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LIVE HORMONE CHAT NOW THREAD - 1ST ONE ON THYROID
Hi everyone.
Here is the open discussion off the Oprah show - again I feel the show was very good but not a full hormone show as I understood it would be this morning.
Tonight as far as I know Dr. Park who wrote the blog on Sleep Apnea and Thyroid Disorders accepted an invitation to join us tonight.
As long as his expecting wife does not go into labor:)........... Good Luck Dr. Park
OK - so the discussion is open for one hour for sure - with Dr Park - but it can be continued well after the hour is over if members choose to continue posting.
For members that would like to know what topics may be discussed they can view these reference posts.
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/show/736249
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/show/735974
I hope everyone has a great informational time.
Here is the open discussion off the Oprah show - again I feel the show was very good but not a full hormone show as I understood it would be this morning.
Tonight as far as I know Dr. Park who wrote the blog on Sleep Apnea and Thyroid Disorders accepted an invitation to join us tonight.
As long as his expecting wife does not go into labor:)........... Good Luck Dr. Park
OK - so the discussion is open for one hour for sure - with Dr Park - but it can be continued well after the hour is over if members choose to continue posting.
For members that would like to know what topics may be discussed they can view these reference posts.
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/show/736249
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/show/735974
I hope everyone has a great informational time.
Dr. Park,
Thank you for getting back to me on my questions. I really appreciate it. You are the first doctor I have spoke with who believes the Mono/Thyroid connection. I appreciate your insight on the rest, especially on my son with things I should look for and have tested in the near future. I do believe sleep issues are a huge, and very misdiagnosed problem. I have gone through a sleep study myself (April 2008). It came back completely normal, thank goodness. I was relieved to know there was no other underlying cause for my chronic insomnia and oversleeping. Although my sister-in-law is worried about my excessive daytime sleepiness. I know there is a mild form of narcolepsy that controls your daytime sleep/wake cycles. She is concerned I may have Hypersomnia. I am discussing having the Multiple Sleep Latency Test to rule it out. I'm still not sure I have that, but it is another step to figuring it all out.
Thank you for all your help and lending your time to our community.
-KD9ER
Thank you for getting back to me on my questions. I really appreciate it. You are the first doctor I have spoke with who believes the Mono/Thyroid connection. I appreciate your insight on the rest, especially on my son with things I should look for and have tested in the near future. I do believe sleep issues are a huge, and very misdiagnosed problem. I have gone through a sleep study myself (April 2008). It came back completely normal, thank goodness. I was relieved to know there was no other underlying cause for my chronic insomnia and oversleeping. Although my sister-in-law is worried about my excessive daytime sleepiness. I know there is a mild form of narcolepsy that controls your daytime sleep/wake cycles. She is concerned I may have Hypersomnia. I am discussing having the Multiple Sleep Latency Test to rule it out. I'm still not sure I have that, but it is another step to figuring it all out.
Thank you for all your help and lending your time to our community.
-KD9ER
Dr. Park,
Thank you so much for taking time from your busy day to help so many members on MedHelp and to stop by with this additional thread!!!
I have learned so much from your posts .. thank you again. You have made a difference in the lives of many people and from PM's I've received, some people are taking action and going to talk to their doctors about sleep apnea and their thyroids!
Anytime you have some free time, please know you are always welcomed to stop by on our community. You are such an asset to our members and all of MedHelp!
With regards,
C~
Co-CL Thyroid
Thank you so much for taking time from your busy day to help so many members on MedHelp and to stop by with this additional thread!!!
I have learned so much from your posts .. thank you again. You have made a difference in the lives of many people and from PM's I've received, some people are taking action and going to talk to their doctors about sleep apnea and their thyroids!
Anytime you have some free time, please know you are always welcomed to stop by on our community. You are such an asset to our members and all of MedHelp!
With regards,
C~
Co-CL Thyroid
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU
I WILL KEEP THIS AS AN OPEN POST.
Can you stop by on and off Dr. Park??
You information is so helpful.
Can I create a post for members to write questions on each week and see if you can pop in once a week to add your thoughts?
That would be amazing if you agree to that!
I WILL KEEP THIS AS AN OPEN POST.
Can you stop by on and off Dr. Park??
You information is so helpful.
Can I create a post for members to write questions on each week and see if you can pop in once a week to add your thoughts?
That would be amazing if you agree to that!
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
Sorry I had to leave so early. My 6 year old fell off his chair, but he's OK now.
Laura1967,
Formal sleep studies are well over $1000. There are now home-based studies. If you do your research and have some connections, there are ways of getting either a formal study or a home study very inexpensively or for free. If you're interested, I can get those resources to you.
Cindy,
One comment that I wrote in one of my posts is that during peri-menopause, progesterone is the first hormone that slowly diminishes. Estrogen stays relatively steady until near the very end. One interesting property about progesterone is that it's an upper airway muscle dilator. It promotes tongue muscle tone. So as you slowly lose progesterone, your tongue is more likely to fall back and obstruct, especially during deep sleep when your muscles are more relaxed. This cause less efficient sleep, which causes a low-grade stress response and hormonally aggravates weight gain. Weight gain slowly narrows the throat even more, and stress suppresses your reproductive and thyroid hormones. Being hypothyroid aggravate this vicious cycle. (Take a look a my recent article on pregnancy and progesterone.) One thing to realize is that hormones don't change by themselves in isolation. Your thyroid hormones are connected with cortisol, vitamin D and calcium metabolism, reproductive hormones, your nervous system, your appetite, your external stress levels, etc.
ChitChatNine
The reason why doctors almost never think about sleep apnea is that they still think that you have to be an older, heavy-set, snoring man with a big neck to have sleep apnea. Now we know that even young, thin women who don't snore can have it. Take a look at my articles on Medhelp, especially the one on UARS. I talk about thin in much more detail, as well as why this is happening in my book Sleep, Interrupted: A physician reveals the #1 reason why so many of us are sick and tired.
I'm willing to bet that the vast majority of people in this forum were relatively thin when younger, prefers not to sleep on your backs and have cold hands or feet. Intense fatigue, no matter how long you sleep, is a big one.
KD9ER,
It's interesting you mention mono. It's just a thought, but in people who are susceptible to these sleep-breathing problems, any infection or inflammation or fat that narrows the upper airway triggers a vicious cycle. Mono in particular involves your lymphoid tissues. Since your tonsils (including your lingual tonsils at the base of your tongue, if you still have them), swell tremendously with mono. That narrows your airway creating more obstructions and arousals, which forces up normal stomach juices into your throat, irritating your tonsils even more. Your stomach juices can also irritate your throat, giving you post-nasal drip, throat clearing, coughing, hoarseness, and other symptoms. It can also go into your lungs and nose. If your nose is stuffy, then a vacuum effect is created downstream, aggravating more tongue collapse.
Regarding how to approach your doctor, be honest with him or her. Voice your concerns, and have a dialogue. You never know.
I'm not aware of any studies regarding in-utero transmission of hypothyroidism. But then, I wouldn't be surprised. You could argue that whatever is causing the hypo condition is inherited. Interestingly, GERD is strongly associated with obstructive sleep apnea. Tremendous vacuum forces can be created in the throat, sucking up stomach juices. OSA is also linked to seizures. Something else to think about.
_______________________________________
If anyone has any other questions, please feel free to post here or come on over to the sleep-breathing forum.
Steven Park
http://www.doctorstevenpark.com
Laura1967,
Formal sleep studies are well over $1000. There are now home-based studies. If you do your research and have some connections, there are ways of getting either a formal study or a home study very inexpensively or for free. If you're interested, I can get those resources to you.
Cindy,
One comment that I wrote in one of my posts is that during peri-menopause, progesterone is the first hormone that slowly diminishes. Estrogen stays relatively steady until near the very end. One interesting property about progesterone is that it's an upper airway muscle dilator. It promotes tongue muscle tone. So as you slowly lose progesterone, your tongue is more likely to fall back and obstruct, especially during deep sleep when your muscles are more relaxed. This cause less efficient sleep, which causes a low-grade stress response and hormonally aggravates weight gain. Weight gain slowly narrows the throat even more, and stress suppresses your reproductive and thyroid hormones. Being hypothyroid aggravate this vicious cycle. (Take a look a my recent article on pregnancy and progesterone.) One thing to realize is that hormones don't change by themselves in isolation. Your thyroid hormones are connected with cortisol, vitamin D and calcium metabolism, reproductive hormones, your nervous system, your appetite, your external stress levels, etc.
ChitChatNine
The reason why doctors almost never think about sleep apnea is that they still think that you have to be an older, heavy-set, snoring man with a big neck to have sleep apnea. Now we know that even young, thin women who don't snore can have it. Take a look at my articles on Medhelp, especially the one on UARS. I talk about thin in much more detail, as well as why this is happening in my book Sleep, Interrupted: A physician reveals the #1 reason why so many of us are sick and tired.
I'm willing to bet that the vast majority of people in this forum were relatively thin when younger, prefers not to sleep on your backs and have cold hands or feet. Intense fatigue, no matter how long you sleep, is a big one.
KD9ER,
It's interesting you mention mono. It's just a thought, but in people who are susceptible to these sleep-breathing problems, any infection or inflammation or fat that narrows the upper airway triggers a vicious cycle. Mono in particular involves your lymphoid tissues. Since your tonsils (including your lingual tonsils at the base of your tongue, if you still have them), swell tremendously with mono. That narrows your airway creating more obstructions and arousals, which forces up normal stomach juices into your throat, irritating your tonsils even more. Your stomach juices can also irritate your throat, giving you post-nasal drip, throat clearing, coughing, hoarseness, and other symptoms. It can also go into your lungs and nose. If your nose is stuffy, then a vacuum effect is created downstream, aggravating more tongue collapse.
Regarding how to approach your doctor, be honest with him or her. Voice your concerns, and have a dialogue. You never know.
I'm not aware of any studies regarding in-utero transmission of hypothyroidism. But then, I wouldn't be surprised. You could argue that whatever is causing the hypo condition is inherited. Interestingly, GERD is strongly associated with obstructive sleep apnea. Tremendous vacuum forces can be created in the throat, sucking up stomach juices. OSA is also linked to seizures. Something else to think about.
_______________________________________
If anyone has any other questions, please feel free to post here or come on over to the sleep-breathing forum.
Steven Park
http://www.doctorstevenpark.com
Dr. Park---
No rush on getting back from your son. I know where you're coming from. I have an son with Autisim. When they need you they need you. So whenever you get around to answering these two questions, I'd greatly appreciate it. Thank you in advance.
1. I believe my Thyroid Issues really started after I recovered from Mono. Now, granted I have a HUGE family history of Thyroid Disorders of one such or another, but this is where I trace it back to. I am severely symptomatic of Hypothyroid, but my doctors do not listen. I'm a military spouse so I don't deal with the average doctor. How can I build a relationship with my doctors so they trust me to know I'm not self diagnosing, I'm just trying to be my advocate because no one else will? (My latest lab results: TSH ultra: 2.910 // FT4: .81 // T3-not free: 128)
2. I was diagnosed in 2005 with Hypothyroid by my first Endocrinologist. He retired and the new Endo removed the diagnosis as it did not meet *her* parameters for Hypo. I was actually doing good for a while with my first doc, we were working on establishing a lab pattern and discussing meds and alternative treatments. When my second doctor came along she ignored my symptoms and wouldn't see me the whole time I was pregnant in 2006! I have read a few books and some doctors theorize that thyroid problems can be transferred to the infant en-utero. My son was born late (3 weeks) and had a slue of continual medical issues. From GERD to seizures (due to the GERD--neuroligist ruled), to now Autisim. Is it possible that he could contract (for lack of a better word) my thyroid issues as a child? And how closely should we monitor him for that if it is a possibility?
Thank you again for your time. Hope all is well.
-KD9ER
No rush on getting back from your son. I know where you're coming from. I have an son with Autisim. When they need you they need you. So whenever you get around to answering these two questions, I'd greatly appreciate it. Thank you in advance.
1. I believe my Thyroid Issues really started after I recovered from Mono. Now, granted I have a HUGE family history of Thyroid Disorders of one such or another, but this is where I trace it back to. I am severely symptomatic of Hypothyroid, but my doctors do not listen. I'm a military spouse so I don't deal with the average doctor. How can I build a relationship with my doctors so they trust me to know I'm not self diagnosing, I'm just trying to be my advocate because no one else will? (My latest lab results: TSH ultra: 2.910 // FT4: .81 // T3-not free: 128)
2. I was diagnosed in 2005 with Hypothyroid by my first Endocrinologist. He retired and the new Endo removed the diagnosis as it did not meet *her* parameters for Hypo. I was actually doing good for a while with my first doc, we were working on establishing a lab pattern and discussing meds and alternative treatments. When my second doctor came along she ignored my symptoms and wouldn't see me the whole time I was pregnant in 2006! I have read a few books and some doctors theorize that thyroid problems can be transferred to the infant en-utero. My son was born late (3 weeks) and had a slue of continual medical issues. From GERD to seizures (due to the GERD--neuroligist ruled), to now Autisim. Is it possible that he could contract (for lack of a better word) my thyroid issues as a child? And how closely should we monitor him for that if it is a possibility?
Thank you again for your time. Hope all is well.
-KD9ER
I wrote this journal a while back ( Nov)
It is right on the topics we are discussing
If you wish - take a peek
http://www.medhelp.org/user_journals/show/41255
It is right on the topics we are discussing
If you wish - take a peek
http://www.medhelp.org/user_journals/show/41255
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