Dear Thyroid FAQ’s
Please review our FAQs ‘fast facts’. Please note: As we grow, we continuously update our FAQ’s. Be sure to check back.
What is Dear Thyroid?
- Dear Thyroid is a literary thyroid diseases and thyroid cancer brand, and support community. Patients with thyroid diseases and thyroid cancers write letters to and from their thyroids, as well as Thyrants, Thyologisms, Thygraphs, Thykus, Thysongs, Thyetry, and other literary things. Because not everyone is comfortable writing about their disease, we have a Dear Thyroid Flickr pool. Additionally, we now offer patients the opportunity to submit video and audio Dear Thyroid Letters. We also encourage families to write and submit written, video or audio letters to their loved one’s thyroid.
How should I use Dear Thyroid?
- There are a number of ways you can utilize Dear Thyroid. You can write and submit Dear Thyroid Letters, participate in Thyrants, and among other things, when we have thyroid literary contests, submit. If you’re not comfortable submitting something, we encourage you to get involved by interacting with our community in the comments section of our posts, on Facebook and Twitter.
What language can I use on Dear Thyroid?
- Dear Thyroid embraces the mighty gland in all of its incantations. We believe that each person who chooses to utilize Dear Thyroid should have the opportunity to speak their mind or gland, as the case may be, on their terms. We do not censor cursing, irreverence, dark humor, or extreme happiness. We encourage our community to write what feels most organic to who they are, and on their terms.
Why doesn’t Dear Thyroid allow Religion and Politics on their website?
- Simply put, we come together in the name of thyroid disease and thyroid cancer support. So that nobody feels alienated or left out, we do not allow people to write about their personal political or religious beliefs.
Are families allowed to submit letters to Dear Thyroid?
- YES. YES. YES. We encourage families to submit letters written to their loved one’s thyroid. We have written extensively about the importance of family letters. We believe that our thyroid diseases and thyroid cancers affects our families as intensely and deeply as it affects thyroid patients.
What are Thyrants?
- Every Saturday we post the community’s thyroid rants for the week, the good and the bad. In 25-50 words, thyroid patients share their experience of their disease.
What is Tales from Thyietnam?
- Tales From Thyietnam is Dear Thyroid’s podcast. We feature renowned thyroid disease and thyroid cancer patient advocates, founders of chronic illness websites, well known thyroid disease and thyroid cancer patients, as well as patients contending with autoimmune, and or chronic conditions. Additionally, our podcast includes interviews with individuals from the medical and healthcare communities.
When is the Dear Thyroid Anthology coming out?
- In 2010, a specific date has not been decided. All letters that are chosen for the anthology will come from published letters on Dear Thyroid’s website. We will ask each author for written permission to publish their letter in the anthology. We’re very excited about the Dear Thyroid Anthology and have some pretty cool ideas to ensure that our anthology is as unique as the Dear Thyroid community.
How can I be included in the Dear Thyroid Anthology?
- Submit your letters and other thyroid literary work to Dear Thyroid to publish on our site for consideration for the anthology.
How come Dear Thyroid won’t allow people to re-post their letters and other thyroid literary work on other sites, including their own blogs/sites?
- Dear Thyroid is a unique brand of thyroid support. Technically, by re-posting, the individual doing so is infringing on the Dear Thyroid brand. Additionally, by submitting work to Dear Thyroid, you are agreeing to exclusivity and permitting Dear Thyroid to use your letter on our website. Similarly, because we are launching an anthology, the work that we will showcase in our anthology should come from Dear Thyroid and should not have been previously published.
How can I share my piece with my readers?
- When your piece is published, we email you a date of when your letter or other thyroid literary goodness will be published. We also email you to let you know. We encourage you to place a link to your piece wherever you wish. We hope that everyone is as proud of their work as we are.
Does Dear Thyroid Offer Resources?
- Absolutely! We offer many types of resources, so that we can become our own patient advocates and learn as much about our diseases as possible, to reclaim our lives and achieve wellness that is in line with our individual selves. Thyroid Disease Resources, Thyroid Cancer Resources, Autoimmune Resources, Books & Advocacy, Chronic Illness Resources and Alternative Resources
Who Created Dear Thyroid?
- Katie Schwartz, the founder of Dear Thyroid, has Graves’ disease and Graves’ Opthalmopathy. During the many heights of her illness, she wrote hate letters to her thyroid; evil, twisted, loathsome letters. She has no regrets whatsoever. All of that hatred had to go somewhere. What better place than on paper, where she could say anything, to exorcise the rage she felt, perhaps the rage we all feel when our bodies betray us. Right?! One day, on a whim, she wondered if other people wanted to write letters to their thyroids. Convinced she was a freak of nature, on a whim, one afternoon, she started a blog called Dear Thyroid and asked people with thyroid disease and thyroid cancer if they wanted to write hate, or love letters to their thyroids. As it turned out, Katie wasn’t alone, nor was she a crazy crazarella. People wanted to write love and hate letters to and from their thyroids, among other things. Before she could blink her jacked lady balls, she became a part of one of the most beautiful, bravest communities she’s ever known. Imagine that?!
How can I contact Katie Schwartz?