Naturopath consultation - I'm not sure

[Mynx537]

I was diagnosed hypothyroid in January this year and my thyroid therapist who has been conducting reflexology on me suggested I see a nutritionist she has gotten in contact with.

At my consultation she explained the following in my case:

* I am zinc deficient by her asking me to drink water with zinc in it which tasted to me like normal water.

* I am protein deficient since I have an accumulation of lymph in my upper legs.

* I am iron deficient but the iron supplements I take are not helpful to me.

* I am folate deficient but the folic acid I take is not helpful to me either.

* I am Vitamin C deficient but the Vitamin C I take is not helpful as it contains aspartame.

* My Vitamin B12 levels are normal according to my doctor but when the nutritionist tested me for Vitamin B12, I seem to be deficient in that, too.

* She tested my "chakras" and muscle strength when getting me to hold things like dairy and wheat close to me, however I seem to have only one strong "chakra", that one being the area near my hypothalamus. So all my other "chakras" are out of whack? I don't understand.

I have been working for weeks to get a treatment plan together and although I have been encouraged to eat a very healthy diet which is also wheat and dairy free I am not feeling any real benefit. My registered doctor already knows I need to take iron and Vitamin D, and if I can't take the iron supplements I was recommended my iron levels will drop back down again.

Am I not giving any time for this to work? I still have the same symptoms and still feel the same.

Thanks

[clouddog]

most people's chakras are out of whack.

it is a lot to do with hindu beliefs and eastern practices such as yoga and meditation help.  it's very real, i am western and the closest i have come to sorting out my chakras was through kundalini experiences, which were not full complete awakenings, it stopped at my throat chakra both times.  I have done years of yoga and meditation but have stopped short of full healing and full religious conversion

[Mynx537]

Thanks for your reply.

What I did was cut out gluten and dairy for a month yet the fatigue is quite bad first thing upon waking in the morning as I get these debilitating headaches as if someone's come along and knocked me on the head.

I had other thyroid function tests done since this post and this is what has come back (I was off gluten and dairy at the time):

TSH - 1.87 (0.2-4.2)
FT4 - 16.6 (12-22)
FT3 - 4 (3.1-6.8)
Anti-TPO antibodies - 33.5 (0-34)
Anti-TG antibodies - 103.5 (0-115)

I'm currently on a period which did not have a pleasant start as the cramps woke me in the middle of the night and all I am getting is thick, dark blood. I've actually bled all the way through a sanitary pad, too.

All things considered I'm thinking about asking for T3 but I know my doctors will not like it. It would be the cheaper alternative to the T-Convert the naturopath suggested as I am unemployed and trying to keep costs to a minimum.

Also the woman who runs my local thyroid support group meetings has a practitioner's account to buy supplements at a discounted price for us thyroid patients but she is not a qualified practitioner.

She also told me that to prove Vitamin D is not toxic in large doses, she dosed herself up on Vitamin D 3000Iu spray and used it 5 times in one day. So she dosed herself up on 15000 sprays a day. Apparently this is seen as irresponsible?? If so she is making me doubt her methods and her connections with this naturopath I have seen...

[Paxiled]

Keep in mind most people have problems with dairy and wheat -- dairy because adult mammals just don't do dairy but humans often force feed ourselves, and wheat because when humans hybridized it from other grains they did it for ease of processing, not for health.  It's just a troublesome food.  Often a very common problem with wheat is interpreted as a gluten problem, but it might not be, it might just be wheat.  Right now cutting out gluten is a hot thing to do; I don't know if this will turn out to be another useless fad or not at this point, only time and much more research will tell.

[Mynx537]

Thanks for your reply.

My thyroid therapist/lifestyle therapist already knew I had Hashi's at the time but she knew of a nutritionist who can diagnose me for nutritional deficiencies.
I have since seen the nutritionist, yes and she has told me to cut out gluten but definitely cut out dairy as I am seemingly intolerant in that.

Gluten problem was ruled out by doctor although they said I could have gluten intolerance and not celiac disease.

[Paxiled]

Maybe I've misunderstood the way you framed this.  You suggested your "thyroid therapist" diagnosed you, not the nutritionist, who I assumed you hadn't seen yet.  If you've seen a nutritionist they usually run tests to see what you might be deficient in, but the gluten problem could be diagnosed by your doctor.  If you've seen the nutritionist and have been diagnosed and given a program by a holistic nutritionist, then I'd definitely give that a try but I wouldn't expect immediate results.  So who diagnosed your nutritional deficiencies, your "thyroid therapist" or the nutritionist after ordering labs on you?

[Mynx537]

Thanks for your answer.

So in other words take the nutritionist's opinions and views with a pinch of salt?

[Paxiled]

Thought and common sense means that if somebody does no testing of you and claims to know what nutrients you're deficient in, well, as I say, use thought and common sense.

[Mynx537]

Thanks for your answer.

The nutritional deficiencies were not diagnosed through reflexology.

My thyroid therapist conducts reflexology as I have a chronic illness - she is qualified in it and told me that since I have symptoms that are suggestive of leaky gut I speak to this nutritionist who has been in the business for years.

No, I am not feeling well. I've been doing exactly as directed including continuing with my supplements and my symptoms have not changed apart from my skin looking and feeling clearer. That is it.

Sorry, I did not quite understand what you meant by me taking the specific results with thought and common sense. The nutritionist did the consultation for free and the reflexology sessions are free, too.

Thank you

[Paxiled]

First off, you can't diagnose nutritional deficiencies through reflexology.  That's a form of massage.  What you might mean is kinesiology.  It's a scam in some hands, a useful tool in others.  You can basically get the person to do anything you want -- a chiropractor I knew showed me how it's done -- and it's failed every blind test it's been put to -- they put the person behind a curtain and there goes the accuracy.  You also don't test chakras through reflexology, you do that through checking pulses, as  far as I know.  There are machines that purport to find and test chakras, but really, chakras are a way of explaining the world, not something that actually exists -- we have learned to cut open the body and look around.  It's more the theory of the energy in the body and the world and whether you're in or out of balance.  So I wouldn't take a reflexologist's word for any of this.  I wouldn't take a doctor's work, either, because the only accurate to test nutrient levels is to do it regularly over a period of weeks to see if they just caught you at a low point in your day or week, but nobody really does that except some holistic nutritionists, and it's expensive obviously.  As for iron, the supplements doctors use are badly absorbed by the human body, if they're absorbed at all.  The high levels they use often cause constipation and other problems.  The iron supplement with the best reputation for absorption is Floradix, which is derived from plant sources such as parsley, dandelion greens, nettles, etc.  I wouldn't pass up the visit to a good nutritionist -- you must have some reason for this, I guess you're not feeling well -- it can be helpful and educational.  Giving up wheat and dairy is the first thing any natural healer does when a person isn't feeling right and you don't know why, because they're not considered human food by natural healers in general and have so many tolerance and allergy problems.  It's the easiest thing to do to get healthier.  So think of this more as weaknesses are being spotted, but take the specific results with some thought and common sense.