Podcasts about TSH

1 in 6 couples worldwide is now struggling to conceive — and in most cases, the real root causes never get tested. Dr. Josh Axe walks through the 6 functional and ancient medicine root causes driving the infertility epidemic, the suppressed Fauci texts on COVID vaccines and miscarriage risk, and the exact diet, supplement, and lifestyle plan that can shift your fertility in as little as 90 days. Food is medicine, and your body was designed to heal — this episode shows you how to work with it, not against it. **In this episode:** - The Fauci texts that went public: what he privately said about mRNA vaccines and miscarriage risk, and what two large-scale studies (200,000+ pregnancies) actually found - The #1 root cause Josh sees in clinical practice — and why fixing blood sugar alone has helped more women conceive than almost anything else - Why your TSH can look completely normal while thyroid antibodies are silently blocking ovulation and raising miscarriage risk - The 10-marker fertility blood panel Josh runs — the specific labs (free T3, ferritin, TPO antibodies, fasting insulin) that standard workups miss - What Chinese medicine calls "kidney yang deficiency" and "damp phlegm," what those patterns actually mean in functional terms, and the warming foods that address both - The 90-day fertility window: why eggs take 90 days and sperm 74 to mature, and how today's changes show up in 3 monthsDownload my FREE PDF "Fertility Foundations": https://bit.ly/draxefertilityfoundations Uncover what's really going on in your body with advanced biomarker testing for hormones, thyroid, and metabolism— plus a 1-hour consultation with a Senior Health Advisor! → http://mybloodwork.com *Disclaimer: The bloodwork our team runs at mybloodwork.com covers a handful of the biomarkers listed in the guide above — including critical thyroid and metabolic markers — plus a 1-hour consultation with a Senior Health Advisor, but does NOT cover all 25. You will want to consult your primary or functional doctor for the entire list. Thank you to our sponsors! Sunlighten Sauna: https://get.sunlighten.com/axepodcast Manukora Manuka Honey: https://manukora.com/axe Watch The Dr. Josh Axe Show every Monday & Thursday on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@drjoshaxe?sub_confirmation=1

Follicles not responding? Cycle cancelled? Told it is your low AMH? Book a free Functional Fertility Second Opinion before your next IVF decision → fabfertile.com You have done the injections. You have gone in for monitoring. They may have increased the medication already. And then you hear it again. The follicles are not responding. There are one or two growing. Maybe the cycle gets cancelled. Maybe you make it all the way to retrieval and get one egg. When you ask why, the answer comes back the same way every time. It is your low AMH. It is your age. You are a poor responder. Those are real factors, and I am not going to tell you the AMH does not matter. But if you are about to put your body, your finances, and yourself through another cycle, there is a bigger question worth asking. Is low AMH the whole explanation? Because these are two separate statements: I have diminished ovarian reserve, and low AMH explains everything that happened during that cycle. They are not the same statement. In this episode I walk through what AMH does and does not tell you, what I would want to understand about the 90 days before stimulation started, and what to ask your clinic before you go again. The full thyroid panel, including antibodies rather than TSH alone. Blood sugar and how it moves across a day. hs-CRP and unnecessary inflammation. Vitamin D you may be taking and may not be absorbing. Gut health, food sensitivity, the vaginal microbiome, nutrient status, and an autoimmune issue that gets mentioned as an afterthought when it belongs at the front of the file. CHAPTERS 00:00 The follicles are not responding 01:00 About Sarah and the team 01:20 What AMH does and does not tell you 02:00 Two statements that are not the same 02:20 The 90 days before stimulation started 02:40 hs-CRP and unnecessary inflammation 03:00 Optimal, not normal 03:20 Blood sugar regulation across the day 03:30 The full thyroid panel including antibodies 03:50 Nutrient depletion and secondary infertility 04:10 The vitamin D you may not be absorbing 04:30 An autoimmune issue is not a by the way 05:00 A clean diet that may not be the right diet for you 05:30 Hypervigilance and nervous system load 06:20 One client who did not have enough follicles to qualify 06:40 What I am not claiming 08:00 Annie and Miles. AMH 0.15, FSH 33 08:40 What Your Clinic Missed 09:00 What to ask before another IVF 09:40 Thirty days without medication, and doing this in parallel 11:00 Book a Second Opinion with your partner WHAT YOUR CLINIC MISSED If you have no idea which of these markers to run, we have a checklist called What Your Clinic Missed. It is a list of markers worth reviewing before a donor egg decision or before another IVF, so you can look at your own results and go from there. Email hello@fabfertile.ca with MISSED in the subject line and we will send it to you. FUNCTIONAL FERTILITY SECOND OPINION Book with your partner and load your labs into the secure portal. Before the call I review your fertility history and bloodwork from both partners, looking for patterns, unanswered questions and gaps. We are not diagnosing. Sometimes the review confirms that moving forward with the next IVF makes sense. Sometimes there are questions worth addressing first. Book your call with your partner at fabfertile.com If you want to know whether the call is right for you first, email hello@fabfertile.ca with FERTILE in the subject line and tell me a little about your situation. ABOUT THE HOST I'm Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile and host of Get Pregnant Naturally, a podcast with over one million downloads. My functional fertility team works with couples navigating low AMH and failed IVF, reviewing functional lab results, gut microbiome, food sensitivity, vaginal microbiome, nutrigenomics, HTMA, DUTCH, toxin testing, and bloodwork alongside nervous system work, to help identify patterns that may not have been considered. We work alongside your medical team, not instead of them. Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile, host of Get Pregnant Naturally (1M+ downloads), and author of Fabulously Fertile. If this episode helped, leave a review. It is how other women find this work.

What if your low energy, stubborn weight gain, brain fog, poor recovery, mood changes, and stalled progress aren't simply signs that you need to work harder—but clues that your thyroid isn't functioning optimally? Dr. Amie Hornaman, author of The Thyroid Fix, joins us to explain why she considers the thyroid the body's "master gland" and why standard thyroid testing may not tell the entire story. They break down TSH, free T3, free T4, reverse T3 and thyroid antibodies; the difference between "normal" and optimal lab results; Hashimoto's and hypothyroidism; and when thyroid hormone replacement may be appropriate. Amie also explains how gluten, over-exercising, chronic under-eating, nutrient deficiencies and aggressive GLP-1 use may affect thyroid health and metabolism. Plus, she explains the importance of iodine, selenium, magnesium, protein and dietary fat, detoxification, and so much more! Follow Amie @dramiehornaman Follow Chase @chase_chewning ----- 00:00 – WHOOP: Stop Guessing and Start Measuring 01:38 – Is Your Thyroid the Missing Piece? 03:20 – Why the Thyroid Is Your Body's "Master Gland" 06:12 – The Thyroid Labs You Actually Need 07:18 – Operation Podcast 08:15 – TSH, Free T3, Free T4 & Reverse T3 Explained 10:02 – Testing for Hashimoto's and Thyroid Antibodies 10:54 – "Normal" Labs vs. Optimal Thyroid Function 12:49 – When Thyroid Hormone Replacement Makes Sense 14:27 – Can You Improve Thyroid Function Naturally? 16:27 – Gluten, Hashimoto's & Your Thyroid 19:06 – What Happens If Your Thyroid Is Removed? 21:00 – C15:0 essential fatty acids 22:18 – Wellness Habits That Could Be Hurting Your Thyroid 23:01 – Can Too Much Exercise Damage Thyroid Function? 24:30 – Resistance Training vs. Cardio for Thyroid Health 25:57 – Foods That May Interfere With Thyroid Function 27:13 – Can You Take Too Many Thyroid Supplements? 27:55 – Amie's Foundational Thyroid Supplement Stack 29:38 – The Controversy Around Iodine 31:07 – Fluoride, Chlorine, Bromide & Iodine 33:22 – Thyroid Function, Detox & Sauna 34:58 – Hypothyroidism vs. Hyperthyroidism 37:28 – Hashimoto's and Autoimmune Thyroid Disease 38:08 – The "Silent Thyroid Killer" 38:20 – GLP-1s, Under-Eating & Thyroid Function 40:53 – Why Eating Less Doesn't Always Mean Losing More 42:04 – Calories vs. Macros for Thyroid Health 43:32 – Protein, Fat, Carbs & Insulin Resistance 45:09 – Rapid Fire: Most Underrated Thyroid Fix 45:18 – Is Calories-In, Calories-Out Broken? 46:13 – The ONE Food Amie Says to Eat Every Day 47:09 – Where to Connect With Dr. Amie Hornaman 47:51 – What Does Ever Forward Mean to Amie? ----- Episode resources: FREE WHOOP activity tracker 15% off Fatty15 C15:0 essential fatty acids 20% off Operation Podcast studios with code EVERFORWARD

How Long Does It Take You to Wake Up? The Cortisol Cheater Question You hit snooze six times. You need two cups of coffee before you can hold a conversation. Or the opposite: your eyes open at a level ten, heart already going, anxiety already running. There is a name for what is happening, and there is a test for it. Dr. Terri sits down with Carrie Jones, ND, FABNE, MPH, MSCP, the naturopathic physician known as the Queen of Hormones, for a conversation about the hormone testing almost nobody is ordering. Not blood. Not saliva. Urine metabolites, which show you not just how much of a hormone you have, but where it goes after your body is finished with it. Because that turns out to be the part that matters. Estrogen can travel down three different pathways, and one of them is protective while another is genotoxic. Testosterone can convert into something far more potent, which is why some women get hair loss and jawline acne on a dose that works beautifully for someone else. Progesterone can knock one woman out in ten minutes and do almost nothing for the woman next to her on an identical dose. None of that shows up on a standard panel. They also spend real time on cortisol, which has become the most misunderstood hormone on the internet. Dr. Carrie makes the case that we are doing to cortisol exactly what we did to estrogen after the Women's Health Initiative: blaming the messenger, missing the message, and reaching for supplements to suppress something the body is doing on purpose. This one is for anyone who has been told their hormones are fine, or who has tried hormone therapy and quit because of side effects nobody could explain. What you'll discover: What urine metabolite testing actually measures, and why hormones have to go somewhere (02:03) The three estrogen pathways, and which one you want to push toward (04:45) The pathway that explains breast tenderness, spotting, and estrogen sensitivity (07:58) Why testosterone causes acne and hair loss in some women and not others (09:23) Alpha versus beta: why two women on the same progesterone dose have completely different nights (11:16) Whether the route you take progesterone changes the effect (14:20) What cortisol metabolites reveal about your thyroid that a TSH will not (19:39) Free T3, reverse T3, and reference ranges that are normal but not optimal (21:39) Poor, poor cortisol: what it is actually doing for you, and why we get it backward (26:29) The everyday medications quietly suppressing your cortisol results (30:11) Serum, saliva, or urine: which cortisol test answers which question (34:57) The cortisol awakening response, and the cheater question you can answer yourself (36:24) When a urine metabolite panel is worth the money, and when it is not (40:22) Cruciferous vegetables, DIM, and the caution nobody gives you before you start (42:39) Supplements that support the DHT pathway, and why sourcing decides whether they work (47:01) Alcohol as a bully: how the liver decides what gets detoxified first (52:55) You are not stuck with the hormone you were dealt. You are working with a pathway, and pathways are modifiable. The Dr. Terri Show is presented by EVEXIAS Health Solutions. For more, visit: https://www.evexias.com Connect with Dr. Terri:

Thyroid dysfunction is often treated like it is easy to rule out. You ask for labs, your doctor checks TSH, and if that one marker is not flagged, you are told your thyroid is fine.But what if that is the problem?In this episode of Biohacking Beauty, we sit down with Dr. Amie Hornaman to unpack what most thyroid conversations skip: the difference between being “normal” on paper and having enough active thyroid hormone available to your cells. She explains why TSH is not a thyroid hormone, why T4-only medication may not be enough for many people, and why women can keep struggling even after being told their thyroid is not the issue.Dr. Amie is known as The Thyroid Fixer, a functional medicine doctor, host of The Thyroid (and Hormone) Fixer podcast, founder of the Advanced Thyroid and Hormone Clinic, and author of The Thyroid Fix. After being misdiagnosed by six different doctors, she built her practice around helping patients get the answers conventional medicine often misses.What's Discussed:(01:22) Why so many women feel like their body is rebelling against them.(04:32) Why the diagnosed hypothyroidism number may not reflect the real problem.(07:11) The difference between being undiagnosed, undertreated, and mistreated.(10:54) Why skin aging after 40 is not only an estrogen conversation.(14:22) How quickly thyroid and hormone changes can show up in the skin.(20:57) Why skin aging needs an inside-out and outside-in approach.(28:35) What markers belong on a full thyroid panel beyond TSH.(30:55) Why free T3, reverse T3, and thyroid antibodies matter.(38:48) What thyropause is and why it can overlap with perimenopause and menopause.(45:01) A one-morning plan to support thyroid, insulin, protein, sleep, and skin health.Listen to this episode of Biohacking Beauty to understand why your thyroid labs may not be telling the whole story, and why your skin, hair, metabolism, mood, and energy may be showing what one marker missed.Find more from Young Goose:Use code PODCAST10 to get 10% OFF your first purchase, and if you're a returning customer use the code PODCAST5 to get 5% OFF at younggoose.comInstagram: @young_goose_skincareFind more from Dr. Amie Hornaman: Website: dramie.comInstagram: @dramiehornaman Podcast: dramie.com/podcast/

You have been doing the work. You understand your patterns. And you are still waking up unable to face the day. When the body decides survival is the priority, it stops converting thyroid hormone into the form your cells can use. It produces an inactive version instead, called reverse T3, and that version blocks the active hormone at the cell door. The result is a body running low and slow. It is the same physiology I call chronic functional freeze. Dr. Amie Hornaman ranks reverse T3 as the single most important thyroid marker, ahead of free T3, and it is a marker almost nobody orders. She also holds that stress and trauma on their own can raise it. This is Part 1 of a two part conversation. ➡️ Full show notes, research and timestamps: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/post/can-a-thyroid-problem-keep-me-in-chronic-freeze WHAT YOU'LL LEARN: Why a normal TSH does not settle the question of whether your thyroid is involved What reverse T3 is, and why Dr. Hornaman ranks it above free T3 How stress and trauma can shift thyroid function directly Why the hibernation state and chronic functional freeze are the same physiology What happens to the thyroid in the year after an injury or accident Why you cannot think your way out of a decision the body made below thought RESOURCES: Take the free 2-Minute Assessment for Stored Trauma: https://biologyoftrauma.com/quiz Stress or Trauma Guide The Biology of Trauma: https://www.biologyoftrauma.com/book The Thyroid Fix by Dr. Amie Hornaman Part 2 releases August 20, 2026.

Failed IVF? Low AMH? High FSH? Told donor eggs? Book a free Functional Fertility Second Opinion before your next fertility decision → fabfertile.com Your cycle was cancelled on day eight or day nine. Someone called and said there were not enough follicles and it was not worth going ahead. At the follow up, you heard the words poor responder. What do you actually do with that? Change the protocol. Go again next month. Take three months off and work on your health. Get another opinion. Or accept that this is what your ovaries are capable of and stop looking for an explanation. This is where I see women get stuck, because if you are listening to this, you have already done a lot. Clean eating, the supplements, CoQ10, a methylfolate prenatal, vitamin D, no alcohol, no plastics, acupuncture twice a week, reading It Starts With The Egg. Almost nobody walks into IVF blindly. None of that answers the question in front of you now. What should I actually do before another retrieval? In this episode, I walk through the three questions I would want answered. None of them are more supplements, and none of them are another checklist. A cancelled cycle tells you how your ovaries responded to medication. It was never designed to tell you about the environment those eggs were developing in during the ninety days before the injections started. What I cover: what the cycle actually established and what it was never built to answer. What happened in those ninety days, including the full thyroid panel with antibodies rather than TSH alone, ferritin where we look at 80 to 100, high sensitivity CRP where we like it below one, and absorption. Your partner's side, including DNA fragmentation, sperm antibodies and the seminal microbiome across his seventy-four days. And the question to ask your fertility team before you agree to another retrieval: what exactly are we changing, and why? I am not telling you which protocol to be on. That is a conversation with your fertility team. I am also not saying any one of these markers explains a cancelled cycle. That is not the claim I am making. It is about whether the investigation was finished before the next decision. CHAPTERS 00:00 Your cycle was cancelled and you heard poor responder 01:00 Question one, what did the cycle actually tell us 02:00 Everything you had already done before the cycle 03:00 Question two, what happened in the ninety days before stimulation 04:00 Full thyroid panel, ferritin, high sensitivity CRP and absorption 05:00 His side, DNA fragmentation, and why this is personal for me 06:00 What Your Clinic Missed, and what we actually look at 07:00 Question three, if you go again, what will be different 08:00 The Functional Fertility Second Opinion 09:00 Closing WHAT YOUR CLINIC MISSED A list of markers worth reviewing before another IVF cycle or a donor egg decision. It also gives you a sense of what we look at with clients, beyond bloodwork. Email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject line MISSED, and we will send you the guide. FUNCTIONAL FERTILITY SECOND OPINION A free 45-minute call where I review your bloodwork, your history, and your partner's results with you. Bring your partner and load your labs before the call. Email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject line FERTILE, or book here. ABOUT THE HOST I'm Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile and host of Get Pregnant Naturally, a podcast with over one million downloads. My functional fertility team works with couples navigating low AMH and failed IVF, reviewing functional lab results, gut microbiome, food sensitivity, vaginal microbiome, nutrigenomics, HTMA, DUTCH, toxin testing, and bloodwork alongside nervous system work, to help identify patterns that may not have been considered. We work alongside your medical team, not instead of them. Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile, host of Get Pregnant Naturally (1M+ downloads), and author of Fabulously Fertile. If this episode helped, leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It is how other women find this work.

Blueprint info session - (doors close August 24) - https://www.sarahkleinerwellness.com/offers/ExuLzY2G/checkoutLow ferritin can leave you exhausted, shedding hair, and wired at night even when your bloodwork looks "normal." In this episode I break down what "ferritin face" really means, the ferritin numbers that actually matter, and the exact labs to bring to your provider.I share my own story (my ferritin dropped to a 9), the three ferritin patterns to know, why "normal" is not the same as optimal, and the root causes most people miss like estrogen clearance, gut absorption, and blood loss. None of this is medical advice, it's here to help you ask better questions and advocate for yourself.Some of the links below are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. I only share things I actually use and trust.Substack ferritin/iron article with my full personal protocol, estrogen clearance protocol, HCL protocol, and the extended lab lists - https://sarahkleinerwellness.substack.com/p/two-things-everyone-with-a-ferritin?r=5eztl9&utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=post%20viewerPrevious episode: "5 diet trends that can increase estrogen dominance" - https://youtu.be/60U3Fuk340UUlta Labs, for ordering your own direct-to-consumer labs -https://www.ultalabtests.com/oxygenmaskmeditationMelatonin hair serum / hair care system - https://monatsocialshop.com/SARAH-KLEINER?q=ir-clinical-hair-thinning-defenseShampoo + Conditioner I use - https://monatsocialshop.com/SARAH-KLEINER?q=thick-full-haircare-duoFermenting Fairy kefir —code sarahk - https://fermentingfairy.com/products/vanilla-bean-coconut-milkLab list: Low ferritin is never just one marker. Bring these to your provider (not medical advice): ferritin, serum iron, transferrin saturation (TSAT), transferrin, TIBC, CBC (hemoglobin, RBC count, MCV), hs-CRP, ESR, copper, ceruloplasmin, B12, folate, full thyroid panel (TSH, Free T3, Free T4, Reverse T3, thyroid antibodies), liver markers, kidney markers, plus your symptoms and bleeding history. Cofactors to check: copper, retinol (vitamin A), B12, B2, B6, folate This video is not medical advice & as a supporter to you and your health journey - I encourage you to monitor your labs and work with a professional!________________________________________Get all my free guides and product recommendations to get started on your journey!https://www.sarahkleinerwellness.com/all-free-resourcesCheck out all my courses to understand how to improve your mitochondrial health & experience long lasting health! (Use code PODCAST to save 10%) - https://www.sarahkleinerwellness.com/coursesMy free product guide with all product recommendations and discount codes:https://www.canva.com/design/DAF7mlgZpJI/xVyE4tiQFEWJmh_Xwx8Kbw/view?utm_content=DAF7mlgZpJIFree Webinar on Light & Health (includes free light bulb guide) - https://www.sarahkleinerwellness.com/mycircadianapp-free-webinarGet Early Access to Podcast Episodes & my Seasonal Food Course + UVB+Red Light Therapy course for free -  https://open.substack.com/pub/sarahkleinerwellness/p/uvbred-light-protocol?r=5eztl9&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=trueQuick note, some of the links in my description are affiliate links, so I may earn a small commission if you use them, and it doesn't cost you anything extra. I only ever share stuff I actually use.

On this episode, Jared welcomes functional nutritional therapy practitioner and blood chemistry specialist Shea Sallee for a fascinating conversation about what routine blood work may reveal beyond the standard lab report. Together, they explore the difference between conventional reference ranges and functional ranges, discuss important markers like fasting insulin, GGT, ALP, ferritin, and thyroid labs, and explain how nutrient imbalances can influence overall health and well-being. They also cover the role of symptoms, blood chemistry, hair analysis, and other functional assessments in building a more complete picture of health. If you've ever been told your labs are "normal" but still haven't felt your best, this episode offers practical insights into understanding your blood work from a broader perspective.Additional Information:Shea's Health & NutritionSheasHealth.com801-492-2723Visit the podcast website here: VitalityRadio.comYou can follow @vitalitynutritionbountiful and @vitalityradio on Instagram, or Vitality Radio and Vitality Nutrition on Facebook. Join us also in the Vitality Radio Podcast Listener Community on Facebook. Shop the products that Jared mentions at vitalitynutrition.com. Let us know your thoughts about this episode using the hashtag #vitalityradio and please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts. Thank you!Just a reminder that this podcast is for educational purposes only. The FDA has not evaluated the podcast. The information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. The advice given is not intended to replace the advice of your medical professional.This podcast is produced by DrTalks.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://drtalks.com/podcast-service/

Apply to Become a 1-on-1 Patient DianeKazer.com/PATIENT All Yeptide Resources DianeKazer.com/YEPTIDES Join Our Elite VIP Tribe DianeKazer.com/VIP I can't take it anymore. Western medicine diagnoses people with autoimmune disease, hypothyroidism, IBS, high cholesterol, stubborn weight, fatigue… And then treats every one of those things like it's an isolated problem. Thyroid low? → Here's thyroid medication. Can't lose weight? → Eat less. Exercise more. Gut symptoms? → Here's another prescription. H. pylori? → Here's an antibiotic. But WHO THE HELL is asking WHY? Have you ever been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease… but nobody investigated WHY your immune system started attacking your own body? Have thyroid problems… but your care stops at checking TSH and adjusting medication? Struggle with stubborn weight despite eating well, exercising and taking all the "right" supplements? Deal with bloating, constipation, fatigue, brain fog, hair loss or inflammation—and get told it's age, hormones or stress? Or maybe your bloodwork keeps coming back "normal"… while you KNOW you don't feel normal? I see it all day, every day, with nearly EVERY patient that comes to us. And here's what I want to know: Why is the immune system dysregulated? Why is the thyroid struggling? Why is the gut inflamed? Why is an infection like H. pylori thriving? What does the microbiome look like? What environmental toxins and exposures could be adding to the burden? Are the liver, kidneys, lymph and bowels adequately supporting elimination? And if a doctor is going to prescribe an antibiotic for something like H. pylori… did anyone even investigate whether that strain carries resistance genes to the drug they're about to prescribe? Now ask yourself the BIG question: Has anyone ever gone looking for what might be underneath your diagnosis?

What if everything you've been told about your "normal" thyroid labs is wrong? After years of struggling with unexplained weight gain and fatigue, I wish I had known then what I know now. My guest today, Dr. Amie Hornaman, experienced this firsthand. A former competitive bodybuilder, she suddenly found herself gaining weight and spiraling into a deep depression. Despite strict dieting and exercise, six different doctors told her she was "normal." It wasn't until she found a practitioner who looked beyond standard testing that she discovered the truth: she had Hashimoto's and was suffering from what she now calls "thyropause." In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Amie, a functional medicine practitioner and founder of the Institute for Thyroid and Hormone Optimization. We dive deep into what thyropause actually is, why standard thyroid testing is failing women, and what every woman in midlife needs to know about the connection between sex hormones and thyroid health. The medical establishment is finally catching up to what Dr. Amie and I have been saying for years. We cover everything from the science behind T2, the forgotten thyroid hormone, to why women are routinely dismissed by their doctors. You will learn what you can do right now to actually optimize your hormones, not just accept the symptoms of aging.

Labs read "normal" but you're gaining midsection weight, foggy and running at 70%? Your thyroid - not just perimenopause - may be the missing variable. Dr. Amie Hornaman explains why TSH alone misses the picture, how elevated reverse T3 "pools" and blocks T3 at the cell even when free T3 looks optimal, and why roughly 98% of women don't thrive on T4-only. She links falling progesterone, rising thyroid-binding globulin, low ferritin and the "thyropause" hitting 80-90% of women over 40. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN Why a "normal" TSH can completely miss a thyroid problem - and the five markers that actually reveal what's happening What reverse T3 "pooling" is, and how it blocks active thyroid hormone at the cell even when your free T3 looks optimal Why roughly 98% of women stop thriving on T4-only medication once they're past 40 How falling progesterone drives estrogen dominance, raises thyroid binding globulin, and quietly strands thyroid hormone before it reaches the cell What "thyropause" is, why it hits 80-90% of women over 40, and how it overlaps with the perimenopause symptoms you're blaming instead Why testosterone acts as armor against autoimmunity - and what its decline switches on How low ferritin, insulin resistance and cortisol compound thyroid-driven fatigue and stubborn belly fat TIMESTAMPS 00:00 - Intro: Why Midlife Women Go Undiagnosed & the Full Thyroid Panel Doctors Skip (TSH, Free T3/T4, Reverse T3, Antibodies)09:46 - Reverse T3 "Pooling," Why T4-Only Fails Most Women & What Actually Drives High Reverse T317:28 - How HRT, Progesterone Loss & Low Ferritin Hit Your Thyroid - Plus the "Thyropause" Switch22:09 - Core Thyroid Nutrients, Iodine Dosing Do's & Don'ts, and How to Actually Fix Low Iron40:14 - High Antibodies and Still Optimized? Hashimoto's Triggers & Protecting Your Thyroid45:40 - Midlife Belly Fat & Bloating: Root Causes, Smart Testing Order & the Gut-Healing Myth53:12 - Thyropause & Lean Athletes: Why Most Women Over 40 Get Hit - Plus The Thyroid Fix Book VALUABLE RESOURCES The Thyroid Fix (Dr. Amie's book) https://thyroidfixbook.com/ Dr. Amie Hornaman's website / book a call https://dramie.com/ Fixxr Supplements (Dr. Amie's line, incl. iodine) https://dramiehornaman.com/collections/supplements Follow Dr. Amie on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dramiehornaman/ Thanks to my sponsor, Eight Sleep Sleep cooler, recover faster. The Eight Sleep Pod pre-cools your bed and adjusts all night for deeper sleep - dual-zone, so you and your partner each get your own temp.

What if the hormones meant to help you are the very thing making you feel worse? In this solo episode of Let’s Talk Wellness Now, Dr. Deb opens with a patient who started bioidentical hormones and, within three weeks, had panic attacks for the first time in her life. From there, she walks through the five systems that determine whether hormone therapy helps you or harms you and exactly what to address before you ever fill that prescription. If you have been told hormones are a simple fix, this episode reveals why readiness matters just as much as the prescription itself and how getting it right can change everything. In this episode, you will learn: Why estrogen has to be metabolized, and what happens when your liver cannot clear it fast enough How gut bacteria and beta-glucuronidase can recirculate the estrogen your body was trying to eliminate Why normal liver enzymes can still mean you are a poor estrogen metabolizer How estrogen can quietly make you functionally hypothyroid, and why TSH alone misses it The histamine connection behind hives, palpitations, anxiety, and panic on hormones The five-point checklist Dr. Deb runs before anyone in her practice starts HRT What Dr. Deb says:“The hormones aren’t the problem. The problem is whether your body is actually ready to receive them.”“Imagine you’re filling up a bathtub, but the drain is completely clogged. The water just keeps rising. That’s what’s happening when you add estrogen to a body that can’t clear it.” Timestamps:[00:01] A patient in tears: panic attacks three weeks into bioidentical hormones[02:30] Why estrogen is not a magic bullet, and the clogged bathtub analogy[04:53] Protective vs. problematic estrogen metabolites, and why testing matters[06:00] The gut connection: beta-glucuronidase and estrogen recirculation[09:42] The GI MAP, and why the gut has to be ready first[11:00] Liver phase one and phase two detox, and where the bottleneck forms[14:27] Thyroid: how estrogen can make you functionally hypothyroid[16:53] Histamine: the overlooked driver of hives, palpitations, and panic[20:00] The five-point checklist before touching hormones[24:50] The patient’s turnaround, and why HRT is a living protocol, not one and done Links:https://mdcustomrx.com/Fullscript: http://bit.ly/4fqqsPahttps://elliemd.com/DrDebMuth Connect with us:Website: https://www.letstalkwellness.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/letstalkwellnessFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/letstalkwellnessLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lets-talk-wellness-now/ Subscribe to Let’s Talk Wellness Now so you never miss an episode, and if this one opened your eyes, share it with someone who needs to hear it.The post Episode 277: Perimenopause Hormone Therapy Can Backfire. Here's Why. first appeared on Let's Talk Wellness Now.

Send us Fan MailAutoimmune disease is one of the fastest growing health categories being diagnosed worldwide — and it disproportionately affects women of reproductive age. Yet in most fertility evaluations, immune health is barely mentioned until something has already gone wrong. Two or three miscarriages. Unexplained infertility. And still no one has looked at what the immune system is doing.In this episode of Cycle Wisdom, Dr. Monica Minjeur connects the dots between autoimmunity, cycle disruption, and fertility — and explains what comprehensive immune evaluation looks like when it is done from the beginning rather than after repeated loss. Through Camille's story, a 34-year-old who had lost two pregnancies in the second trimester and been told to wait for a third loss before any workup would be initiated, you will see what a complete evaluation can find — and what it can change.You will learn:How Hashimoto's thyroid disease, antiphospholipid antibody syndrome, celiac disease, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis each disrupt fertility and pregnancy in distinct and treatable waysWhy thyroid antibodies increase miscarriage risk nearly threefold even when TSH is completely normal — and what to do about itWhat antiphospholipid antibody syndrome is, how it is diagnosed, and how treatment can reduce miscarriage risk from 50% to under 30%If you have experienced recurrent pregnancy loss or unexplained infertility and immune factors have never been evaluated — this episode will show you what to ask for next. Learn more or schedule a free discovery call at radiantclinic.com.

Struggling with unexplained weight loss, racing heartbeats, or anxiety that won't quit? Your thyroid could be the hidden culprit behind it all. This episode uncovers the truth about hyperthyroidism and Graves' disease, from early warning signs to natural healing strategies most doctors never mention.Host Jenn Trepeck sits down with functional medicine expert Dr. Eric Osansky on Salad with a Side of Fries to explore how diet, stress management, and gut health can help restore thyroid balance naturally.What You Will Learn in This Episode:✅ How to spot early symptoms of hyperthyroidism, from a racing heart to sudden weight loss✅ Why Graves' disease is often autoimmune, and how the triad of autoimmunity and 4 triggers fuel the condition✅ Natural options like bugleweed and motherwort that may support a balanced thyroid✅ How healing the gut and managing stress can influence long-term thyroid healthThe Salad With a Side of Fries podcast, hosted by Jenn Trepeck, explores real-life wellness and weight-loss topics, debunking myths, misinformation, and flawed science surrounding nutrition and the food industry. Let's dive into real-life wellness and weight loss, including drinking, eating out, and skipping the grocery store.TIMESTAMPS:00:00 Meet Dr. Eric Osansky, author of Natural Treatment Solutions for Hyperthyroidism and Graves' Disease, Hashimoto's Triggers, and The Hyperthyroid Healing Diet04:59 Dr. Osansky shares how he first noticed symptoms of Graves' disease through an elevated heart rate09:50 A breakdown of key differences between hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism symptoms13:55 Exploring the autoimmune triad and how genetics, triggers, and leaky gut interact17:28 Environmental toxins, mold, and chemicals that may trigger thyroid imbalances22:03 Conventional treatment options like antithyroid medication and radioactive iodine explained26:30 Natural first steps for safely managing hyperthyroid symptoms and discussion of goitrogens31:22 Why stress management and quality sleep are essential for thyroid healing36:42 The gut thyroid connection and how gut health impacts hormone conversion39:34 Final thoughts on iodine intake and finding the right balance for thyroid supportKEY TAKEAWAYS:

Many of the symptoms we accept as "just getting older"—fatigue, brain fog, weight gain, constipation, depression, dry skin, and even memory problems—could actually be signs of an underactive thyroid. In this episode, we explore why hypothyroidism becomes increasingly common with age, why it's so often overlooked in older adults, and how age-related changes in thyroid function can make diagnosis more challenging than many people realize.You'll learn how thyroid hormone needs change over time, why standard thyroid testing doesn't always tell the full story for seniors, and what current research says about age-specific TSH ranges and treatment decisions. We'll also discuss when symptoms deserve a closer look, how hypothyroidism can sometimes mimic dementia or depression, and why careful, individualized treatment is especially important later in life.Whether you're over 60, caring for an aging parent, or simply planning for healthier aging, this episode provides practical, evidence-based insights that could make a meaningful difference. 

20 million people have a thyroid condition and 60% don't even know it — because the labs your doctor runs are barely scratching the surface of what's actually going on. In today's episode of The Wellness Effect, Kira breaks down how the thyroid actually works — from the brain-driven HPT axis to the T4-to-T3 conversion process — and why "normal" TSH doesn't mean your thyroid is fine. The trio unpacks what really drives thyroid dysfunction (stress, gut health, liver congestion, blood sugar, minerals, toxins, and autoimmunity), plus which labs to actually ask for and what to do if your doctor won't run them. Key Takeaways TSH isn't a thyroid hormone — it's a signal from your brain, and a "normal" TSH can still hide real dysfunction in T3, reverse T3, or antibody levels. Most thyroid hormone conversion happens outside the thyroid — 60-70% in the liver, 20% in the gut — so liver and gut health are often the real root cause. Minerals (iodine, selenium, zinc, iron, magnesium) are required raw materials for thyroid hormone production and conversion, not optional extras. Chapters [00:00] - Intro: Why Thyroid Issues Are So Common [01:24] - What Your Thyroid Actually Does [04:50] - The HPT Axis: How Your Brain Controls Your Thyroid [07:50] - T4 vs T3: How Thyroid Hormone Is Made [13:57] - Reverse T3 Explained [19:19] - The Thyroid Labs You Should Ask For [24:46] - Hypothyroid vs Hyperthyroid Symptoms [30:21] - What's Really Driving Thyroid Dysfunction [35:46] - The Minerals Your Thyroid Needs [44:32] - Toxins, Autoimmunity & Hashimoto's [52:02] - What To Actually Do About It [57:18] - Why Working With a Practitioner Matters Resources & Mentions HTMA (Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis) testing GI Map testing Related episode: previous toxic/low-tox living episode hosted by Lacey (referenced re: environmental toxins) Want to Work With Us? Join us in the Root Cause Reset Program: https://www.lifestyleucoaching.ca/wellness-effect-906145 and use code "Wellness Effect" for a FREE functional lab test when you join the program. Follow us on Instagram: The Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/thewellnesseffectpod/ Lacey Iskra - https://www.instagram.com/laceeiskk/ Jensen - https://www.instagram.com/wellnesswjensen/ Kira Iskra - https://www.instagram.com/wellbykira/ Lifestyle U have helped over 1,000+ women transform their mind and body and become the best version of themselves. Want to be next? Click Here to Apply! - https://www.lifestyleucoaching.ca/apply If you loved this episode and want to hear more, subscribe and leave a review! Share this episode with a friend who's ready to start their own wellness journey. Follow us on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/thewellnesseffectpod/ to stay up-to-date with the latest episodes and tips.  

Type 2 diabetes may be the diagnosis—but what if it is also a symptom of deeper problems affecting the body?In this episode of The Dr. Haley Show, Dr. Michael Haley speaks with Dr. Jade Guerra about the functional medicine approach to Type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, hypothyroidism, Hashimoto's disease, autoimmune conditions, environmental toxins, nutrition, sleep, and chronic illness.Dr. Guerra is both a Doctor of Chiropractic and a Family Nurse Practitioner with nearly 35 years of experience. Instead of applying the same treatment plan to every patient, she investigates the individual metabolic, hormonal, digestive, environmental, and lifestyle factors that may be interfering with that person's health.She explains why a diagnosis often develops years—or even decades—before it is discovered and why simply controlling a laboratory number may not address the underlying cause.DR. JADE GUERRA'S RESOURCESWebsite and Free Masterclasses:https://jadeguerra.com/The End of Type 2 Diabetes NOW! Facebook Group:https://www.facebook.com/groups/321420510744852/Unbroken: Women Overcoming Low Thyroid Symptoms:https://www.facebook.com/groups/743871260049166/Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/drjadeguerra/YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@drjadeguerraTikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@drjadeguerraX:https://x.com/jadeguerrarealCOMPLETE EPISODE PAGEFind the video, resources, key takeaways, timestamps, and full transcript at:https://drhaley.com/type-2-diabetes-root-causes-jade-guerra/IN THIS EPISODEDr. Guerra and Dr. Haley discuss:• Why Type 2 diabetes may be a symptom of deeper metabolic dysfunction• The difference between managing symptoms and investigating root causes• Why Type 2 diabetes may sometimes be placed into remission through appropriate nutrition, lifestyle changes, and professional care• How insulin resistance and blood sugar problems can develop years before diagnosis• Why environmental toxins may contribute to inflammation, hormonal disruption, autoimmune disease, and poor metabolic health• The relationship between hypothyroidism and Hashimoto's autoimmune thyroid disease• Why testing only thyroid-stimulating hormone, or TSH, may provide an incomplete picture• How the thyroid depends upon the liver, digestive system, brain, adrenal glands, and overall metabolic health• Testing for mold, metals, pesticides, and other environmental toxins• Why aggressive detoxification programs can create problems when the body's elimination pathways are not working properly• How functional blood chemistry may be used to create an individualized health plan• Why the same diet, supplements, or treatment strategy will not work for everyone• The importance of protein, vegetables, healthy fats, hydration, electrolytes, movement, and sleep• Practical ways to make better food choices before hunger takes control• The limitations of short medical appointments and insurance-directed healthcare• The difference between a laboratory value being “normal” and being optimal• How thoughts, words, meditation, gratitude, and mindset may influence behavior and long-term healthABOUT DR. JADE GUERRADr. Jade Guerra, FNP, APRN, DC, DABCO, has nearly 35 years of experience helping people improve their health through natural and integrative approaches.She is both a Doctor of Chiropractic and a Family Nurse Practitioner, with advanced education in functional medicine, blood chemistry, brain neurotransmitters, and thyroid health.Her work focuses on identifying factors that may contribute to Type 2 diabetes, hypothyroidism, Hashimoto's disease, autoimmune conditions, and other chronic health problems. She helps patients explore appropriate changes involving nutrition, targeted supplementation, lifestyle, laboratory testing, and their environment.EPISODE TIMESTAMPS00:00 A patient is told she is no longer diabetic00:23 Welcome to The Dr. Haley Show00:51 Introducing Dr. Jade Guerra02:10 Free diabetes and thyroid masterclasses03:53 Can Type 2 diabetes be reversed?05:27 The functional medicine pioneers who influenced Dr. Guerra06:36 Taking responsibility for your own health10:35 Functional medicine versus mainstream medicine13:37 Symptom relief, medications, and health messaging17:23 Finding root causes before symptoms develop18:14 Environmental chemicals and chronic illness21:12 Thyroid disease, Hashimoto's, and childhood diabetes23:18 The markers in a complete thyroid evaluation25:19 Connections between the thyroid, gut, liver, and brain26:06 Testing for mold, metals, and environmental toxins27:26 Supporting the body's detoxification pathways29:49 The risks of unsupervised cleanses31:14 Personalized testing, nutrition, and supplements33:37 How Dr. Guerra discovered functional medicine36:35 Protein, meal planning, hydration, and sleep38:40 Sleep temperature, grounding, and electrolytes42:22 Better restaurant choices and emergency snacks45:31 Dr. Guerra's diabetes and thyroid support communities47:39 Short appointments and insurance limitations50:21 “Normal” versus optimal laboratory ranges51:22 The power of words, mindset, and meditation58:09 Where to connect with Dr. Guerra58:54 Closing thoughtsJULY 2026 LISTENER SPECIALListeners can receive $20 off a purchase of $200 or more at Haley Nutrition through July 31, 2026. The coupon code is announced during the podcast.Shop at:https://haleynutrition.com/CONNECT WITH DR. MICHAEL HALEYThe Dr. Haley Show: https://drhaley.com/Haley Nutrition: https://haleynutrition.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/aloe1aloeveragelInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/drhaleynutrition/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/haleynutrition/X: https://x.com/aloe1LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/haley-nutrition/MEDICAL DISCLAIMERThis podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease and should not replace personal medical advice from a qualified healthcare professional.Individual health circumstances and outcomes vary. Do not discontinue, reduce, or change prescription medication without first consulting the licensed healthcare professional responsible for your care.ABOUT THE DR. HALEY SHOWThe Dr. Haley Show explores natural health, functional medicine, nutrition, personal transformation, and unconventional ideas that challenge listeners to think differently about their health.Subscribe through your favorite podcast platform so you do not miss future conversations.

Why Your Stroke May Not Be Causing Your Brain Fatigue For a long time after my brain surgery, I assumed my body worked like this: the stroke happened in my head, so whatever went wrong afterward would also happen in my head. Fatigue, brain fog, slow thinking all of it filed under “neurological,” all of it explained by the injury I already knew about. That assumption turned out to be wrong, and the way I found out was almost accidental. About eighteen months after my brain surgery, I had thyroid surgery to remove a nodule so large it had pushed my windpipe and esophagus six centimeters out of place. I had no idea it was there. No lump I could see, no difficulty swallowing or breathing that I’d noticed. It was found only because I had a chest X-ray to rule out an infection, and a doctor spotted something that had nothing to do with why I’d walked in. What followed was a slow, confusing recovery from that second surgery, and a wave of fatigue I automatically blamed on my brain, because that was the injury I already understood. It took time to realize the fatigue might be coming from somewhere else entirely: my thyroid. Hormones and Stroke Recovery: The Connection Nobody Talks About I brought this experience to Dr. Robert Hedaya, a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Georgetown University Medical Center and a pioneer of functional medicine psychiatry, to understand what actually happened, and to ask a bigger question: how many other stroke survivors are dealing with fatigue, brain fog, or mood changes that they’ve written off as “just the stroke,” when the real driver is a hormonal system that’s quietly stopped working properly? Hormones and stroke recovery turn out to be far more entangled than most of us are told. As Dr. Hedaya put it plainly: the brain is a hormonal organ. Thyroid hormone, cortisol, testosterone, estrogen every one of them acts directly on brain tissue, and every one of them can be knocked off balance by the stress of a major medical event. Why “Normal” Thyroid Bloodwork Can Still Mean Something’s Wrong One of the most important things Dr. Hedaya explained is that a “normal” TSH result doesn’t rule out a thyroid problem, especially after a stroke. TSH is a signal sent from the pituitary gland, and if a stroke has affected the brain’s signaling pathways, the pituitary itself may not respond the way it should. A survivor can have genuinely low thyroid hormone while their TSH sits comfortably inside the standard reference range, because the system responsible for raising that number in response to a deficiency isn’t functioning correctly. He also raised a striking data point: population studies suggest the average TSH in a healthy population is closer to 1.4, yet most labs still use an upper reference limit of 4.5, a range wide enough, statistically, to miss a real problem. His advice for survivors going into a GP appointment: ask specifically for TSH, free T4, free T3, and reverse T3, not just the standard single-marker test, and come prepared with symptoms written down if a doctor pushes back. A Nodule That Grew in Silence The brain is a hormonal organ. It’s an immune organ. It’s a neurological organ… there’s not one hormonal axis when it’s abnormal that cannot cause neurological or psychiatric problems. -Dr. Robert Hedaya My own nodule is a case study in exactly this kind of silent progression. Dr. Hedaya explained that because it grew inward rather than outward, it never created the visible lump most people associate with a thyroid problem, and because it didn’t press on my vocal cords or laryngeal nerve, I never developed the hoarseness that might have flagged it sooner. My body adapted gradually, and the fatigue that eventually surfaced was easy to misattribute to the injury I already knew I had. Cortisol, Stress, and the Difference Between Pain and Suffering Beyond the thyroid, Dr. Hedaya walked through the role of cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone, and why survivors often struggle to answer a deceptively simple question: “Are you stressed?” His distinction between pain and suffering is worth sitting with: pain is often unavoidable, but suffering is shaped by the story we tell ourselves about a situation, and a stroke can compromise the very brain systems that regulate that stress response in the first place. Testosterone, Estrogen, and the Brain’s Need for Hormones to Rewire The conversation closed on sex hormones, testosterone and estrogen, relevant to both men and women, and their role in neuroplasticity. Dr. Hedaya drew a direct comparison to adolescence: the teenage brain rewires itself while hormone levels are surging, and the same principle applies after a stroke. A brain trying to rebuild pathways needs adequate hormonal support to do that work. Without it, recovery can stall in ways that have nothing to do with effort or physiotherapy. What You Can Do About It If any of this sounds familiar fatigue that doesn’t track cleanly with other recovery milestones, or symptoms a doctor has waved off as “just stress,” Dr. Hedaya’s PNIE (psycho-neuro-immuno-endocrinology) questionnaire is a useful starting point. PNIE Questionnaire download: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1S7kC5uMFgBfS-gWcUOIHp0kOjGnrzZK5/view?usp=sharing If thyroid function specifically is what you’re navigating, the earlier conversation with Dr. Elena Zinkov, “Stroke Fatigue and Thyroid,” goes deeper into that piece (https://recoveryafterstroke.com/stroke-fatigue-and-thyroid/). And for more from Dr. Hedaya, the first conversation on photobiomodulation and stroke recovery is a good companion listen (https://recoveryafterstroke.com/photobiomodulation-stroke-recovery/). Getting your body back after a stroke is rarely just about the brain. My book, The Unexpected Way That A Stroke Became The Best Thing That Happened, goes further into the mindset shifts that came out of my own recovery (recoveryafterstroke.com/book). And if this podcast has helped you, you can support its continuation at patreon.com/recoveryafterstroke. This blog is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Please consult your doctor before making any changes to your health or recovery plan. Hormones, Fatigue, and the Brain: Dr. Robert Hedaya Returns (Interview) A baseball-sized thyroid nodule hid in plain sight after Bill’s stroke. Dr. Hedaya explains the hormone testing every survivor should ask for. Support The Recovery After Stroke Podcast Bill’s Book: The Unexpected Way That a Stroke Became Thethe Best Thing That Happened Highlights: 01:45 Hormones and Stroke Recovery 02:11 Understanding Thyroid Function and Its Impact 17:07 Navigating Thyroid Health with Healthcare Providers 27:09 The Role of Stress and Cortisol 39:09 Nutrition’s Impact on Brain Recovery Transcript: Hormones and Stroke Recovery Bill Gasiamis (00:00) And they noticed a massive lump in my throat and my esophagus and my windpipe were pushed six centimeters. And they said to me, well, can you swallow? Can you breathe? Can you do it? And I was like, yeah, I’m all fine. There’s nothing wrong with my throat. that was the first sign that there was something wrong with my thyroid Bill Gasiamis (00:19) Welcome back to Recovery After Stroke. I’m Bill Garciamas, and today I’m joined again by Dr. Robert Hedeya, clinical professor of psychiatry at Georgetown University Medical Center and a pioneer of functional medicine psychiatry, whose highland approach to brain health first brought him onto the show for our conversation on episode 404, where we discussed, amongst other things, photobiomodulation, a type of transcript. cranial laser therapy helping some stroke survivors recover lost function. He’s back today for a conversation I wanted to have for a while, the hormonal side of stroke recovery. We’re going to talk about thyroid function, cortisol, and stress physiology, and sex hormones like testosterone and estrogen, and why every one of these systems can directly affect how well and how fast your brain recovers. I’ll also share my own story of a thyroid nodule that grew undetected, which was discovered after my brain surgery completely by accident. if this conversation resonates with you, my book, The Unexpected Way That a Stroke Became Thethe Best Thing That Happened goes deeper into the mindset shifts that shaped my own recovery. You can find it at recoveryafterstroke.com/book. And if you’d like to help keep this podcast going, you can support it financially at patreon.com/recoveryafterstroke. Bill Gasiamis (01:46) Robert Hedaya, welcome back to the podcast. Dr Hedaya (01:49) Thank you for having me, Bill. Understanding Thyroid Function and Its Impact Bill Gasiamis (01:51) thank you for being here. The last conversation we had was very well received. And it’s always difficult in a one hour interview to ask all the questions that we could possibly ask about the brain and stroke recovery and all the things that people go through. And… I’ve got a lot of other questions that are related to the brain and the link between other parts of the body and the brain, because we have this sense. Well, I did at least when I was first diagnosed that whatever happens in my head is kind of isolated, that it just impacts my head. But there seemed to be some other impacts and cascading effects. that were occurring, uh, that I didn’t know were linked to the brain injury, Dr Hedaya (02:45) Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (02:46) maybe indirectly, but they were perhaps. But one thing specifically that happened to me about, uh, 18 months after my brain surgery was I had thyroid surgery to remove a nodule on my thyroid. And when I was going through the recovery after that, surgery, I noticed that I had fatigue and I thought it was neurological fatigue related to my brain surgery. But it took a long time to develop an understanding that perhaps that batch of fatigue was related to my thyroid. And then that got me thinking all sorts of things. know, if the thyroid also causes the same neurological fatigue that brain injury causes, what people might be missing this in their healing from a brain injury, they might have a compromised thyroid and not know about it. So the first question is, what is a thyroid? What does it do? And why does it cause neurological fatigue? Dr Hedaya (03:54) Okay. So thyroid gland sits in the neck, right? There’s two lobes, there’s one on the right, one on the left, a little kind of island in the middle called the isthmus, and and it controls many functions, metabolism overall, energy overall, just broadly speaking. now it affects the immune system. It’s affects the nervous system. It affects the gastrointestinal system, it affects the muscles, it affects the heart, right? It affects the skin, it affects the nails, it affects the hair. You know, and I could go on and on and on. Okay? Bill Gasiamis (04:34) Wow. Dr Hedaya (04:35) Now the interesting thing about this is that this be a little technical, but the thyroid puts out a hormone called T4 or thyroxine, and this is a little molecule with four iodines in it on it, and that Gives you about 20% of the activity of your thyroid hormones in your body. But then that T4 goes all over the body to different tissues, and each tissue can has its own system to change that T4 into T3 by removing an iodine. T3 has 80% of the thyroid activity. So that means each tissue in the body can control how much thyroid it. It’s using and needs, right? And and has available to it. Okay. So that means the brain, the heart, the liver, the lungs, every tissue has its own enzyme that allows it to kind of modulate how much thyroid, right? Now, so why does that cause neurological fatigue? Well, thyroid in the brain affects neurotransmitters like adrenaline in the brain, which is called nor norepinephrine, noradrenaline. in order for that to work. The T3 has to be in the right amount for the receptors for the noradrenaline to be structurally correct so they can transmit the signal. It’s necessary for production of energy in all the brain cells. It helps the immune system in the brain. It carries molecules from here to there in the brain. it affects serotonin transmission in the brain, so mood regulation, anxiety, obsessiveness, depression. You know, those are just some of the functions of the brain, but it affects every cell in the bane in the brain. So you’re gonna, if your thyroid is off, most likely you’re gonna have some kind of brain problems, particularly, you know, when your thyroid is off, the tissues in your body that are most compromised or most stressed, that’s probably where it’s gonna show up, right? And in the case of stroke, that’s where it’ll show up. Bill Gasiamis (06:44) So it’s possible then, is it possible to overlook it? Is it very obvious that your thyroid is out of, well, is dysregulated or is not working properly? Dr Hedaya (06:56) Well, in general it’s easy to detect. And if you want, I’ll tell you how. So Bill Gasiamis (07:04) Yeah. Tell me how. Dr Hedaya (07:07) so there’s some blood tests that are simple and then s some symptoms. so for most people this holds. When your thyroid is low, you know, you’re gonna be cold easily, you’re gonna have dry skin, brittle nails, hair will fall out. Muscles will be weak, thinking will be slow, movement will be slow, getting up from a chair will be more difficult, going upstairs will be more difficult, your heart rate will slow down, you’ll be constipated. Those are the most common symptoms. If your thyroid is overactive, then you could be have palpitations, oily skin, acne, oily hair. Diarrhea, you know, kind of the opposite. The thing that’s a little confusing with the thyroid is sometimes overactive thyroid can show up and look like it’s underactive symptomatically, or vice versa. So you really need the labs. And the labs are TSH, which is thyroid stimulating hormone, and that’s tells you what the brain is doing. And then free T4. That’s the amount of T4 that’s kind of floating around free, not bound to protein, so it can actually do its job. The way I think of it is like, you know, a lot of the thyroid home is sitting on a bus. It’s not free, it’s bound to protein. Can’t do its job. But the stuff the thyroid this that’s out of the bus or not on a protein, that can do its job. That’s the free T four. And then the free T three, right, which carries eighty percent of thyroid activity. And then the last one is a reverse T3 because sometimes if your tissues in your body are making too much thyroid or getting too much thyroid, they’ll actually, instead of taking the iodine off the T4 molecule on the right side, they’ll take it off on the left side, or vice versa. So they make a fake T3 that doesn’t work. And this way they short circuited okay, you got all this T3. Well, let’s make it into a fake, fake T3 so it can’t do anything. So reverse T3 is also very important. And then you want to measure body temperature. Usually it’ll be low. And then, you know, a physical exam. Those are the ways to do it. If you wanted to go even deeper, you could do some genetic testing. There are genes that will tell you whether you’re converting the T4 to T3 in the brain. Adequately, or maybe you’re more likely to be slow in that regard. So you can have normal numbers in your blood, but your brain might be hypothyroid, right? And there are actually a lot Bill Gasiamis (10:05) Uh-huh. Dr Hedaya (10:05) of studies showing that hypermetabolic, like high doses of free T3, actually reverse treatment-resistant depression because it’s it’s thought that there’s a local in-brain. hypo-low thyroidism. You can have low thyroidism in your heart, in your muscles, but not in the other tissues, you know, because I told you every tissue can control how much it’s making. So if you have a genetic vulnerability, then you you might more be in general be more likely vulnerable to depression or to ADD or to anxiety, things like that. Bill Gasiamis (10:42) Wow. Are you blowing me away? I didn’t expect to hear any of the things that you just said. X. Um, some of the things that you described, the, uh, some of the symptoms that you described, had those intermittently in and out all the time, other than a thyroid nodule, which is what I had, which was obvious on a scan. Dr Hedaya (11:05) Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (11:06) What other things caused the thyroid to not function? correctly. So is there lifestyle factors that interfere with the thyroid gland and therefore, you know, then have the cascading effect and take off, take all those other things or some of those other things offline. Dr Hedaya (11:28) So there a number of causes, right? So first of all, let’s take someone who has had a stroke or chronic illness, right? So you’re under stress and that affects your stress hormones, your adrenal glands, cortisol, etc. Well, if your adrenals kind of poop out, then maybe your body says, Well, I can’t handle all this thyroid, even though the amount is normal, it’s like too much. I can’t handle it, so it’ll make less thyroids. Now you develop a hypothyroidism. You could develop it just because all the chemicals in the environment, the ha the hormone interrupting chemicals, there are hundreds of those. you could develop it ’cause of nutritional deficiencies like tyrosine is necessary to make thyroid hormone, copper, you know, things like that. I can’t tell you offhand which which nutritional factors, but people can look that up, what nutritional factors are important. To make thyroid hormone. and then infections like, for example, Lyme disease causes Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, which is an autoimmune where your immune system’s actually attacking your thyroid. COVID vaccination, like the Pfizer and the Moderna vaccine, if you are genetically vulnerable, can also cause your immune system to attack your thyroid. So there are many, many causes, plus there are inherited genetic vulnerabilities and it It’s not always low thyroid, sometimes it’s high thyroid, hyperthyroidism, like Graves’ disease, right? You can have antibodies Bill Gasiamis (13:01) Mm-hmm. Dr Hedaya (13:02) that are actually stimulating thyroid activity as well. Bill Gasiamis (13:06) Wow. The environmental toxins. we talking about all day, every day household use kind of environmental toxins? I imagine the external of the house, they’re kind of out of our control, right? We’ll talk about like, you know, like pollution or things that are associated to things that are caused that we don’t necessarily control, but internally inside the house or what we expose ourselves to that we can control. what would some of those environmental toxins Dr Hedaya (13:38) Well Bill Gasiamis (13:39) be? Dr Hedaya (13:40) so for example, you know, in your produce, you know, there are pesticides, or in the man made materials in your car or the man made materials in your home. Let’s say you bought a new home and you have, you know, some kind of synthetic floors or furniture with synthetic materials or materials that are natural that are treated with chemicals for various reasons. Those things all can be not everyone is, but many of them are called homes. hormone interruptors because they actually can change the way your hormones function. You know? So we’re the truth is we’re bathed in these chemicals. They’re everywhere. And very hard to escape them. The best thing you can do is kind of try to detox them using a healthy diet, a lot of crucifer vegetables and lots of vegetables, above ground vegetables that are grown in healthy soil. Without pesticides, organic preferably, right? and then there are supplements you can take, such as metagenics makes something called UltraClear Plus, which helps support the liver, and its detox functions. You know, some people are more vulnerable than others, but you know, these thyroid nodules you like you have, they’re very, very common now. Very common. And that’s you know. In large measure, I think these hormone interrupters that are interfering with how the the thyroid follicles in the thyroid gland are operating. Bill Gasiamis (15:13) Is it possible to have thyroid nodules and not know about it? I, I Dr Hedaya (15:18) Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (15:19) say that because I had nodules that were the size of a baseball, apparently in my throat that were growing inwards, that didn’t make a lump outside of my throat, which Dr Hedaya (15:33) Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (15:34) I was not aware of. And the way they found it was they did a chest X-ray after brain surgery because I wasn’t recovering well. to check my chest to see if there’s an infection. And they noticed a massive lump in my throat and my esophagus and my windpipe were pushed six centimeters. Dr Hedaya (15:52) Wow. Bill Gasiamis (15:53) I’m not sure what that is in inches. And they said to me, well, can you swallow? Can you breathe? Can you do it? And I was like, yeah, I’m all fine. There’s nothing wrong with my throat. But that was the first sign that there was something wrong with my thyroid before that. there was no sign of it. I ask that because either I’m totally oblivious or it is possible to have thyroid nodules and not know it. Dr Hedaya (16:23) Well, most people don’t know it. Now yours is so massive, but I think it’s kind of what you said is how it grew. If it grew towards your vocal cords or your laryngeal nerve or something, you would have had some pretty bad hoarseness or something like that. But it grew I guess backwards so it didn’t interfere that much. And I guess your s your body adapted gradually over time. You know, yes, it’s very possible for sure. Very common. Bill Gasiamis (16:49) And how would somebody interact with a general practitioner, for example, now to go through the process of understanding, A, their thyroid health and whether or not they have any nodules. Navigating Thyroid Health with Healthcare Providers Dr Hedaya (17:02) I mean in other words, given what we’ve talked about, how should they approach their doctor basically? Bill Gasiamis (17:07) Yeah. Dr Hedaya (17:08) I guess I would say go to AI, get a list of the symptoms of low thyroid or high thyroid or all of them, check them off. So then when you go to the doctor you have a list, check your temperature, check your pulse, although the doctor will should check that. And then you could say, look, I have these symptoms, or maybe you don’t have any. But if you do, you have these symptoms, and clearly thyroid hormone levels can affect the brain. And I’d like a TSH, a free T4, a free T3, and a reverse T3. That’s it. And if they Bill Gasiamis (17:45) Okay, perfect. Dr Hedaya (17:46) say, no, no, we don’t need to do that, you know, a lot of times what they do, they’ll just do a TSH. Or they won’t do the reverse T3. They don’t, unfortunately, look at the thyroid gland in a dynamic way. They say, the TSH is fine. If your thyroid was low, your TSH would go high. We don’t need to do the rest. But that’s not true. That’s not true at all. Because especially if you had a stroke, your pituitary function may be compromised. Your TSH may be fine or low and your low thyroid. As matter of fact, in the last interview, the case that I talked about, who referred me to you, she actually had a low TSH, but she had a very low, I think it was a free T4. Or free T3 or both, whatever it was, but she had too little thyroid hormone, and her pituitary couldn’t respond because of the stroke. Bill Gasiamis (18:37) understood. So that’s a great list of Dr Hedaya (18:37) So so be you have to be dogmatic and you say to the doctor, look Even put into even put into AI and say, look, if the doctor comes back to me and argues against these tests, what should I say? You gotta be prepared because the doctor will steamroll you. You know, that they only allow this, they only allow that, I’ll only do the free T4. Well, that doesn’t tell you how much has been converted to T3, free T3, and it doesn’t tell you, even if the free T3 is normal, that doesn’t mean you’re not overproducing thyroid and and dis you know, and neutralizing it with the reverse T three. So, you know I mean I I mean I think it’s s so important that a thorough look is is really important. If you have the symptoms, you know. Bill Gasiamis (19:22) I agree with you. That list of to-dos, I’m gonna put that on the show notes. People can go and get that list if they don’t wanna go into AI themselves or they haven’t got the time or whatever. They can just download it from there. And then they’ll be able to take that and begin a conversation with their general practitioner. What’s interesting is that I’m in Australia, you’re in the United States. My general practitioner is pushed back when a… when a patient will turn up and say, I have these tests? They’ll say, well, no, you don’t have any condition that is obvious that you need these tests. So it’s not covered. So you don’t need to do it. So my next suggestion to them is no problem. Order the tests and I’ll pay for them. Now it’s not ideal, but if you’re not going to do them for me and I need to know, cause it’s my health, I’m going to pay for them. So just tell me how much it is and I’ll find a way and I’ll make it happen and I’ll pay for it. So that’s another option. Dr Hedaya (20:17) Yeah. But if you go in with your symptom list, right, and you say, Well, that’s not true, because these are the symptoms, you know, that I have, here they are, right here. You can take a look, you know. And then the last thing I’ll say, this gets even more tricky, is the reference range, I’m sure in Australia, but certainly in the United States, the reference range basically is of the TSH, the pituitary home. Is 0.5 to 4.5, meaning you anywhere in that range and your TSH is normal. That is a bad reference range. And I know it to be a fact because I I I guess I won’t waste your time with it, but I did a study on a hundred people and with a very sensitive thyroid test called a TRH stimulation test. and I was able I hired a statistician to calculate this. And say, well, I don’t want to keep doing this test on everybody. What TSH predicts an abnormal TRH stimulation test? And he came back and said to me, Well, once the TSH is over 1.4, it starts to increase your odds of having an abnormal TRH stimulation. So I said, okay, so 1.4 TSH is my cutoff, right? That’s in my mind. I said, okay, that’s that’s my cutoff, that’s when I get suspicious. Later, several years later, a paper came out, a large, large study, called the NHANES Study, Nurses Health, and I’m not sure what it stands for. Thousands of people followed over many, many years, over decades, and they found the mean TSH in the US population is 1.4. So, right where I what right where my study found. So that means statistically, it is not. impossible to have the upper limit of the reference range being at four point five because statistically the upper limit is never more than two standard deviations. So even if your standard deviation is 1.4, which it can’t be, you you’re not going to reach 4.5, right? Unless you have a it’s called a bimodal distribution curve. If you have that, then you’d say, well, it it could be. But we don’t have that with thyroid. So that reference range is wrong. The upper limit of the reference range should be 2.5. And about half the endocrinologists in the United States believe that. And half say, no, no, no, don’t change it. So that’s another sticky point because, you know, easily people get a result and they’ll go to the doc and say, no, the reference range is 4.5. You’re normal. Then you could say, well, look, I have these symptoms, and they could do a literature search. What’s the normal reference point? What in in the N A N HANES N-H-A-N-E-S study? It’ll show you 1.4. and you could take be prepared to go to the doctor and say, Well, here’s a study that suggests that the reference range may be incorrect. and I have symptoms by the way. We don’t treat the lab, we treat the person. So could we give a trial? Just a trial, there’s no harm done, you know, trial. Let’s see let’s start at a very low dose. Let’s see how I feel. Maybe I’ll get better. I’ll come back in a month. Bill Gasiamis (23:45) Yeah, I love that. It’s really good advice, especially coming from someone who is a doctor who think is thinking on the same way as me, for example, the patient. Because that’s like a match made in heaven. And that’s so rare to be able to get that. Often, my challenge to my general practitioner was well, the reference range isn’t that average of a sick population, because it’s usually a sick population that comes to see you to get bloods. It’s It’s not the most healthiest people that come to see you to get bloods. And that’s kind of how I try to like start the conversation of convincing a general practitioner to do a test that they’re reluctant to do. And when I say they’re reluctant, I’m not in there every day. I’m not in there every week. And I’m not putting stress on the system to an extent where I’ve been over using the system. I’m not at all. in there once, twice a year, maybe, you so if I’m in once, twice a year, well, then, I’m not mucking around. Like I’ve come there to investigate something that I’m suspecting is wrong with me. It’s my body. I’m feeling something. had a bit of a look online. This is what I suspect. Don’t try and convince me out of my thinking or my instinct more better. Why don’t we just, work together to get to the bottom of it. If it is something it is, if it’s not, it’s not, and that’s okay. Not a big deal. I’m better to know. then not no, I think, you know, it’s better to be safe than sorry in my mind. Dr Hedaya (25:16) Yeah. I would I would only think only correction I would make is the reference ranges generally are made on normal populations. Now now the thing is who’s normal anymore? Number one. Number two, that’s a statistical norm that doesn’t tell you anything about your genetics. your vulnerabilities, it’s not an individualized statistic. I mean it’s it not an individualized thing. What’s your normal range? And are you out of your normal range? Nobody can answer that, right? Unless you had previous data before you were ill. And you say, well look, I’ve been running at a 1.1 for five years or 10 years and now I’m at 3.2. That’s a big change. Well, you know you’re stressed. Well yeah maybe but here are my symptoms. Always come back to your symptoms. Bill Gasiamis (26:11) Got it, got it. Dr Hedaya (26:12) No. Bill Gasiamis (26:13) You use the word stress just now and my general practitioner says, I might go in and some bloods might be out of whack or some things might be not feeling great. And he’ll say, are you stressed? And I’m like, well, I’m not stressed. like, I’m not stressed in any way that I can say is worse than normal. For example, I’m Dr Hedaya (26:35) Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (26:36) just, you know, I’m attending to my clients at work. picking up the kids from school, I’m, you know, making sure the bills are paid. Like I’m just doing the normal things that I always Dr Hedaya (26:48) Right. Bill Gasiamis (26:48) do, which tend to be stressful. And somehow when we talk about stress, cortisol seems to come into the conversation. Dr Hedaya (26:57) Mm-hmm. The Role of Stress and Cortisol Bill Gasiamis (26:58) And I don’t know how to respond to a general practitioner who says to me, am I stressed? Because I’m not experiencing something extreme or dramatic. in the months before I came to see him. So can we have a conversation a little bit about stress, cortisol, what is stress, what is cortisol, are they linked? Tell me about that, give me your thoughts. Dr Hedaya (27:21) Okay. Okay, so this is a multi-layer system. Okay, it starts with your perception and your of a situation and the story you tell about you the story you tell yourself about the the situation and your need for control of a situation and as opposed to saying I’m in the flow of the universe and All right, this is you know, this is the way it is, and I’ll adapt to it. Not so easy by the way, but it’s a much healthier way because most things will not stress you. Now, pain, let’s say you stepped on a nail, you’re gonna have stress, okay? Totally stressful, etc. But there’s a a difference between pain and suffering. Most of our problem is suffering. Suffering is a result of thinking patterns. perspectives of yourself and the world and the future and blah blah blah. I could talk about that for a long time. And that is probably one of the most important places to intervene and to train yourself, etc. Now, once this thing is registered as stress, it goes through back to the hypothalamus and the pituitary where all those hormones are controlled, the hypothalamus and pituitary in the brain, now you’ve God forbid, you’ve had a stroke. Those things may be affected, therefore, those systems may not be working well. In that case, you may not be able to handle stresses that you used to handle. You may not you may not have those shock absorbers. So, how do you measure this? I think the way you measure it again are symptoms, and typically it would be low cortisol and low DHA, d DHEA, and low pregnenolone. And the symptoms would be a lot of fatigue, right? Maybe poor wound healing, muscle aches, body pains, getting sick more easily, cognitive slowing, depression, anxiety, extreme exhaustion, salt cravings, in unstable temperatures, you know, I would say yeah You know, th loss of appetite in severe cases, you know, dizziness on standing. Okay. So those are the low adrenal output things. Now how d how do you measure and again, you think you have a problem, go to an AI thing, make that list, check it off, whatever applies, and you know, work yourself up symptomatically and then ask well, okay, what what are the best tests here? What are the best test. Now the way I test it is I get morning I got a morning like eight to nine a.m fasting ACTH and cortisol. It’s gotta be in the morning around between eight and nine a.m. fasting. I also at the same time get a D, like David, H E A and a D H E A sulfate, and then I also get a pregnenolone. And if I think there’s any kind of sex hormone problem that I want to check, then I will check a free testosterone, FSH, LH, and The testosterone measures the free testosterone is very unreliable. So if it comes out low, you want to do it two more times to double check that. But the other measures are pretty reliable. And then you’ll you’ll know the other thing you can do is you could do something called a Dutch test, which is a urine test that’ll look at your cortisol through the day, or an adrenal saliva test. It’s ASI, alleval adrenal saliva index, the Dutch test. or the ASI, both good tests. and those will tell you what’s going on through the day. Like if you’re not sleeping, it could be because your cortisol high at night, you know. Wake up horrible or in pain. Could be because your cortisol is really low in the morning. Really low. You can’t even get out of bed, you know, can’t get going, right? So these are all all things that you can do to measure and then you can replace these hormones and That’s one thing to do. The other thing to do is to work on how you manage stress. There are millions of ways of doing that, right? From meditation to heart math to Bill Gasiamis (32:05) Mm-hmm. Dr Hedaya (32:06) yoga to you know, there’s just a lot a lot a lot of ways to Bill Gasiamis (32:10) Yeah, let’s go back for a moment and talk about testosterone because when I hear testosterone, I’m hearing you say to a male that I need to have testosterone in my body and at certain levels, et cetera. And sometimes it can fall out of whack and you need to get it tested. I had mine tested recently. It’s all good. But women also need testosterone. Tell me about that. Dr Hedaya (32:35) Yeah, so I was I was thinking of both male and female when I said it, Bill Gasiamis (32:38) Yeah. Dr Hedaya (32:39) because it’s it’s you know, women who are postmenopausal can have it’s much more common to have a low free testosterone loss of libido, you know. testosterone the studies which I’ve reviewed a few times, you know, there’s a debate does it affect the mind, the brain, you know. It seems to have an effect on well being, on vitality muscles, sex drive obviously, libido erectile function, brain cognitive function, some mood effects, etc. So I I think it’s important now i it it has to be managed in women as well as men. You know, in in women testosterone is a step on the way to estrogen as it is in men, right? And in the metabolism, right? So it it should certainly be assessed in everybody. Bill Gasiamis (33:39) Yeah. And estrogen, mentioned estrogen. Now, one of them in my mind, it seems to be more associated again to women, estrogen, especially. And, and then men also have estrogen, need estrogen. Dr Hedaya (33:55) Men also have estrogen. I haven’t studied it so I couldn’t tell you, but I imagine it’s doing something. it probably turns men into better leaders after they’re fifty, is my guess. Let Bill Gasiamis (34:08) more emotionally intelligent. Dr Hedaya (34:10) more emotionally intelligent, less testosterone, you know. You know, I I I Bill Gasiamis (34:15) You know what? That’s a good theory. We’ll run with that for now. I might relate to that, know, who knows. Dr Hedaya (34:22) Yeah. I I think Bill Gasiamis (34:24) Awesome, awesome, so… Dr Hedaya (34:24) Yeah, so w for for women on estrogen, it depends, you know, who are you assessing? Are you that’s a whole complex subject, you know. Is it a young woman who’s menstruating? Does she have premature ovarian failure, endometriosis, ovarian cysts, insulin resistance, they all kind of travel together, methylation problems, they travel together. is it someone who’s perimenopausal where she’s starting to lose progesterone and getting a lot of PMS? That’s pretty easy. You can replace the progesterone. Is it postmenopausal a woman who’s just kinda lost the estrogen, lost the progesterone? You know, if there’s a family history of cognitive decline or dementia or something like that, there’s great evidence that transdermal estrogen and some oral progesterone bio bioidentic, not synthetic, is great and reduces the risk for lots of disorders later in life for women. You know. So there’s a whole you know, there’s a whole way of working all that up, depending on who who you’re looking at. But very important. Now so the let me Bill Gasiamis (35:31) Yeah, I love it. Yeah. Dr Hedaya (35:34) say this. The important thing here, and this is maybe the most important thing. Someone’s had a stroke, they’re obviously tremendously stressed. You have to look at all the hormones. You can’t the brain is a hormonal organ. It’s an immune organ. It’s a neurological organ. I used to teach psycho, neuro, immuno, and the chronology at Georgetown for a number of years. Okay? And the brain and hormones, you can’t separate it. So if the brain is under stress, the hormonal axes are under stress, and there’s not one hormonal axis when it’s abnormal that cannot cause neurological or psychiatric problems. Okay? So you must, as part of the work of anyone who’s had stroke. You must look at the endocrine, the hormonal axis. You know, you must look at it. Why? Because if you’re trying to recover from a stroke and you don’t have adequate hormones, it’s gonna be much, much harder. Much, much harder. Right? But Bill Gasiamis (36:37) Peace. Dr Hedaya (36:38) if you have if you have the the hormones at good levels, okay, now the the brain has that. If it has its nutrients, it has that, you know, okay, now it can do something, you know. What happens, think about it this way. What happens in adolescence? The brain is being rewired, the body’s growing, brain is rew being rewired. Where are the hormones? The hormones are skyrocketing. They’re necessary for the rewiring. You had a stroke, you’re trying to rewire brain, you gotta have adequate hormones. Bill Gasiamis (37:10) I love it. This is the thing that people miss. You know, we talk about the gap in stroke recovery. Acute phase gets handled Dr Hedaya (37:19) That’s Bill Gasiamis (37:19) 99 % of the time really well. People get patched up and they get sent home in some kind of alive state, whether they are fully functional Dr Hedaya (37:27) Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (37:28) or working towards it or whether they are less functional and working towards being more functional, like some kind of stage Dr Hedaya (37:35) Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (37:36) of you’re alive and you’re good enough to go home. And then there’s no information after that. So how do we assess address? How, what do we know? What do we not know that we need to know? And this is kind of what this conversation is, right? It’s like, okay, here’s Dr Hedaya (37:53) Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (37:53) a whole bunch of things we’ve just discussed. There might have been things that you heard for the first time. Don’t let that, get in the way of your curiosity and investigate the thing that pricked your ears up, whether it was a symptom that Dr. Hedaya mentioned and just do a little bit more work in understanding what that is, take that to your general practitioner and begin the conversation of taking responsibility for your recovery. And in my mind, like there’s gotta be like a foundational thing that people can do to intervene that doesn’t cost most of the time anything extra. And that helps encourage and nourish the brain in overcoming these challenges, but then has the a cascade effect of having the same positive outcome on all the other organs and hormones. And that to me is nutrition. So like, if you’re, if you would suggest to somebody how they might start thinking about their nutrition as opposed to what they might have been doing before stroke, how do you begin that conversation? And what are the two or three fundamental things that they need to consider? about nutrition. Nutrition’s Impact on Brain Recovery Dr Hedaya (39:11) Okay, so If it doesn’t grow that way, don’t eat it. I never saw a bread tree. I didn’t see an ice cream tree or a Twinkie tree. Okay. So if it doesn’t grow that way, don’t eat it. Balance your plate. Balance your plate. And actually our coach, Caroline Hade, is putting out an ebook. I don’t know, should be out at a week or two or three weeks. It’s like, I don’t know, four or five dollars or something. and that will tell you exactly how to balance your plate. and then I would say very important to have three meals and maybe, depending on your how insulin resistant you are, maybe additionally two snacks. and per day, but keep your calories you don’t want to be overweight, okay, because if you’re overweight, you know, that’s a That’s its own risk factor for brain problems, right? but you can’t lose weight in a day, you’re stressed, you’re hungry, you’re tired, you eat the carbs, you know, everybody struggles with that. But that that is one of the biggest enemies of eating eating eating these processed carbs that we all love is one of the biggest enemies of your health. One of the biggest enemies of your health for sure. Bill Gasiamis (40:35) Okay, there are some great resources that people can again look into how to eat to heal the brain. And we didn’t have to have a deep conversation about that. But I love Dr Hedaya (40:45) Mm-hmm. Bill Gasiamis (40:45) what you said about balancing the plate. And if it didn’t grow that way, don’t eat it. It’s such a simple thing. If it comes in a packet on a shelf in a supermarket with all fancy pictures Dr Hedaya (40:59) Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (41:00) and stickers and a list of ingredients, like it’s probably not nutritional. of food. It’s probably something that’s going to make inflammation worse. It’s probably something that’s going to give you the type of energy that is not helpful. It’s probably going to have a whole bunch of other things. And that’s kind of my approach to healing and recovering my brain. It’s one of the first things I did was just look at my nutrition, immediately stop smoking and drinking. mean, I know it should go without saying, but sometimes you have to have a stroke for it to actually sink in and make sense. and don’t have any alcohol at all. I’m talking about forever if you can, but I didn’t have alcohol Dr Hedaya (41:46) Yeah. Bill Gasiamis (41:47) for at least the first four or five years. And now in the next five years or so, maybe I had one glass per year, just because I was, in an event where it was, everyone was drinking and it was almost necessary to have sip or half a sip or act as if I was drinking. So with that, I think we’ll wrap up this conversation today. There’s been a lot for people to digest, go back and listen to it a second time. And a third time that we have some resources in the show notes. And Dr. Hedaya, thank you for joining me again. And I look forward to our conversation that’s coming up in a few weeks time where we’re going to talk about toxin load and neuroplasticity. Dr Hedaya (42:29) Beautiful. Thanks so much for the opportunity, Bill. I hope I hope people get something out of this and they pursue what they need to pursue. Bill Gasiamis (42:36) Well, that’s a wrap on this conversation with Dr. Robert Hedeya. If there’s one thing to take from today’s interview, it is this. The brain is a hormonal organ and recovery isn’t just about the brain healing in isolation. Thyroid, cortisol, testosterone, estrogen, all of it is connected, and all of it is worth checking if your recovery has plateaued in ways that don’t quite make sense. Dr. Hadea’s free PNIE questionnaire is linked in the show notes. Download it, work through it, and take it with you to your next GP visit. If you want to go deeper on the thyroid piece specifically, go back and listen to the earlier episode with Dr. Elena Zinkov on stroke fatigue and thyroid. And if you missed it, the first conversation with Dr. Hedeya on photobiomodulation is a great companion to this one. if this episode has helped you, share it with someone who needs to hear it. That’s genuinely the best way to help this show reach more survivors. My book, The Unexpected Way That a Stroke Became the Best Thing That Happened, is available at recoveryafterstroke.com/book. And if you’d like to support the show financially, you can do so at Patreon by going to patreon.com/recoveryafterstroke. Until next time, take care of yourself and don’t assume it’s just a stroke. The post Hormones, Fatigue, and the Brain: Dr. Robert Hedaya Returns appeared first on Recovery After Stroke.

Your thyroid does not make one hormone. It makes five. Your last panel probably only tested one. That gap is exactly why I brought Dr. Amie Hornaman onto the show. In this episode of theMedical Disruptor, she shares her own thyroid story, including the 25 pounds that showed up in a matter of weeks and the seven different doctors she saw before anyone gave her an answer. From there we get into why testing TSH and T4 alone misses so much, what a full thyroid panel should actually include, and why she believes most people need more than T4 only medication like Synthroid to feel like themselves again. We break down reverse T3 and what it means when it is elevated, then go into T2, a thyroid hormone that is not T3 or T4, has decades of research behind it, and may play a real role in metabolism and fat burning. We close with what to actually ask for at your next appointment so a normal result is not the end of the conversation. As always, this is a free conversation with a vetted, board certified clinician, no products and no upsells, just information you can take straight into your next appointment. This is how we address medical gaslighting directly, by giving you the language and the data to advocate for your own thyroid health. You are not fine. You are just not sick enough yet. Want more practical health tips? Join my newsletter! https://freechapter.lpages.co/newsletter-opt-in/ "Fine" isn't the same as well. Stop waiting to collapse before someone listens. Build your case https://freechapter.lpages.co/how-to-build-a-case-for-yourself/ Check us out on social media: https://www.instagram.com/drefratlamandre https://www.facebook.com/drefratlamandre https://www.tiktok.com/@drefratlamandre #functionalmedicine #drefratlamandre #medicaldisruptor #NPwithaPHD #nursepractitioner #medicalgaslighting Chapters 0:00 - Introduction 3:22 - Amie's 25-Pound Mystery & 7 Doctors 7:27 - Why TSH & T4 Alone Aren't Enough 19:55 - T2: The Forgotten Thyroid Hormone 28:08 - How to Stop Getting Dismissed 33:21 - "You're Just a DC, Not an MD" Guest Links: FB: https://www.facebook.com/groups/dramie IG: https://www.instagram.com/dramiehornaman/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/dramiehornaman Website: dramiehornaman.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why do so many women continue battling fatigue, brain fog, weight gain, hormone imbalance, bloating, and food sensitivities, even when their lab results come back “normal”? In this episode of the Health Detective Podcast, Michele Scarlet sits down with Dr. Stephanie Dunlop, a board-certified emergency medicine physician and founder of RootRX, to explore why conventional medicine often overlooks early dysfunction and how a root cause approach can uncover the hidden patterns behind persistent symptoms. After experiencing her own unexplained postpartum health crisis and repeatedly being told that everything was "normal," Dr. Dunlop began searching beyond conventional care for real answers. She shares how comprehensive blood work, Functional Lab Testing, and a systems-based approach helped identify overlooked dysfunction involving Hormone Imbalance, Gut Health, Leaky Gut, low stomach acid, adrenal dysfunction, HPA Axis imbalance, chronic inflammation, cortisol, DHEA, Brain Fog, Burnout, Chronic Fatigue, and stress-driven metabolic changes. Michele and Stephanie discuss why true healing isn't about chasing symptoms or relying on a single solution. Instead, they explain why restoring the body's foundations—including Nervous System regulation, digestive capacity, gut lining integrity, nutrient absorption, quality sleep, and stress resilience creates the conditions for lasting Root Cause Healing and sustainable Health Transformation. The conversation also explores why "normal" lab ranges don't always reflect optimal health, how Functional Medicine interprets blood work differently, the importance of looking beyond TSH with markers like Free T3, the connection between chronic stress and digestive dysfunction, practical at-home assessments for stomach acid and gut health, and why identifying hidden stressors is essential before symptoms progress into more complex Chronic Health Challenges. Whether you're a woman searching for answers after being told your labs are "normal," a Functional Health Practitioner, FDN Practitioner, Health Coach, or someone passionate about Functional Medicine, Functional Diagnostic Nutrition, Functional Nutrition, Root Cause Medicine, Holistic Health, Natural Healing, Functional Wellness, and evidence-informed Health Coaching, this episode offers practical insights into understanding the whole body, recognizing dysfunction early, and building a personalized path toward long-term health. ATTENTION NURSES

This is the nosiest biohack I've ever tried; the IC Hummer from Infopathy administers PEMF infoceuticals sonically and topically to the body for healing, pain relief, inflammation, sleep, vagus nerve modulation, and more! In this [UPDATED] review, I'll break down the PEMF science and tell you about how I've been using it...0:36 Unboxing4:50 Scientific evidence13:30 How I've been using it22:28 Become Boundless with PEMF24:40 IC frequency recommendations26:10 PEMF for brainpower 27:48 Sleep hack30:20 Is PEMF safe?32:50 Criticism: Bluetooth38:46 Update: Dental pain, TSH & Hourglass45:00 About InfopathyFor every mentioned here, read: IC Hummer

Send us Fan MailHave you ever been told your lab work is “normal,” but you still feel exhausted, anxious, foggy, inflamed, or like something just isn't right?You're not imagining it—and you're not alone.In this episode of It's Hertime, Cody sits down with Dr. Jade Guerra, Nurse Practitioner, Doctor of Chiropractic, and Functional Medicine practitioner with nearly 35 years of clinical experience, to explore why so many women continue to struggle despite being told everything looks “fine.”Together they unpack what traditional lab work can miss, why thyroid health is far more complex than a single TSH value, how blood sugar influences everything from hormones to mood, and why healing begins when we stop chasing symptoms and start asking better questions.Whether you're dealing with fatigue, stubborn weight gain, autoimmune disease, thyroid symptoms, brain fog, or simply know your body is trying to tell you something, this conversation will help you understand what's happening beneath the surface.In this episode, you'll learn:Why “normal” lab results don't always mean optimal healthWhy so many women leave medical appointments feeling unheardWhat “root cause” medicine actually meansHow stress changes hormones, metabolism, and thyroid functionWhy TSH is only one piece of evaluating thyroid healthThe connection between thyroid health, gut health, inflammation, and the liverEarly signs of blood sugar dysregulation that often go unnoticedWhy muscle, protein, sleep, and stress all affect insulin sensitivityWhat contributes to autoimmune disease beyond geneticsHow nutrition, movement, nervous system regulation, and targeted supplementation work together to support healingThe simple daily habits that have the biggest long-term impact on healthDr. Guerra also shares her personal journey—from growing up as a first-generation American to building one of the country's largest virtual functional medicine practices—and offers encouragement for women who know they don't feel like themselves but aren't sure where to turn next.If you've ever felt dismissed, discouraged, or frustrated by your health journey, this episode is a reminder that your symptoms deserve curiosity—not dismissal.Connect with Dr. Jade GuerraInstagram: @drjadeguerraWebsite:  https://dr.jademalay.com/Special Audience Giveaway:The End Of Type 2 Diabetes NOW! Exposing Myths, Revealing TruthsFacebook Community -132.3K+ Members Unbroken: Women Overcoming Low Thyroid Facebook Community -88K+Members Connect with CodyInstagram: @codyjeansandersWebsite: https://mixhers.com Use Code: Cody for 15% discount⸻If you enjoyed this episode:Subscribe to It's HertimeLeave a review—it helps more women find the show.Share this episode with someone who's been told, “Everything looks normal,” but knows something still isn't right.Did you learn something new today? Be sure to subscribe to this podcast and share this episode with all the girls you love. We would appreciate it if you'd also leave us a rating and review on iTunes.Want to join our Mixhers Girl community and keep this conversation going? We'd love to hear your thoughts, feelings and experiences! Join us HERE!Join Mixhers email list and be the first to have access to new products and be the girl in the know!Follow Cody Instagram:@codyjeansanders

Is it safe to stop statins “cold turkey”? Can the supplement ingredient HMB counteract age-related muscle loss? Researchers may have discovered the key to development of a true fat-burning weight loss medication; Can a mammogram yield clues about cardiovascular risk? Their bottom line threatened by GLP-1 weight loss drugs, BIg Food tweaks portion sizes, adds spices and flavorings to pique blunted appetites; Vitamins A & D may improve lung health for asthma sufferers; When it comes to thyroid medication prescribing, treat the numbers or treat the patient? 

The fertilization report looked good. You had eggs. They fertilized. Day three looked fine. Then came the call. Nothing made it past day five, or one did, and it was graded poor, and the cycle was over. You were told it was egg quality, or it was a numbers game, or that you have to try again. Here is what that explanation leaves out. An embryo does not run on one engine the whole way. For the first two to three days it runs almost entirely on the egg, on the proteins, the messenger molecules, and the energy the egg packed during its final growth phase. Then, around the four to eight cell stage on day three, the embryo activates its own genome and takes over, and the paternal contribution comes online. That handover changes where you look. If development stalls in the first three days, you start with the egg and its energy supply. If it looked strong on day three and stalled before the blastocyst, you start with the sperm and its DNA. Same line in the report. Two completely different first moves. Most workups examine neither. They adjust the protocol and go again. In this episode, I walk through the seven factors that shape whether an embryo keeps dividing, and what most clinics never review before they tell you it was your eggs. Pull it up, take notes, and bring it to your next appointment. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 The day five call and what the explanation leaves out 00:55 If this show has helped you, leave a review 01:05 Who reviews your case at Fab Fertile 03:50 Number one: the day three handover and where to look first 06:10 Number two: the egg's energy supply was built before the cycle 08:05 Number three: sperm DNA fragmentation and the standard semen analysis 09:20 Number four: the full thyroid panel, including antibodies 10:20 The Embryo Audit Checklist 10:40 Number five: blood sugar and insulin, for both of you 11:45 Number six: inflammation, the gut microbiome, oxidative stress 12:40 Number seven: the ninety day window and why repeating a cycle repeats the result 13:45 Why the data driven approach works for left brain people 14:30 Chromosomal quality is information, not a verdict 14:55 The Functional Fertility Second Opinion WHAT THE RESEARCH SHOWS A standard semen analysis measures count, motility, and shape. It does not measure the integrity of the DNA inside the sperm. Sperm carrying damaged DNA can still fertilize an egg and produce a normal-looking embryo on day two or three, and development can stall after the genome handover. In a 2025 retrospective analysis of 870 fresh single blastocyst ICSI cycles, each one percent increase in sperm DNA fragmentation was associated with roughly 2.5 percent lower odds of obtaining a top quality blastocyst on day five. The same analysis found that fragmentation was not predictive of clinical pregnancy outcomes. It speaks to why an embryo stalled, not to whether a pregnancy will happen. Thyroid autoantibodies have been detected in follicular fluid at concentrations that correlate with blood levels, which is one reason a complete thyroid panel may include Free T3, Free T4, Reverse T3, TPO antibodies, and thyroglobulin antibodies rather than TSH alone. These are not established diagnostic tests for embryo arrest. They can provide context that a single TSH result cannot. THE EMBRYO AUDIT CHECKLIST If your embryos have arrested and you want to walk through what to review before the next cycle repeats the same result, we built the Embryo Audit Checklist for exactly this. Download it at https://fabfertile.com/pages/embryo-audit-checklist Or email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject line CHECKLIST. FUNCTIONAL FERTILITY SECOND OPINION This is a call where I review your cycle, your labs, your history, and your partner's picture together in one place. You leave knowing what your embryos may be telling you and what the next cycle would be built on, instead of repeating the same outcome. Whatever you decide afterward is yours, but it gets made with information your workup did not give you. Book at https://fabfertile.com/pages/book Or email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject line FERTILE. ABOUT THE HOST I'm Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile and host of Get Pregnant Naturally, a podcast with over one million downloads. My functional fertility team works with couples navigating low AMH and failed IVF, reviewing functional lab results, gut microbiome, food sensitivity, vaginal microbiome, nutrigenomics, HTMA, DUTCH, toxin testing, and bloodwork alongside nervous system work, to help identify patterns that may not have been considered. We work alongside your medical team, not instead of them. Subscribe to Get Pregnant Naturally for weekly episodes on fertility optimization, IVF preparation, and the lab work your doctor probably isn't running. Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile, host of Get Pregnant Naturally (1M+ downloads), and author of Fabulously Fertile. If this episode helped you make sense of your own numbers, leave a review wherever you listen. It is how another woman, being told the same thing, finds her way here. REFERENCES Machałowski T, Machałowska J, Gill K, et al. Sperm DNA Fragmentation Impairs Early Embryo Development but Is Not Predictive of Pregnancy Outcomes: Insights from 870 ICSI Cycles. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2025. doi:10.3390/ijms26167923 Monteleone P, Parrini D, Faviana P, et al. Female infertility related to thyroid autoimmunity: the ovarian follicle hypothesis. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology. 2011. American Urological Association and American Society for Reproductive Medicine. Diagnosis and Treatment of Infertility in Men: AUA/ASRM Guideline. 2020.

I am honored to have Dr. Carrie Jones back on the podcast today. She's a naturopathic physician and hormone expert with over 20 years of clinical experience in women's health and endocrinology. In today's conversation, we unpack common social media myths about midlife, the influence of lifestyle choices in perimenopause, the role of cortisol and hormones, and current research on the parasympathetic nervous system. Dr. Jones explains vagal freeze, how our stress response can exacerbate it, and why stress has become so normalized. We also explore the influence of synthetic hormones, thyroid propaganda, immune system function, autoimmunity, lab reference values and ranges, and the timing hypothesis of hormone replacement therapy, and Dr. Jones shares her favorite new supplements. Stay tuned for another insightful conversation with one of my favorite voices in the hormone space. IN THIS EPISODE, YOU WILL LEARN: The importance of being thoughtful about information shared on social media regarding perimenopause and menopause How chronic stress becomes harder to tolerate and can cause an increase in inflammation during perimenopause Some simple strategies to help you feel safe, connected, and supported, and improve your vagal tone How actual stress, anticipated stress, and perceived stress all activate the same stress response How chronic stress affects every system within the body How certain women can tolerate synthetic hormones very well, while others develop various symptoms Why basic blood tests and reference ranges are not always optimal for everyone Factors that could influence thyroid function, and the benefits of a broader thyroid assessment than TSH alone Dr. Jones explains why she prefers to start hormone therapy early in perimenopause if appropriate The new supplements Dr. Jones uses to support mood, stress, and sleep Connect with Cynthia Thurlow   Follow on X, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia's website. Submit your questions to support@cynthiathurlow.com  Join other like-minded women in a supportive, nurturing community: The Midlife Pause/Cynthia Thurlow.  Purchase Cynthia's book, The Menopause Gut. Cynthia's Intermittent Fasting Transformation Book The Midlife Pause Supplement Line Connect with Dr. Carrie Jones On her website Instagram YouTube Hello Hormones Podcast

You asked your doctor for help. You got your blood work. You were told everything is normal. And you walked out feeling more confused than when you walked in, because if nothing is wrong, why do you still feel terrible? In this episode, I'm walking you through every lab I use to uncover weight loss resistance, what I'm looking for on each one, and why your doctor and I can look at the exact same numbers and come to completely different conclusions.IN THIS EPISODE, YOU'LL LEARN:Why "your labs are normal" doesn't mean your body is functioning optimally, and the real difference between diagnosable and suboptimalWhy cutting calories below 1,500 when you're already weight loss resistant creates a brand new problem instead of a solutionWhat the DUTCH test shows us that a standard blood draw simply can't: what you're producing, how you're using it, and how you're detoxing itWhy the GI MAP is my favorite test of all, and why your gut is usually the environment your hormones are responding toThe energy conversion markers most women never get checked: vitamin D, a full iron panel, and B12Why a TSH alone is not a thyroid panel, and the five markers I want to see insteadThe blood sugar trio (fasting insulin, fasting glucose, hemoglobin A1C) and why fasting insulin is the one that tells the truthWhat an abnormal lipid panel in midlife is really telling you (hint: it's almost never your red meat)Why I don't put much weight on a normal CRP when your symptoms are telling a different storyTIMESTAMPS: 01:15 Welcome to Part 3: Getting the Data 02:05 Why Your Doctor Says "Normal" and I Say "Suboptimal" 04:17 When Eating Less Stops Working (And Starts Causing Harm) 06:34 Labs End the Guesswork Spiral 08:55 Data + Belief: Why Women Shift Fast When They Can See the Why 09:45 The DUTCH Test: Hormones, Cortisol Rhythm, and Detox Pathways 13:11 The GI MAP: Gut Lining, Digestive Capacity, and the Real Story on Pathogens 15:30 Vitamin D: The Hormone Pretending to Be a Vitamin 17:41 The Full Iron Panel: Your Energy Conversion Marker 19:37 Vitamin B12 and the Gut Absorption Connection 20:40 The Full Thyroid Panel: TSH, Free T4, Free T3, Reverse T3, and Antibodies 24:22 Fasting Insulin, Fasting Glucose, and Hemoglobin A1C 26:42 The Lipid Panel: It's Blood Sugar and Muscle, Not Your Eggs 27:50 CBC, CMP, and CRP: The Foundation Check 29:05 How the Midsummer Reset Targets Low-Grade Inflammation 30:51 You're Not Crazy, Lazy, or Lacking Discipline. This Is Data.RESOURCES:

What Your TSH Number Isn't Telling You ft. Dr. Brittany Henderson Your TSH can look "perfectly normal" and you can still feel exhausted, foggy, cold, and stuck at a weight that won't budge. In this episode of the Medical Disruptor, I sit down with thyroid specialist Dr. Brittany Henderson to find out why. Dr. Henderson is fellowship-trained at Duke, ran thyroid programs at two major academic centers, and now runs her own thyroid-only practice, the Charleston Thyroid Center. She told me flat out that TSH alone is not enough, and that most doctors don't even know how to read a full thyroid panel. In this conversation we get into why TSH is actually a pituitary hormone, not a thyroid hormone, and why the "normal" TSH reference range was built on flawed population data that included undiagnosed Hashimoto's patients. I ask her what free T4, free T3, and reverse T3 actually reveal that TSH can't, and she walks me through why muscle mass is the missing piece in thyroid hormone conversion, since it's muscle tissue that activates T4 into usable T3. She also explains why up to 95% of people with severe Hashimoto's or a thyroidectomy may need combination T4/T3 therapy instead of T4 alone, and we break down the real differences between levothyroxine, desiccated thyroid extract, and combination treatment. We talk about patients who've been on the wrong thyroid medication for decades and what happens when it's finally corrected, plus the flip side: patients who never needed thyroid medication in the first place and how to tell the difference. Along the way we cover how birth control, inflammation, steroids, and menopause quietly throw off your thyroid labs without anyone telling you. If you've ever been told your thyroid is fine while your body is telling you otherwise, this episode gives you the exact labs to ask for and the language to ask for them. Want more practical health tips? Join my newsletter! https://freechapter.lpages.co/newsletter-opt-in/ Still second guessing yourself in the exam room? Click here! https://freechapter.lpages.co/self-gaslighting-habits-to-watch-for/ Check us out on social media: https://www.instagram.com/drefratlamandre https://www.facebook.com/drefratlamandre https://www.tiktok.com/@drefratlamandre #functionalmedicine #drefratlamandre #medicaldisruptor #NPwithaPHD #nursepractitioner #medicalgaslighting Chapters 0:00 - Introduction 2:10 - From Duke-Trained Endocrinologist to Questioning the Standard of Care 12:38 - Why TSH Alone Is Not Enough 23:16 - Combination Therapy and the Muscle Mass Connection 25:17 - Desiccated Thyroid Extract: History and Misconceptions 35:19 - Pushback, Broken Guidelines, and Where to Find Dr. Henderson Guest Links: FB: https://www.facebook.com/DrHendersonMD/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/mythyroiddoctor/ Website:charlestonthyroidcenter.com | mythyroiddoctor.com | thethyroidfoundation.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to this week's Midlife Minute. In this episode, we're focusing on progesterone, exploring the differences between progesterone and progestins, how progesterone is used in clinical practice, and how individual responses can vary significantly. IN THIS EPISODE, YOU WILL LEARN: Why bioidentical progesterone and synthetic progestins are not interchangeable How early synthetic progestin studies continue to shape how progesterone is viewed How different routes of progesterone administration produce different effects  Why do some women experience stronger neurological or physical effects than others on the same progesterone dose How cyclical versus continuous use can affect how progesterone is used in the body  Why some women experience sleep or mood changes on oral progesterone The importance of personalized decision-making Connect with Cynthia Thurlow   Follow on X, Instagram & LinkedIn Check out Cynthia's website. Submit your questions to support@cynthiathurlow.com  Join other like-minded women in a supportive, nurturing community: The Midlife Pause/Cynthia Thurlow.  Purchase Cynthia's book, The Menopause Gut. Cynthia's Intermittent Fasting Transformation Book The Midlife Pause Supplement Line Resources:  The pharmacodynamics and safety of progesterone doi:10.1016/j.bpobgyn.2020.06.002 Profiles of plasma estrogens, progesterone and their metabolites after oral or vaginal administration of estradiol or progesterone doi:10.1016/0378-5122(93)90064-O Pharmacokinetics of progesterone and its metabolites allopregnanolone and pregnanolone after oral administration of low-dose progesterone doi:10.1016/j.maturitas.2005.11.005 Allopregnanolone and mood in the peripartum: a longitudinal assessment in healthy women doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2019.104465 Behavior of Male Gamete Fusogen GCS1/HAP2 and the Regulation in Arabidopsis Double Fertilization doi:10.3390/biom13020208 Tolerance to allopregnanolone with focus on the GABA receptor doi:10.1111/j.1476-5381.2010.01059.x Effects of exercise training on the cardiovascular system: pharmacological approaches doi:10.1016/j.pharmthera.2007.03.010 Sex steroid induced negative mood may be explained by the paradoxical effect mediated by GABA modulators doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2009.02.003 Paradoxical effects of GABA modulators may explain sex steroid induced negative mood symptoms in some persons doi:10.1016/j.neuroscience.2011.03.061 Progesterone selectively increases amygdala reactivity in women doi:10.1038/sj.mp.4002030 Progesterone and allopregnanolone neuroprotective effects in the central nervous system doi:10.1016/S0006-8993(02)02366-5 Allopregnanolone and mood disorders doi:10.1016/j.pneurobio.2013.07.005 GABA receptor plasticity and neurosteroid cell withdrawal during the estrous cycle doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.2800-09.2009 Unequal risks for breast cancer associated with different hormone replacement therapies: results from the E3N cohort study doi:10.1007/s10549-007-9523-x Management of Menopausal Symptoms: A Review doi:10.1001/jama.2022.24140 Progesterone vs. synthetic progestins and the risk of breast cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis doi:10.1080/13697137.2018.1467611 Progesterone prevents sleep disturbances and modulates GH, TSH, and melatonin secretion in postmenopausal women doi:10.1210/jc.2010-2558

In this episode, Dr. Amie Hornaman, the “Thyroid Whisperer” and author of The Thyroid Fix, breaks down the complexities of thyroid health, explaining why millions of people continue to struggle with symptoms despite being told their thyroid is "normal." She explores the key differences between hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism, with a special focus on Hashimoto's disease, the autoimmune condition responsible for the vast majority of hypothyroidism cases. Dr. Hornaman explains why comprehensive thyroid testing goes far beyond measuring TSH alone. She discusses the importance of evaluating Free T3, Free T4, Reverse T3, and thyroid antibodies to uncover hidden thyroid dysfunction that standard lab work often misses. The conversation also highlights why many patients continue to experience fatigue, brain fog, weight gain, hair loss, depression, and low energy even after beginning traditional thyroid treatment. The episode examines the relationship between thyroid dysfunction and perimenopause, menopause, and hormonal changes, emphasizing how thyroid disorders are frequently overlooked in women during midlife. Dr. Hornaman also discusses how an underactive thyroid can reduce the effectiveness of GLP-1 weight loss medications, making proper thyroid optimization essential for successful weight management. Listeners will learn when lifestyle changes, nutrition, and targeted supplementation may help support early thyroid dysfunction, as well as when thyroid hormone replacement therapy becomes necessary. Dr. Hornaman explains why thyroid hormone replacement is generally a lifelong treatment once significant thyroid damage has occurred, distinguishing it from other forms of hormone replacement therapy. Whether you're experiencing unexplained symptoms, have been diagnosed with Hashimoto's thyroiditis, hypothyroidism, or are seeking better answers about hormone health, this episode provides practical, evidence-informed insights into diagnosis, treatment options, and long-term thyroid wellness. The Thyroid Fix: Book Link Show Notes/Links: www.hotflashescooltopics.com PLEASE RATE AND REVIEW AND SHARE! Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hotflashesandcooltopics YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HotFlashesCoolTopics TikTok: @hotflashescooltopics2  

In this empowering episode, Dr. Fiona Lovely welcomes nurse practitioner Shelby Sheppard, a trusted hormone and sexual health expert who has been caring for Dr. Lovely's own patients for years. Shelby's journey from labor and delivery RN to founding Pause Health reflects her deep commitment to offering women the time, space, and personalized care they deserve—something that simply cannot happen in the standard medical seven-minute appointment. The conversation opens with the remarkable story of how Shelby helped a patient navigate postpartum depression using supplemental progesterone, challenging conventional medical dogma. They then dive into the blind spots of thyroid care, explaining why TSH alone is an unreliable marker and why T4-only medications often leave women feeling unwell. Shelby shares her philosophy of offering patients a menu of options rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. They explore the newly renamed PMOS (Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome) from PCOS, the underutilized role of testosterone in women's health, and the profound impact of GLP-1 medications on metabolic health and mental well-being.  The episode also addresses sexual health, pleasure anatomy, and why women deserve to feel plugged back in—not just for sex, but for life. Together, they talk about: Why progesterone can be a game-changer for postpartum mood support as well as perimenopausal sleep disturbances, anxiety and others. The limitations of TSH testing for thyroid and why free T3 and reverse T3 matter. How GLP-1s combined with hormone therapy offer superior metabolic results. Testosterone's role in motivation, confidence, and overall vitality. Practical tips for navigating libido changes and communicating with partners. Tune in to learn why women's health is not a one-size-fits-all prescription—and how to become your own best advocate. Connect with Shelby: Website: www.pausehealth.ca Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pause_health   Thank you to our sponsors for this episode:

Estrogen is the hormone women are told to fear, and never told it is actually the one they need most. In this episode of The Medical Disruptor, I sit down with endocrinologist Dr. Cassie Smith to dismantle the hormone myth that's kept millions of women suffering: the belief that estrogen and hormone therapy cause cancer. Dr. Cassie trained at one of the top metabolism and endocrinology fellowships in the country, was named chief resident, ran clinical trials, and then walked away from conventional medicine because the system was failing her patients, and failing her. What she's seen treating thousands of women tells a very different story than what your doctor was taught. We get into why "normal" thyroid labs don't mean you're healthy, how your gut secretly controls whether your hormones actually work, why TSH is a terrible standalone test, and why hormones done correctly can extend longevity and lower your risk of heart disease, dementia, and disease, not raise it. If you've been hesitant about hormone therapy, this conversation will give you the context you need, so you can make a decision based on how hormones truly work, not on outdated fear. Want more practical health tips? Join my newsletter! https://freechapter.lpages.co/newsletter-opt-in/ Stop getting dismissed at the doctor's office.Get Dr. E's FREE 5 Red Flag Phrases guide here: https://freechapter.lpages.co/5-phrases-that-are-red-flags/ Check us out on social media: https://www.instagram.com/drefratlamandre https://www.facebook.com/drefratlamandre https://www.tiktok.com/@drefratlamandre #functionalmedicine #drefratlamandre #medicaldisruptor #NPwithaPHD #nursepractitioner #medicalgaslighting Chapters 0:00 - Introduction 4:38 - A Doctor Diagnosed, Dismissed, and Gaslit 11:10 - How Your Gut Controls Your Hormones 19:52 - Why "Normal" Labs Don't Mean You're Healthy 26:13 - What to Ask Your Doctor (and When to Leave) 34:58 - The Truth About Hormones and Cancer Guest Links: FB: https://www.facebook.com/ModernEndocrine IG: https://www.instagram.com/modernendocrine_/ YT: ⁨https://www.youtube.com/@modernendocrine Website: https://www.modern-endocrine.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, I dig into one of the most frustrating things I see women struggle with: being told their thyroid is "fine" based on a single number, while they're still dealing with fatigue, weight gain, hair thinning, brain fog, and feeling cold all the time. Here's what I want you to take away: TSH isn't a full thyroid test. It's just a signal from your brain to your thyroid—not a measurement of what your body is actually producing or whether your cells can use it. The "normal" range is so wide you could drive a Mack truck through it. Normal doesn't mean optimal. The numbers I actually look at: Free T3 – the active hormone your cells actually use. It's the one that matters most and almost never gets tested. You can have plenty of T4 (the storage form) and still feel awful if you're not converting it. Reverse T3 – I think of this as the brake pedal that stress slams on. It's a mirror-image molecule (like your left hand vs. your right) that parks in your receptors and blocks the active hormone from getting in. Chronic stress, low iron, illness, crash dieting, and inflammation all push your body to make more of it. TPO and TG antibodies – these can rise 7 to 10 years before your TSH ever moves. Catching Hashimoto's early gives you a window to address the root drivers. It's never just one thing. Your thyroid gets ambushed—inflammation, stress, nutrient deficiencies, gut issues—all stacked and compounded over time. This is especially true in perimenopause, when rising cortisol, falling ferritin from heavy periods, and lower stomach acid all converge. That's why so many women hit a thyroid crash in their 40s. A real story from my own life: I went in for a checkup and asked to have my antibodies retested (I have a history of Hashimoto's). My doctor physically couldn't add the lab to my file because the system only allows it once—even though my previous result was out of range. This isn't about one bad doctor; the system isn't built to support you. I now have to order my own labs through an outside lab. What your body needs to convert T4 to T3: selenium, zinc, iron, and a calm nervous system. These nutrients are commonly depleted in women, especially with a history of oral birth control. And food is the most bioavailable source—so variety matters. Eating the same meal-prepped chicken and broccoli every week can leave you deficient. A word on supplements: more isn't better. I recently had to remove several supplements from a client's routine because they were overloading her with B vitamins and depleting her minerals. Expensive and fancy doesn't mean right for your body. My bottom line: You have to be the driver of your own health. Look back through your old labs right now and check whether your antibodies and Free T3 have ever been tested. If you've been struggling for six months or more, take action. Your body has an incredible ability to heal when we test properly, look at the whole picture, and give it the right things at the right time. If you need help figuring out your next steps, the link to schedule a strategy call with my team is in the show notes. You're not too far gone—you're closer now than you were before you knew this!

Low AMH, failed IVF, or told donor eggs, and still no real explanation for why? This episode looks at the system a standard fertility workup rarely checks: the nervous system, and how chronic stress affects egg quality, progesterone, thyroid function, and ovulation. If you are a high-achieving, Type A woman who has been told your stress is handled and your thyroid is fine, this is the seven things behind low AMH, diminished ovarian reserve, and recurrent pregnancy loss that rarely get investigated, including the cortisol pattern, the full thyroid panel, blood sugar, prolactin, and the stress nerves that run directly through the ovary. This episode covers: low AMH and high FSH, the cortisol curve, a single blood draw misses, thyroid antibodies and reverse T3 behind a "normal" TSH, how stress pulls raw material away from progesterone, blood sugar, and the 3 am wake-up, elevated prolactin, and the nervous system inside the ovary affecting egg quality. This episode is for you if you have low AMH, diminished ovarian reserve, a failed or cancelled IVF cycle, or recurrent miscarriage, and you have been told donor eggs are your only option, and no one has explained why this is happening. CHAPTERS 00:00 Why the woman who handles everything is the one who needs this 03:00 The seven things, and why this is physiology, not mindset 03:40 One: survival first, and reproduction turned down 05:00 Two: why a single cortisol draw misses the pattern 06:00 Three: thyroid antibodies and reverse T3 behind a normal TSH 06:50 Four: how stress competes with progesterone 07:50 Five: the 3am wake-up is blood sugar, not anxiety 09:00 Six: the prolactin that got flagged, then dropped 09:30 Seven: the nervous system inside the ovary 11:00 What you can actually change 12:30 The Functional Fertility Second Opinion NEXT STEPS What Your Clinic Missed guide: the lab markers behind each of the seven, in writing. Email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject MISSED. Functional Fertility Second Opinion: a call where I review your full picture, your labs, your blood sugar, and your partner's results, and help you make an informed next decision. Email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject FERTILE, or book a call with your partner here. I'm Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile and host of Get Pregnant Naturally, a podcast with over one million downloads. My functional fertility team works with couples navigating low AMH and failed IVF, reviewing functional lab results, gut microbiome, food sensitivity, vaginal microbiome, nutrigenomics, HTMA, DUTCH, toxin testing, and bloodwork alongside nervous system work, to help identify patterns that may not have been considered. We work alongside your medical team, not instead of them. Subscribe to Get Pregnant Naturally for weekly episodes on fertility optimization, IVF preparation, and the lab work your doctor probably isn't running. Get Pregnant Naturally: A Functional Fertility Second Opinion. If this show has helped you make sense of your numbers, please leave a review. It helps other women find the show and be their own advocate.

You've made it to part three, and this is the one that ties everything together. If parts one and two left you with a clearer picture of your stress system and your sleep, this episode takes you somewhere deeper: into your thyroid, your brain chemistry, and a layer of midlife that almost nobody talks about on a podcast about hormones. I'm breaking down why your thyroid and your adrenal system are locked in a relationship that most doctors never explain, and why a normal TSH does not mean your thyroid is actually working. Then we go into your neurotransmitters. Serotonin, dopamine, GABA, the gut connection. If you've ever wondered why you suddenly feel less resilient, less motivated, or like you don't know who you are anymore, this is the missing piece. And if you've been prescribed an antidepressant during perimenopause or menopause, I want you to hear this part especially. But this episode also goes somewhere I don't always go. We talk about the identity and spiritual layer of this transition. The old patterns, the buried feelings, the relationships and jobs that suddenly feel impossible to keep tolerating. I share something personal about what came up for me last year, and why I believe what feels like falling apart in midlife might actually be something else entirely. And because I know all of this can feel like a lot, I close the series with exactly where I'd start if I were you. What to test, what to ask for, and what I actually do every night for my own sleep. In This Episode, We Cover: Why a normal TSH result does not mean your thyroid is functioning properly The two way relationship between chronic stress, cortisol, and thyroid hormone conversion Why so many women are prescribed antidepressants in perimenopause and menopause when the real driver may be hormonal How estradiol affects serotonin (your sense of okay-ness) and dopamine (your motivation and drive) The role of progesterone and GABA in anxiety, racing thoughts, and the 2 to 4 AM wake up How chronic cortisol elevation disrupts neurotransmitter balance across the board Why 90 percent of your serotonin is made in your gut, not your brain The spiritual and identity layer of perimenopause and menopause, and why old patterns resurface now A personal story about a repeating pattern Karen had to finally face What Karen recommends first: the four point cortisol and DHEA test, and why it matters more than a single blood draw Karen's actual nightly routine for sleep, including HRT and magnesium Who This Episode Is For This one is for you if you have been told your labs are normal but you do not feel normal. It's for the woman who has been on an antidepressant for years and has quietly wondered if her hormones were ever part of the conversation. It's for anyone who feels more anxious, less motivated, or less like themselves than they used to, and cannot figure out why. And it's for the woman who feels like midlife is cracking something open in her, whether that shows up as a relationship that no longer fits, a job that drains her, or a feeling she cannot quite name yet.     Sponsors Timeline is offering up to 39% off your first order of Mitopure. Gummies. Go to timeline.com/HORMONE use coupon HORMONE Get 15% off Masszymes By BiOptimzers at bioptimizers.com/hormone with coupon code HORMONE.     Are you in perimenopause or postmenopause and struggling with symptoms—but not getting the support you deserve? At Midlife Solutions, we specialize in hormone optimization for women in midlife. Our all-female clinical team offers telehealth care across all 50 U.S. states, with the ability to prescribe bioidentical estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and thyroid medication.   Book your FREE Hormone Discovery Call Find out what's really driving your symptoms and what your next best steps are.   Visit the website: https://karenmartel.com   Shop the Midlife Solutions Store Over-the-counter bioidentical hormone creams and oils — no prescription needed. Including: • Progesterone • Estrogen Face Cream • Vaginal Moisturizer and more!   Take the Hormone Quiz Discover hidden hormone imbalances that could be driving your symptoms. Get personalized results (and yes, they may surprise you).   Women's Peptide Weight Loss Program Clinically guided, hormone-aware weight loss for midlife women.   Midlife RESET HRT Program A complete, supportive approach to hormone replacement therapy in midlife.   Your host: Karen Martel Certified Hormone Specialist, Transformational Nutrition Coach, & Weight Loss Expert   Karen's Facebook Karen's Instagram

Ever been mid-sentence and the exact word you need just completely vanishes? If you are in perimenopause, you've likely experienced this deeply disorienting form of brain fog. But despite what you may have been told, you are not losing your mind, and it is not "just stress." In this episode, we break down the real clinical explanations behind perimenopausal cognitive changes. We look at how fluctuating hormones affect your brain, why standard labs often miss the full picture, and how to have a more useful conversation with your doctor so you can get your sharpness back. In This Episode, You Will Learn: How shifting estrogen levels directly impact the parts of your brain responsible for memory, focus, and word retrieval. Why hormones spike and drop erratically during this transition, making a single, standard blood draw mostly useless. Why a "normal" standard thyroid test (TSH) doesn't guarantee your brain cells are actually getting the energy they need. How low iron stores mimic brain fog, and why "not anemic" is not the same thing as having enough iron for optimal brain function. The exact tests to ask for at your next appointment including a full thyroid panel, ferritin, Vitamin D, and B12 to get real answers.   Take the Why Am I So Tired assessment at whyamisotired.hopenaturalhealth.com   For more on Dr. Erin: Join The Hope Circle Community: https://hormonehealingproject.drerinellis.com/communities/groups/the-hope-circle/home?invite=69120d498b7e3f60397656b8 Work with Dr. Erin here: https://p.bttr.to/3E88ps4 Buy Dr. Erin's Supplements here: https://drerinellis.com/shop Get the Period Productivity Planner here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BBYBRT5Q?ref_=pe_3052080_397514860 Download the FREE Menstrual Cycle Nutrition Guide here: https://detox.drerinellis.com/ Watch The Free Video "7 Hormones Affecting Your Weight Loss Goals" here: https://weightloss.drerinellis.com/ Let's Be Friends: Follow Dr. Erin on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.erinellis/ Follow Dr. Erin on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drerinellisnmd Follow Dr. Erin on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@dr.erinellis?lang=en Join the Free Hope Circle Community: https://hormonehealingproject.drerinellis.com/communities/groups/the-hope-circle/home?invite=69120d498b7e3f60397656b8 Bookmark Dr. Erin's Website: www.drerinellis.com Subscribe to Hope Natural Health on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChHYVmNEu5tKu91EATHhEiA Follow Hope Natural Health on FB: https://www.facebook.com/hopenaturalhealth Sign up for Newsletters here: https://booking.hopenaturalhealth.com/widget/form/VUubL7MNYELduwQL8ssI

Menopause doesn't have to be miserable. Yes, we're going to age, and yes, our hormones are going to change, but we do not have to feel old, exhausted, foggy, and brushed off. In this solo episode of the Medical Disruptor, I walk you through how to actually balance your hormones through perimenopause and menopause, in the order your body actually works. Most women get handed estrogen and sent home, and I'm going to show you why that approach so often misses the real driver, and what you need to address first. I start by clearing up the difference between menopause and perimenopause so you know which stage you're really in, and then I explain why your sex hormones aren't the right place to begin. From there I walk through it in the order that actually matters: first insulin and blood sugar, which almost everyone skips, then cortisol and your stress system, which can quietly hog the raw ingredients your sex hormones need, and then your thyroid, where I explain why a single TSH number is not enough testing. Only after those foundations do I get into sex hormones and hormone therapy, including the real difference between HRT and BHRT, what you're actually being offered, and why the type, dose, and route of delivery matter so much. I also unpack the truth behind the Women's Health Initiative studies, the myth that menopause is simply estrogen deficiency, what estrogen dominance really means, and why testosterone matters for women too. You're not stuck, and you don't have to push your way through this. I'm Dr. E, the NP with the PhD, and I help humans go from medically gaslit to medically empowered. Want more practical health tips? Join my newsletter! https://freechapter.lpages.co/newsletter-opt-in/ "Fine" isn't the same as well. Stop waiting to collapse before someone listens. Build your case: https://freechapter.lpages.co/how-to-build-a-case-for-yourself/ Check us out on social media: https://www.instagram.com/drefratlamandre https://www.facebook.com/drefratlamandre https://www.tiktok.com/@drefratlamandre #functionalmedicine #drefratlamandre #medicaldisruptor #NPwithaPHD #nursepractitioner #medicalgaslighting Chapters 0:00 - Introduction 1:25 - Defining Menopause, Perimenopause & Hormones 3:06 - Why Insulin Comes First 5:38 - Cortisol & Your Stress System 7:21 - Getting Your Thyroid Tested Right 9:15 - Sex Hormones, HRT & Finding Balance Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You were told to try again. Maybe you were told it was bad luck, or to wait until it happened a third time before anyone would look. Here is what changed this year. In 2026, the American Society for Reproductive Medicine updated its definition of recurrent pregnancy loss for the first time since 2012. Two losses now meet the definition, not three, and a positive test that ended early counts. The old number kept women waiting for a third loss before the investigation even started. Here is the part no one tells you. Meeting the definition gets you a workup. It does not guarantee the workup is complete. After two or more losses, up to half of couples are told the same word. Unexplained. The losses are real. What gets called a complete workup is the question. This episode is the 9 specific things we most often find that are rarely checked before a woman is told her losses were unexplained or simply bad luck. Pull it up. Take notes. Bring it to your next appointment. The 9 patterns: Thyroid, the full panel and antibodies, not just TSH Antiphospholipid antibodies, tested correctly Chronic endometritis The reproductive microbiome, vaginal and seminal The gut, hidden gluten, and inflammation Sperm DNA fragmentation The male partner's full bloodwork Blood sugar and metabolic patterns The nervous system and progesterone These are the areas that sit outside a standard miscarriage workup. A 2012 meta-analysis in Human Reproduction, pooling sixteen studies and nearly three thousand couples, found miscarriage rates rose with sperm DNA damage, with about twice the relative risk. Unexplained rarely means there is nothing to find. It usually means the search stopped at the karyotype, one antiphospholipid test, the anatomy, and a TSH. For the full breakdown of every pattern, read the companion article, Recurrent Pregnancy Loss: The Functional Fertility Approach, at https://fabfertile.com/blogs/learn/recurrent-pregnancy-loss WHAT YOUR CLINIC MISSED The companion guide walks through all 9 of these patterns in more detail, so you can take it to your next appointment and ask the questions. Email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject line MISSED, and we will send you the guide. FUNCTIONAL FERTILITY SECOND OPINION A free 45-minute call where I review your labs, your history, your losses, and your partner's results with you. You leave knowing what your biology has been telling you and what your next decision could be. Email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject line FERTILE, or book here. ABOUT THE HOST I'm Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile and host of Get Pregnant Naturally, a podcast with over one million downloads. My functional fertility team works with couples navigating low AMH and failed IVF, reviewing functional lab results, gut microbiome, food sensitivity, vaginal microbiome, nutrigenomics, HTMA, DUTCH, toxin testing, and bloodwork alongside nervous system work, to help identify patterns that may not have been considered. We work alongside your medical team, not instead of them. Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile, host of Get Pregnant Naturally (1M+ downloads), and author of Fabulously Fertile. If this episode helped, leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It is how other women find this work. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 What "Unexplained" Means and What the 2026 Guideline Changed 01:30 Who's Reviewing Your Case at Fab Fertile 04:00 Thyroid: The Full Panel, Not Just TSH 05:50 Antiphospholipid Antibodies, Tested Correctly 06:30 Chronic Endometritis 07:30 The Reproductive Microbiome 08:30 The Gut, Hidden Gluten, and Inflammation 10:30 What Your Clinic Missed Guide 11:00 Sperm DNA Fragmentation 12:30 The Male Partner's Full Bloodwork 13:50 Blood Sugar and Metabolic Patterns 15:20 The Nervous System and Progesterone 16:30 What "Unexplained" Really Means 17:20 The Functional Fertility Second Opinion

If you've been told your thyroid is "normal" because your TSH came back in range, but you're still exhausted, gaining weight, losing hair, struggling with brain fog, or feeling like a completely different person... this episode is for you. This week, I'm joined by Dr. Amie Hornaman, better known as "The Thyroid Fixer," for an unfiltered conversation about everything conventional medicine often gets wrong about thyroid health. We dive into why TSH isn't enough, the importance of Free T3 and Reverse T3, Hashimoto's, gluten, birth control, metabolic adaptation, over-exercising, under-eating, and why so many women are told they're fine when they clearly are not. We also tackle GLP-1 medications, body positivity, thyroid optimization, and why your symptoms deserve more attention than a single lab value. Whether you're dealing with hypothyroidism, Hashimoto's, stubborn weight gain, hormone issues, or you've simply been dismissed by the healthcare system, this episode will give you a different way to think about your thyroid and your health.   Learn more about working with me  Shop my masterclasses (learn more in 60-90 minutes than years of dr appointments) Follow me on IG Follow Empowered Mind + Body on IG  Get Dr. Amie Hornaman's book and resources here  Follow Dr. Amie on IG  

If you've ever been told your thyroid labs are "normal" but you still feel exhausted, cold, constipated, anxious, inflamed, or unable to lose weight, this episode is for you. In this episode of The Thyroid Answers Podcast, Dr. Eric Balcavage explores one of the most misunderstood concepts in thyroid care: the difference between a thyroid lab value being normal and being appropriate for your physiology. He explains why thyroid lab markers such as TSH, Free T4, Free T3, Reverse T3, and thyroid antibodies are often interpreted too simplistically and why normal lab values do not always mean healthy thyroid function. Dr. Balcavage breaks down how stress physiology, inflammation, immune activity, gut dysfunction, sleep disruption, nutrient deficiencies, and overall physiologic state can influence thyroid hormone production and T4-to-T3 conversion. He also explains why many thyroid patterns may actually represent adaptive responses rather than broken physiology. You'll learn how to interpret thyroid labs within the context of symptoms, health history, inflammatory markers, and overall physiologic state, and why focusing solely on optimizing lab values often fails to restore true health and well-being. Whether you're struggling with persistent hypothyroid symptoms despite normal labs or you're trying to better understand your thyroid physiology, this episode provides a deeper framework for understanding what your thyroid labs may really be telling you. In This Episode, You'll Learn: Why normal labs don't always equal healthy thyroid function How to determine if your thyroid labs are actually appropriate for your physiology The role stress, inflammation, and lifestyle factors play in thyroid hormone regulation Why low T3 and poor conversion may be adaptive responses Why thyroid medication doesn't always resolve symptoms What to focus on beyond lab values to support better thyroid health Resources Mentioned:

For most people, donor eggs is at the bottom of the list. It is not where you wanted to land. And if your clinic is recommending it, something in you is saying there has to be more to look at first. Here is what we see every week. The donor egg recommendation rarely arrives after a complete workup. It arrives after looking at the AMH, the FSH, the follicle count, maybe a basic semen analysis, and maybe being told your TSH is normal. Those numbers are real. The diagnosis is real. What gets called complete is the question. This episode is the 11 specific things we most often find skipped before the recommendation gets made. Pull it up. Take notes. Bring it to your next appointment. The 11 patterns: 1. Thyroid, the full panel, not just TSH 2. The gut, including H. pylori 3. Hidden food sensitivities 4. Medications you are already on that affect fertility 5. The vaginal microbiome 6. The seminal microbiome 7. The male partner's full bloodwork 8. Sperm DNA fragmentation 9. Vaginal and seminal cross-contamination between partners 10. The nervous system and HPA axis 11. Liver function and hormone clearance These are the tests that sit outside the standard fertility workup. A 2024 study in Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics found that ovarian reserve markers like AMH do not significantly predict natural conception in women with regular cycles. The donor egg recommendation comes from one snapshot, not the full investigation. If this is the first episode you have landed on in this series, go back and listen to "Told Donor Eggs Are Your Only Option? Ask This First," then "How Long Should I Try With My Own Eggs Before Donor Eggs?" then "The Gut Findings Your Clinic Did Not Look For," and "Multiple Failed IVF And Told Donor Eggs?" This episode brings all of it together. WHAT YOUR CLINIC MISSED The companion guide walks through all 11 of these patterns in more detail, so you can take it to your next appointment and ask the questions. Email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject line MISSED, and we will send you the guide. FUNCTIONAL FERTILITY SECOND OPINION A free 45-minute call where I review your labs, your history, and your partner's results with you. You leave knowing what your biology has been telling you and what your next decision could be. Email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject line FERTILE, or book here. ABOUT THE HOST I'm Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile and host of Get Pregnant Naturally, a podcast with over one million downloads. My functional fertility team works with couples navigating low AMH and failed IVF, reviewing functional lab results, gut microbiome, food sensitivity, vaginal microbiome, nutrigenomics, HTMA, DUTCH, toxin testing, and bloodwork alongside nervous system work, to help identify patterns that may not have been considered. We work alongside your medical team, not instead of them. Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile, host of Get Pregnant Naturally (1M+ downloads), and author of Fabulously Fertile. If this episode helped, leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It is how other women find this work. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 The Donor Egg Recommendation and What Gets Called Complete 01:00 Who's Reviewing Your Case at Fab Fertile 02:00 Thyroid: The Full Panel, Not Just TSH 03:00 The Gut and H. pylori 04:00 Hidden Food Sensitivities 05:00 Medications That Affect Fertility 06:30 The Vaginal Microbiome 08:00 The Seminal Microbiome 08:30 The Male Partner's Full Bloodwork 09:00 Sperm DNA Fragmentation 09:30 Cross-Contamination Between Partners 11:00 The Nervous System and HPA Axis 11:30 Liver Function and Hormone Clearance 13:00 The Functional Fertility Second Opinion

Your body after a baby was never a calorie problem. It is a metabolic one. In this Her Stack episode I am walking you through exactly how to restore your metabolism so body composition follows. The goal is not weight loss. The goal is metabolic restoration. Body comp is downstream. I am breaking down the four drivers that actually run body composition (insulin, thyroid, sleep, growth hormone), the four pillars to address them (nutrition, lifestyle, supplements, peptides), and the exact peptide sequencing for women. Plus my honest take on GLP-1s including semaglutide, tirzepatide, and retatrutide, where they actually fit, and why microdosing makes more sense than chasing the scale. I also share what nobody talks about. Eating less postpartum often makes body composition worse. Breastfeeding is sequencing, not failure. Growth hormone is the layer women never hear about, so they plateau and blame their age when it was a fixable signal the whole time. Join The LongHer Life for women-specific guidance on peptides, hormones, and longevity.   I TALK ABOUT: 00:00 Welcome back to the Her Stack series 00:53 Updates: working with me one-on-one and my new peptide planner 06:15 Why body composition not weight, and why metabolism not calories 07:01 The four drivers and four pillars framework 09:00 Driver 1: Insulin resistance and why stubborn middle fat is an insulin problem, not a calorie problem 11:30 Driver 2: Thyroid, and why TSH alone misses Free T3 (the worker hormone) 14:50 Driver 3: Sleep, cortisol, and the loop back to insulin resistance 19:32 Driver 4: Growth hormone, the layer nobody talks about that's blunted postpartum and through aging 22:19 The labs to actually ask for: fasting insulin, Free T3, IGF-1, DHEA-S, plus a 2-week CGM 24:30 Pillar 1: Nutrition (protein floor of 120g, leucine at every meal, food order, fiber, and why you should NOT under-eat) 28:06 Why leucine flips the muscle-building switch 35:00 Pillar 2: Lifestyle and biohacking (lift 3x a week, walk 7-10k steps, zone 2, cold and heat, red light, and the fringe tier honestly) 45:30 Pillar 3: Supplements (creatine, magnesium glycinate, myo-inositol, omega-3, berberine, and breastfeeding sequencing) 51:01 Berberine, AMPK, and "nature's metformin" 55:30 Pillar 4: The peptide stack starts here with AOD-9604 56:00 AOD-9604, the growth hormone fragment, why I am personally taking it right now 01:02:00 MOTS-c, the "exercise in a molecule" mitochondrial peptide 01:05:00 5-Amino-1MQ and releasing the brake on fat cells 01:07:00 Sermorelin, the gentle GH entry (what a secretagogue actually is) 01:10:00 CJC-1295, Ipamorelin, and Tesamorelin for post-weaning GH restoration 01:13:00 The GLP-1 honest take: semaglutide, tirzepatide, and the retatrutide question 01:14:00 Why retatrutide is called the triple agonist and where it fits (and where it doesn't) 01:19:27 Recap and wrap-up   RESOURCES: Work with me one-on-one on your peptide stack and protocol. The Her Stack Planner, the first peptide tracking journal built around female biology. Free Peptide Masterclass for Women. Join The LongHer Life for women-specific guidance on peptides, hormones, and longevity.   LET'S CONNECT: Instagram, TikTok, Facebook Shop my favorite health products Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube Music

Deprescribing thyroid and other meds in older adultsCan I safely take serrapeptase for longer than four weeks?I want to take nattokinase but isn't there a 'clot dislodging' risk?Could you discuss C. difficile and how to treat it?

For years, an indeterminate thyroid biopsy meant diagnostic surgery but molecular testing is now changing that reality entirely. On this episode of the BackTable ENT podcast, Dr. Ashley Agan interviews endocrinologist Dr. Erik Alexander about how molecular testing and a systematic, layered approach to thyroid nodule evaluation are reducing diagnostic surgeries and enabling more individualized patient care. --- Get the BackTable apphttps://www.backtable.com/app --- This podcast is supported by Veracytehttps://www.veracyte.com/ --- Timestamps 00:00 - Introduction02:48 - Incidence, Presentation, and Workup of Thyroid Nodules 06:26 - Hormonal Impact and Indications for FNA 10:49 - FNA workflow and Bethesda Categories 16:10 - Role of Molecular Testing for Indeterminate Nodules19:59 - Evolution of Molecular Testing and Afirma 23:51 - Basics of DNA based Testing and RNA based Testing 28:34 - Comparing DNA based and RNA Based Testing 32:10 - Utility of Molecular Testing and Sampling Techniques 35:55 - Cost Coverage and Practical Limits39:20 - Clinical Implications and Future Impact42:00 - Final Takeaways --- More about this episode Together they walk through the full evaluation pathway, including ultrasound risk stratification using the TI-RADS criteria, the role of TSH testing, and how FNA indications have shifted from biopsying every solid nodule to a more selective, risk-adapted approach. The discussion covers the Bethesda classification system and addresses why the one-third of patients landing in indeterminate categories (Bethesda III, IV, and V) have historically been the most challenging and most overtreated group. The conversation then explores molecular diagnostics as an additional layer of risk assessment, highlighting key differences between DNA-based mutation panels and RNA-based expression classifiers. Dr. Alexander also discusses practical considerations like insurance coverage, sampling technique, turnaround time, and the future potential of molecular testing to move beyond diagnosis toward individualized prognosis. --- Resources American College of Radiology: TI-Rads Guidelines https://edge.sitecorecloud.io/americancoldf5f-acrorgf92a-productioncb02-3650/media/ACR/Files/RADS/TI-RADS/TI-RADS-Assessment-Categories.pdf American Thyroid Association - Nodule Guidelineshttps://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4739132/ Bethesda System for Reporting Thyroid Ctyopathology https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK278969/table/thyroid-nod-canc-eld.T.bethesda_system_f/ --- BackTable ENT & Allergy is the go-to podcast for otolaryngologists, allergists, and head and neck surgeons. Download the free BackTable app to get early access to new episodes, cases, and courses curated by physicians in your specialty. ► https://www.backtable.com/app

You have done IVF more than once. Maybe twice. Maybe three times. Maybe more. Each cycle they tweaked the protocol. Higher dose. Lower dose. Different stimulation drug. Different trigger. Added growth hormone. Added DHEA. Mini IVF. Dual stim. Each cycle the protocol changed. And now they are telling you donor eggs. Here is the question this episode is about. They changed the protocol every time. Did anyone look at what was already in your body when each of those protocols arrived? That is what this episode is about. The layer underneath every protocol. In this episode: - Protocol vs system: what your clinic was trained to adjust, and what nobody adjusted across any of your cycles - Why the donor egg conversation arrives after the only variable your clinic was trained to address has been exhausted, not after a full review of your body - The thyroid, iron, B12, vitamin D, inflammation, gut, cortisol, mineral, vaginal microbiome, and blood sugar markers that did not change between cycle 1 and cycle 5 - Why we look at ferritin against 80 to 100 going into IVF, not the lab reference of 15 - What a 2024 study in Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics found about ovarian reserve markers and natural conception — and why donor eggs gets recommended on markers the literature itself does not support If this is the first episode you have landed on in this series, go back and listen to "Told Donor Eggs Are Your Only Option? Ask This First," then "How Long Should I Try With My Own Eggs Before Donor Eggs?" and "The Gut Findings Your Clinic Did Not Look For." This episode builds on all three. ——— WHAT YOUR CLINIC MISSED The full thyroid panel, not just a TSH. The iron panel that flags ferritin against the fertility target. The gut microbiome testing your REI does not order. The inflammatory markers they tell you are normal. And the male side that almost nobody investigates. Email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject line MISSED, and we will send you the guide. ——— FUNCTIONAL FERTILITY SECOND OPINION A free 45-minute call where I review your labs, your history, and your partner's results with you. You leave knowing what your biology has been telling you and what your next decision could be. Email hello@fabfertile.ca, subject line FERTILE, or book here. ——— ABOUT THE HOST I'm Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile and host of Get Pregnant Naturally, a podcast with over one million downloads. My functional fertility team works with couples navigating low AMH and failed IVF, reviewing functional lab results, gut microbiome, food sensitivity, vaginal microbiome, nutrigenomics, HTMA, DUTCH, toxin testing, and bloodwork alongside nervous system work, to help identify patterns that may not have been considered. We work alongside your medical team, not instead of them. Sarah Clark, founder of Fab Fertile, host of Get Pregnant Naturally (1M+ downloads), and author of Fabulously Fertile. ——— If this episode helped, leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It is how other women find this work. ——— TIMESTAMPS 00:00 The Protocol Changed Every Time. Did Anyone Change You? 01:00 Who's Reviewing Your Case at Fab Fertile 02:00 Protocol vs System: The Layer Underneath Every IVF 03:00 What Your Body Brought to Every Cycle 04:30 What the 2024 Research Says About AMH 06:00 The Markers That Did Not Change Between Cycles 07:30 Why Multiple Tests Are Not One Test 09:00 The Donor Egg Recommendation With Half the Data 10:30 The Functional Fertility Second Opinion

Welcome back to our weekend Cabral HouseCall shows!   This is where we answer our community's wellness, weight loss, and anti-aging questions to help people get back on track!   Check out today's questions:    Kay: Hi Dr. Cabral, Thanks for your very informative and interesting podcasts. How would you advise a post-menopausal 60 y.o family member if they tested low in ferritin (39.4 ng/mL)? I've read that this biomarker shows how much energy your body's cells have and low levels would result in symptoms like fatigue, low energy/easily tired and excessive hair shedding. This family member suffers from these symptoms. Other biomarkers revealed low AM cortisol and low LDL-C/ApoB ratio (1.1) and low basal metabolic rate of 1143 kcals/day. Although her TSH tested normal (1.3 uIU/mL), she's been on levothyroxine 75 mcg to manage hypothyroid. Her high-sensitivity CRP was not optimal at 1.49 mg/L and she has a family history of heart disease. What would you recommend for this family member? Thanks      Earl: I am currently on 20 mg of lisinopril daily. Also, my GFR is 62. Would either of these be a concern when considering creatine?       Alesi: Dr.Cabral, can you please explain Alpha-gal syndrom? Why does it happen, how to confirm it by testing and how would you approach it? Is it treatable? Thank you      Peter: Hello, Dr.Cabral. I am an integrative health practitioner and would like to thank you for helping me understand the underlying causes of human imbalances. There is one thing that makes no sense to me though…regarding IgG testing, why would you recommend to test every year? Why doesn't suffice to test once and simply stay away from intolerant food items? Why would these intolerances change? Also, in my country there are IgG4 vs IgG1-3 testing options, what are the differences? Thank you very much for your time and knowledge you share with us.       Dipali: Hi I want to start 7 days detox plan, I already did your minerals and heavy metal test, I got my results back. My question is I am taking berberine, oregano oil and magnesium citrate,( I am prediabetic my Hba1c is 6.2)do I need to stop before starting detox method. Thanks       Thank you for tuning into today's Cabral HouseCall and be sure to check back tomorrow where we answer more of our community's questions!      - - - Show Notes and Resources: StephenCabral.com/3774 - - - Get a FREE Copy of Dr. Cabral's Book: The Rain Barrel Effect - - - Join the Community & Get Your Questions Answered: CabralSupportGroup.com - - - Dr. Cabral's Most Popular At-Home Lab Tests: > Complete Minerals & Metals Test (Test for mineral imbalances & heavy metal toxicity) - - - > Complete Candida, Metabolic & Vitamins Test (Test for 75 biomarkers including yeast & bacterial gut overgrowth, as well as vitamin levels) - - - > Complete Stress, Mood & Metabolism Test (Discover your complete thyroid, adrenal, hormone, vitamin D & insulin levels) - - - > Complete Food Sensitivity Test (Find out your hidden food sensitivities) - - - > Complete Omega-3 & Inflammation Test (Discover your levels of inflammation related to your omega-6 to omega-3 levels) - - - Get Your Question Answered On An Upcoming HouseCall: StephenCabral.com/askcabral - - - Would You Take 30 Seconds To Rate & Review The Cabral Concept? The best way to help me spread our mission of true natural health is to pass on the good word, and I read and appreciate every review!  

If you are focusing on improving your FatMax in 2026, you're likely wasting time and money. Not only is fat a more expensive substrate to burn than carbohydrate (you get less energy for the same amount of oxygen by oxidising fat), but the Fatmax number you see in your lab report is mostly noise and very little signal.  In today's episode of That Triathlon Show I'll explain exactly why that is, but I'll also give you a tool to evaluate any test or measure that you might (or might not) want to be tracking, from Time Trials to VO2max, HRV and various biomarkers like ferritin and testosterone.  HIGHLIGHTS AND KEY TOPICS:  What is Fatmax and Maximal Rate of Fat Oxidation?  How reliable is Fatmax testing?  How to measure the noise of a test using the Coefficient of Variation (CV) How to calculate the Smallest Detectable Change (SDC) of any test or measure Why the SDC of Fatmax is the equivalent of you having to go from 300 to 384W for your 20-minute power to be able to say that this was real improvement and not just noise (!!)  CVs and CV ranges for common tests and measures used in triathlon, Ironman and other endurance sports, including Time Trials, Time To Exhaustion, VO2max, lactate and ventilatory thresholds, economy and gross efficiency, lactate concentration, Critical Power and W', HRV, ferritin, testosterone, TSH and more Why carbohydrate is a 7% more efficient energy substrate than fat, and why you should be oxidising carbs in your next Ironman.  DETAILED EPISODE SHOWNOTES:  We have detailed shownotes for all of our episodes. The shownotes are basically the podcast episode in written form, that you can read in 5-10 minutes. They are not transcriptions, but they are also not just surface-level overviews. They provide detailed insights and timestamps for each episode, and are great especially for later review, after you've already listened to an episode.  The shownotes for today's episode can be found at https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts700/ LINKS AND RESOURCES:  Full bibliography in the shownotes: https://scientifictriathlon.com/tts700/ WHAT SHOULD I LISTEN TO NEXT? If you enjoyed this episode, I think you'll love the following episodes, related to sports science and (the third episode listed) fat adaptation and performance.  The replication crisis in sports science with Joe Warne, PhD | EP#468 The Skeptic's Guide To Sports Science with Nicholas Tiller, PhD | EP#239 High carbohydrate, low carbohydrate, or periodised carbohydrate intake with Louise Burke, PhD | EP#236 You can find our full episode archives here, where you can filter for categories such as Triathlon Training, Racing, Science & Physiology, Swimming, Cycling, Running etc. You can also find separate archives for specific series of episodes I've done, specifically Q&A episodes, TTS Thursday episodes, and Beginner Tips episodes.  LEARN MORE ABOUT SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON:  The Scientific Triathlon website is the home of That Triathlon Show and everything else that we do Contact us through our contact form or email me directly (note - email/contact form messages get responded to much more quickly than Instagram DMs) Subscribe to our Newsletter Follow us on Instagram Learn more about our coaching, training plans, and training camps. We have something to offer for everybody from beginners to professionals.  HOW CAN I SUPPORT THAT TRIATHLON SHOW (FOR FREE)?  I really appreciate you reading this and considering helping the show! If you love the show and want to support it to help ensure it sticks around, there are a few very simple things you can do, at no cost other than a minute of your time.  Subscribe to the podcast in your podcast app to automatically get all new episodes as they are released. Tell your friends, internet and social media friends, acquaintances and triathlon frenemies about the podcast. Word of mouth is the best way to grow the podcast by far!  Rate and review the podcast (ideally five stars of course!) in your podcast app of choice (Spotify and Apple Podcasts are the biggest and most important ones). Share episodes online and on social media. Share your favourite episodes in your Instagram stories, start a discussion about interesting episodes on forums, reference them in your blog or Substack.  SPONSORS: Precision Fuel & Hydration produce our favourite gels, sports drinks, and electrolyte and carbohydrate products here at That Triathlon Show and Scientific Triathlon. Use the free Fuel & Hydration Planner to get a personalised plan for your carbohydrate, sodium and fluid intake in your next event, and get 15% off your first 2026 order by using the code TTS2026 at checkout. Rouvy is hands down the most complete indoor cycling platform for triathletes. Among their thousands of beautiful bike courses from all around the world, all filmed in stunning quality, they have over 75 IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 race courses plus 20+ Challenge Family courses, so you can pre-ride your race from home. Real gradients, real visuals, and real feel! Head to rouvy.com and use the code TTS to get your first month free on top of a 7-day free trial. Effortless Swimming produce the best swim goggles for triathletes and open water swimmers. Their NanoClear anti-fog lenses give you clear, fog-free vision that lasts and doesn't wear off. Don't let foggy or leaky goggles ruin another swim. Go to shop.effortlessswimming.com and use the code TTS15 to get 15% off your goggles, and get a free two-month Effortless Swimming course membership.LEARN MORE ABOUT SCIENTIFIC TRIATHLON: The Scientific Triathlon website is the home of That Triathlon Show and everything else that we doContact us through our contact form or email me directly (note - email/contact form messages get responded to much more quickly than Instagram DMs)Subscribe to our NewsletterFollow us on InstagramLearn more about our coaching, training plans, and training camps. We have something to offer for everybody from beginners to professionals. HOW CAN I SUPPORT THAT TRIATHLON SHOW (FOR FREE)? I really appreciate you reading this and considering helping the show! If you love the show and want to support it to help ensure it sticks around, there are a few very simple things you can do, at no cost other than a minute of your time. Subscribe to the podcast in your podcast app to automatically get all new episodes as they are released.Tell your friends, internet and social media friends, acquaintances and triathlon frenemies about the podcast. Word of mouth is the best way to grow the podcast by far! Rate and review the podcast (ideally five stars of course!) in your podcast app of choice (Spotify and Apple Podcasts are the biggest and most important ones).Share episodes online and on social media. Share your favourite episodes in your Instagram stories, start a discussion about interesting episodes on forums, reference them in your blog or Substack. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Discover 7 key signs of a slow thyroid and learn how to distinguish between Hashimoto's and general hypothyroidism. Plus, discover natural ways to support thyroid health and address common thyroid problems naturally.