Questions about Thyroid Health?
If you’re having problems with your thyroid or are not feeling well, know that you’re not alone. I’m here to help, even if another doctor has told you that there’s nothing they can do. Let’s talk about our process toward better thyroid health.
Q: What should I expect if I’m seeing you about thyroid issues?
A: Hopefully lots of good things! First of all, my primary goal in seeing you is to get you feeling well.
It’s not unusual to be on thyroid medication and still not feel well. There are hundreds of thousands or maybe even millions of people out there taking thyroid medication and not feeling well. According to the American Thyroid Association, “the goal of thyroid hormone treatment is to closely replicate normal thyroid functioning. . . . Your thyroid function will be monitored by your physician to keep your levels at the goal range.” This means that most physicians’ primary goal is to keep your levels in range. They, unfortunately, don’t recognize that their primary concern should be you, not your labs.
Having said all that, I still do like to know where your levels are (more about that in a second), so I like to get labs done before your first appointment. My staff will arrange that for you before your first visit.
I also want to know your entire medical history, including how you are feeling, your current and previous experiences with medications, other medical conditions you have, whether thyroid disease runs in your family, and what kind of health habits you have in terms of eating, exercise, stress, and sleep. We send you an intake form that covers this (and more) before your appointment, then I review your responses with you during your appointment.
Once I have all that information, I make an initial assessment and determine what to do next.
Some things I may suggest are:
• ordering additional labs to get more information
• starting certain supplements
• making changes in your eating habits
• changing the dose of your medication
• trying one or more different medications individually or together
My style is cooperative, so I will always take your preferences into account and hopefully not recommend anything you don’t understand or believe in. As long as we can keep you safe, I have wide latitude for trying different interventions to help you feel well.
Feel like you keep being offered out-of-the-box treatment plans by your medical professionals? Don’t settle. We would love to create a customized plan for you. Schedule your appointment with Dr. Stracks today.