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In this episode of Thyroid Pharmacist Healing Conversations, I explore a question I’ve been thinking about more and more recently: Does not speaking your truth contribute to thyroid disease?
Many people with Hashimoto’s and other autoimmune conditions have heard that thyroid issues develop because we suppress our emotions, swallow our words, or struggle to express ourselves. While this idea can feel validating for some and frustrating for others, I wanted to take a closer look at what may actually be happening beneath the surface.
In this solo episode, I share my personal experiences with self-suppression and how periods of not speaking my truth coincided with symptom onset, symptom flares, and some of my most challenging health experiences. I also explore what the research tells us about chronic stress, nervous system dysregulation, immune function, and autoimmune disease.
This conversation is not about blame or suggesting that emotions directly cause thyroid disease. Rather, it’s about understanding how chronic patterns such as people-pleasing, conflict avoidance, caregiving, and difficulty asking for help may contribute to physiological stress that affects our health. If you’ve ever wondered whether emotional stress, unresolved conflict, or chronic self-sacrifice could be influencing your symptoms, this episode offers a thoughtful and compassionate perspective.
What You’ll Learn in This Episode
- Why so many people with Hashimoto’s struggle to put themselves first. Many people with thyroid disease are highly responsible, caring, and dependable, but those same qualities can sometimes lead to chronic self-sacrifice. Dr. Wentz discusses the common patterns of people-pleasing, over-giving, conflict avoidance, and difficulty asking for help. Recognizing these patterns may be the first step toward reclaiming your health.
- How self-suppression may show up in the body. Through three personal stories, Dr. Wentz explores how avoiding difficult conversations and suppressing her needs appeared to coincide with chronic fatigue, acid reflux, persistent coughs, and symptom flare-ups, and how speaking up became part of her healing journey.
- What the science says about stress and autoimmune disease. While emotions may not directly cause Hashimoto’s, chronic stress can influence immune function, inflammation, cortisol balance, gut health, and other biological systems that play a role in autoimmunity and symptom severity.
- Why living in “fight-or-flight” can keep you feeling sick. Chronic vigilance, unresolved stress, and feeling unable to express yourself may keep the nervous system locked in survival mode, contributing to fatigue, brain fog, digestive issues, food sensitivities, and immune dysfunction.
- The hidden link between emotional stress and gut health. Learn how chronic stress can reduce stomach acid, impair nutrient absorption, increase intestinal permeability, and weaken the body’s defenses, creating a ripple effect that may impact thyroid health and overall well-being.
- Practical tools to shift from survival mode into healing mode. Discover actionable tools for supporting nervous system recovery, including boundary setting, EMDR, neurofeedback, targeted nutrients, blood sugar balance, stress reduction practices, and the foundational principles of Dr. Wentz’s Adrenal Transformation Protocol program.
Supplements Mentioned
- Magnesium – An essential mineral that supports nervous system regulation, muscle relaxation, sleep, and stress resilience, and may help replenish stores depleted by chronic stress while easing symptoms such as headaches, body aches, constipation, and feelings of overwhelm. Consider Rootcology Magnesium Citrate.
- Electrolytes – A balanced blend of key minerals that helps support hydration, adrenal function, energy production, and healthy nervous system activity, particularly for individuals experiencing fatigue or low blood pressure related to chronic stress. Consider Rootcology Electrolyte Blend.
- Thiamine/Benfothiamine (B1) – A highly bioavailable form of vitamin B1 that supports cellular energy production and nervous system function, and may help address fatigue, brain fog, and other symptoms associated with chronic stress and adrenal dysfunction. Consider Rootcology Benfotiamine.
- Vitamin C – A powerful antioxidant and essential nutrient that supports adrenal health, immune function, collagen production, and the body’s response to stress, while helping replenish stores that can become depleted during periods of chronic physiological strain. Consider NOW Foods vitamin C.
Programs & Other Resources
- Fatigue and Brain Fog Fix in Six Program: Thyroid & Adrenal Edition: This six-week program walks you through nourishing steps to balance your stress response and accelerate healing, so you feel calmer, rested and more alive – quickly.
- Adrenal Transformation Protocol: A 4-Week Plan to Release Stress Symptoms and Go from Surviving to Thriving by Dr. Izabella Wentz: A simple program to help you balance mood and mental health by identifying adrenal triggers, balancing the stress response, and building resilience to future stress.
- Hashimoto’s Protocol: A Groundbreaking Prescription to Reverse Symptoms, Heal Autoimmune Damage, and Reclaim Your Life with Personalized Detox Plans, Nourishing Recipes, and Proven Treatment by Dr. Izabella Wentz: A practical roadmap for healing and reversing the autoimmune damage at the root of the disease.
- Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) Therapy: In this form of therapy, the individual thinks about the painful memory, then follows a series of finger movements performed by the therapist to help desensitize the negative feelings associated with the traumatic experience.
- Neurofeedback: A form of biofeedback therapy that uses real-time displays of brain activity to help self-regulate brain function. Research has shown its effectiveness for a variety of brain-related conditions, including depression.
- Check out these earlier podcast episodes for more insight into the connections between emotions and autoimmunity:
- Trauma, Autoimmunity, and the Emerging Science of Psychedelic Therapy – With Dr. Will Van Derveer
- Chronic Fatigue, Pain & Fibromyalgia: Healing the Body’s Silent Messages With Nicolas Canon
- Weaponized Empathy: Why “Nice” Girls Get Sick in Trauma Bond Relationships With Dr. Nadine Macaluso
- Is It Your Thyroid or Are You Going Crazy? – With Dr. Izabella Wentz
Articles About Emotional Healing & Hashimoto’s
- Why Women Have More Thyroid Disorders: The Izabella Wentz Safety Theory
- How Stress Affects Hashimoto’s
- Strategies to Overcome Anxiety with Hashimoto’s
- Why Balancing Blood Sugar is Vital for Hashimoto’s Health
- Studies on Magnesium and Thyroid Health
- The Importance of Electrolytes for Hashimoto’s
- The Missing Link to Thyroid Fatigue (Thiamine Article)
- Could the Epstein-Barr Virus Be a Hashimoto’s Trigger?
Get the Full Episode Transcript
Let’s Connect!
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Got questions? Drop them in the comments! 🙂
About Our Host
Dr. Izabella Wentz
Dr. Izabella Wentz is a compassionate, innovative, solution-focused integrative pharmacist dedicated to finding the root causes of chronic health conditions. Her passion stems from her own diagnosis of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis in 2009, following a decade of debilitating symptoms.
Dr. Izabella Wentz has written several best-selling books, including the New York Times bestseller Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis: Lifestyle Interventions for Finding and Treating the Root Cause, the protocol-based #1 New York Times bestseller Hashimoto’s Protocol: A 90-Day Plan for Reversing Thyroid Symptoms and Getting Your Life Back, the Wall Street Journal bestseller Hashimoto’s Food Pharmacology: Nutrition Protocols and Healing Recipes to Take Charge of Your Thyroid Health, and Adrenal Transformation Protocol. Her latest book, IBS: Finding and Treating the Root Cause of Irritable Bowel Syndrome, is now out in the world, and available here!
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