After several decades of stellar health attributed to cautious food consumption, supplementation, and adequate physical activity, an overabundance of foreign events were suddenly occurring within my anatomy thirteen years ago. Though undesirable, none alarmed me. Urgency was equivalent to the attention I’d give an annoying insect’s invasion … swat and ignore.

My fingertips tingled intermittently. Excellent circulation was already ascertained, so my remedy was to give them a good shake. I developed an allergy to oak pollen. In April, I awoke sneezing and didn’t stop for ten days. My hormones went bonkers; my monthly cycle developed a mind of its own.

No symptom separately stirred enough motivation to act, but when I started experiencing chest pain, now I was concerned. So I did what I do – research. My mission was to discover what caused my chest pain and heal myself. Heart, lung and esophageal disorders with this symptom abound, but none matched mine. I chose the obvious course – do nothing and give the pain fair opportunity to disappear of its own volition. It did not.

Weeks after my increasingly frequent symptoms first manifested, I admitted intellectual inadequacy and phoned a doctor. But this doctor wasn’t the sort that people typically dial up when chest pain causes concern. I dug out info I’d saved about a popular naturopathic doctor, whom several business clients utilized when they required doctoring.

Taking this step was monumental. Forever I’d been my own health monitor, custodian, champion. I hadn’t darkened a doctor’s door in decades and wasn’t thrilled at the idea. But chest pains aren’t to be dismissed.

My first impression of my new doctor – incredibly handsome! Being newly single, I wondered fleetingly if Dr. E was unattached. My second impression was also favorable. His methods were unorthodox … nothing I’d seen before. He reviewed the paperwork I’d completed upon arrival and asked me to take off my shoes and socks!!

Dr. E flipped the switch on a machine that looked like electrical equipment my dad used in diagnosing household wiring malfunctions – measurements in arrows and beeps. Dr. E proceeded to wet the palms of my hands, bizarre bedside manner! Bare feet and wet hands might make a non-believer run, but I was intrigued. Turned out the doctor WAS measuring electricity, and water conducts electrical current.

Dr. E tested electric current at acupressure points in my fingers and toes using a P.E.P. Tracer, which measures electrical frequencies in the body and indicates weaknesses. I wasn’t surprised that my digestive energy indicated sluggish function, but I was astounded that my thyroid energy was only 10% of normal. The arrow barely blipped – the gland was near death.

Since the thyroid gland is Control Central, secreting hormones that regulate growth and development throughout the body, this was a crisis! Dr. E confirmed that chest pains could indeed manifest from thyroid malfunction.

An estimated 20,000,000 people in the US suffer thyroid maladies, 60% undiagnosed. Nearly none are cured. Had I consulted an MD instead of a naturopath, the doctor would have prescribed Synthroid or a similar drug that simulates normal thyroid function. The drug assumes the Director of Hormone Traffic position, leaving the thyroid gland to die a quiet, irreversible death.

Underactive Thyroid Natural Remedies

Dr. E doesn’t believe in allowing thyroid glands to die or prescribing drugs to simulate function. He set out to repair my broken gland. The good doctor prescribed a liquid formula (God’s Herbs), a gawd-awful tasting, cayenne pepper concoction. Dosage was two droppers in juice, daily. The only juice that masked the pepper flavor enough to prevent an involuntary gagging response was purple grape-cranberry-cherry. I included a dropper of God’s Herbs lazy-digestion formula and downed it faithfully.

A month later, I returned for follow-up and was hugely relieved when Dr. E’s electrical box measured 30% thyroid response … impressive progress, and promise of eventual full recovery. We did the same routine another month, and by the third visit, the all-important gland was reading 70% function – cause for celebration. I was certain the PEP box would measure 100% at my fourth and final visit.

No such luck. My thyroid reading was stuck at 70% the next two visits, and while the chest pains had dissipated and finger tingling ceased, the perfectionist in me couldn’t settle for less than 100%. So I hauled out my copy of ‘Prescription for Nutritional Healing’, a comprehensive book written by an M.D and his wife, who’d abandoned traditional medicine in favor of the kind that cures. Dr. Balch and Certified Nurse Practitioner Balch summarized every common human illness – what causes it, symptoms, how western medicine treats it, and alternative therapy cures.

I was incredulous upon discovering I’d triggered my thyroid’s demise. Diligence about avoiding toxins in food and toiletries had been my long-time habit, so I was upset to learn that dentist-recommended fluoride was the culprit. I’d undergone routine teeth cleaning only two months prior to experiencing the first symptoms, and my dentist had prescribed extra strength fluoride to prevent cavities below the gum line.

My dentist is a good guy. He’s not the sort who diagnoses cavities that don’t exist. He charges reasonable fees, unlike many dollar-focused drillers. But he’s ignorant. He still uses amalgam fillings (not in my mouth), and prescribes fluoride – heavy duty fluoride that kills thyroids.

Scientific proof exists that fluoride adversely affects the thyroid gland, and wars are currently underway in many states – citizens against municipalities, and the ADA against citizens – battles focused on implementing permanent fluoride bans in tap water.

Upon grasping the link between fluoride and thyroid damage, I discontinued the dental potion, tossed out fluoride infused toothpaste, and installed a triple filtering system on the kitchen tap. I continued the cayenne pepper remedy. When I returned to Dr. E in January, the electric machine beeped an approving 100% – no denying that fluoride was the culprit.

I’ve experienced no serious thyroid malfunction in the dozen ensuing years. But I learned that thyroid glands require adequate iodine intake to remain healthy, so I’m diligent about consuming supplements containing iodine. And a few times annually, just for good measure, I rub some iodine on my stomach.

Oh, and Dr E is Libra … that would never have worked!