Struggling With Fatigue After Childbirth? Get a Thyroid Test
November 12, 2025
After nine months of pregnancy, labor, delivery and those early weeks of newborn care, your body probably doesn’t even remember what “normal” feels like.
If you’re yearning for those pre-pregnancy days weight- and energy-wise, and just overall feeling blah, ask your healthcare provider for a thyroid checkup. It just may hold the key to you getting your groove back.
What Does Your Thyroid Do?
Your thyroid gland rocks—when it’s working normally. Every part of your body depends on the hormone produced by this small butterfly-shaped gland in front of your neck, below your voice box. Like other glands in your endocrine system, the thyroid gland produces, stores and releases hormones into your bloodstream, which your cells pick up and use.
Among other functions, thyroid hormone affects:
- Metabolism
- Body temperature
- Heart and nervous system functions
- Breathing
- Muscle strength
- Skin dryness
- Menstrual cycles
- Weight
- Cholesterol levels
- Fetal brain and nervous system development
Thyroid disorders occur when the thyroid gland produces too much (hyperthyroidism) or too little (hypothyroidism) thyroid hormone, which is necessary for normal functions.
How Does Pregnancy Affect Your Thyroid?
“Pregnancy has a major effect on thyroid functions,” said Casey Lesniak, DO, a family doctor at Franciscan Physician Network at Mooresville Family Care. “For example, women with undetected mild thyroid disorders may develop more moderate symptoms of hypothyroidism after becoming pregnant.
What Is Postpartum Thyroiditis?
Postpartum thyroiditis is a thyroid condition triggered by pregnancy, but exactly why or how isn’t clear. This thyroid condition affects about 5 percent of women during the first year after delivery. It causes thyroid gland inflammation that can last several weeks to months.
Postpartum thyroiditis generally happens in two stages.
Early symptoms of postpartum thyroiditis
First, the thyroid produces too much thyroid hormone—usually in the first four months following delivery. Symptoms may last four to twelve weeks and can include:
- Irritability
- Rapid heartbeat or palpitations
- Insomnia
- Fatigue
- Increased sensitivity to heat
- Unexplained weight loss
Later symptoms of postpartum thyroiditis
The second stage occurs four to eight months after delivery. It develops after thyroid cells are damaged and produce less thyroid hormone. Symptoms may last from nine to 12 months and can include:
- Lack of energy and fatigue
- Aches and pains
- Increased sensitivity to cold
- Dry skin
- Constipation
Diagnosing postpartum thyroiditis
Postpartum thyroiditis can be hard to diagnose, said Dr. Lesniak, because so many of the symptoms it causes are similar or identical to symptoms you may experience as you try to return to everyday life after pregnancy and delivery.
To evaluate for postpartum thyroiditis, your healthcare provider will take a careful history and perform a physical examination. They may recommend blood tests to check your thyroid function such as a thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) level.
Treating postpartum thyroid
Treating postpartum thyroid isn’t necessary if symptoms are mild, but it is available if your symptoms are severe. Your healthcare provider likely will track your response to treatment every few months to make sure normal thyroid function returns.
Many cases go away in time
For most women, postpartum thyroiditis goes away within a year, and not all women experience symptoms of both stages. It is likely to recur with future pregnancies. Some women will develop permanent hypothyroidism.
