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Hypothyroid Before and After Video

Hi everyone!! Last week I found the most amazing photo of myself at age 29… before treatment for hypothyroidism and adrenal fatigue!! This before photo is so hard to look at but I think it helps show my journey. About six years ago I threw away almost all my pre-treatment photos because they were so upsetting. Before treatment I was overweight, and this photo wasn’t the worst of it! I was so tired I didn’t have energy to care about work, exercise, home, doing my hair, makeup, or nails. All those fun things being a girl were just too exhausting. Watch my video to hear the whole story! Miss Lizzy!

Before and After Hypothyroidism Treatment

Miss Lizzy

Do you ever wonder what patients look like before and after hypothyroidism treatment? Here are historic photos of patients who were treated for hypothyroidism with natural desiccated thyroid medicine (NDT). ¹ In the before photos, notice the typical hypothyroid symptoms including puffy face and eyes, swollen neck area, dull complexion, dullness in the eyes, hooded eyelids, thinning eyebrows, under eye bags. In addition, notice the dry, dull and thinning hair which is common with hypothyroidism.

14 Year Old Girl, Before and After Hypothyroidism Treatment

Before and After Hypothyroidism Treatment with NDT - Miss Lizzy Hypothyroid Advocate

This historical before photo shows a 14-year-old girl with hypothyroid. Her symptoms appear to be puffiness around the eyes, thickened lips, depressed root of the nose (saddle nose), as well as straight, dry, coarse hair. The second photo was taken after only 6 months of treatment with natural desiccated thyroid. Notice the improvements in her appearance and hypothyroid symptoms after treatment with natural desiccated thyroid:

Elevated bridge of the nose
Brighter eyes
Normal looking lips
Glossy, curly hair
In addition, her constipation had resolved and her appetite improved

Adult Woman, Before and After Treatment

This photo shows before and after hypothyroidism treatment of an adult woman. She has the characteristic puffiness that often accompanies hypothyroidism, as well as dull looking complexion, dry looking her, under eye bags. Notice the improvements in her appearance and hypothyroid symptoms after treatment with natural desiccated thyroid:

The bags under her eyes have diminished
Her hair texture has markedly improved, becoming shiny
The swelling around her neck and face have reduced
Her skin appears more vibrant and youthful

Adult Male, Before and After Treatment

This historical photo shows an adult man before and after hypothyroidism treatment. He is described to have the obese form of hypothyroidism. In the before photo he has the characteristic symptoms of hypothyroidism including swollen neck and face. In the before photo his eyelids appear hooded and closed. His hair appear thinning and dry. In addition his eyes appear to have a dull, foggy look, which patients describe as brain fog. Notice the improvements in his appearance and hypothyroid symptoms after treatment with natural desiccated thyroid:

The neck and face swelling have greatly diminished
His hair texture appears more full and healthier
His skin appears more firm and youthful

Adult Male, Before and After Treatment

Finally, the last historical photo of an adult man before and after hypothyroidism treatment. He appears to have the puffiness (myxedema) which is characteristic of hypothyroidism. Notice the improvements in his appearance and hypothyroid symptoms after treatment with natural desiccated thyroid:

The swelling around his neck, jowls and face have greatly reduced
Even the swelling on the back of his neck appears greatly improved
The swelling in his cheek area appears greatly reduced
His skin seems more youthful, especially around his eyes and forehead
His hair appears to be growing in thicker and fuller

Clearly these photos of before and after hypothyroidism treatment show how patients can experience significant improvements when they are on the right medicine. In this case, the medicine was natural desiccated thyroid. However each person is different, therefore treatment may vary.

Notes:

http://www.jcrows.com ↩

Boost Thyroid Medicine in Winter

Miss Lizzy

Here is my new video about Hypothyroidism and the winter blues on Youtube!

REPOST FROM FEB 2011

Here it is March 2014 and I am thinking “Wow, I’ve been feeling kind of blue lately.” It’s the yearly seasonal thyroid drop, which always happens around early March and goes until May. Late winter through early spring can be hard for those of us with hypothyroidism. Even when we are on good thyroid medicine! It reminded me of my blog post from last year on this exact topic. Sheesh, even I have a hard time seeing my own symptoms!

This time of year is always tough for me. The days are getting longer, there is more light and I feel like I should be feeling great. But sure enough, I feel the low-grade depression sneaking up on me again. It usually sets in just before the forsythia bloom (so early March here in New England). When I finally got treatment for hypothyroidism I learned this depression is actually low thyroid!

Apparently thyroid function drops in the late winter/early spring months which creates a low-grade depression for many of us. It feels like SAD (seasonal affective disorder), general depression, or just a heaviness. I know it’s not SAD because I still have it even when I get plenty of sunlight. And I know it’s not traditional depression because it lasts only a few months, and it’s always around this time of year.

So this is a reminder… to help get through the winter blues many of us need to increase our thyroid medicine about 1/4 pill just for a few months. (I might add, who wants to take anti-depressants and gain weight?!) For me the depression starts around now and sometimes lasts through May. When I start to feel light and buoyant again I know I can ease back to my normal dose of thyroid medicine.

Exercise and Hypothyroidism

Miss Lizzy

Determined? Absolutely. This is me at Crossfit where we climb ropes, run, row, lift heavy barbells. A one mile run is often just the warm up. Ten years ago, a one mile run would have landed me in bed for days. Imagine the difference in my life!

Yesterday I reached an exciting milestone. After a year at CrossFit, something I never would have imagined possible before hypothyroid and adrenal treatment, I did my very first unassisted pull-up. Hanging from the bar, full dead-weight, unassisted pull-up. It was so exciting. The most important part is what went through my head:

“I WANT IT!!“

These words are the single most powerful phrase in my life. Until that moment, I only kind-of wanted the pull-up. I hadn’t actually told my mind that I really wanted it. Saying these words propelled me up, giving me a deep source of power I didn’t realize was inside. Accessing this power feels incredible.

That’s what the thyroid journey has taught me. How to stay determined, persevere through the hardest of times with effort and intention. During the early days of treatment, when I had lower energy I was kind to myself. On the days when I had more energy I would tackle anything I could to help improve my health. Step by step I found my way to health and vitality.

Now I have mostly great days with endurance and energy. However, I would never try this kind of exercise until I had fully healed my thyroid and adrenal issues. First, heal the body. Be patient.

I hope my journey inspires you to keep your spirits high, celebrate every milestone especially the small ones like this, and stay determined.