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Chronic Pain Isn’t Always About Injuries or Stress
When most people think of chronic pain, they imagine old injuries, wear and tear, or maybe unresolved emotional trauma. And sure, those can play a role. But here’s what almost nobody is talking about: chronic pain can be driven by poor nutrition, thyroid dysfunction, and anemia.
That means your backache, joint stiffness, or daily migraines might have nothing to do with what you lifted, how you sat, or what your therapist said. It could have everything to do with your cells running out of fuel.
When your body doesn’t have the right nutrients, it can’t make energy efficiently. And low energy at the cellular level means inflammation lingers, tissue repair slows down, and pain becomes chronic.
The Thyroid Nutrition Pain Connection
Your thyroid is your metabolic thermostat. When it’s sluggish, as in hypothyroidism or Hashimoto’s disease, your body can’t produce enough cellular energy (ATP).
Low ATP means:
- Muscles recover slower and stay tight
- Joints stay inflamed instead of healing
- Pain signals amplify in the nervous system
Here’s the kicker: your thyroid can’t work without the right nutrients. Deficiencies in iodine, selenium, magnesium, and B vitamins are common in women with thyroid disorders. And when those nutrients are missing, pain becomes the body’s default language.
This is why so many people with chronic pain and hypothyroidism also deal with fatigue, brain fog, constipation, and low mood. It’s not “just stress.” It’s the biology of low energy.
Anemia, Energy, and Chronic Pain
If you’re iron deficient, anaemic, or not absorbing iron properly because of gut issues like H. pylori infection or IBS, your tissues are literally starved of oxygen. And muscles and nerves that don’t get enough oxygen become hypersensitive to pain.
This is why anemia and chronic pain so often travel together. Low haemoglobin = low oxygen = constant fatigue + heightened pain signals. It’s also why many women find their pain flares are worse around heavy periods, blood loss further depletes iron, which tanks energy and amplifies inflammation.
Why Conventional Pain Plans Don’t Work Long-Term
Painkillers, injections, and stretching routines might give temporary relief, but they don’t fix the energy crisis in your cells. You can’t out-yoga or out-medicate a nutrient deficiency.
If your pain has been dismissed as “in your head” or you’ve been told to “just manage it,” you’re being treated for symptoms while the root cause, nutrition, thyroid function, and anemia, is ignored.
How Functional Nutrition Ends Chronic Pain
This is where a functional nutrition approach changes everything. Instead of just muting pain, we dig into why your body is creating it.
Here’s how we work:
- Functional lab testing to uncover anemia, thyroid dysfunction, mineral deficiencies, and gut infections like H. pylori
- Targeted nutrition to restore energy production (think magnesium, potassium, and B vitamins for the mitochondria)
- Thyroid support to optimise metabolism and speed up healing
- EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) to calm the nervous system and retrain pain pathways so your body isn’t stuck in fight-or-flight mode
The goal isn’t just to take the edge off. It’s to rebuild your metabolism so pain no longer has a foothold
Imagine This: A Life Without Daily Pain
When your cells have oxygen, your thyroid is supported, and your minerals are balanced, inflammation can finally cool down. Healing speeds up. Pain signals fade.
Chronic pain isn’t always about trauma, posture, or mindset. Often, it’s about your body not having the raw materials it needs to repair. And once you restore them, life feels radically different.
Final Takeaway: If you’ve tried everything for your chronic pain but nothing sticks, it’s time to look beyond injury and stress. Nutrition, thyroid health, and anemia may be the missing links. And when you address them with functional nutrition and functional medicine, you’re not just managing pain, you’re ending it
Imagine This: A Life Without Daily Pain
When your cells have oxygen, your thyroid is supported, and your minerals are balanced, inflammation can finally cool down. Healing speeds up. Pain signals fade.
Chronic pain isn’t always about trauma, posture, or mindset. Often, it’s about your body not having the raw materials it needs to repair. And once you restore them, life feels radically different.
Final Takeaway: If you’ve tried everything for your chronic pain but nothing sticks, it’s time to look beyond injury and stress. Nutrition, thyroid health, and anemia may be the missing links. And when you address them with functional nutrition and functional medicine, you’re not just managing pain — you’re ending it.
Frequently Asked Questions About Chronic Pain and Nutrition
Can poor nutrition cause chronic pain?
Yes. Poor nutrition can directly contribute to chronic pain by slowing down cellular energy production and fuelling inflammation. Without enough nutrients like magnesium, potassium, and B vitamins, your thyroid can’t function properly, your muscles don’t repair efficiently, and your nervous system becomes more sensitive to pain signals.
What is the link between chronic pain and hypothyroidism?
Hypothyroidism slows metabolism, which means your cells make less energy (ATP). This reduced energy leaves tissues inflamed and slow to heal, creating a state where pain becomes chronic. People with hypothyroidism and Hashimoto’s disease often experience muscle aches, joint pain, and fatigue alongside other thyroid symptoms.
Can anemia cause chronic pain?
Absolutely. Anemia reduces the oxygen supply to tissues, leaving muscles and nerves starved of what they need to function. This oxygen deprivation makes the body more prone to soreness, weakness, and heightened pain perception. Anemia and chronic pain often appear together, especially in women with heavy periods or poor iron absorption due to gut issues like H. pylori or IBS.
Which nutrients are most important for reducing chronic pain?
Key nutrients include:
- Magnesium – relaxes muscles and calms the nervous system
- B vitamins – support energy metabolism and nerve function
- Selenium, tyrosine & iodine – vital for thyroid hormone production
A diet and supplementation plan tailored to your labs can make a dramatic difference in pain levels but a lot of the time we have enough of the above but its dysregulated due to poor absorption levels, poor conversion and toxicity leading to more chronic pain.
How does functional nutrition help with chronic pain?
Functional nutrition identifies and addresses the root causes of pain rather than masking symptoms. By running functional lab tests, we can uncover thyroid dysfunction, anemia, gut dysbiosis, or hidden infections like H. pylori. With targeted nutrition, mineral balancing, and therapies like EFT for nervous system regulation, we restore energy production, reduce inflammation, and help the body heal, ending the cycle of chronic pain.
Most clients start noticing changes within weeks, less stiffness, fewer flares, better digestion, but the full reversal of chronic pain takes time. Healing the gut, restoring thyroid function, and calming autoimmune activity is a process, not a quick fix.
When your gut is healthy, your thyroid supported, and your immune system calm, chronic pain doesn’t have a foothold. You’re not just managing symptoms, you’re breaking the cycle. You’re getting your life back.
Takeaway: Chronic pain isn’t random. By addressing hypothyroidism, Hashimoto’s triggers, and gut infections like H. pylori, you can break the cycle of inflammation, reclaim your energy, and live pain-free. If you’re ready to get out of the fog and into a functional healing plan that actually works,
reach out and let’s find what your body’s been missing. Reach out via messaging me, and I’ll send you my free “Test Your Thyroid at Home” guide and share how we can work together 1:1 to restore your thyroid, gut, and energy, for good.
Warmly,
Joel
