Your Slow Thyroid Tool Kit

for my hashimoto queens, subclinical girlies, and burnout cuties

When I learned about the thyroid I was shocked👸 😳

You’re telling me:

• 1 in 8 women will develop a thyroid issues

• Women are 5 x more likely to have a thyroid issue than a man

• Up to 60% of people with thyroid disease may not be aware of their condition

and still, I have to FIGHT to get a full thyroid panel done.

oh….and the leading causes?

stress

gut issues

low minerals

no wonder it’s so common 😑

And if you have:

• Constipation

• Brain Fog

• Weight gain

• Cold sensitivity

• Dry Skin

• Muscle cramps

• Thinning Eyebrows

• Fatigue

• High cholesterol

• Depression (thyroid issues are a major cause of depression)

My love, you may be looking at a slow thyroid picture. So let’s dive in

OKAY SO WHAT IS THE THYROID?

The thyroid is a small but mighty gland that sits at the base of your neck.

Shaped like a butterfly, it plays massive role in how your entire body functions—regulating metabolism, energy levels, mood, digestion, and even how warm or cold you feel.

If you’ve ever felt like your body is running too fast or too slow, your thyroid might be calling the shots.

Think of the thyroid as the body’s internal thermostat and energy manager 🔥

It essentially produces hormones that tell your cells how much energy to use.

Every single cell in your body has thyroid hormone receptors, which means this gland influences everything from your heartbeat to how quickly food moves through your gut.

The most important ones?

• TSH (Thyroid-Stimulating Hormone) is like the gas pedal. It’s produced by the pituitary gland and tells your thyroid how much hormone to make.

• T4 (Thyroxine) is the storage form of hormones, circulating through the bloodstream, waiting to be refined into active fuel.

• T3 (Triiodothyronine) is the premium fuel your body actually runs on. Once T4 is converted into T3, it’s ready to be used by your cells to power your body.

• rT3 (reverse T3): is like the parking brake. When everything is running smoothly, T4 gets converted into T3; but when the body senses stress, inflammation, or a need to conserve energy, it flips the switch and converts into rT3 to conserve energy.

But most important, the thyroid has a relationship with your adrenal glands - your body’s stress responders (lil crash course below)

My Story With "Cortisol" and Burn Out

If the thyroid is the thermostat, setting the pace for metabolism and energy, the adrenals are like the emergency responders, releasing cortisol and other hormones to help you adapt to stress.

These two systems are constantly communicating, and when one is out of balance, the other often follows.

SO HOW DOES STRESS IMPACT THE THYROID?

It’s about the relationship between the adrenal and thyroid.

Chronic stress, whether from overwork, lack of sleep, blood sugar swings, or even emotional overwhelm, forces the adrenals to pump out cortisol.

Over time, this can slow down thyroid function by reducing the conversion of T4 to the active T3 hormone while increasing reverse T3 (rT3), which further blocks thyroid hormone activity.

Meaning we often end up with:

• High TSH (as the brain senses low thyroid function and tries to stimulate more hormone production)

• Normal or low T4 (depending on how much the thyroid is still producing)

• Low T3 and/or high reverse T3 (leading to symptoms of hypothyroidism despite "normal" T4 levels)

This is why stress doesn’t just make you feel tired—it can actually suppress metabolism, cause weight gain, and trigger symptoms like brain fog, hair thinning, and cold hands and feet—all because that lil thyroid is pumping the brakes.

WHAT ELSE CAUSES A SLOW THYROID?

Stress is something our entire body responds to, down to the cellular level.

When stress is chronic, whether from work pressure, blood sugar swings, poor sleep, or even emotional overwhelm, it sets off a chain reaction that can directly suppress thyroid function.

But the thyroid doesn’t work in isolation—it relies on key minerals, gut health, and even protection from toxins to function properly. When stress enters the picture, these systems take a hit. Here’s how:

🧂 Mineral Depletion: The Thyroid’s Missing Ingredients

Your thyroid can’t produce hormones without the right building blocks, and stress rapidly burns through the very nutrients that keep it running. Not only that, but poor diet and medications can also be impacting it.

The key players?

• Selenium – Needed to convert T4 (inactive) into T3 (active). Low selenium = sluggish thyroid and increased inflammation.

• Zinc – Helps activate T3 and supports immune function. Stress depletes zinc, which can leave your thyroid vulnerable.

• Iodine – Essential for making thyroid hormones in the first place. But stress, toxins, and poor diet often leads to low levels

🦠 Gut Health: Where Thyroid Hormones Get Activated

Here’s a lesser-known fact—about 20% of T4 is converted into T3 in the gut. But when the gut isn’t in tip top shape, we see chronic inflammation going on that can impact thyroid status. So if the gut is dealing with:

• Increased inflammation and gut permeability (leaky gut).

• Poor gut microbiome populations with either undergrowth of good bacteria or dysbiosis

• Weakening digestive enzyme production, making it harder to absorb critical thyroid-supporting nutrients like selenium and zinc

• Parasites, h pylori, candida, etc.

The thyroid won’t be happy

☠️ Heavy Metals & Fluoride: The Hidden Thyroid Saboteurs

Beyond minerals and gut health, toxins like fluoride, chlorine, and heavy metals are another major stressor on the thyroid.

• Fluoride competes with iodine, blocking the thyroid’s ability to make hormones. This is why excess fluoride exposure (from tap water, toothpaste, and certain medications) has been linked to hypothyroidism.

• Heavy metals like mercury and lead can disrupt the HPT (hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid) axis, which is responsible for sending signals to the thyroid. These toxins can also build up in tissues, further impairing hormone production.

With constant stress, detoxification pathways (like the liver and gut) become sluggish, making it even harder to clear out these thyroid-sabotaging toxins.

WHAT ABOUT HASHIMOTOS?

Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is the most common cause of hypothyroidism, yet it’s often overlooked in standard thyroid testing.

Unlike regular hypothyroidism (where the thyroid simply slows down), Hashimoto’s is an autoimmune condition

= the body’s own immune system mistakenly attacks the thyroid.

Over time, this leads to inflammation, damage, and a gradual decline in thyroid hormone production.

🔥 Antibodies: The Clues to Autoimmune Thyroid Dysfunction

One of the biggest differences between Hashimoto’s and standard hypothyroidism is the presence of thyroid antibodies.

These antibodies—TPO (thyroid peroxidase antibodies) and TgAb (thyroglobulin antibodies)—show that the immune system is targeting the thyroid.

What’s tricky? TSH can look “normal” for years before thyroid function actually declines, so antibody testing is crucial for catching Hashimoto’s early.

Now if you test positive, having these antibodies doesn’t mean your thyroid is failing overnight, but it does mean the immune system is dysregulated—which means addressing immune health is just as important as supporting the thyroid itself.

WHAT LABS SHOULD I KEEP ON EYE ON?

Def, a full thyroid panel.

When assessing thyroid function, functional medicine ranges are narrower than conventional lab ranges because they focus on optimal health rather than just detecting disease.

Here’s a breakdown of ideal functional ranges for each thyroid marker:

• TSH Functional Range: 0.8 – 2.5 µIU/mL

  • FYI most doctor won’t diagnose you with thyroid issues until your TSH has reached a >4 😬

• Free T4 Functional Range: 1.2-1.7 ng/mL

• Free T3 Functional Range: 3-4 pg/mL

• Reverse T3 Functional Range: <15 ng/dL

• TPO or TgAB: <10

WHAT CAN I DO TO SUPPOR IT?

Here’s how to get your metabolism, energy, and hormones back on track with a root-cause approach thyroid health

Prioritize Thyroid-Nourishing Foods

• Eat iodine-rich foods 🦞 → Wild-caught seafood + a sprinkle of seaweed (dulse, nori, kelp)