Could a Blood Test Have Predicted my Postpartum Mood Disorder?

Do I carry the Postpartum Mood Disorder (PPMD) gene?  Did I pass the gene onto my babies?  By the time my 13 and 10 year old daughters have children will they be tested for the PPMD gene?  Could I have passed the gene onto my son who may pass the gene onto his daughters if he …

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Image credit: 123RF Stock Photo

Mothers Day Sucks: Mothers Day After a Miscarriage

Here’s the thing about Mothers Day – sometimes it sucks. It’s hard after you’ve lost your own mom but people acknowledge that grief.  What happens when you’ve lost a baby no one else got the chance to know? Like many other traumatic life events do, when many women who have miscarried speak to each other …

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Is Half a Postpartum Plan Better Than No Plan at All?

When postpartum anxiety(PPA)struck me after my third baby I was already on high-alert for postpartum depression(PPD). I suspected that I had suffered from some sort of postpartum mood disorder(PPMD) after my second baby but like most women never sought help and was never diagnosed.  My mood swings were extreme and, in fact, they went into …

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Image credit: bluefern / 123RF Stock Photo

Me & My Spinning Head: When PMS Turns Ugly

You know the famous scene in the Exorcist?  The one where Linda Blair’s head is spinning – there was a time when I thought my own head would spin right off!  I was afraid of myself!  As my menstrual cycle approached each month my family must have wanted to run far, far away.  I know …

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Screening for Thyroid Disorders Before Pregnancy

The Thyroid Foundation of Canada recommends all women get screened for thyroid disorders BEFORE pregnancy.  I agree for a whole lot of reasons besides just overall health and symptom relief – here are some of the pregnancy-specific reasons I would INSIST on proper thyroid screening before pregnancy: 1) thyroid disorders can become exacerbated during pregnancy 2) …

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Could a Blood Test Have Predicted my Postpartum Mood Disorder?Mothers Day Sucks: Mothers Day After a MiscarriageIs Half a Postpartum Plan Better Than No Plan at All?Me & My Spinning Head: When PMS Turns UglyScreening for Thyroid Disorders Before Pregnancy

May 23

Could a Blood Test Have Predicted my Postpartum Mood Disorder?

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May 23, 2013

Can our Genes Predict PPMD? Image: 123rf

Can our Genes Predict PPMD? Image: 123rf

Do I carry the Postpartum Mood Disorder (PPMD) gene?  Did I pass the gene onto my babies?  By the time my 13 and 10 year old daughters have children will they be tested for the PPMD gene?  Could I have passed the gene onto my son who may pass the gene onto his daughters if he has any?

What about women who don’t carry the gene?  Could they still get PPMD?  Can someone have the gene and yet not get PPMD?  If not, why not?

So many questions – yet maybe we are finally going to get some answers:

There’s exciting news in the world of research surrounding Postpartum Mood Disorder – a small study by John Hopkins researchers uncovered genes that may actually predict women who will get PPMD. Read more here:

 Genetic Predictors for Postpartum Mood Disorder

So if I knew I carried the PPMD gene would that have changed the outcome?  I didn’t have many noticeable symptoms when my first daughter was born.  With my second baby it was extreme mood swings and OCD.  By my third baby it was debilitating anxiety  - so if I had carried “the gene” would I have been receiving a different level of care from my doctors?  Would I have still just been offered an anti-depressant and nothing else? Would it have changed the fact that I didn’t even know about postpartum OCD? or postpartum anxiety?  Did this gene also have something to do with my inability to ovulate orr with my severe PMS? Is it going to predict what happens when I hit menopause? Wow…lots to think about.

I’m thrilled with this new research and hope that larger studies will confirm that a blood test could be a useful tool.  It doesn’t mean we can drop the ball on awareness about all the types of PPMD and all the different options to treatment.  

Postpartum Mood Disorder can take many forms including anxiety, OCD (intrusive thoughts & visions), depression, bi-polar, PTSD and life-threatening psychosis.  Postpartum Psychosis is a medical emergency if you suspect you or someone you know is suffering seek immediate medical attention.

 

Read more of my blog posts about PPMD:                                                     (trigger warning)

Is Half a Postpartum Plan Better Than No Plan at All?

Screening for Thyroid Disorders Before Pregnancy

My Postpartum OCD

PPMD: Balance My Body Don’t Shock My Brain

PPMD not PPD Please

Postpartum Anxiety Part 1: My Heart Did Loop-de-Loops – I thought I was dying (trigger warning)

Postpartum Anxiety Part 2: I thought I was dying again  (trigger warning)

The Cruel Joke of PPMD

The Happy Mask of PPMD

 

 

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May 09

Mothers Day Sucks: Mothers Day After a Miscarriage

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May 9, 2013

Image credit: 123RF Stock Photo

Image credit: 123RF Stock Photo

Here’s the thing about Mothers Day – sometimes it sucks. It’s hard after you’ve lost your own mom but people acknowledge that grief.  What happens when you’ve lost a baby no one else got the chance to know?

Like many other traumatic life events do, when many women who have miscarried speak to each other about their miscarriages, there is a shared camaraderie.  A shared understanding that is known only to women who have been through the horror of losing a baby. I’ve talked to a lot of mommies over the 15 years since my first miscarriage and here’s what I think most moms who have miscarried would like you to know:

We are Moms

Even if we have never carried a baby to term – we had a baby.  It died. Maybe we didn’t get to hold that baby or hear it call us Mama.  Maybe we weren’t far enough along in our pregnancy to feel our baby move.  Maybe we were a single mom, struggling to figure out how to manage a pregnancy and a baby.  Maybe part of us was afraid or didn’t really want a baby when we found out we were pregnant.  Maybe our husband doesn’t acknowledge our suffering or that he, too, is a parent.

Maybe it’s hard for you to understand.  We would like you to try.  

We wish you would acknowledge what we know in our hearts.  We are Moms.  When you don’t acknowledge our grief it makes it harder.  When you pretend like it didn’t happen it makes it worse.  Bringing up the baby won’t make us feel worse – it makes us feel better that you’ve acknowledge how we feel and that our baby was real and deserves our grief.  You won’t remind us of the baby we lost – we don’t need reminding – we think of our babies more than you can imagine. Many of us feel like we suffer twice – once when we lose the baby and then again when no one seems to understand or acknowledge or even worse – tells us “it was for the best”.

Mother’s Day Sucks

My first mother’s day came 6 weeks after I lost my first baby – I spent alot of time crying that day.  I felt like I should have been celebrating mother’s day as a Mommy-to-Be but instead I felt like I was a Mommy-That-Wasnt-Meant-to-Be.

Mother’s Day is coming – do you know someone who miscarried a baby?  Consider acknowledging a mom who has suffered a miscarriage on Mother’s Day.  A small note saying thinking of you on Mothers Day or a single flower will let her know you understand that she is a Mom.

 

To read more of my posts about Miscarriage:

It Doesn’t Always Take a Crystal Ball: My Explainable Miscarriages     

Missing our Miscarried Babies

 

To get connected to another mom who has suffered a miscarriage, stillbirth or early infant loss visit:

Miscarriage Matters Inc

It’s a free service for women AND their families and friends who want to reach out and get connected to a supportive volunteer who understands. 

 

 

This blog post is dedicated to a special Mom that I have recently come to know – some people in her life don’t see her as a Mom but those of us who have miscarried our babies know in our hearts and minds that she is a mom.  

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Apr 30

Is Half a Postpartum Plan Better Than No Plan at All?

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April 30, 2013

Postpartum Planning

Postpartum Planning
Image credit: 123rf.com

When postpartum anxiety(PPA)struck me after my third baby I was already on high-alert for postpartum depression(PPD). I suspected that I had suffered from some sort of postpartum mood disorder(PPMD) after my second baby but like most women never sought help and was never diagnosed.  My mood swings were extreme and, in fact, they went into overdrive when I weaned my daughter from breastfeeding at 17 months.  Eventually the mood swings settled into a cyclical pattern of extreme PMS, which I later learned was not at all unusual for someone like me.

So when I got pregnant with my third baby I was concerned about a repeat of the dramatic, life-altering mood swings. I confided my fear to my family doctor.  She advised me not to worry because she would put me on anti-depressants as soon as the baby was born.  To be completely honest, the idea of anti-depressants scared me even more than the risk of PPMD.  But the mention of anti-depressants spurred me to action to come up with a preventative plan before my baby was born.

My Postpartum Plan:

I knew bio-identical hormones were used by some doctors to prevent and treat postpartum mood disorders so I visited the nearest compounding pharmacist and asked for a list of obstetricians that prescribed bio-identical hormones.  With that list of doctors in my hot little pregnant hand I picked up the phone to make sure the OB/GYN I wanted was taking new patients.  I asked my family doctor to make the referral.  This particular OB/GYN is the extremely busy Chief of Obstetrics at his hospital so it took some time to get my first appointment but I was hopeful that it would be worth the wait.  At my first appointment I told him my history and shared my fear about postpartum depression.  Like my family doctor, he too, told me not to worry.  But his plan was to put me on progesterone cream as soon as my baby was born.  I breathed my first sigh of relief. I finally had a plan that fit with my personal beliefs.  And if those mood swings were going to strike I’d be striking right back with my progesterone clicker.  I felt confident that I was going to be spared the fate I had suffered with my daughter.  In a way I was right – but NOT in the way I expected.

Once my beautiful baby boy was born I implemented my plan and began applying my beloved progesterone cream.  I was so relieved to have that scrumptious calming cream that was going to protect me from the dramatic mood swings.  And they never came instead I had only ONE mood: debiilitating anxiety.  You know when you’re watching a movie and you can’t figure out why the actor is oblivious to the impending doom?  Yeah, you got it – there were a few chinks in my creamy progesterone armour:

  • I didn’t know as much about progesterone back in those days and didn’t realize that the dose my doctor gave me was very small, painfully too small.
  • I also didn’t know much about PPMD – I had heard of postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis and I knew I’d had some wicked mood swings but that was it.  Sadly, I had never heard of postpartum anxiety and postpartum OCD.   I never knew to watch out for it.  Neither did my husband.
  • I never bothered to prepare or enlist a single friend or family member.
  • I didn’t know that PVCs (Premature Ventricular Contractions –  kind of  like a big heart palpitation that can be powerful enough to wake you out of a deep sleep) were related to hormone deficiencies.
  • I didn’t know about pregnancy and postpartum related thyroid disorders OR that I was at risk.

Looking Back:

I feel like I had the beginnings of a postpartum plan that suited me to a “T”.   Truly though, just a bit more information would have made all the difference in the world:

  • If I had known about PPA then I may have realized that indeed a postpartum mood disorder needed to be considered as a cause of my anxiety.
  • If I had known about the PVC’s being related perhaps I would have told my OB/GYN about them, instead of going to my family doctor who didn’t relate them to my plummeting hormone levels.
  • If I had known that increasing my dose of progesterone would have provided almost instant relief I would have acted quicker.
  • If I had known about postpartum thyroiditis I may have pushed for adequate thyroid testing before, during and/or after my pregnancies.  (Because of my subsequent research I now believe in universal thyroid testing before pregnancy.)
  • Knowing what I know now, I would have hired a postpartum doula.  I recall thinking of it with my first baby but I lived in a remote settlement in Canada’s Arctic – there are no doulas north of 65°.  By the time I had my third baby, for some reason I didn’t even think of a doula.

The Lightbulb:

One day the PPA light bulb suddenly turned on for me!  I can’t recall why it did, but once I realized that my anxiety was a postpartum mood disorder, everything slowly began to make sense.  I called my obstetrician’s office but I couldn’t get an appointment for 3 weeks – a lifetime for someone with debilitating anxiety.  I don’t know why I didn’t plead with his receptionist for help.  I should have.  I should have gotten in my car and drove to his office.   Instead I called my compounding pharmacist and told her about my dose and my anxiety.  She confirmed everything for me – mostly that my dose was too low.  I breathed my second sigh of relief!  I immediately doubled the amount of cream I applied and by the next day could feel the anxiety begin to diminish.  By the time I got to my doctor I was feeling a bit more like myself with just some underlying anxiety.  My obstetrician tripled my dose and soon my anxiety drifted away.  I didn’t have to breathe a sigh of relief anymore – I simply breathed.   And oh, the air was sweet.

I advocate for a multi-faceted, personalized postpartum plan for EVERY mom with EVERY pregnancy.

I advocate for universal thyroid testing, including T4, T3, rT3 and anti-bodies (not just TSH) before pregnancy.

Whatever your plan is – I hope you make yours more thorough than I did – even though half a plan was better than no plan at all.

 

NOTE:

  • Postpartum Psychosis is a life threatening emergency – if you suspect that you or someone you know is suffering from postpartum psychosis get help immediately.
  • This article contains my personal story and my personal views and which may or may not pertain to others.  It is for informational purposes only.  If you are under medical care or on medication, do not go off them based on information you find in this article. Please seek medical advice from a professional.  This article is not a substitute for medical care. Information on this blog is general as it can not address each individual’s situation and needs.

 

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Apr 16

Me & My Spinning Head: When PMS Turns Ugly

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April 16, 2013

You know the famous scene in the Exorcist?  The one where Linda Blair’s head is spinning – there was a time when I thought my own head would spin right off!  I was afraid of myself!  As my menstrual cycle approached each month my family must have wanted to run far, far away.  I know I did.  And, yet I was trying to get my PMS symptoms under control.  Trek after trek to my doctor she recommended birth control pills.  The hormones would alleviate my PMS she told me.  So every three months I went back with an unsuccessful report and she would suggest switching to another brand.  At every visit she would also suggest anti-depressants.  Surprised at the suggestion because I couldn’t link what was happening to me each month with needing an anti-depressant,  I would leave with yet another round of birth control pills in hand.  How long could this go on?  I mean there are really only so many different types of birth control pills? Do they work that differently?  Eventually my doctor told me we had tried everything, which left me with only one option – the dreaded anti-depressants.

I had one little problem with the idea – I wasn’t depressed! Myriad PMS symptoms, including mood swings, plagued me every month but it was clearly related to my menstrual cycle.  So where did anti-depressants fit into the picture I wondered.  It just didn’t make sense to me.   Aren’t anti-depressants for people living with depression?  But of course, what’s a girl with severe PMS to do?  Sitting in the doctor’s office that day, it seemed like the only option. In fact, it was the only option my doctor offered.

My inner monologue went something like this: Was I just a girl in denial that I needed anti-depressants.  Am I over-reacting?  Apparently half the population is on them, how bad can it be?  Could my intuition, gasp, be wrong – maybe these itty bitty pills actually do have the power to pull me from the depths of my cyclical hell.  Ok, I will try them, I have to try something, I can’t live like this anymore and neither can my family.  My doctor’s voice reverberated in my mind – this is the only option. My inner voice hollered “no!” but my desperation whispered “yes”.  Ever so reluctantly I took the prescription, it was a low day for me.

As I handed the prescription to the pharmacist, embarrassment washed over me.  The funny thing is I don’t judge anyone who takes anti-depressants, yet when it came to myself I suddenly felt inadequate at resorting to medication.  I wonder if I had actually been depressed instead of pre-menstrual would I have had the same reaction?  I think that I suddenly realized that I didn’t want people to judge me. I’ve always felt like a survivor and here I was at the pharmacist’s counter picking up a pill bottle of inner strength – if others saw me that way then it didn’t fit with the view I had of myself.  I was buying into the nasty “stigma” that I don’t even believe in!

I can’t remember how many times I read the pamphlet that came with the prescription but I know I read every single word.  My brain scanning for something, anything that would scream out at me that a pre-menstrual woman shouldn’t be taking anti-depressants.  I couldn’t find it.  Nowhere could I find a warning that said ‘If you have PMS you should NOT take this drug’.

And so as I opened the little pill bottle I could feel my throat clenching shut.  So that’s why they make them so small, I surmised.  If anti-depressants came as a big horse pill no one could get them down.  Somehow that little pill managed to slip down my throat. I think I said a secret prayer to myself that I was making the right choice.  Now all I had to do was wait and see what would happen.  Could this magic pill designed for depression cure my messed up hormones?

The next morning I woke with a wretched headache.  When it wouldn’t go away I took medication to try to get rid of the headache.   I read that it takes time for your body to adjust to the new medication.  So each day for 6 weeks I took the anti-depressants and the headache medicine.   One day I realized even my sundresses were getting small and stepped on the scale to the realization that I had gained 15 lbs!   Six weeks after I plugged my ears to my inner voice I was left with a headache that wouldn’t go away, had packed on 15 lbs and still had the dreaded PMS.

That’s when awareness struck – the headache had been from my inner voice screaming at me!  I picked up the phone and called a naturopathic doctor who specialized in balancing hormones.   I made a promise to myself to never to ignore my inner voice again.

 

 

This article was originally published as a guest blog post on DrGreene.com as The Deep Dark Descent to My Naturopath’s Office.

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Apr 07

Screening for Thyroid Disorders Before Pregnancy

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April 7, 2013

The Thyroid Foundation of Canada recommends all women get screened for thyroid disorders BEFORE pregnancy.  I agree for a whole lot of reasons besides just overall health and symptom relief – here are some of the pregnancy-specific reasons I would INSIST on proper thyroid screening before pregnancy:

1) thyroid disorders can become exacerbated during pregnancy

2) miscarriage and infertility have been linked to thyroid disorders

3) the developing baby relies solely on the mother’s thyroid function for the first 10 – 12 weeks when it begins to produce it’s own thyroid hormone

3) thyroid-autism connection – yes I’ve been reading a lot lately about this possible connection.  The rates of autism are sky-rocketing and some researchers are questioning whether maternal thyroid disorders could be playing a role.  Dr. Raphael Kellman’s article is a good place to start if you want to learn more.

4) pregnancy-induced hypertension

5) preterm delivery

6) placental abruption

In North America there is no such thing as universal screening for pregnant mothers – in fact it’s controversial partially due to whether it’s cost effective, also a suggestion that concern over malpractice could also be at play, and some say that there’s not enough research to support universal screening.

 This NEEDS to change!

In the meantime – ADVOCATE for yourself & INSIST on screening.  If your doctor says no then be prepared to tell him/her about your research:

  • Take a list of the possible outcomes of not treating thyroid disorders in pregnancy that I mentioned above to your doctor’s appointment
  • Learn about the 300+ symptoms.
  • Tell your doctor that American Academy of Clinical Endocrinologists and National Academy of Clinical Biochemistry (NACB) endorsed universal screening of pregnant women for thyroid dysfunction.
  • Ask your doctor if he or she is aware of the Endocrine Society’s new guidelines as of August, 2012.  There’s a good chance that your doctor isn’t aware of this.  The Endocrine Society admits that they can’t come to a consensus about pre-pregnancy or prenatal screening for thyroid disorders and came out with this written release:

 ”The committee did not reach a consensus on screening recommendations for all newly pregnant women. “Some members recommend screening of all pregnant women for serum TSH abnormalities by the ninth week or at the time of their first visit. Other members recommend neither for nor against universal screening of pregnant women at the time of their first visit and support aggressive case finding to identify and test high-risk women. In some situations, ascertainment of an individual’s risk status may not be feasible and in such cases, testing of all women by 9 weeks of pregnancy or at the first prenatal visit is reasonable.”

It’s your body – It’s your baby!

Both Dr. Norman Wong from University of Calgary and Dr. Richard Lewanczuk, an Endocrinologist from the University of Alberta were interviewed and stated that they believe ALL women should be screened before pregnancy.

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Apr 02

A Naturopath Speaks About Health

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April 2, 2013

I haven’t had much time to blog lately but I want you to be able to watch someone I have come to admire through social media.  I love the internet and the creation of social media.   Dr. Carrie Louis Daenell is so authentic and in this video she discusses her symptoms and how while going through pre-med and becoming a naturopathic doctor she suffered chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia and how she found her path to wellness. Thanks Dr. Daenell.

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Mar 19

A Bully in The Endocrine Olympics

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March 19, 2013

Bromine - Periodic Table

Bromine – Periodic Table
Image: 123rf

Did you know that everyday you have all sorts of little receptors in your body engaged in an Olympic-level competition?  Of course we aren’t really aware of it unless it starts to show symptoms.  Once we have symptoms we go to the doctor for treatment.  Here’s the thing that bothers me – even with appropriate medical treatment if we don’t reduce the competition going on in our own bodies then maybe we still aren’t addressing our health in the most optimal way.   And then there’s this:  how the heck are you supposed to know about this stuff if no one shares this information?!  You aren’t going to get it from your doctor.  And from your pharmacist? No.  From your government whom you entrust to protect you from these chemicals?  Well partly/maybe – but that depends upon where in this amazing world you live.

So by now you know how adamant I am about those damn Xenoestrogens competing with our estrogen receptors?  And I’ve also told you how too much estrogen and xenoestrogens means that your thyroid hormones have to compete for their own receptors.

Today I’m going to tell you about another competition to be aware about for the best hormone health:

Bromine VS Iodine

Bromine is an endocrine disruptor & competes with Iodine receptors used by your thyroid

So why does that matter to you?  Here’s the trouble, your thyroid requires iodine in order to produce thyroid hormone and it needs to pull it out of your bloodstream to get it.   In fact, you may have heard of T4 and T3 but did you know what those numbers stand for?  T4 refers to thyroxine which has 4 iodine atoms. T3 refers to triiodothyronine which has 3 iodine atoms.  T4 has to convert to T3 by getting rid of one iodine atom.  Long story short – it’s the T3 that makes it’s way into your cells to affect your entire metabolism!  Every single metabolic process is affected by your thyroid hormone. And that thyroid gland is responsible for activating over 100 cellular enzymes which, in turn, are responsible for a variety of different functions in every single cell in your body.

Now imagine if you are iodine deficient – what would happen to your T4 and T3 levels?  It should be clear to you that they absolutely need iodine.   And I shouldn’t forget to tell you that your ovaries need iodine too (a story for another day)!

Now enter Bromine, which bullies it’s way onto iodine receptors and can leave your thyroid trying to function without optimal levels of iodine.

Never heard of Bromine?  Well it is virtually EVERYWHERE in our environment:

  • It’s in your kids fire-retardant pj’s
  • It’s on your strawberries – Gee no wonder they are on the Environmental Working Groups Dirty Dozen Fruits & Vegetables List?
  •  It’s in your commercially baked bread especially if you live in the USA (except maybe California where they would have to label your bread as carcinogenic which prompted most commercial bakeries to stop making brominated bread).  King Arthurs Flour actually educates professional bakers about how to make non-brominated bread right on their website – love that! If you live in the UK or Canada adding Bromine to food has been banned.
  • Its in certain sugary, citrusy or sports drinks and some sodas in the form of Brominated Vegetable Oil (BVO) – even the name sounds disgusting doesn’t it?
  • Some cosmetics, hair dyes, perms (Oh dear, please don’t let that 80′s trend come back into style for a whole lot of reasons).  Look for words like Sodium Bromate and Benzalkonium.
  • Mattresses & carpets & automobile upholstery
  • Hot Tub and Swimming Pool Treatments
  • Some prescribed and over-the-counter medications

While you may not be able to live completely Bromine free – there are ways to minimize your exposure & avoid coming into contact with bromine when you can.  Dr. Mercola’s article on Bromine has some interesting information about the effect bromine has on your thyroid.

Here’s an article from the Journal of Clinical Pathology about the effects of Bromine on Thyroid Activity.  The study found an association between high bromine concentrations in patients with high TSH but normal Free T4 levels.  The evidence suggests an association between bromine and thyroid hormone disorder in some patients.

If you want to read about rat studies this study of rat thyroids showed as long as rats had sufficient iodine, increased bromine wasn’t a factor in the rat thyroid function.  Where the problem began was when the rat already had an iodine deficiency then the bromine atoms were taken up by the thyroid.

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

If you ever wondered if you could make a difference check out this young girl, Sarah Kavanagh’s victory at Change.org – she started a petition aimed at getting BVO out of one of her favorite drinks Gatorade!  She was able to get over 200,000 signatures!  What a hero!  Way to go Sarah!  And now she’s working on getting BVO out of Powerade – please make a difference and sign her petition – it only takes a moment of your time if you click here.

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Mar 11

Miscarriages Hurt Your Heart in More Ways Than You Know

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March 11, 2013

Image: Dreamstime

Image: Dreamstime

Losing two babies when I was in my first trimester of my pregnancies was heart breaking.  The ache in my heart was particularly painful at the time but I was surprised to learn that miscarriages put you at risk for more than just a broken heart – you actually have a greater risk of cardiovascular disease later in life.

In fact, your risk goes up with each miscarriage you have.  A Finnish study of 3,937 women from age 30 – 99 found that the risk for heart disease later in life went up significantly with each miscarriage.  Unfortunately no causative factor was mentioned.

Conversely if you’ve suffered recurrent miscarriages your parents are at an increased risk of coronary heart disease.  A Scottish study of almost 75,000 people from 1992 – 2006 showed a 25% increase in risk among parents of women with two previous miscarriages.  Three or more miscarriages put a women’s parents at a 56% increase in risk for coronary heart disease.

The Scottish researchers investigated a number of possible causative factors but found no direct cause-effect relationship.  Instead they are suggesting that there may be similar genetic predispositions at play.

So researchers are talking about some sort of genetic pre-disposition.  Here’s something that’s on my mind but wasn’t investigated in either study – thyroid disorders!

Thyroid Disorders:

  • carry an increased risk of miscarriage
  • an increased risk of heart disease
  • thyroid disease can be hereditary

Whatever is at play – make sure you take extra-special care of your heart if you’ve had recurrent miscarriages and don’t forget Grandma & Grandpa’s heart too.

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Feb 28

It Doesn’t Always Take a Crystal Ball: My Explainable Miscarriages

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February 28, 2013

ePatient Power: No Crystal Ball Required Image Source: Dreamstime

ePatient Power: No Crystal Ball Required Image Source: Dreamstime

When I miscarried my first two pregnancies I was told that most early trimester miscarriages are “unexplained”.   It never sat well with me in the first place and when I really became a citizen-researcher eventually my beliefs were validated.

My miscarriages would have been explained if my doctors had bothered to spend even a moment to go over my health history and symptoms.  In fact, if my health history had been taken into account it wouldn’t have taken a crystal ball to figure out that I was going to miscarry in the first place!  My medical history pointed to:

  • some serious estrogen dominance symptoms
  • hypothyroid symptoms
  • trouble conceiving

Here were the glaring red flags:

Does it seem obvious to you?   It sure sends some red flags up for me. If I had been an engaged patient before I started trying to conceive there is no doubt in my mind that I would have had a different outcome.  Of course how would I truly know since neither my thyroid nor my estradiol/progesterone levels were tested at the time.  (Progesterone suppositories worked and I have three kids as “evidence”!  As well, later hormone tests revealed I had almost no progesterone but really tests should have been done at the time. That being said I had all the signs of progesterone deficiency/estrogen dominance and they weren’t picked up on.)

The perfect example of why being an engaged patient is crucial to your health:

To my doctors those miscarriages were “spontaneous abortions” (the medical term for miscarriage that feels like a punch in the stomach when you spot it written on your chart).

To me, those were my beautiful little babies that I never got to meet or hold or nurse or cherish or snuggle or laugh with or hear them call me Mama.

It’s not that my doctors didn’t care – they just didn’t care as much as I did.

No one will care about your health as much as you do.

Read my article My Baby Taught Me My ABCs about how I advocated for myself and had my beautiful baby girl on Dr Greene’s website.

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Feb 25

What You Don’t Know Will Hurt You

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February 25, 2013

Hashimotos is an Autoimmune Disease

Hashimotos is an Autoimmune Disease

You could be one of the millions of people who have undiagnosed thyroid disease. An estimated 13 million Americans and 2 million Canadians are walking around unaware they have a thyroid condition. It is 7 – 8 times more common in women! Unfortunately it can take decades to finally get diagnosed.

And if that doesn’t sound dismal enough – once a person gets diagnosed with hypothyroidism they most likely aren’t aware that they could actually have an auto-immune disease called Hashimotos that created the hypothyroidism in the first place!

Up to 90% of hypothyroid patients actually have Hashimotos Disease (also called autoimmune thyroiditis) – that means their body is destroying their thyroid gland.  By the time people get diagnosed often their gland is well destroyed.  Like most people diagnosed with hypothyroidism, I take thyroid hormone – problem solved right? Well not exactly.   By the time you’re hypothyroid your gland isn’t producing enough thyroid hormone so you have to take thyroid hormone – most likely for the rest of your life.  But taking thyroid hormone is not a cure for Hashimotos and does not change the fact that you have an auto-immune disease.

WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW CAN HURT YOU:

50 – 60% of Hashimotos patients have antibodies against other tissues - not just thyroid.   The point here is that if you don’t address the autoimmune part of the disease then you may expect other eventual outcomes.

Why am I so interested in Hashimotos?  I suspect I have Hashimotos and am currently awaiting the results of my anti-body test.  I’m discovering that interpreting the test results can prove complicated!

While finding out I have Hashimotos may answer some questions like why I feel better when I don’t eat gluten –  gluten intolerance is common in Hashimotos patients.  Eating gluten can trigger a further autoimmune response in a vicious cycle that can last up to 6 months after eating gluten.  So my low-gluten diet strategy that I’ve been undertaking for quite a while isn’t going to work!  In fact this weekend I indulged in some luscious bread and very quickly looked like I was 6 months pregnant!  2 days later I am still feeling the uncomfortable effects.  It’s looking more and more like a 100% gluten-free diet is in my future.

In the meantime check out this video by Dr. Datis Kharrazian, who is an expert in this field and has written the book “Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms”.

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