Conclusion: IF was a fail for me. Maybe I am not healthy enough to pull it through or it might not be for me at all. I will leave it for now.
I was like a kid in a candy store, browsing through Ray Peats articles today. I've always felt that even though I have dealt with all my main stressors by excluding exercise and resting instead, eating lots of nutritious calories and getting plenty of sleep, I still showed signs of excessive cortisol or/and estrogen dominance, which also means I am deficient in progesterone.
Peat says that excess estrogen -or estrogen dominance act as a stress response in the body, meaning prolonged exposure to estrogen means prolonged exposure to cortisone:
" Since Selye's work, it has been known that estrogen creates the same conditions as occur in the shock phase of the stress reaction. (And shock, in a potential vicious circle, can increase the level of estrogen.7)"
"They suggested that the bone loss sets in immediately when progesterone fails because cortisol then is able to dominate, causing bone catabolism; progesterone normally protects against cortisol. Other researchers have pointed out that estrogen dominance promotes mitosis of the prolactin-secreting cells of the pituitary, and that prolactin causes osteoporosis; by age 50, most people have some degree of tumefaction of the prolactin-secreting part of the pituitary. But estrogen dominance (or progesterone deficiency) also clearly obstructs thyroid secretion, and thyroid governs the rate of bone metabolism and repair. Correcting the thyroid and progesterone should take care of the cortisol/prolactin/osteo- porosis problem."
My most recent blood work showed the first signs of this bone loss progression.. It all makes so much sense to me now!
I've also had trouble with my androgens being very dominant:
"It has recently been demonstrated that estrogen stimulates the adrenal glands, independently of the pituitary's ACTH. This can increase the production of adrenal androgens, leading to hirsutism, and other male traits, including anabolic effects.8"
Here is another quote from one of Peats articles:
"Blood sugar falls at night, and the body relies on the glucose stored in the liver as glycogen for energy, and hypothyroid people store very little sugar. As a result, adrenalin and cortisol begin to rise almost as soon as a person goes to bed, and in hypothyroid people, they rise very high, with the adrenalin usually peaking around 1 or 2 A.M., and the cortisol peaking around dawn; the high cortisol raises blood sugar as morning approaches, and allows adrenalin to decline. Some people wake up during the adrenalin peak with a pounding heart, and have trouble getting back to sleep unless they eat something."
This would explain why I still have trouble sleeping in general and why I sometimes feel the need to eat to be able to fall back asleep!
Peat says the best way to measure how well your thyroid is working, is by measuring BOTH your temperature AND your resting pulse. We all know that I increased my resting pulse by 20 bpm, which puts me at 60 bpm now. Peat says that healthy individuals are at a resting pulse of 85 bpm and unhealthy individuals are at 70 bpm.
My lab test has always showed an odd TSH in correlation to my T3 and T4, that is. My TSH being 0.20 -which would indicate hyperthyroidism, according to my oh so clever doctors, and then with my contradicting low levels of T3 and T4.
Here is Peats explanation:
"Stress, besides suppressing the TSH, acts in other ways to suppress the real thyroid function. Cortisol, for example, inhibits the conversion of T4 to T3, which is responsible for the respiratory production of energy and carbon dioxide. Adrenaline, besides leading to increased production of cortisol, is lipolytic, releasing the fatty acids which, if they are polyunsaturated, inhibit the production and transport of thyroid hormone, and also interfere directly with the respiratory functions of the mitochondria. Adrenaline decreases the conversion to T4 to T3, and increases the formation of the antagonistic reverse T3 (Nauman, et al., 1980, 1984)."
My only question goes back to the old egg or chicken; Which came first? Is cortisol in excess because I am hypothyroid and therefor have adrenaline steaming in high gear? Or am I hypothyroid because I have cortisol (estrogen dominance?) in excess?
"But hypoglycemia also tends to decrease the conversion of T4 to T3, so heat production often decreases when a person is hungry. First, their fingers, toes, and nose will get cold, because adrenalin, or adrenergic sympathetic nervous activity, will increase to keep the brain and heart at a normal temperature, by reducing circulation to the skin and extremities. Despite the temperature-regulating effect of adrenalin, the reduced heat production resulting from decreased T3 will make a person susceptible to hypothermia if the environment is cool."
This would explain my cold hands and feet -and nose to be accurate (yes it gets cold too)! Finally!
It seems like my adrenals are STILL compensating for the lack of thyroid function. Maybe it would be wise for me to give thyroid medication another go... Just to give my body a gentle push in the right direction. No matter what, I am definitely giving the natural progesterone I ordered ages ago, a chance -with or without thyroid medication. At this point I feel like there isn't much I can lose.
Peats recommendations on how to observe your how well your thyroid is working:
" After eating breakfast, the cortisol (and adrenalin, if it stayed high despite the increased cortisol) will start returning to a more normal, lower level, as the blood sugar is sustained by food, instead of by the stress hormones. In some hypothyroid people, this is a good time to measure the temperature and pulse rate. In a normal person, both temperature and pulse rate rise after breakfast, but in very hypothyroid people either, or both, might fall."
Interesting reading!
This will be my home assessment for my next blog post! Stay tuned!
P.S. I got my period today which is officially the my first REGULAR period since i got sick! Last month it came on the 18'th and this month also on the 18'th!
