Complications of an Overactive Thyroid

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Many times we hear about what an overactive thyroid is but not what complications can occur.

Here I will show you how complications of an overactive thyroid can affect your life. I have also written other articles on how you can successfully treat this condition and live a full and product life.

Disclaimer

I am not medically trained and I am not a scientist. I have done a lot of research over the years since I started living with a thyroid conditions and was amazed to find out that I did not need to have the radiation treatment that I had.

The radiation treatment only traded one thyroid condition for another. I was first diagnosed with overactive thyroid and after the treatment I then had underactive thyroid condition.

Only to find out during my research that it is easier to control an underactive thyroid, medically.

So I am sharing the methods that I use to help to reduce my synthetic medication. My goal is to totally come off this medication by getting it reduced until it cannot be reduced anymore and I am totally off them.

Then I would have reached my ultimate goal of healing my thyroid. YAY.

Complications of an Overactive Thyroid

Overactive thyroid is also known as hyperthyroidism.

Did you know that around 1 in 20 people with Graves’ disease could also develop symptoms that will affect their eyes?

Conditions such as:

Sensitivity to light (photophobia)
Tearing (excessive production of tears from the tear duct)
Double Vision

These conditions should be treated by an eye specialist (an ophthalmologist). These conditions are known as Graves’ ophthalmopathy. This is where the immune system mistakenly starts to attack the eye tissues. These symptoms can occur if the condition is not treated.

Symptoms of Graves’ Ophthalmopathy Include:

Eyes feeling gritty and dry
Excessive tearing
Double vision
Some loss of vision
Light sensitive (photophobia)
Feeling of pressure behind the eyes

One thing that I noticed was that my eyes started to bulge out and at times, when I would look in to the mirror I had the scared look. I truly hated that time. I would cover it up by constantly wearing my glasses to tone it down.

In more severe cases, your eyes can bulge prominently from your eye socket. This is when you will be referred to an eye specialist (ophthalmologist) for treatment.

Treatments can include:

Eyedrops to ease the symptoms
Sunglasses to protect the eyes against bright lights
Corticosteroids to reduce inflammation
Radiotherapy
Surgery

I use transition glasses, which I found a lot easier because they would transition to the environment that I was in without having to take my sunglasses off when I went in and out of buildings.

I also opted for radiotherapy to avoid surgery. But as I mentioned earlier if I had all this information to hand at that time I would have gone for the natural route without a second thought.

Why?

Because now not only do I have to re-train my thyroid to function properly again, I have to deal with all the other symptoms that come with the treatment, such as weight gain.

Alternative Treatments for an Overactive Thyroid

If I knew then what I know now I would have use the natural alternatives all day long because they are life changers and a more permanent treatment rather than just masking the condition.

I have been using Bladderwrack consistantly for since 2014 and know that the Benefits of Bladderwrack for the Thyroid is a really good way to help your thyroid function at it’s best.

I have also been using other herbs which I have also written about and you can find out more information from the articles listed below.

Benefits of Ashwagandha Root Tea

Ashwagandha Root Tea and the Health Benefits

Nettle Tea and the Health Benefits

Healing Your Thyroid Naturally by Drinking Water

Who is Affected

Women are 10 times more likely than men to get an overactive thyroid gland.

In fact it is estimated that around 1 in 50 women in England currently live with an overactive thyroid gland.

In most cases symptoms can begin between the ages of 20 and 40, but in saying that symptoms can develop at any age and this includes childhood.

Research shows that overactive thyroid tends to occur more frequently in white and Asian people and less frequently in African-Caribbean People.

Not really sure how they did this research. Lol

I developed over active thyroid in my early 20’s but it took a few years to realise that I had an overactive thyroid because they doctors tested me for everything else for about 18 months.

Pregnancy and Overactive Thyroid

Research shows that some women are actually first diagnosed with an overactive thyroid gland.

Pregnancy can lead to a relapse of symptoms is the person as a history of Graves’ disease.

Pregnancy and Overactive thyroid condition can put pregnant women at an increased risked of developing complications such as, eclampsia and miscarriage.

Pregnant women are also more at risk of delivering their baby early and at a low birthweight.

Specialist treatment will be required during the pregnancy, so that the medications are managed so that the baby is not affected.

Medication information

I thought that I would share this little bit of information that I found on the British Thyroid Association website which I will leave the link here for you to take a look for yourself.

Anyway.

This information stood out to me because it is the medication that I am currently taking.

Levothyroxine is the third most prescribed drug in the UK and the most prescribed in the US.

In the UK the number of prescriptions in this country has risen from 2.8 million in 1998 to 19 million in 2007 and 29 million in 2014.

This means the cost per day has increased from less than £5,000 to more than £40,000.

Now I have written this word for word because whilst I was reading this, I thought that the focus was on cost and not on health.

Just putting it out there.

Other articles that may interest you:

Benefits of Bladderwrack for the Thyroid

Benefits of Ashwagandha Root Tea

Ashwagandha Root Tea and the Health Benefits

Nettle Tea and the Health Benefits