's clarified a lot of things for me over the last few weeks.

 

[Giraffe]

post 106812 However when I do have a bowel movement in the morning I feel like I didn't empty completely and it's right there but it doesn't come out.

Have you tried squatting? See here post 88172 what you try. There is a link to a study here post 102980.

 

[firebreather]

post 106924

post 106812 However when I do have a bowel movement in the morning I feel like I didn't empty completely and it's right there but it doesn't come out.

Have you tried squatting? See here post 88172 what you try. There is a link to a study here post 102980.

Yes, I use a squatty potty

 

[firebreather]

Brian,

thank you so much for the detailed response.

To start let me say that I took 1000mg of Aspirin yesterday morning and slept 6 hours straight last night. Probably would have slept longer but had to get up for a call at work.

I can count the times on one hand that I've slept 6 hours straight in the last 2 years.

Hopefully it wasn't a coincidence.

I really seem to have issues with dairy. First of all my nostrils seem to be constantly inflamed (no fluid, just can't breath out of both) and dairy always seems to make it worse. Any thoughts on that?

Do you recommend mostly fruit for carbs? Oddly enough starch seems to help a little with my frequent urination issues.

I have been following your suggestions for about the last 2 years (about a year after all this crap started) but they seem to make very little difference but I keep staying with it.

I'm sure my job isn't helping matters though.

I'm listening to Danny and Haidut as well as looking into these other supplement suggestions.

post 106922

50 grams isn't that hard to do, you can get most of that from food plus some coconut oil throughout the day. It's not an exact amount. You may be able to get by with more using coconut oil. You'll have to experiment and find what works best for you. You should be able to tolerate more fat as your carb metabolism improves, but for now 20-50 grams per day should be a safe starting range.

Stick mostly to low fat dairy (greek yogurt, milk, cheese), 1-3 eggs, seafood(shrimp, oysters) and lean-ish beef and other low PUFA meats for protein.

Carbs can be to taste ad libitum with or without protein. Protein usually between 20-30 grams per meal, at least three times per day (at least 80 grams per day), always combined with a satisfying amount of carbs.

The doses are pretty individual and can vary from day to day, so I would just buy all of these in powder form, with the exception of biotin, 1mg capsules would probably be easier. Allithiamine (a fat soluble form of B1 is worth checking out too for restoring tissue levels). They don't taste great so have them with juice. Do some searches on the forum to learn more about what each of them do, so you can get a better idea of what doses might be appropriate for you. If you'd rather just use an all-in-one supplement for your b-vitamins at first Haidut's Energin product works good.

Aspirin can be a potentially very useful tool for reversing insulin resistance and lowering free fatty acids if used correctly. I don't have much experience with it yet, but do a search on "aspirin + insulin resistance" to get a feel for it and ask for advice from someone who has tried it for that purpose. The best way to to take it is dissolved in water with baking soda until it fully reacts. Also take some vitamin K1/K2 to balance out it's blood thinning. I took a 1 gram dose a few mornings ago and that night I slept 10 hours solid and deep. Pretty great stuff when used wisely.


Other things I have found helpful for sleep is getting as much sun as possible after sun rise and as much as I can the rest of the day. Also eating a good chunk of my daily calories in the morning and eating my last protein meal at least a few hours before bed. These all seem to help with getting cortisol in the right rhythm so that I fall to sleep effortlessly.

Also listen to the Generative Energy Podcasts with Haidut and Danny Roddy if you haven't. It's clarified a lot of things for me over the last few weeks.

 

[Brian]

Brian,

thank you so much for the detailed response.

To start let me say that I took 1000mg of Aspirin yesterday morning and slept 6 hours straight last night. Probably would have slept longer but had to get up for a call at work.

I can count the times on one hand that I've slept 6 hours straight in the last 2 years.

Hopefully it wasn't a coincidence.

Long term just one or two standard 325mg Aspirin pills per day are plenty according to Peat. I've been doing 1000mg every few days for the last week. The recipe I use is about 1/4 teaspoon baking soda per aspirin combined in warm or carbonated water. I get zero gut or ear irritation issues this way. Also make sure to take some K1 or K2 if you are doing aspirin regularly.

I really seem to have issues with dairy. First of all my nostrils seem to be constantly inflamed (no fluid, just can't breath out of both) and dairy always seems to make it worse. Any thoughts on that?

I can't say I know what could be going on. Although, I did notice once after a period of eating no dairy for 6 months that when I first started again I clearly wasn't digesting the lactose well at all and it gave a sinus infection like reaction. But after a week or so I could digest it just fine again, when my lactase enzyme was being produced enough.

Dairy isn't essential for a pro-metabolic diet. It's certainly helpful and convenient, but if it's not working for you right now I think it's fine to consider calcium, protein and minerals from other sources. Well cooked leafy greens, some eggshell or calcium carbonate can also work in the meantime while you find and heal what is inhibiting your metabolism.

Do you recommend mostly fruit for carbs? Oddly enough starch seems to help a little with my frequent urination issues.

I have been following your suggestions for about the last 2 years (about a year after all this crap started) but they seem to make very little difference but I keep staying with it.

I'm sure my job isn't helping matters though.

I'm listening to Danny and Haidut as well as looking into these other supplement suggestions.

Both should be fine, but I wonder if the reason why some people do better on starch is that it reduces cortisol, but doesn't speed up the metabolism so much that it exacerbates some deficiencies, such as Vitamin A. In Danny and Haidut's last podcast they both seem to think vitamin A deficiency is pretty common. They even mentioned that vitamin a deficiency is a common cause of poor sleep. Have you had yours checked?

Looking back over most of my life I really doubt I even received the RDA of 5,000 IU. Combine that with a high sugar, but low nutrient diet, it's no wonder that a lot of people end up hypothyroid with sub-optimal steroid production even by their late teens. Then some major stress depletes their tissue hormone levels (such as low carb/calorie) and bam! We get stuck in Hypo-land. And maybe that's a reason why some people don't feel right eating a higher fructose Ray Peat inspired diet. It makes sense in my experience at least.

 

[firebreather]

Long term just one or two standard 325mg Aspirin pills per day are plenty according to Peat. I've been doing 1000mg every few days for the last week. The recipe I use is about 1/4 teaspoon baking soda per aspirin combined in warm or carbonated water. I get zero gut or ear irritation issues this way. Also make sure to take some K1 or K2 if you are doing aspirin regularly.

That sounds good.

I can't say I know what could be going on. Although, I did notice once after a period of eating no dairy for 6 months that when I first started again I clearly wasn't digesting the lactose well at all and it gave a sinus infection like reaction. But after a week or so I could digest it just fine again, when my lactase enzyme was being produced enough.

Dairy isn't essential for a pro-metabolic diet. It's certainly helpful and convenient, but if it's not working for you right now I think it's fine to consider calcium, protein and minerals from other sources. Well cooked leafy greens, some eggshell or calcium carbonate can also work in the meantime while you find and heal what is inhibiting your metabolism.

I've been doing 3g/day of calcium carbonate for the last week or so. I supposed I could start with a small amount of dairy a day and slowly work up, but dairy has caused me these type of issue my entire life.

Both should be fine, but I wonder if the reason why some people do better on starch is that it reduces cortisol, but doesn't speed up the metabolism so much that it exacerbates some deficiencies, such as Vitamin A. In Danny and Haidut's last podcast they both seem to think vitamin A deficiency is pretty common. They even mentioned that vitamin a deficiency is a common cause of poor sleep. Have you had yours checked?

I had my Vitamin A checked about 1 a year ago and although I don't remember what it was I do know it was in the normal range. I'll have to see if I can hunt down those labs and see where it was on the range.

The thing that really pisses me off is that my fatigue started when I started paleo but I was to stubborn to see that was the problem then I went low carb and my sleep when to hell within 2 weeks but I was still too stubborn. Then a whole host of other symptoms from there.

Looking back over most of my life I really doubt I even received the RDA of 5,000 IU. Combine that with a high sugar, but low nutrient diet, it's no wonder that a lot of people end up hypothyroid with sub-optimal steroid production even by their late teens. Then some major stress depletes their tissue hormone levels (such as low carb/calorie) and bam! We get stuck in Hypo-land. And maybe that's a reason why some people don't feel right eating a higher fructose Ray Peat inspired diet. It makes sense in my experience at least.

Yes this makes sense.

One thing that really doesn't make sense to me is that even when I increase my thyroid I don't experience any difference in my somptoms, even common thyroid symptoms like temp, fatigue etc.