#64 Q&A - "Adrenal Fatigue" Burnout, Rosacea & Gut Health Restoration
The Holistic Nutritionists Podcast
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THE PODCAST
"Many of my Thyroid patients who are struggling with low energy and losing weight, they often look at others and think, 'everyone else is doing fine, they're eating whatever they want, they don't put on weight, they have enough energy to go out with their friends'. But those thoughts and perceptions start creating a negative environment and relationship with your body, and can make you feel like a victim. So, I constantly encourage them to trust the healing process and focus on their journey of progress."
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SHOW NOTES
In Episode 64 of The Holistic Nutritionists Podcast, Natalie Douglas and Kate Callaghan discuss how is adrenal fatigue treated and what is the best natural remedy for Rosacea.
- Best tips for managing Rosacea
- What to do if you think you’re burnt out (“Adrenal Fatigue”)
- Nat’s Thyroid Program – an option for those of you with “adrenal fatigue” too!
- Is there such a thing as too much fibre
- Restoring gut health post antibiotics
- Long cycles: what do they mean?
- Best tips for staying sane post partum
Are you looking for 1-to-1 support and a step-by-step healing process to overcome your:
- chronic gut health issues? Take a look at my signature program, “Gut Rescue” today.
- debilitating Thyroid issues? Take a look at my signature program, “Thyroid Rescue” today
Intro
Hello and welcome to The Holistic Nutritionists Podcast, with your hosts Natalie K. Douglas, Thyroid Healer, and Kate Callaghan, The Holistic Nutritionist. Nat and Kate are degree-qualified dietitians and nutritionists, certified fitness instructors, speakers, and authors. If you love unfiltered banter, unedited bloopers, and authentic heart-sharing, then we are your ladies! Now it’s time to sit back, relax, and get ready for our latest tips on living your healthiest life possible.
Natalie K. Douglas
Hey, guys! Welcome back to another episode. Kate, we’re doing another Q and A today, which we’re excited about because we seem to really like, love these Q and A’s. Hopefully, everybody else likes them.
Kate Callaghan 0:48
I’ve had good feedback.
Natalie K. Douglas 0:50
Good. I’m glad.
Kate Callaghan 1:00
50% of the two people that listen.
Natalie K. Douglas 1:03
Well, you know what, at least the person who asked the question would probably appreciate their question being answered.
Kate Callaghan 1:11
No, in all honesty, I have heard have had good feedback and follow up questions and things. So, yes.
Natalie K. Douglas 1:15
Good. Good. Well, we seem to get more questions. So, someone’s liking it.
Kate Callaghan 1:20
Someone’s liking our waffle and our inappropriate banter.
Natalie K. Douglas 1:23
Yep. So look, today is going to be a shorter, slightly shorter episode than last week’s Q and A because we got a bit carried away. We may have to split it into two or three or whatever but we’re just going to start rolling through the questions. And the first question that came through Kate was, what are the top things you find recommending most to clients? Such a broad one, I’m like, oh.
Kate Callaghan 1:47
Fruit is okay, bananas are okay, big potatoes are okay for the most people. No, for most people, honestly, I would say across the board standing regardless of what’s going on for people what I’m recommending is gratitude practice, first and foremost. So writing down three things that you’re grateful for every single night. The reason I do that is it creates immense positivity, and it helps draw more positivity into your life. That’s really hard to feel negative, and down, and stressed if you’re in that state of gratitude. That’s really very simple to do, just writing down three things that you’re grateful for every single night or morning, depending on what works for you. I’m a bit busy in the mornings with the kids. So nighttime before bed, I really love to do it. And then I just drift off to sleep and have really beautiful dreams about how great it is to have a warm bed, and a toothbrush, and a roof over my head.
Natalie K. Douglas 2:43
I love it. Yeah, I love gratitude practice, that’s a really good one. I would say mine. Consistency, not perfection. That’s a big one that I repeat all the time. In fact, people are probably like in the in my thyroid rescue program, people are probably that all right Nat, we get it. Shut up. But, I say that a lot. Because I see a lot of type A’s like, and I think that’s what trips us up a lot in the health journey is we feel like we’re either on it 100%, or we’re off it we don’t give a shit. And I think that’s why people don’t succeed is because they give up before the body has time to actually, you know, do the stuff it needs to do to heal. So I really think consistency, not perfection would be my number one thing that I that I tell people. I mean, there’s definitely a time for trying to move as close to perfection as possible in certain situations, but for the most part, yeah consistency. And then the other thing that I would say would be trust the process and eyes on your own lane. Because I think that for me, particularly when I’m talking to a lot of thyroid patients who are maybe struggling with energy, struggling to lose weight, and they look around and they say everyone else this is you know what their perception, everyone else is doing so fine, they’re eating whatever they want, and they don’t seem to put on weight, or they seem to have enough energy to go out with their friends and all this kind of stuff, it can really start creating a really negative environment and negative relationship with your body and your journey and what’s going on for you and turn you into a victim. And I’m so like, I think it’s just so important not to fall into that victim mentality as someone who’s been there and also just done so much. I mean, I love Joe Dispenza, and if you read any of his stuff like there’s just so much power in our minds in order to actually change our reality. And they are actually it sounds airy-fairy, but it’s there are actually really practical ways that you can implement that. You don’t have to, you know, meditate naked in front of a figurine like.
Kate Callaghan
In front of a figurine?
Natalie K. Douglas
I don’t know, I should have said a lotus. You know, to make it happen. It’s just yeah. Anyway, so then, isn’t it funny that our top things have nothing to do with food?
Kate Callaghan 5:04
Yeah, that’s all mindset, really.
Natalie K. Douglas
Yes.
Kate Callaghan
And then you’re on that mindset. The big thing that I do get clients to do as well is to really dive into what their why’s. Why they want to make the change that they do, why they want to achieve the goals that they want to do because once you’ve got that solid why, then it makes it easier to stay the course as you said, and be consistent with everything and really trust the process because if you don’t have a solid why, it’s like, oh, you know, just because I think I should lose five kilos because that’s what the cool kids are doing, then you probably not going to stay on track.
Natalie K. Douglas 5:42
Yeah, agreed. And I think that’s so important as well. And, you know, like, I think particularly actually just on the weight loss side of things, I think when it comes to to that, don’t let other people’s shit get in your way either. And I mean that from both sides, like, if you want to, let’s say you’re in a healthy weight range, but maybe you’re up at the very top of it, and you out of like nothing other than this is just what you would like to do because it makes you feel good, more comfortable in your skin and more confident. Nothing to do with your self-worth. Nothing to do with, I have to do this, you know, because I want respect, but I have to do this, because I’m not loved in the way that I am like, if that’s true for you, then fuck all the people who are like you don’t love your body like, you must not love.
Kate Callaghan
Yeah.
Natalie K. Douglas
Like, but then on the flip side of that, like, if you’re happy in the way that you are, don’t let societal pressure say that you have to look a certain way in order to, you know, do whatever you want to do or be whatever you want to be. I see it a lot in like, I have a lot of clients that are like personal trainers and they’re comfortable in, I mean they’re, sorry, they’re not comfortable in the way that they look but it’s coming from external pressure and external expectations, not or I just, you know, would like to be in a certain healthy shape because it makes me feel like I, I don’t know, have more confidence, and that allows me to bring the best version of myself here. I think there’s layers to it for everyone. And I think only the person that has the goal has the answer as to why that’s the goal. And I think that I love, like is you know, and I know you love it too. And you might have a different opinion on this, which is absolutely fine. But I know you love the body, like body love, body image, body-positivity movement, and I think it’s absolutely amazing, an amazing thing that’s happened and that it’s out there. And I think it’s really healing for a lot of people but I also think there’s some people in that movement, and I don’t, I’m not like holding back any names I don’t have any, like, I just mean generally, that also shame people, like out of losing weight, if that’s a healthy goal for them. It’s like, you can’t be anywhere in between, you either gotta absolutely adore your body and never, ever, ever want to change any part of it or, you know, you’ve got to just be really like, hard on yourself and want to change every single aspect and that’s all that matters. And I think there’s a middle ground. Like, that’s just my experience and my opinion going through all of the stuff myself and seeing a lot of people go through it as well.
Kate Callaghan 8:25
Yeah, I know, I agree. It’s a tricky one. And I think we’re kind of going with. To those of you listening, we actually did have a question on this topic that we’ve kind of dealt into. And the question was, can you talk about your views on weight loss as people who are body-love advocates? I think that’s kind of what we’re doing now.
Natalie K. Douglas
Oh, there you go. Look at us.
Kate Callaghan
Oh, there you go. And I think we’ve, I think we’ve actually done a whole podcast on this, on can you love your body, lose weight.
Natalie K. Douglas
Yeah.
Kate Callaghan
So, I would encourage people listening to that, to go and listen to that but I think it’s yeah, it depends on where the desire to change your body is coming from. And as Nat said, it should be coming from a place of wanting to feel better in yourself. So really, again, coming back to that why do you want to lose weight because you want to look like someone else, or do you want to lose weight so you can chase after your kids and feel more energetic every single day and not get puffed when they’re chasing you down with spray bottles.
Natalie K. Douglas 9:28
This is a true story Kate.
Kate Callaghan 9:32
May or may not be why I’m upping the ante in my on my exercise a little bit now because my kids likes to chase me with spray bottles.
Natalie K. Douglas 9:40
Hill sprints. Training in the New Zealand mountains. Good parenting.
Kate Callaghan 9:43
I’m being harassed by a two and a four year old. That kind of training. No, but in all honesty though, chasing me around the house the other day, and I was getting a little bit puffed and I don’t want to get puffed when my kids are chasing me around the house. And I mean, I don’t think that my energy levels will ever be as high as my two and four year old because they are next level but I would like to be able to get away from them. I mean, keep up with them. No, so back, so back to that. Yeah, I think it does come back to you. Yes. I think it’s okay to lose weight if you do it from a place of love.
Natalie K. Douglas 10:29
Yeah.
Kate Callaghan 10:30
Rather than a place of fear.
Natalie K. Douglas 10:31
Yeah, exactly. I think it’s, and it’s a tricky one to navigate and it’s like, even as a practitioner, it’s a tricky one to navigate with people like, you really have to spend time encouraging them to understand themselves better because I don’t, I don’t know they’re why, like, they can tell me but only they know, you know, what’s deeper than that and is that your why and only they can do the like the exploring of that I can prompt them with questions but you know, like, you are the one that knows the answer. So I think yeah, it’s an interesting one and something worth spending time delving into if that is your goal, and you’re feeling guilty about it or you know, or it is a goal but it kind of feels yucky to say because maybe it’s not actually what you want. So, lots of things to explore there. So the next question was for us, all these like personal opinion ones, I like this as a little layer. What kind of diet and exercise program do you two follow yourselves and why? Oh, Kate, you’re up.
Kate Callaghan 11:40
Keto and CrossFit. No, kidding, kidding, kidding, kidding.
Natalie K. Douglas
You are not supposed to go healthy.
Kate Callaghan 11:48
What kind of diet do I follow? I eat a pretty traditional whole foods diet. So, I tried to stick to for the most part kind of a Weston A. Price Foundation diet. So, really traditional Whole Foods, including lots of fresh fruit and vegetables. I don’t eat a lot of salads during winter. I just feel better eating warm, roasted veggies that’s just me. That’s just my constitution what I do best with. I ate really good quality meat, good quality proteins, eggs, I eat a shortlist of eggs. I worked at it. I spend about $2,000 with on eggs every year waiting to get chickens that is what came from that.
Natalie K. Douglas 12:28
Chickens do make me nervous. My husband’s family have them and I was trying real hard to impress them when I first saw them and I’m like, I’m going to collect the eggs from the chicken thing. And I was like, Joe, no worries. I was like shitting myself. I don’t know what’s freaks me out about chickens and birds. I just, I can’t. I don’t talk to you and like, you don’t know what they’re doing. And I want them to know I, like I just I’m taking the eggs, but it’s all good but you can’t tell them that and they come over and they pecked you and, anyway, continue.
Kate Callaghan 12:58
Actually, a large percentage of people who don’t like birds are getting freaked out by birds. I’ve quite a few friends who get freaked out by birds.
Natalie K. Douglas
Right.
Kate Callaghan
Yeah. So, I’m really don’t, I don’t track my calories. I don’t track my carbohydrates. I don’t check my protein. I don’t track anything. I just make sure I eat really good quality Whole Foods for the most part but you know if there’s a chocolate brownie, I’m going to eat that chocolate brownie as long as it’s gluten-free. And I say that not because I’m neurotic but because I have celiac disease. On that though, I am going to France in three weeks. I’m like, surely I can just have one croissant. Just one. And I know I know deep down I can’t but anyway. Um, yeah, so I will have the odd gluten-free treat. And I will eat chocolate, dark chocolate, every now and then. I can’t eat too much because Ed doesn’t tolerate it through my breast milk. I will have the odd glass of wine but I drink mostly water, I will drink a coffee in the morning. And really, I don’t think my diets anything fancy, it’s just mostly Whole Food but then I’m human and include all of those simple pleasures in my life as well. In terms of my exercise, it’s a little bit all over the place at the moment I kind of fit exercise in when and where I can. If you’ve been following my social media, I have started introducing a little bit of high-intensity interval training a few times a week. I really liked The Body Coach, he’s a YouTube guy, it felt so wrong when just YouTubing something but he’s actually really smart and he doesn’t recommend stupid exercises and or stupid amounts or intensities for exercise, and there’s different levels that you can look at as well. So go and check out The Body Coach. He’s got multiple millions of followers. So it turns out I was a little bit late to the party on that one. I chased my kids around and they chased me around and that’s pretty good exercise as well. I teach one bodypump class at the gym a week and I have just started swimming as well.
Natalie K. Douglas
Oh, there you go.
Kate Callaghan
At the pool.
Natalie K. Douglas
At the pool with the lady.
Kate Callaghan
And I’m really not great at swimming but I’m getting better. So I did, I’ve only been twice in the past two weeks, but I’m getting there. So I did 30 laps the first time. I did 40 laps the second time.
Natalie K. Douglas
That’s a huge effort. That’s awesome.
Kate Callaghan
But it’s a 25-meter pool, just in case anyone was thinking. So in Australia, we kind of have standard 50-meter pools, in New Zealand it seems like 25-meter pools of the standard. So, so, no.
Natalie K. Douglas 15:36
Yeah, I feel like that would be better for my ego though. It was 25 meters like.
Kate Callaghan 15:38
Yeah, yeah, I did 40 laps.
Natalie K. Douglas 15:42
Yeah. And so, as in used to get asked if that’s about task, a stupid question of the mind. So it’s a it’s a just to clarify. It’s a it like it’s an actual pool, not like an ocean pool because you don’t need the ocean, you need a lake.
Kate Callaghan 15:57
I’m not in the ocean. I’m definitely not in the lake at this time of year. So, mine was five outside yesterday, and my car was frozen until 2pm.
Natalie K. Douglas
Oh, wow.
Kate Callaghan
I’m definitely not in the lake, no, the pool and the predicament that I’m in at the moment is it’s chlorinated, obviously. So I’m trying to.
Natalie K. Douglas 16:15
Put your, put coconut oil everybody before you go in as a barrier. I get all my moms with kids that have to teach their children how to swim to do that.
Kate Callaghan 16:26
Lube myself up?
Natalie K. Douglas 16:27
Yes, absolutely. Lube before, or just before you go.
Kate Callaghan 16:32
I will do that. I’ll lube up.
Natalie K. Douglas 16:34
You just look really shiny and really funny but it doesn’t matter, all for the betterment of not soaking up too much chlorine.
Kate Callaghan 16:42
Well, I’m hardly looking like a glamazon at the moment. Anyway. I have a wedding in France in three weeks and like holy crap, I am glowing white and I know that’s a very vain thing to say but I need a tan to go to France in the middle of summer there.
Natalie K. Douglas 17:02
Oh, yeah. Now you have to go like a week early. Just fake every day.
Kate Callaghan 17:08
Yeah, and then I’ll probably get burnt. No, that’s not a healthy recommendation. Take that back, I don’t recommend that people. No, we’re not recommending tanning.
Natalie K. Douglas
At least not for five days straight. Nothing on.
Kate Callaghan
European thing. Anyway, tell me about your diet and exercise?
Natalie K. Douglas 17:24
Okay, so honestly, mine changes, my exercise stays relatively stable, but my diet changes, like a fair bit because I love experimenting. So, I actually and I always have and for me, it’s not a burden to like, you know, I like tracking my food sometimes. Like, I often go through periods where I will track it. I love just seeing how the different, which sounds really fun at you. And it’s not something I recommend to other people to do all the time and unless it’s needed or at least, I see a benefit for it. But for me, I love tracking my food and understanding what different ratios of different things make me feel like in terms of energy in the gym, or just ability to concentrate on my work. So I mean, that I don’t really track every single day all of the time. It’s just something I kind of go through phases with that I have a really good understanding of kind of what I’m eating anyway and very mindful about it. In terms of like, a diet I follow. I don’t really follow any particular diet. I guess quite similar to you, Kate. Like just real food for the most part. Like I’ve done lots of different things in the past, like I’ve done strict paleo. I’ve done ketogenic diet. I’ve done low carb. I’ve done the autoimmune paleo diet. I’ve done like, and this is all while being a health practitioner in like the last kind of maybe like six years or so. Before that, I tried a bunch of other things that I wouldn’t recommend. But I’ve tried all those things. And they all worked at a point in time but they also didn’t work at a point in time. And that’s why I continue to change based on how I feel, and also what my life and my lifestyle and my exercise looks like. So at the moment, I would say yeah, pretty much similar to you Kate except for that I do, I do track my food, I actually from having an eating disorder when I was younger for so long. I and you know, not eating very much. When I switched to more intuitive eating after that period, I still had a tendency to under-eat not consciously, but subconsciously, because I wasn’t quite used to what adequate food looked like. And I, one of my reasons for actually tracking my food is to make sure that I eat enough because I have this like memory in my body of of, you know, what an adequate volume of food looks like. And sometimes, it’s quite off what is optimal, particularly when I am doing the exercise because I’ll, I’ll talk to you about my exercise in a moment but I do really love lifting weights in the gym and I need to make sure that I’m fueled properly for that. So, I will often yeah, if I’m not conscious about it, my tendency is to under-eat subconsciously. And also because I’m so busy that I’m not, I’m not as you know, I don’t have as much time to really think about a lot so that’s part of it but in terms of the content of my food, yep, just high-quality animal proteins, fruit, veg. I don’t I don’t do low carb. It doesn’t work for me anymore. Makes me feel really shit actually. And I feel like I can concentrate better so, often I’ll do lower carb in the morning sometimes if I’ve got a really busy day in terms of mind-stuff and brain work but I do actually eat carbs every single day. It helps my hormones, it helps my whole central nervous system, it helps my performance in the gym. So, I do, do that. And then I do, I don’t eat gluten at all. I have celiac disease as well, Kate.
Kate Callaghan 21:15
Could you eat a croissant in France?
Natalie K. Douglas 21:20
No. Can’t even eat it on your behalf. So.
Kate Callaghan 21:24
You know I can’t. Sorry.
Natalie K. Douglas 21:25
Yeah, I don’t eat that. I, like you Kate, treat myself sometimes my favorite food is like ice cream but not necessarily dairy ice cream because it actually makes me feel a little bit sick. I actually really love, I mean I will eat it occasionally because sometimes it’s worth it but I love coconut ice cream like the zebra bread in Australia or do I try a really good one the other day. What was it? Oh, the Pana one. Oh, just love ice cream. Anyway, they use a guar in it so I don’t have it all the time but I’m like because zebra use coconut sugar or something but it’s really much of a muchness when you only having it every now and again. So I really don’t care that much but the caramel one, the Pana tastes like Golden Gaytime’s, do you remember the Golden Gaytime?
Kate Callaghan
Oh, I love Gaytime’s.
Natalie K. Douglas
Oh my god, I love them so much. I used to be really shy about asking for one as a kid when especially when, like because I always felt shy that saying Gaytime and.
Kate Callaghan 22:21
Back in the day were.
Natalie K. Douglas 22:28
We’re not not there. So I was like, oh, can I just have like, I used to call them GT’s.
Kate Callaghan 22:34
Isn’t it crazy how we couldn’t even say gay back then?
Natalie K. Douglas
I know.
Kate Callaghan
Side note, my husband was saying that he was talking to one of his friends has a 14-year-old daughter and she was talking about all the groups at school and you know, saying, you know, the, the the gay. The gay guys over there, the lesbians, and it was just kind of just matter of fact, like, it was like not not a thing really like.
Natalie K. Douglas
Yeah.
Kate Callaghan
Which I think is good because there’s so much more awareness now.
Natalie K. Douglas 23:01
I know, I know it is and like, and it’s it’s the same like, I feel, I don’t know if it was you that I was talking to about this but when I feel like when we’re talking to I mean, I don’t have children but when I am, eventually talking to my children about like, their vaginal, their penis. I’m actually going to use the words like I don’t understand why are we like name them different things to make them sound more quote-unquote, innocent or like, I’m like, it’s your vagina like it’s all good.
Kate Callaghan 23:33
Yeah, yeah. I did a post on this about talking about their bodies using the actual words like we wouldn’t call our elbow something different.
Natalie K. Douglas
Yeah.
Kate Callaghan
Why would you call your penis something different?
Natalie K. Douglas 23:45
Yeah, yeah, totally. Anyway, sidetrack so. So, yeah, that’s kind of my my diet side of things, honestly changes all the time. I based on how I feel, what my goal is, and I do the tracking side of things when I want to, because I love it not because I feel like I have to in order to make sure that I’m not overeating, or I’m not eating the wrong thing. I generally just have a very curious mind around that kind of stuff. And that’s just what interests me, it’s not what I think is necessary for many people to be honest. I think most people can just intuitively, I don’t think everyone can if they have a particular goal. Sometimes, tracking can be a really beneficial tool but for the most part, I don’t think it’s necessary. It’s just something I love to do. Exercise wise, I at the moment, again, I’ve done heaves of stuff. I’ve been to cardio and lots of classes. I’ve been into like, heaves of high-intensity training. I’ve been into CrossFit for a long time. But at the moment, I lift weights about four days a week in the gym, and I do maybe one run because I love running and we’ve just moved down near the beach. So it’s just really beautiful to run along the beach. I walk a fair bit to be honest, like, just because that’s my way of clearing my head, in between clients. So in between commitments and stuff, and then I go to yoga. Honestly, it varies so much. It could be once a week, it could be like three or four times a week, it’s probably at the moment more around one to two times a week. And it’s in your group at the moment because I am doing more training in the gym. So I need to balance out my Yang with some wisdom Yin.
Kate Callaghan 25:32
That’s smart. Do you take any supplements?
Natalie K. Douglas 25:35
I do. Yeah, I take all like very consistently, I take zinc, magnesium, and B vitamins, and I find that to be really helpful. Other than that, to be honest, it’s it’s more based on if I’m feeling a bit rundown, I might take some vitamin C if I’m going through quite a stressful period, I might or actually I use mushrooms all the time as well. So adaptogenic mushrooms I use often like cordyceps, reishi, lion’s mane. Probably they go in my coffee, actually, in every morning. Apart from that, it’s quite dependent on what’s going on for me. So yeah, from run-down might do some vitamin C, I have taken different herbal products in the past as well. I have a like history of like, quite painful periods. And if I’m going through a really stressful month, I know my progesterone starts to like anyone starts to kind of struggle a little bit. And I will often use vitamin C during that time. And I have used vitex in the past to, to help with that side of things as well but it’s not something I take every day. So really the main things would be B’s, magnesium, zinc, that are consistent. Everything else is just whatever, whatever I feel like. Yes. So, we probably have time for one more question I think, or maybe two, we’ll see how we go.
Kate Callaghan
Here’s your question four.
Natalie K. Douglas
Yeah.
Kate Callaghan 27:08
Because it’s the next in line.
Natalie K. Douglas 27:09
Yeah, that’s right. Go read it.
Kate Callaghan 27:12
I think because it’s maybe five, it’s an easy answer and we have covered it before.
Natalie K. Douglas
Yeah.
Kate Callaghan
Okay, so question four. How dangerous is it to get pregnant when your thyroid is underactive?
Natalie K. Douglas 27:22
Okay, so this is a good question, and probably not a super simple answer. So the first thing I would say is, it depends what you actually mean by underactive. So the risk in falling pregnant in relation to thyroid issues is if your TSH is above about 2.2, or 2.5. The research shows that it doubles the risk of miscarriage. If you have the presence of thyroid antibodies, it doubles that risk again. Now, that’s not to say that every single person with a TSH above that amount or with the antibodies present is going to have a miscarriage, it just, there’s an increased risk there. So that’s just something to be aware of. The TSH side of and both of those you can absolutely work on getting down and I would encourage you to do that before trying to conceive. Often the TSH is easier to bring down than the antibodies. And so that’s where I would start and often medication if you’re, if you’re if you fall pregnant, and your TSH is above that range, doctors will put you on thyroid medication because they want that to be below below 2.2 or 2.5 to make sure that that that risk is mitigated. The antibody side of things can take longer for it to come down. And I wouldn’t necessarily say to someone if their TSH was in range, and their T-4 and T-3 were fine as well. Their iodine levels were replete, but they still had thyroid antibodies. I wouldn’t say to that person, you can’t try and fall pregnant, it’s too dangerous. I would say you know, that yes, there’s an element of risk but there are so many people that fall pregnant successfully, even with the presence of thyroid antibodies. So it’s it’s just, it’s just something to be aware of. Now, the other side of this is there are subset of people who may have an underactive thyroid, but they don’t have Hashimoto’s. So they don’t have the presence of the thyroid antibodies but perhaps and perhaps their TSH is even in range, but their actual thyroid hormone levels are, you know, a bit lower. And in that sense, it’s not. It’s not necessarily like there’s no danger in the same way that there is with an elevated TSH and thyroid antibodies. However, I would still say that there is, it’s definitely a red flag to correct before you try to conceive because often low like, very often, if it’s not Hashimoto’s driven, if it’s not autoimmune driven, and you’ve got kind of like a high normal TSH, and kind of lowish T-4, then a very common thing is that you’re iodine deficient. And so, I would be testing your random urinary iodine, and falling pregnant with low iodine levels is is definitely a high risk for thyroid issues in the baby and also neurological, like developmental issues in the baby as well. So that’s something that I encourage every single person that is trying to conceive in the next kind of six months to get a random urinary iodine test done, see where those levels are at because we really want them to be up at around 150 before trying to conceive because it takes a lot of that iodine is used a lot in that first part of pregnancy, and you’re not going to be able to get those levels up, you know, in as quickly as you need to if your, say your iodine levels are at 50, which isn’t uncommon like I see that a fair bit to be honest. So I would say that like, I feel like dangerous is a really scary word and I would encourage you to just be aware of the risks, but also more importantly, be aware of what you can actually do to mitigate those risks. And then don’t be afraid of, of trying when you’ve done when you’ve kind of checked off all those things and started to move towards trying to conceive. So it’s kind of, I want to make you guys aware but not absolutely scared shitless. So just make sure you have someone on your side who’s looking at your thyroid labs comprehensively, and that you’re optimizing these where you can before you try to conceive. I’m a huge advocate for thorough thyroid testing, iodine testing, you know, before trying to conceive so that you’re in a really good place, because pregnancy really is like the ultimate stress test for your thyroid. And I think that it’s a really good idea for both of you and bub to be in the best place possible for you before trying to conceive because the pregnancy will be easier, it will this you know, the risk of miscarriage will be significantly lower. And you know, the whole process will just feel a lot better on your body. So, yeah, that would be my very long answer to that, as usual.
Kate Callaghan 32:27
Very thorough, very thorough.
Natalie K. Douglas 32:32
Kate’s going to start getting one of those egg timers. Oh, so funny. Alright, so we might start to wrap it up there. Kate, there was one other question, but we’ve actually answered it. So we’ll pop it in the next one. But honestly, it has been answered. So anyway, any announcements before we wrap up, Kate? What’s going on for you in business, anything people need to be aware of?
Kate Callaghan 33:00
I’m going to be running a few oils workshops around Monica Queenstown at the start of next month, which is coming up quickly. But the second half of July, I’m going to be in Pompeii for my best friend’s wedding.
Natalie K. Douglas
Oh, wow. Exciting.
Kate Callaghan
Yeah, a lot of people have asked me when I’m running another round of my healing hypothalamic amenorrhea e-course, probably September for that one. So stay tuned for that. I know there are a few people asking but if in the meantime, if you’re like, I want to get started right now. You can either grab my e-book as a start, and that’s available from my website, or you can book in with me for a one-on-one consultation and we can work through things together.
Natalie K. Douglas 33:42
Perfect. Sounds good. And with the, like so you’ll just make announcements on the podcast and on social media when the doors are open for HA, for healing hypothalamic amenorrhea course?
Kate Callaghan
Correct.
Natalie K. Douglas
Excellent. We’ll make sure we scream it out on you. Fair and nicely. We don’t need to stress those people out more.
Kate Callaghan
No.
Natalie K. Douglas
Okay, cool. Well, on my side, we are, like the next well, Thyroid Rescue is now open. So the 12-week thyroid healing Transformation Program is open. I have switched to it being available for you to join anytime at the moment. So, you can actually, to access that you, I’ve just actually done a free masterclass on on the program, but also on Thyroid Healing in itself and it’s available on my website at NatalieKDouglas.com/ThyroidRescue, or you can just go to the website and there’s a tab up the top. If you watch that masterclass and you read about thyroid rescue and you’re interested, then, but you’re kind of still on the fence then at the moment, I’m actually offering free 20-minute discovery calls just to kind of go through whether it is the right thing for you. So I’m not going to let you join the program if I don’t actually think it’s the right next step for you. But if I do, then, obviously, I would love you to join. But that’s just available for you guys. So all you need to do is watch the thyroid master class on my website and at the end of that it’ll actually give you an option to book in a free 20-minute consultation or chat basically, if you have already watched it but you missed the link and you want one of those chats, then just send me an email at [email protected] and we can sort that out or just contact me on Instagram or whatever. Apart from that, I’m still just doing one-on-one consult as per usual and that’s it. Nothing else really coming up at the moment. That’s that’s where everything’s at. So keep sending us your questions because clearly we like them and thank you.
Kate Callaghan
If Nat likes to talk.
Natalie K. Douglas
Yeah, like the little Leo in me. It’s just like oh yes, no questions, I can give more answers.
Kate Callaghan
Q and A. I like Q and A.
Natalie K. Douglas
Me too, I like it too. Alright, cool. So, Kate, have a lovely day.
Kate Callaghan
You too.
Natalie K. Douglas
Don’t get to pass chasing your kiddies and go do some hill sprints. So that, train yourself. Get as on board to help you.
Kate Callaghan
Oh, yeah.
Natalie K. Douglas
The struggle’s real.
Kate Callaghan
It is.
Outro
Thanks for tuning in to The Holistic Nutritionists Podcast. Remember, we love to make the show relevant to you. If you have any questions or topics you’d like us to discuss, just submit them to [email protected] and we’ll get them answered for you. Also, don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast on iTunes and share it with your friend. And if you’re looking for more info about how we can accelerate your journey to your optimal health, you can find Nat over at NatalieKDouglas.com, and Kate at TheHolisticNutritionist.com. See you next time!
OUR MISSION
Welcome to The Holistic Nutritionists Podcast!
If a professional, polished, well-edited podcast is what you’re after…then we’re not for you!
But if you love unfiltered banter, unedited bloopers and authentic heart sharing then we are your ladies.
We also have the most practical tips on holistic and alternative health care too 😉
Have a question that you want answered on the podcast or want to be interviewed? Get in touch!
YOUR HOSTS
Natalie K. Douglas | Thyroid Healer
Natalie K. Douglas ("Nat") is a Holistic Dietitian and Nutritionist dedicated to Thyroid, gut and hormone healing.
Nat shows stressed, burnt out, overwhelmed women how to value their worth again, change their mindset habits, prioritize healing, and reclaim their vitality. Guaranteed.
Her clients say she’s the right girl to see if you’ve tried the conventional approach and nothing has worked.
Kate Callaghan | The Holistic Nutritionist
Kate Callaghan is a Holistic Nutritionist, Personal Trainer and Lifestyle Coach who specializes in women's hormone healing.
She recognizes that there is no “one size fits all” diet or “magic bullet” which is going to cure all illnesses.
She focuses on having a thorough understanding of your personal goals, needs, likes/dislikes, support networks and lifestyle in order to create a food and lifestyle approach that suits YOU.
