hypothyroid

A Case of Hypothyroidism

Looking back on all the consultations I’ve given over the years, there are some that stick in my mind as being especially instructive – where I learned something new or had a particular insight into the homeopathic process.   One such case occurred about 10 years ago at a time when there was a great deal of excitement amongst a certain segment of the profession about some novel ideas about the relationship between the patient and the ‘simillimum’ - the remedy most reflecting his or her inner state.

When we met, the patient, a woman I’ll call Eliza, had recently been to see a physician complaining of feeling inordinately fatigued and subsequently been diagnosed with an underactive thyroid. There was nothing unusual about either the diagnosis or the main presenting symptoms. Hypothyroidism, especially amongst women, is common – one could almost say epidemic in the modern world, and, low energy is perhaps the premier symptom associated with it.

Thyroid Dysfunction

One of the most common clinical problems I seein my practice is thyroid dysfunction. Nearly twenty years ago, while working in Sri Lanka, it was common to see people, the great majority of them women, walking about with huge lumps - some the size of a tennis ball, some closer to a bowling ball - under their chins. These goitres, or enlarged thyroid glands, were for the most part a result of malnutrition, specifically a lack of iodine in the diet.

At the time I was working as an acupuncturist in a rural clinic, and it was possible to achieve considerable success in treating this condition through nutritional advice and acupuncture. The thyroid problems I see today in this country, though, are of a different sort. Rarely are they caused by a simple iodine deficiency.