Thyroid School #2// Thyroid Symptoms & How to Find the Root Cause

The Wide Range of Thyroid Symptoms (and how to get to the root of them)

🎥 I recorded a short video for you here 🎥

I also developed a short QUIZ you can take that helps to identify some potential root causes into your thyroid symptoms!

Have you ever felt like your body is trying to tell you something, but you’re not sure how to listen? Fatigue that won’t quit, bloating that sneaks up after every meal, and clothes that just don’t fit like they used to—it’s frustrating, to say the least. But here’s the truth: those symptoms aren’t random. They’re messages from your body, and we’re here to help you decode them.

Your Thyroid: The Body’s Control Center

Think of your thyroid as the thermostat for your entire body. It controls your metabolism, regulates energy production, and influences nearly every organ and system. From your brain 🧠 to your gut, your skin to your heart ❤️, every single cell has thyroid hormone receptors. These receptors depend on thyroid hormones to work properly.

When your thyroid isn’t pulling its weight, the ripple effects are significant:

  • Low energy: Struggling to get through the day without caffeine or naps.
  • Sluggish digestion: Constipation, bloating, or that heavy, uncomfortable feeling after meals.
  • Weight changes: No matter what you eat or how much you move, it feels impossible to see progress.
  • Brain fog and mood swings: Forgetting why you walked into a room or feeling unusually anxious or down.
  • Skin and hair struggles: Dry skin, brittle nails, hair thinning, or that tell-tale eyebrow thinning (cool in the early 2000s, not so much now 😬)

The Root Cause: Your Story, Your Symptoms, and Your Labs

Here’s where the magic happens: understanding why your thyroid isn’t functioning optimally starts with connecting the dots between your story, your symptoms, and data from specialty lab testing.

Symptoms are your body’s way of waving a big red flag 🛑 to get your attention. But they’re not just random—they have a story. Hypothyroid symptoms don’t just show up out of the blue. Something sets them off.

Here’s where it gets good: building a health timeline can help you connect the dots. From birth to now, what stressors has your body faced?

Think:

🏃‍♀️ Overexercising without enough fuel

🍽️ Chronic dieting or going too low-carb for too long

😴 Poor sleep or high stress levels

🤧 Illnesses, injuries, or surgeries

😷 Exposures to toxins and pollutants

It’s all part of your body’s story. These stressors can quietly impact your thyroid until symptoms go from whispering to shouting. When you know where you’re starting, it is easier to know where you’re going.

Here at CFW, we combine the three most important elements of your healing journey:

🗺️ Your Story:
What has your body been through? Chronic dieting, stress, illness can create a timeline of stressors that impact your thyroid (both directly and indirectly). Building this story helps us identify the root causes of your symptoms– and then we figure how how to address them!

🩺 Your Symptoms:
Your body speaks through symptoms like bloatingfatigue, or mood swings. While they might seem random, they’re connected to how your thyroid hormones influence digestion, energy, and even your brain. Symptoms that recur typically aren’t just a coincidence, they’re a pattern. Our job: unlock the mystery pattern!

📊 Specialty Lab Testing:
Standard labs might miss the full picture of your thyroid health. We dig deeper with advanced tests to uncover hidden issues like nutrient deficiencies, hormone imbalances, or inflammation. This data allows us to craft a plan tailored to you. Think outside of the box here with things like HTMA testing, deep-dive micronutrient analysisgut testing, and more!

Picture this📸

  • You wake up feeling rested and ready to tackle the day without needing an afternoon nap under your desk or 5 cups of coffee
  • Your digestion is smooth and regular (yes, regular bowel movements can be life-changing!). No more planning your life around whether you’ll be able to poop or not.
  • Bloating? Gone. Your favorite jeans fit like a dream. 
  • Your mind feels sharp, your mood is stable, and you feel lighter—physically and emotionally.
  • Stress about dinner? Insignificant– because you have a sustainable and realistic plan that fits your life (and not the other way around).

This is what happens when we optimize your thyroid with nutritional therapies and address its root causes. Your body has the power to heal and thrive– with the right support.

Your Homework: Map Your Health Timeline 🗾

Your symptoms don’t have to define you. 📣 Grab a notebook (or your favorite journal!) and create a timeline of your health history.

Start from the very beginning:

  • Birth: Were you born full-term or early? Any complications during delivery?
  • Baby years: What do you know about how you were nourished? Any persistent issues with things like ear infections, eczema, reflux?
  • Childhood: Did you experience major illnesses, injuries, or surgeries? What emotional or family stressors were present?
  • Teen years: How were your hormones, diet, and stress levels? Did you start any medications like antibiotics or birth control for acne?
  • Your 20s: What shaped your health—diet, exercise, work stress, or relationships? Did new health concerns emerge? Drink a lot of alcohol in college? Start yo-yo dieting and running a million miles?
  • 30s and beyond: How have life changes—career, parenthood, or aging—impacted your body and mind?

This timeline isn’t just a trip down memory lane; it’s the foundation for understanding your thyroid story. And the good news? While we can’t change the past, we can absolutely take action now to support your body and help it thrive.

How Nutritional Therapy Can Help

  • We’ll Listen: We dive into your health story, symptoms, and goals. This is your space to share everything. And we truly hear you– because we’ve been in your shoes.
  • We’ll Test: With advanced lab work, we’ll uncover what’s really going on under the surface. From thyroid markers to gut health and nutrient levels, we leave no stone unturned.
  • We’ll Create a Plan: Using your story and lab results, we’ll craft a personalized, sustainable action plan that works with your life—not against it.

Our goal is simple: to help you feel like you again—energized, confident, and in control of your health.

Glad you’re here!

Nicole + The CFW Team

Hey There, I'm Nicole!

Nicole Fennell is a functional nutrition dietitian and fellow Hashimoto's patient with first-hand experience navigating the ups and downs of living with thyroid and immune system dysfunctionn. Her unique approach to nutritional management of chronic disease and nagging symptoms includes focusing on nourishing and building the body up versus tearing it down with low-calorie diets and high amounts of exercise.

Nicole has a real food approach and believes healthy eating, physical activity, and peace of mind are key to disease prevention and management. In her spare time, Nicole enjoys being active with her husband and three kids, lifting weights, practicing yoga, walking cooking, eating, and being outdoors.
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Whether you’re dealing with exhaustion that never ends, a Hashimoto's diagnosis, thyroid issues, hormone imbalances, painful PMS, or stubborn acne that just won’t quit—please know you’re not alone. At Chews Food Wisely, we’re all about connecting the dots between your never ending list of symptoms and personalized nutrition solutions that last.

Let’s fix those hormone imbalances that are making you feel crummy!

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