Thyroid wars

Are our bodies a microcosm of nature? Let’s see. Evolution, that is natural selection, is happening in every handful of soil you might happen to pick up. Is it happening in our bodies too? Our bodies are full of living creatures, mostly good bacteria beavering away in our guts and other places. Some refer collectively to these little helpers as a supporting organ. So, yes, natural selection is happening in our bodies too. But nature, and our bodies, are also busy above the engine room of evolution. Some of that busyness is turbulent. Things die, things are created. A peaceful, tranquil forest is bursting with activity around the clock. It all goes unnoticed until something happens that’s out of character: a bushfire, a destructive storm, a flood, a cyclone, a drought. Otherwise, nature appears to hum along, supporting life, promoting growth. So it is with our bodies. We are not aware of parts of us that are working well. It’s only when they malfunction that their very existence is noticed. Some organs, more unsung than others, are the supporting cast of an intricate, amazing drama being played out every second of our lives. They do their job without a fuss. A typical example is the two-lobed little organ hugging the throat. I’ve always known I have a thyroid gland, but until a month or so ago I had no idea what it specifically did. I didn’t need to know. I ignored it. It never drew attention to itself. it just did its thing in the background, overshadowed by my physiological stars: my brain, my heart, my lungs, my muscles, my bones.

So, what does the thyroid, unsung hero, do? What contribution does it make to a happy, healthy life. A lot, as I’ve recently discovered. The pituitary gland in the brain produces TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone) which tells the thyroid to produce important hormones. These are thyroxine (T4) and triiodothyroxine (T3). The amounts need to be in a Goldilocks zone. Too much causes hyperthyroidism, too little, hypothyroidism. Of all the organs lining up to malfunction on the home straight of my life, I’d have considered the thyroid a rank outsider, an organ that never draws attention to itself, an organ that does its job. Until it didn’t. Or in my case did too much. Much too much. And things got hairy.

Since the beginning of this year I had begun to notice some worrying symptoms. I lost weight despite a healthy appetite. I lost strength, most evident in the gym where I was forced to lighten the weights of all my exercises. I experienced unaccustomed tiredness from which it took longer than usual to recover. My hands trembled. I became aware of more anxiety, strain, stress and dispiritedness than usual. My staying power dwindled. My mind went blank during conversations. I stammered and stuttered more than usual. I all but lost my ability for mental arithmetic. I thought old age had finally caught up with me, that from now on I’d have to ease up, acknowledge and heed age-impaired mental and physical faculties .

Then one morning in the gym my pulse rate shot up to 196 and took 90 minutes to return to normal. I have a mostly benign condition called supraventricular tachycardia, but 196 was much higher that my pulse rate had ever risen, so I thought I’d better see my doctor. I trust the medical profession. It acquires knowledge in the right way. I did a blood test which revealed that my thyroid was going gangbusters, hugely overactive, pumping two to three times more T4 and T3 than it should into my body. It explained every one of my disconcerting symptoms.

My thyroid is still the star of the moment. And not in a nice way. Medication has returned its secretions to the Goldilock’s zone or thereabouts. My general health has improved. I am firing on all cylinders now for probably the first time this year. But a question remains about the cause of its malfunction. An ultrasound revealed inflammation of the left lobe. I’ve seen an endocrinologist who does not rule out Graves disease, an immune system disorder, despite a negative blood test. Shortly I will be subjecting my thyroid to a nuclear scan which hopefully will answer the question.