Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis – Is it YOUR fault? Oprah and Mary Shomon disagree
The quest for the root cause of Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis is very dear to my heart. It HAS to be. I have suffered many years with this disease. That’s why I think I have the experience to post on this subject. Mary Shomon has been a patient advocate and a thyroid patient herself for many years now. The problem I have and why I am writing today is to find balance in a bold statement she made in her latest article correcting Oprah Winfrey’s suggestion that somehow your thyroid disease can be your fault. Oprah admitted to working extra hard and being extremely tired before her diagnoses. Here’s the excerpt from Mary Shomon I am concerned about:
Here’s my wake-up call to women everywhere: Thyroid disease is NOT your fault. Thyroid disease results when heredity and genetics, autoimmunity, environmental exposures, viral infections, and hormonal shifts come together in a perfect storm to trigger a dysfunction. And while emotional and physical stress, as well as nutrition and lifestyle, can play a role creating a climate receptive for — or fighting against — most diseases including thyroid conditions, these factors are only part of a larger, complicated puzzle.
Women are more susceptible to thyroid disease, as well as most of the more than 80 autoimmune diseases, for a variety of reasons, including the balance of our hormones. Times of hormonal change — i.e., pregnancy, post-partum, perimenopause and menopause — are key trigger points for the development of thyroid disease.
Another factor that can affect your thyroid is overconsumption of soy. In an official letter of protest to the FDA, Drs. Daniel Doerge and Daniel Sheehan, formerly the FDA’s two key experts on soy, contradicted soy’s health claims — which were approved by the FDA — saying:
“…there is abundant evidence that some of the isoflavones found in soy, including genistein and equol, a metabolize of daidzen, demonstrate toxicity in estrogen sensitive tissues and in the thyroid….Additionally, isoflavones are inhibitors of the thyroid peroxidase which makes T3 and T4. Inhibition can be expected to generate thyroid abnormalities, including goiter and autoimmune thyroiditis. There exists a significant body of animal data that demonstrates goitrogenic and even carcinogenic effects of soy products. Moreover, there are significant reports of goitrogenic effects from soy consumption in human infants and adults.”
Dr. Northrup, however, dismisses the opinions of these experts, as well as the many journal articles on the issue, and instead points to the soy industry’s own studies as evidence of soy’s safety for women.
Also from another article from Mary Shomon:
I can’t make it any clearer: Thyroid disease is NOT your fault. It is a result of autoimmunity, environmental exposures, genetics/heredity, and hormone shifts. Yes, stress and diet can play a part in disease– in fact, thyroid problems are, as noted, sometimes triggered by overconsumption of soy. (italics and bold mine)
In order to give her fair representation, I have quoted her full thoughts on what she believes causes thyroid dysfunction. In summary, she maximizes the environmental, hormonal and things “out of our control” and minimizes our own emotional and physical choices. Notice how she minimizes stress and diet – kind of just floats through the statement as though it isn’t there? Is it wise of her to use such a bold statement as “Thyroid Disease is NOT Your Fault” given her admittance that “emotional and physical
stress, as well as nutrition and lifestyle, can play a role”? Doesn’t the bold title convey we absolutely have NO control over this disease? I beg to differ. Here’s an excerpt from her OWN book “Living Well With Hypothyroidism” (2000), suggesting her OWN thyroid problem could have been jumpstarted by none other than a severe pushing of her body to the max during a certain time of her life:
Looking back, I’m fairly sure the onset of my thyroid problem occurred in early 1993, when I was thirty-two… I had about a ten pound weight gain from age thirty to thirty-two, I grew from a size 6/8, to a size 8/10, but didn’t worry much about it. Then in the winter of 1993, I published my first book. I was working an intense fulltime job, then coming home and working late into the night on the new book. I had a new boyfriend. It was a period of several months of intense work/book/life excitement and stress, coupled with too little sleep, poor eating habits, and lot of cigarettes and caffeine… (bold and italics mine)
Page 6
Does this sound like someone who had NO fault in her own body’s decline? Hmmm… does this not sound strangely familiar to what Oprah was saying might be related to her thyroid condition? Then she writes at the end of this article:
P.S. And Oprah, if you’re reading — my wish for you is that someday, you realize that your thyroid condition is truly not your fault. And please reconsider all that soy!
So let me get this straight – I have NO control over my thyroid disease BUT stop using all that soy? Doesn’t that imply I have some control? I hope Mary Shomon considers revising her strong statements about having no control yet publishing many books and articles about how we can actually control our Hashimoto’s Disease! Her statements are confusing in that they give the impression that there’s nothing you can do for your thyroid disease, and yet gives testimony to the positive effects of avoiding soy.
I understand the role I played in the disease that eventually was diagnosed in my body. I was even warned by someone early on that if I didn’t control my stress, I would make myself sick. Even though the event was beyond my control, my emotional response could have been much better. Referring to her sudden weight gain, Ms. Shomon stated, “I didn’t worry much about it”. I reacted the same way when I was warned about my stress. Is it possible that the body was warning her earlier about some stress it was going through but she did not connect the symptoms to change her lifestyle? I think so. But of course, this is just my opinion.
Regarding the other culprits she mentions, environmental, soy, etc., I have no doubt they are likely contributors to some people’s thyroid problems and I am not here to blame all cases of thyroid disease on the person. I am mostly concerned with the bold statement that there is NO fault to be contributed to any thyroid patients in any way!
I am not trying to write a technical story – those of you that have read my articles know I am writing from a patient’s viewpoint and steer away from the technical. However, having lived many years in a body that shows response to my “moods” and my lifestyle choices, I can tell you FOR SURE that we do have some control over the body and it’s function. I have kept journals on how my choice of foods and lifestyle effects my thyroid condition. It always does! That tells me there is control there. Having that information may not solve the problem at this time, but it indicates to me that there may eventually be a way to use this information to help reverse this condition. The body seems to react to stress and asks for changes by alerting us to it in ways that manifest as unusual symptoms. If we don’t “listen” to the body when the symptoms are small, I suspect disease is the outcome.
In my own life, I am aware of traumatic events that came prior to my diagnoses. I am aware of my decision to take medications that are now known to suppress thyroid function, like steroids for my asthma, birth control pills which could have easily made me estrogen dominate, eating high amounts of soy products (buying into the soy hype) and although difficult to control, many stressful events that I hadn’t any idea how to handle. Maybe I wasn’t aware of the damaging effects they might have but I need to admit that I made these choices. I might have been a victim in some ways but nevertheless, I am the one that chose the course. Could it also be that I can also help turn that around? Why wouldn’t that be a positive goal? What would I be losing if I was to make positive changes to my lifestyle that might alleviate or possibly reverse my condition? When should a person “give up”? Or should they?
I am very encouraged by the stress management programs popping up presently which would have been a very important asset to my life years ago – perhaps teaching me how to release pent up emotions for years. I am confident this act alone is a major contributor to thyroid disease. So, in that statement alone, I emphatically disagree with Mary Shomon’s strong statement that there is no blame to be found in the patient. The sooner we admit to any misuse of our body, the sooner we will be in position for healing. It goes both ways. It’s admitted that we can be predisposed to illness (when extra stress is given to the body). Could it be that we are also predisposed to healing (given the right support to the body)? I encourage you to think about the implications of such a possibility.
In an effort to ease your mind however, I want to make it clear that I am NOT trying to dismiss legitimate factors beyond our control (environmental, viral, etc.) that can result in disease, but to recognize ways you might be contributing to the problem yourself (ie. intense work or demands on the body, too little sleep, poor eating habits, cigarettes, caffeine, etc.) as Mary Shomon has previously admitted. Why would we NOT try to figure out what fault we might have in our own health? That is a troubling thought to me.
Let’s join together and admit any contributions we have made and support each other on correcting them. None of us are “perfect”. It also concerns me to read that Mary Shomon actually said that you can do everything “perfectly” and still have a thyroid problem. Have you ever met a perfect person? I haven’t and that helps me admit my contributions to this disease. It does not make me feel guilty. It makes me feel empowered. I hope you’ll join me and take responsibility for your health.
None of
the information or personal testimonies on this blog are designed to take the
place of being under the care of a qualified medical doctor. Please make sure
you find a caring doctor to treat you for all your health concerns.
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13 Comments to “Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis – Is it YOUR fault? Oprah and Mary Shomon disagree”
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Hi Just found your blog. I wanted to respond to your statements as well as Oprah’s and Mary Shomon’s. I have been struggling with hashimoto’s for 2 yrs and it has only gotten worse. It has been a struggle to find proper care and be taken seriously by doctor’s. Their is story after story of women being dismissed and given anti-depressants. One told doctor told a friend of mine that it was because she was single. How about women get Hashimoto’s because there is gene for it. We never do this to men we never just say it was because of stress and ply them with anti-depressents. Men never take 100 percent resposnibility for things heart attacks and prostate cancer but hte burden is on women to say it was lifestyle and stress?! This is partly why there is such bad care for a common auto immune disease. My hashimoto’s was not my fault.
i halve the same problem with hashimotos disease too. i notice i got anxiety and deppression when the symptoms started before i knew i had it. then i noticed changing my diet made me feel much better. avoiding dairy and wheat made my anxietys and deppression alot less. my docter said it might help improve my thyroid alittle. i did notice more energy and yes avoiding soy helped too. also you should avoid tap water the chlorine in the water faucets they put it in blocks the thyroid gland.
What do anxiety, Hashimoto’s, seizures, arthritis, low back pain, gall stones, anemia, depression, vomiting, GI problems, ear glue have in common? Celiac disease. After years of tests on four of my now adult children and myself, the mystery is over. It is genetic and can be diagnosed by endoscopy. Please check out the celiac websites.
Cathi is right in a way- it’s been found that 95% of Hashi’s are gluten intolerant and that gluten exposure triggers an autoimmune attack on the thyroid. It’s not exactly that most Hashi’s people have Celiac disease (I don’t have Celiac, but gluten induces an inflammatory autoimmune response for me which mainly affects my thyroid and reproductive organs).
Gluten is the underlying trigger for both Hashi’s and Celiac, so many people have both.
Please check out thyroidbook.com for more info. There are ways to balance the autoimmune response and address the REAL underlying factors in Hashimoto’s- not just treat TSH levels.
I agree with your post.
Autoimmunity is, according to the experts, 30% genetic & 70% environmental.
I have been diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis for 10yrs and Ménière’s Disease for 3yrs. I believe both to be autoimmune issues due to chronic stress (i.e. Psychoneuroimmunology).
I watch my diet & try to exercise more but the MOST important thing I believe I can do for my health is to watch my stress levels. I do this by setting more boundaries, saying “no” more often, resting when I need to, being more grateful, being less perfectionistic, asking for help & most importantly actively seeking more JOY. All of these things are with my control.
Hi. I’m writing to you right now because I’m having some weird reactions to food as a result (I blelieve) of my hashi’s. It’s so sad that we all have such similar stories. It took doctors 15 years to figure out I had Hashi. I was 19 and suffered a cardiac bout of PSVT- benign, scary but all thyroid and they missed it! No one takes women seriously in the medical profession. After suffering 15 years- my new OB finally listened to me when I asked for either a psych. eval or that something was really wrong with me. My tsh was 11 and my antibodies off the charts. It really sucks- I’m glad there are more websites growing on this topic.
All the best to my fellow Hashi’s Club members.
Kris
Hi Kris,
I would definitely check for leaky gut if you are having multiple food allergies as well as getting a functional medicine doctor to look at you. Check out my post Can Hashimoto’s be Reversed? You may get some good ideas on new ways to approach your situation. A simple over-the-phone consult with the right doctor could really make a difference in your life. It has for me. It’s gotten me on a more functional path – looking at test results to help me gauge my treatment. Hope you get the right help too. Thanks for your comment and please join us on the forum.
Mo
I am so glad I stumbled on this website it already has been very insightful. I recently was diagnosed with Hashi and type 2 diabetes. This has effected my life drastically. I was also told I have leaky gut and that is at the root of these issues. I’ve become gluten and dairy intolerant, actually intolerant to many things now. I’ve been to several endocronoligist, dr’s and have been sorely disappointed by treatment and support. I get most of my help on the internet. I havent found any help or relief. I’m also looking into Natural means of medicine. Looking for a good suggestion out in the SOCAL area. I welcome all and any suggestions (help). Also like to know does anyone have a suggestion for Probiotic that is glueten, soy, dairy free? Can you get your life back??
I appreciate any input!
Lucy
I have had Hashimoto’s for about 2 years. I know my Hashimoto’s is hereditary passed on from my Mother. I also believe is not our fault.
Our fault or not, gluten is very aggressively linked to Hashimoto’s disease and many autoimmune diseases. If we can see changes in our health by going gluten free, it proves we have more control than originally thought. I have a daughter with Hashimoto’s now too and although there are hereditary factors, she has seen reversal of antibodies just like I have (when I saw reversal, I am saying greatly reduced by going gluten free). This does not mean the disease is gone – it means it can be controlled. It always helps to look into ways to help ourselves and this new breakthrough proves we can find help through diet.
Sorry but I don’t understand what Mary said that you disagree with. Everybody goes through stressful periods. Successful, healthy people push themselves to their limit everyday and don’t get sick….at least not with a chronic disease. Something can only be your fault if you know that there will be negative consequences. People unaware of their ALREADY existing hashimoto’s don’t sabotage themselves on purpose. I just don’t get your logic. I couldn’t get treatment for mine even with a history of thyroid probs. And there sure as he’ll wasn’t any instruction manuel even 10 years ago. I was to catatonic back then to read it any way.
PS I first got sick as a child. It bloody well wasn’t my fault sweetheart. And the second time around when I started getting fat even though i exercised every single day? Well I didn’t give a crap because I could barely make it through an 8 Hr day let alone take extreme dieting measures to keep my model figure.
We are not all the same. I don’t appreciate when patients like u think because something worked or didn’t in your case then the rest of us are stupid or in denial.
Thank you for your comment Tweeterton. I think you are misunderstanding my post. I agree with Mary in that we are not responsible for the pre-disposition of the disease and in most cases, even the onset of it, however, I disagree that there is nothing we can do to heal this condition. I also agree with you that years ago there was little to go on for research and healing but in the last few months there has been more and more research pointing to factors that can calm the immune system and slow the advancement of this disease. If a patient desires to move in that direction, there are certainly many good studies proving that certain steps taken can make a giant difference in their condition. I now know quite a few people who have Hashimoto’s who have seen their antibodies decrease from being in the thousands to just in the low hundreds (just by meticulously cutting out gluten and other known allergens). This is definitely a reason to rejoice in having some control. In the days ahead, I believe there will be more understanding on ways to help ourselves. I just feel that we should not be fed the line that there is nothing we can do to help the situation. I certainly respect your opinion and do not pretend to be right on everything. In my experience and of those around me, there are many ways we can help ourselves. I do believe I was fair in my post when I said:
The bottom line for me is this: (as stated in my post)
And I am sorry if you took it that I think anyone is stupid for not doing certain things to help themselves. I am only hoping that medical doctors and those in the field of thyroid management admit to their patients that there IS something they can do. I was told point blank by many doctors until this point that I could diet till the cows come home but it ain’t going to change my antibodies. I bought the lie for years… I can now say with confidence, this is not always the case and a patient should be able to have hope they have some control over their symptoms if there is hope to be given. And I believe there is. I have seen more than one friend reverse their antibody count by diet which is a great hope for this disease. Thank you for your comment.