May
Articles, Parenting, Pregnancy & Newborn
Postpartum Thyroiditis [Dr Carmen]
Have you ever heard of postpartum thyroiditis?
It’s been almost a year now since my sister gave birth to her first child. I wanted to talk a little about her journey since then.
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Very soon after giving birth my sister lost all her baby weight and was actually smaller than she was before.
She was also losing a lot of hair and had been complaining about anxiety and palpitations. These symptoms could easily have been attributed to simple postpartum changes but something just did not feel right.
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I sent her for some blood tests and eventually diagnosed her with postpartum thyroiditis.
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This is a rare postpartum complication, one that many women do not get diagnosed with because they simply assume the physical changes are due to lack of sleep, stress, breastfeeding amongst others, and never go to see a doctor.
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This disease classically presents with a period of thyrotoxicosis (hyperactive thyroid) followed by hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) however not all women go through both phases. Some only experience the hyper phase whilst others the hypo.
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This hyperthyroid phase usually presents between 1-4 months postpartum but women usually only realise something is wrong by the time they are hypothyroid, which is after about 4-8 months but even then, symptoms such as weight gain, tiredness, and depression are easily overlooked as a new mom.
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Thankfully this disease is self-limiting so the thyroid usually returns to normal function within a year or so. However, some women will remain hypothyroid.
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My sister has not yet fully recovered. She continues to be on treatment to help with her symptoms.
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My point with all of this… listen to your body after you give birth.
Don’t assume every symptom you are feeling is because of the changes to your body after delivery and the stress of having a new baby.
Mums have you heard of this before or are currently going through any of the above symptoms?
Comment below to let us know x
Follow Dr Carmen (@momdoc_sa) on Instagram HERE to see more. *Please note that the content discussed on my Instagram account is purely for informational purposes and not a substitute for informed medical advice.
ABOUT DR CARMAN
“I am a general practitioner and have spent most of my working career practicing medicine in the Emergency Room. I guess I love the adrenalin rush and the copious amounts of caffeine that needs to be consumed to get through a shift! Seeing patients in an emergency setting after an accident or with chronic end-stage disease made me realise my passion for disease prevention, health education and promotion. I wanted to be able to help my patient before he ended up in my ER.
With a focus on Child Health, I completed my Masters in Public Health and started my business, OneAid. I have also created this blog to share my journey as a MomDoc with you. I hope to share some useful information and tips around various child health and safety topics at home, at play and on the go to help keep your little ones healthy and safe.”
It’s really to listen to your body. After the birth of my daughter I started experiencing the above mentioned symptoms for hyperthyroidism and the gland on my neck enlarged. Never bothered, thought it was stress, the doctor first suggested to change the contraceptive. Nothing helped, for about six months kept loosing weight till a surgeon suggested I get the thyroid function tested. By that time it was very hyper and was diagnosed with Graves Disease. Had to go for 3x radio active iodine treatments and now 10years later it’s now hypothyroid and well controlled.
Me and my sister went through the same but for us we developed a thyroid goitre . I had it for years and only got it removed when my daughter was now 14 years , but my sister still has it because they can not operate yet. I still experience stuff like hair loss and night sweating.
Very informative platform, first time hearing about this. As someone who recently gave birth, I’m experiencing these symptoms with no logical explanations. I should definitely get the test done. Thank you.
I have never heard the term “Postpartum Thyroiditis” wow one can really learn everyday. Very informative Dr Carmen, without me knowing I might have suffered from this after giving birth to my son. Thank You Mumbox!
Wow this is such an eye opener especially for me. As i was diagnosed with Thyroid Cancer a year after my daughter was born. I remember being sick & struggling with throat issues after i gave birth, but i was told it was a throat infection. After a year of struggling i was finally helped.
I never knew about this postpartum thyroids.. Gave birth 4 months back some of the symptoms or signs i see them in me i was just thinking is due to hormonal in balance or something.. Now i know what to do. Thanks for informative information
Thank you for sharing this..I haven’t heard about it..this was my first time.. at least we now know for the future..
Thank you so much for the information, I’m also going through the same thing and here I was thinking that it’s postnatal depression.
Thank you Doctor for sharing this very Important information. I recently gave birth and will keep an eye opener for these body chances.
I am currently going through this 8 months postpartum. It’s really hard having to go through all the emotions, depression and hairfall… Being a mom of two and wife it is really tough as I have to still be there for my family.