Take any protrusions or lumps in your neck seriously. Talk to your doctor about them. They may recommend aspirin or ibuprofen to manage pain.
Your thyroid makes hormones that affect every part of your body. It’s like the thermostat that controls your body’s energy. If it’s too active (overactive), you have hyperthyroidism. If it’s too low, you have hypothyroidism.
Weight Loss
The thyroid makes hormones that help your body use energy. If it makes too much, your body uses energy too quickly. This is called hyperthyroidism.
Thyroid problems are usually lifelong conditions for which you’ll take medicine to keep your thyroid hormone levels regular. Medicines include thyroid replacement medicines, like levothyroxine, identical to a hormone that healthy thyroids make.
To find your thyroid, tip your head back in a mirror and look at the front of your neck. You’ll see a small, butterfly-shaped gland in the space between your Adam’s apple and collarbone.
Weight Gain
The thyroid makes hormones that affect every cell in the body. It uses energy quickly when overactive, like a thermostat set too high. This is called hyperthyroidism.
Your thyroid can also go underactive. This can make you feel sluggish and lethargic. Your doctor of Thyroid Denver can test for thyroid problems with blood tests and imaging scans of the neck. They can also look for nodules and cysts in the thyroid with an ultrasound.
Dry Skin
Hormones impact your skin in several ways, and thyroid dysfunction is no exception. An overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism) can cause warm, flushed skin, while an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism) can cause dry, coarse skin with difficulty sweating.
Talk to your doctor about your thyroid function if your skin is dry. Your thyroid hormone levels can be determined with a quick blood test. If hypothyroidism is the culprit, natural and effective treatment options are available.
Hair Loss
Having enough thyroid hormones is crucial for healthy skin. When these hormones are low, the skin becomes dry and itchy. It can also cause changes to the color and texture of hair.
If you’re experiencing hair loss, a thyroid condition may be the culprit. This is because the hormones of both hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism affect how the body grows hair.
Hold a mirror up to your neck and tilt your head back to see if your thyroid gland is functioning correctly. Your doctor can then perform an ultrasound of the thyroid.
Insomnia
If you have thyroid conditions that affect your hormones, you may experience insomnia. Overactive thyroid glands and hypothyroidism are both linked to sleep problems. Obstructive sleep apnea is also associated with thyroid disorders and can cause insomnia.
If you have thyroid issues and struggle to sleep at night, speak with your doctor. They can run thyroid blood tests and ensure you are correctly diagnosed and treated for the condition causing your insomnia.
Headaches
If you suffer from headaches frequently, your thyroid may be to blame. Thyroid hormones are responsible for your brain and digestive function, so it’s no surprise that they also affect your head.
If you have an underactive thyroid, your doctor can check your hormone levels using a blood test. If they detect a thyroid disorder, they can prescribe hormone replacement medication to relieve your symptoms. Many people use over-the-counter painkillers to treat their headaches, but they don’t address the root cause of the issue.
Swelling
The thyroid gland regulates hormones that affect your body’s heart rate, temperature, and metabolism, converting food into energy. Over time, your body may experience hormone imbalances that cause the thyroid to swell.
This may be brought on by Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, an illness that makes your thyroid grow due to your immune system attacking it. Iodine insufficiency or having several thyroid nodules are other potential causes.
Diarrhea
Thyroid hormones are closely connected to digestion. That’s why both hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism can cause digestive problems like diarrhea.
The thyroid controls the body’s metabolism and heartbeat. It can get enlarged and swollen with thyroid disease. It can also get enlarged with pregnancy or as a side effect of some medications such as amiodarone.
