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Thyroid Disorder in Women
"At least 1 in 10 women can expect to suffer from some sort of thyroid
disorder during her lifetime. Whether thyroid disorders strike at
puberty, during peak reproductive years, during or after her pregnancy,
around menopause, or after age sixty, a woman's body is uniquely -- and
dramatically -- affected." For women affected with a thyroid disorder,
these statistics probably come as no surprise, often they have a family
history that may include a variety of thyroid disorders. The
Thyroid Sourcebook for Women by M. Sara Rosenthal is a must read for
women who have a diagnosed thyroid disorder.
As the author, herself a thyroid patient, states in the introduction,
"...what Dr. Purdy points out is no different than what women have been
saying to me for years about their experiences with thyroid disease:
many are ignored or misdiagnosed with stress-related or psychiatric
disorders; many are unable to obtain adequate information from their
doctors about thyroid disease; many are abused and infantilized (i.e.,
treated like children) by their physicians." For this reason, Rosenthal
has written a book that sets out to be a thorough guide to understanding
the thyroid's function, it's unique relationship to the female hormone
and immune systems, and they ways in which thyroid disorders manifest
themselves in women.
When women joke about needing thyroid medication because they've gained
weight or are struggling to take it off, they're demonstrating only one
aspect of how the thyroid manifests itself in our health. What most of
us don't know is that the thyroid gland affects everything from
menstruation and fertility to depression and fatigue, and can be the
cause of emotional and behavioral changes. The first chapter, "All
About Eve -- And the Thyroid Gland" does a wonderful job of explaining
how the thyroid functions, and its relationship to the other parts of
the endocrine system, especially the pituitary gland and the parathyroid
glands. The complex nature of the thyroid is made more understandable,
and it becomes clearer why the range of disorders that it can cause is
so broad. Rosenthal includes a section about tracing thyroid disease
in your family, and it contains all kinds of interesting information
that could ring a bell for a reader who might not otherwise question the
possibility of a familial thyroid condition. Also in this chapter is a
section on the relationship of PMS to thyroid problems, and Rosenthal
presents a list of symptoms that might help a patient and her doctor
sort things out.
Rosenthal focuses a good portion of the book on the two commonest
symptoms of thyroid problems -- hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism --
respectively underactive and overactive thyroid hormone production. "In
most cases, overactive and underactive thyroid glands are symptoms
of specific thyroid diseases; they are not the cause of a
disorder. ...Sometimes, to simplify explanations, doctors may choose
only to tell patients that they are "hyperthyroid" or "hypothyroid,"
sparing them the details of the actual malfunction that caused their
over or underactive symptoms. However it is not possible to
spontaneously become hyper- or hypothyroid without the existence of a
particular disorder." The second chapter then sets about to explain
what the commonest of these disorders are and the symptoms that they
produce.
For women who are experiencing problems surrounding fertility, the
chapter "Fertility, Pregnancy, and the Thyroid" is particularly
pertinent if you suspect thyroid disorders. As Rosenthal lays it out in
the first sentences, "There are two groups of women reading this
chapter. The first group is concerned about first developing a
thyroid problem during or after pregnancy, while the second group is
concerned about how a diagnosis of thyroid disease will interfere with
conception or pregnancy. This chapter will address all of these
concerns." Indeed, the chapter covers in detail how the thyroid is
related to fertility and what the impact is when there is thyroid
disease. Likewise, the relationship between pregnancy, postpartum and
thyroid disease is explained so that if you are affected by any of these
factors, the book provides you with material to discuss with your doctor.
The Thyroid Sourcebook for Women is available at The Health
Library in hard copy, and it is also part of our
eBook collection.
The Health Library resources are not intended as a substitute for
medical care.
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