Thyroid Power: Ten Steps to Total Health

This book opened my eyes to the fact that "traditional medicine" just didn't have all the answers. As a practicing physician, I too had been telling my wife "all your thyroid tests are normal." We finally both read this book and discovered many of the truths that are not learned or stressed in medical school re:autoimmune diseases. Her antibody levels were OFF THE CHART and after a trial of multiple different medication regimens, she is now feeling better on Armour Thyroid. READ THIS BOOK or GIVE IT AS A GIFT to anyone who may be ill with thyroid problems or need a "NON-SANCTIONED" alternative approach! It opened MY eyes! Bravo and thanks to the authors!

This book truly changed my life. After reading it, I not only advocated for the proper dosage of meds for my condition, but joined Weight Watchers, tailored the diet to suggestions in Thyroid Power and have lost many pounds - for the first time in years! If you, too, want to feel empowered and have some control over your condition, I'd say this book is a must. In addition to a very detailed description of traditional thyroid tests and treatments, Shames has the courage to discuss what could be WRONG with some of these tests, including questionnaires to help individuals gain information about their condition. For years, I had many of the symptoms described in this book: vauge aches and pains, overwhelming tiredness, bouts of anxiety and depression, weight gain, sleep problems and more. And yet I believed I was on the right dosage of medication because my doctor said so and the tests said so. But as Thyroid Power notes, there is more to thyroid conditions than lab tests alone can reveal. Shames also takes a look at foods which affect the thyroid and various vitamins, minerals and herbs that could be beneficial. If you like to take the best of conventional medicine AND holistic treatments, don't pass them one up.

Dr. Richard and Karliee Shames' book "Thyroid Power" actually "empowers" thyroid patients to improve and manage their health. It is an excellent book dealing with an insidious disease. Many patients walk around for years, suffering needlessly and losing control of their lives because of misdiagnosis. The source of many of these errors occur because physicians don't know how to order the correct test beyond the TSH, or do not correctly interpret test results. If you or someone else you know is fatigued, depressed and can't seem to figure out what is wrong, you cannot afford to miss this book. It gives you guidance on how to determine if you too may have hidden thyroid disease.Autoimmune disease can wax and wane for years, leading to a variety of symptoms, before the TSH clearly illustrates abnormal results. If you or someone else have not felt well this book can help you possibly unmask thyroid disease. If you are a diagnosed thyroid patient and still don't feel well, this book is an invaluable reference for managing your condition. Too many physicians do not know how to manage thyroid disease or have little time to assist their patients with managing this complex disease. This book provides clear information on how thyroid patients can help themselves to live better with this chronic condition. As a thyroid patient and reporter I have investigated and read as much information as possible about my autoimmune thyroid disease, Hashimoto's Thyroiditis. I found there were few books that delve into the complexity of this disease. The Shames' book is one of those rare books that provides answers and helps unravel the confusion surrounding and managing thyroid disease."Thyroid Power" is a superb resource for all those suffering from an often-confusing disease, and is an essential guide to managing and improving one's health. I can't say enough about this book, and have recommended it to all of my fellow thyroid sufferers....

Dr.Richard Shames and his wife, Karilee, who is a skilled nurse,have written a book that has the potential to help millions of people feel better. As a practitioner of medicine working at the Preventive Medical Center in San Rafael, California, I have been using some of the philosophy and techniques that I learned directly from Dr. Shames to help many patients. These patients suffer from the most common symptoms such as: fatigue, depression, weight gain, insomnia, headaches, joint and muscle pain, memory loss, frequent colds and viruses, cold hands and feet etc. Previously I was at a loss to help these people and could only tell them that there was nothing "wrong" with them and that their problems were not "medical" at all. It turns out that I, along with most medical practitioners, were victims of our own dogma. In reality, when it comes to thyroid disorders, many people have so-called "normal" tests, and yet when given thyroid hormone, their quality of life improves dramatically. I am not speaking of a short term placebo response, that we see frequently with any healing intervention. Many of my patients get better and stay that way, simply from taking thyroid hormone that no "well trained" medical practitioner would dare give them, because their tests were "normal". Fortunately, with this book, the Shames family has broken that taboo and the genie is out of the bottle at last. This book is directed and designed for the health consumer and it will help to empower them to demand the treatments they are entitled to receive. It is organized as a step by step program to help the health consumer understand the nature of the problem they may be facing and what the potential solutions are. The reader is educated at each step and encouraged to take more control over their own health care. While many Physicians encourage the mystique of the "all knowing" omnipotent Doctor, the Shames's are completely committed to breaking down that power relationship in their work. This book goes a long way to making the health consumer a more equal partner. I was particularly glad to see the emphasis on women's health issues and the encouragement of women to ask for more assistance with the problems of mid-life that are so often simply dismissed as "oh well, that's menopause for you". Women have been the victim of a patriarchal health system for too long and this book is one of many that helps women patients get the medical care they are entitled to. The issue of thyroid dysfunction is brought down to earth in this book and the reader is given a wide range of options to try. Rather than simply accepting the divine judgment that "your thyroid is normal according to the tests", the patient has several choices, if her/his symptoms are interfering with their life. They can ask for more tests, as the simple basic thyroid tests do not necessarily have all the information needed. Particularly they can request that their thyroid antibodies be checked. I

Richard and Karilee Shames are not only husband and wife, but doctor and nurse, AND thyroid practitioner and thyroid patient. For more than twenty-five years, the Shameses have been working with people who are "low thyroid" -- the term they use to describe hypothyroidism -- in their new book, Thyroid Power: Ten Steps to Total Health. Karilee herself is hypothyroid, as are several of the couple's children, and these experiences have informed both authors, who have struggled to help not only their own family, but many patients they have treated for thyroid problems as well. In a simply written, straightforward manner, the Shameses have organized some basics of hypothyroidism's causes, test, diagnosis and treatment into a ten-step program of information that can help patients get properly diagnosed and treated. One of the most interesting and innovative parts of the book is Step 9 -- "Improve the Underlying Autoimmune Condition." This section shares some of the results from Karilee's weekly thyroid recovery group meetings held with other thyroid patients. This chapter talks about issues patients have experienced with emotional sensitivity, self-esteem, perfectionism, maintaining momentum, being empowered, and more, and many of the "common characteristics" of people with autoimmune hypothyroidism struck a chord personally with me. For already diagnosed thyroid patients, Step Seven's overview of adrenal insufficiency is also a very useful adjunct, particularly for thyroid patients who do not feel well on what is considered sufficient treatment for hypothyroidism.A unique section is titled "How to Tap the Source of Boundless Energy," which talks about energy healing, the energy chakras, and self-actualization. While not specifically focused on the thyroid, this section is an excellent introduction to the concepts of energy work for those who are not familiar with modalities such as Reiki, healing hands, or laying on of hands.The main weakness in this book is the fact that many thyroid patients who read the book will not have access to practitioners who are even remotely as open-minded or holistic in their approach as Richard and Karilee Shames. While the Shameses are part of a growing body of alternative practitioners who are innovative their diagnosis and treatment of hypothyroidism, the vast majority of patients are still subject to very limited, highly conventional treatment protocols, and a very ingrained doctrine of thyroid treatment. Rigid adherence to TSH tests, "normal ranges" and levothyroxine as the sole treatment is the standard practice, and what standard practice is what is typically covered by HMOs and insurance companies. The Shames' use of TRH, total T3, free T3 and antibodies tests as standard, and their unbiased use of levothyroxine, synthetic T3, or natural thyroid products -- whatever product works best for each individual patient -- are encouraging, but still uncommon among most medical professionals. But overall, as a thyroid pa