Energy – Why Hashi’s Steals Yours

I spent part of December interviewing women with Hashimoto’s and guess what their biggest complaint was?  No Energy.  Guess what they want to improve?  Energy.

If you are struggling with Hashi’s this is likely not a big surprise to you. 

Since this is your biggest complaint, I wanted to spend this week talking a little bit about Hashi’s and loss of energy.

The thing about Hashimoto’s is that is isn’t generally something that hits you fast.  It takes its time and it slowly robs you of your quality of life.  You struggle with a myriad of symptoms that make no sense. They morph and shift and go away and then other weird symptoms take their place.  All the while your energy is slowly deteriorating.  But it isn’t fast enough for you to pay attention because you have been paying attention to those other strange symptoms.  One day you wake up and you don’t know what happened.  You literally can’t get out of bed, you just want to sleep all day.  And very likely, your best sleep is first thing in the morning when you should be getting up to start your life.  You are literally sleeping to exist.  Sucks.

There are reasons for the energy deterioration and yes, you can fix it. 

So, let me chat on that a little bit.

Now, everyone is a little bit different so it is likely that not everything I’m going to talk about will apply to you, but you will get a really good idea of how it happens and what can be done to make some improvement.

I’ve talked at nauseum about what it takes to have an autoimmune disease, but I think it is relevant to mention again.  You can also read more about it here.

To have autoimmune disease you have to have 3 things.

1. Genetic propensity
2. Triggers
3. Leaky gut

Leaky gut is a really big deal when it comes to energy or energy loss.  I have a really good webinar on leaky gut that you can listen to here if you want more education, but I will cover it briefly here.  The small intestine has two major roles.

1. Nutrient absorption
2. Protection from bad pathogens or toxins from making it through into our system

I want to focus on nutrient absorption.  The lining is made up of fingers covered in cells covered in smaller fingers that are covered in little hairs.  Complicated?  Yep.  And their only function is nutrient absorption.

As this lining breaks downs, so do the little hairs and fingers meaning nutrient absorption starts to deteriorate.    Mal-absorption and mal-nutrition becomes a reality.  And your energy levels are significantly affected.

What can you do?  I highly recommend all of my clients immediately start the Autoimmune Protocol which is a very strict Paleo diet.  It goes a long way to helping your body reduce the inflammation and help your gut to heal and absorb nutrients.  For more information on the AIP, you can read it here.  I also like shakes for breakfast as it is a very quick and easy way for your body to absorb nutrients and help you start the day off right.

This is one thing.

Adrenal fatigue is also real for most struggling with autoimmune illnesses.  The adrenals are part of the Hypothalamus-Pituitary-Adrenal axis which is at the center of operation in the body.  When the body is under stress because of life or illness, the adrenals go into overdrive.  It is our fight or flight mechanism.  Obviously designed millenniums ago to deal with the tigers and bears but now our lives in general have us existing there far too often.  Over time, the adrenals can’t sustain working that hard and they become fatigued.  Another source of low energy.

What can you do?  External stressors like traffic, relationships, kids, work, etc are all on you.  Finding a way to help you relieve the stress in your life is crucial to helping your body get to a better place.  This alone may not be enough, but it definitely is part of the formula and must be worked on.  You can read more about stress here.

Iron absorption is also something that many with Hashi’s struggle with in general.  But don’t just run out and buy yourself an iron supplement.  First things first.  It is imperative that you have your iron and ferritin levels checked.  Ferritin is your stores of iron in your body.  Your iron level tells you what is in your blood.

What can you do?  If you are low, there are very good supplements available that are easy on the body, but they are not found in your grocery stores.  You will have to reach out to a practitioner in the Functional Medicine community to get access to them.  The supplements in the grocery stores are not necessarily clean nor bio-available.  They don’t break down easily in the body and you won’t get the benefit of them.

You may find after tackling all of this that it isn’t enough to improve your energy.  It might not be.  I did say that it takes 3 things to have autoimmune.  Triggers are a big player in autoimmune.  For Hashimoto’s, there are many triggers.  And if your illness is in layers, they will need to be peeled back one at a time.

I have had many layers to peel.  Some easy, some hard.  And every time I dealt with a layer, hoping there weren’t any more, it seems there was another.  However, in eliminating the layers, I have experienced additional improvements in the way I felt.  And it has been worth the effort.

I work with professional women over 40 that have Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis or hypothyroidism.  95% of women with hypothyroidism actually have Hashimoto’s.

If you are tired of existing without energy, not enjoying your family, of barely living your life – talk to me!

I have openings for 5 Vitality Breakthrough Sessions that are normally $250. 

But right now, I am offering them for free. 

Email me at clientcare@yourhealthmadesimple.com, put Vitality Breakthrough Session in the title and I will get back to you to schedule a time to talk.

Can’t wait to chat.  Have a great rest of your week.

Photo by Benjamin Combs on Unsplash