Boom! Thyroid cancer! Cancer again! Seriously?
Those were some of the things I was thinking at age 26 when I got the news.
I actually received the news accidentally over the phone at work from one of my doctors. He spilled the beans by mistake to me because he thought one of my other doctors had already broken the news of that critical and life changing piece of information to me. I will admit that was one of the worst days at work I have ever had. One of the downsides of having too many doctors is the possibility of that kind of miscommunication.
I was sitting at my desk in our open office setup trying to maintain control of myself while in the midst of that conversation with that oncologist. All the while knowing my coworkers could see and hear me quite well. I’m not entirely sure I succeeded in maintaining control. I do know that I very quickly ran down two flights of stairs and knocked on the door of our HR manager trying to figure out how I was going to manage this crisis, knowing I would need time off of work. A big huge thank you to her and so many others in that company from coworkers across the country and management who went above and beyond to help me get through a very difficult year. I know some of those people will be reading this and your kindness has not been forgotten.
I was also in for a lightning speed course on what the thyroid is, what it does and why it’s important. Now, I’m a pretty good student but that was like a full throttle education overnight. Absorb as much as possible and go from there.
Then I needed to make a life changing decision based on all of that new information. Talk about pressure.
So what exactly is the thyroid? What does it do? Why it is important even though it’s really small? Here are some of the very important things that the thyroid is involved with or controls. It’s a tiny organ but very might in how it impacts your health.
Regulates metabolism 🔥
Keeps energy levels up ⚡
Regulates temperature 🌡️
Balances hormones ⚖️
Improves brain health 🧠
Supports heart health ❤️
Controls muscle function 💪
Strengthens bones 🦴
Lowers cholesterol 🧬
Improves balance 🧍♀️
I won’t go into much more detail about what the thyroid regulates and operates. Hopefully the above info and graphic gives you a snapshot of just how important it is. The thyroid works very closely in partnership with multiple other organs to do all of the critical work it needs to do for you.
In 2006 I made the life changing decision to have my thyroid surgically removed. It was one of the toughest decisions I have ever made regarding my health.
Everyone has a different response to thyroid imbalance or regulating after the thyroid has been removed, but for me I had a few significant issues that I still need to work very hard to balance every day.
The thyroid plays a significant part in managing healthy sleep patterns. That became a really big issue for me for years as my doctors and I worked to level out the regulation of the thyroid function with medication. When I was really out of balance, I was barely sleeping. Even though I was very exhausted. That was really tough.
Body temperature regulation is another function the thyroid plays a part in. It was one of my major symptoms. I could swing from being hot to feeling chilled pretty easily, but most frequently I would run really hot. This would often happen when I was sleeping and woke me up quite often. So I had two things affecting my sleep patterns. It took quite a few years to effectively balance these things.
Hair loss. Yup, it is unfortunately a common issue. I’ve struggled with managing this one ever since. Many people have difficulty with this one and it can take a lot of work to change the tide from loss to growth.
So friend you might be asking why I am sharing these things. Well good question. I know from my situation and also from so many other people’s stories they were caught off guard when they were told they had any issues with their thyroid.
Many people have never ever heard of this tiny, butterfly shaped organ in your neck that plays a mighty part in their health. I want you to learn more, know more and be better prepared to balance your thyroid health whatever health challenges you may face.
So as always friend I encourage you to make a choice. Choose to be more informed about your health and specifically your thyroid. Don’t wait until you are forced to take a crash course like I had to with that difficult phone call at work from my doctor. Learn more so you can make more informed decisions for your health and your loved one’s health.
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Melodee Glassford 