After completing her Internal Medicine Residency at the University of Arizona, Dr. Akhunji worked as an Internist in Tucson, Arizona prior to joining a fellowship program in Endocrinology and Diabetes. She completed her Fellowship at Houston Methodist Hospital in Houston, Texas.  

While working as an internist she developed a particular interest in discussing weight management and dietary education to help prevent and treat lifestyle-related health issues. So many health issues came back to the thyroid, metabolism, and lifestyle. Unfortunately, she personally witnessed many people who had too long not taken care of their health and landed in the hospital repeatedly. 

Because of her passion for wellness, she developed a love of dance and weight lifting. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, cooking, and painting.

What makes you passionate about treating patients with hypothyroidism?

Across all age groups, from children to millennials to our aging baby boomers more and more people are getting diagnosed with thyroid dysfunction. People are getting told that their fatigue, weight gain, memory issues, and hair loss are all related to the thyroid. And yes, the thyroid is often the culprit but there’s more than one treatment to thyroid disease and not everyone’s treatment plan is the same. What makes the treatment of hypothyroidism so fascinating is that by helping someone with just this one problem you can give someone a tool to help them feel like they’ve taken their health and vitality back into their own hands. Approaching the thyroid from the drug treatment perspective, but also the diet, exercise, and sleep perspective is what makes Paloma Health such an incredible resource for those who are taken by their thyroid illness.

What is your approach to treating hypothyroid patients?

I feel that with any type of clinical decision making, the approach to a thyroid patient begins from the time we start to talk. A careful history and physical examination can often lead me through what to do next or address for a patient. Concerns for the thyroid are wide and things such as weight loss/weight gain, menstrual irregularities, infertility, hoarseness of voice, alteration of bowel habits often get overlooked, and that’s why a thorough history is so important. Investigations such as T3, T4 and TSH are key in driving treatment, but so are the patient’s complaints and concerns. A combination of a good history, physical examination and judicious use of investigatory studies will sort out the majority of thyroid problems.