Hypothyroidism and Anxiety

Connections between hypothyroidism and anxiety…

Anxiety, shortness of breath, depression, dizziness, eye problems, fatigue, hearing disabilities, high cholesterol levels, and low blood pressure are just some of the conditions that might accompany people who have hypothyroidism.

Hypothyroidism is a disease. It normally manifests in both humans and domestic animals. The main reason why the disease develops is because the thyroid gland suddenly decides to stop secreting enough thyroid hormones needed for normal body functions. Without the right amounts of thyroid hormones in the body, all the body systems are unable to utilize the energy they need. The gravity of hypothyroidism varies from patient to patient.

It has been found out that the risk of having disease increases with age. Older women in particular are found to be the one's that carry the highest risk of contacting the disease. However, the disease has also been found to occur in infants. Early detection of the disease is very important for infants. When left untreated, the disease can cause brain damage and could lead to mental retardation and delays in the child's physical and mental developments.

Fortunately, hospitals are testing every newborn for hypothyroidism. When the child develops the disease after he or she becomes 3 years old, it is very unlikely that mental retardation will develop. But still, when left untreated the disease will cause a delay in the kid's physical growth and sexual development.

In the case of adults, on the other hand, two of the most common causes of hypothyroidism include Hashimoto's thyroiditis which is an autoimmune disease and radioiodine therapy which is used for treating hyperthyroidism. Some adults with the disease don't even know that they have abnormally secretion of thyroid hormones.

In some cases there are no visible symptoms of the disease. In other cases, the symptoms of hypothyroidism are often mistaken for other diseases. This led medical practitioners to tag the disease as the "great imitator." However, in more complicated cases of hypothyroidism, the symptoms and accompanying conditions are very serious.

Some disease will lead to myxedema if left untreated. Myxedema is a condition wherein body tissues swell. This is due to an increase amount of fluids around the heart and lungs area. People who develop myxedema will not be unable to move their muscles at a normal pace nor can they process their thoughts as fast as they normally could.

Moreover, the emotional symptoms are often the first ones that show themselves. People with hypothyroidism will experience little bits of depression and anxiety at first. But if the disease worsens so will the patient's depressive behavior and their anxiety attacks. If these are the only symptoms that manifests, doctors might misdiagnose a patient. Doctors might think that the patient is only having emotion problems in which case antidepressants should be enough.

Simple hypothyroidism or mild subclinical hypothyroidism can be diagnosed through the patient's medical history and physical exam. To confirm diagnosis, blood samples are taken from the patient and are subjected to laboratory tests the most common of which are Thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) assay and Thyroxine (T4) measurements.

Most of the time, a patient will experience irregular panic attacks and spells of depression. Normally, a patient with severe hypothyroidism will have sudden and intense feelings of fear, will experience rapid heart rate and rapid breathing, will be sweating a lot, will have muscle tensions with pain, will have elevated blood pressure and will experience a lot of trembling. Patients will always worry about things and will feel constantly nervous. Other symptoms also include feeling tired, sadness, anger, feelings of hopelessness, irritability and lethargic.

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