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October 20, 2026
You have brought up the exhaustion at three different appointments. Simple tasks like opening a jar or climbing stairs leave your joints aching. More hair collects in the shower drain each week. Yet every visit ends the same way: your labs look normal, so maybe it is just stress.
If that sounds like you, keep reading. Autoimmune disease in women is far more common than most people realize, and your hormones play a bigger role than you might think.
Below, we explain why women are hit harder and which early signs often get brushed aside. Next, we explain how your hormones and thyroid fit in. Finally, we share what a root-cause approach looks like.
Think of your immune system as your body’s security team. Normally, it spots real threats, like viruses and bacteria, and leaves everything else alone. With autoimmune disease, however, that security team gets confused and starts attacking healthy tissue.
This happens more often than you might expect. A 2024 study estimated that more than 15 million Americans have at least one autoimmune diagnosis.¹ Women made up 63% of that group, compared with just 37% for men. Additionally, about one in three people had more than one autoimmune condition.¹
So why women? Part of the answer starts with your chromosomes. Women have two X chromosomes, and each cell uses a molecule called Xist to switch one of them off. Stanford researchers found that this molecule may trigger the immune system. When they gave male mice a form of Xist, the males began making the same misguided antibodies seen in autoimmune disease.² The team also found antibodies against parts of the Xist complex in people with autoimmune conditions.²
Still, genes are only part of the story. Your environment, your gut, and your hormones matter too, as we explain on our Autoimmune Disease page.
| What Is Different for Women | Why It Matters |
| Two X chromosomes | Linked to the antibodies seen in autoimmune disease² |
| Hormones | Immune cells respond directly to estrogen and progesterone⁴ |
| Life transitions | Pregnancy and postpartum can shift immune activity⁶ |
| Longer wait for answers | Women wait longer for a diagnosis than men³ |
Autoimmune symptoms rarely show up all at once. Instead, they creep in, flare, fade, and come back. Because they look like everyday complaints, they are easy to shrug off, both by you and by your doctor.
The National Library of Medicine lists fatigue, low-grade fever, and muscle or joint pain among the common symptoms.⁹ Watch for these five early signs:¹⁰
One symptom alone may not mean much. Several symptoms together, especially if they stick around, deserve a closer look.
Unfortunately, many women hear “it’s just stress” instead. A study published this month surveyed more than 6,600 adults with autoimmune disease.³ Among the women, 43% said a provider had blamed their symptoms on a mental health cause before they were diagnosed. Even worse, nearly one in three women waited four years or longer for a diagnosis.³
Many of our guests know this story well. By the time they reach us, they have often seen several doctors and heard “your labs look fine” more times than they can count.
Your hormones do much more than run your monthly cycle. They also help steer your immune system.
Women tend to fight off infections more strongly than men. However, that stronger immune system is also more likely to turn on the body itself.⁴ Part of the reason is that immune cells have docking stations, called receptors, for estrogen and progesterone. In other words, your immune cells are listening to your hormones.⁴
Each hormone plays a different role. Estrogen can boost certain immune responses.⁴ Progesterone, on the other hand, has a calming, anti-inflammatory effect.⁵
Pregnancy shows this connection clearly. In a well-known study of women with multiple sclerosis, flare-ups dropped sharply in the third trimester, when estrogen and progesterone are at their highest.⁶ Then, in the first three months after delivery, when those hormones drop, flare-ups rose before settling back to pre-pregnancy levels.⁶
Put simply, when your hormones shift, your immune system can shift too. This may help explain why some women notice new or worsening symptoms during:
Your thyroid is a common target. In fact, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, where the immune system attacks the thyroid, is the most common cause of low thyroid in the United States.¹¹
Here is what many women do not know. Thyroid antibodies can show up in your blood years before your thyroid levels drop. A large national survey found these antibodies in more than one in ten Americans, and they appeared more often in women.⁷
Those antibodies matter over time. A 20-year study in England found that thyroid antibodies, especially alongside higher TSH, increased the odds of developing low thyroid later.⁸
Unfortunately, a standard checkup often tests only one thyroid number: TSH. If it lands within a wide “normal” range, you may hear that your thyroid is fine. Meanwhile, you still feel exhausted, gain weight, and struggle with brain fog.
That is why we use comprehensive lab testing that looks beyond a single number. Even more importantly, we weigh your results alongside how you actually feel.
At Hotze Health & Wellness Center, we are often our guests’ last stop. Many arrive with a folder full of “normal” results and no real answers. Our first step is simple: we listen.
Next, our team combines your clinical symptoms with comprehensive lab testing to build a complete picture of your health. Then we look for what is fueling the immune response, including:
Your body is not lacking pharmaceutical drugs. Over time, it depletes the hormones it needs to work well. When that happens, the answer is to replenish them. For women with low thyroid function or declining progesterone and estrogen, bioidentical hormone balancing may become part of a personalized plan when indicated.
We also treat the whole body, not just isolated symptoms. This way, we not only work to uncover the root cause of your symptoms but also focus on prevention and healthspan. As a population, we are living longer, and we believe those added years should be quality years.
Integrative care can also work alongside the care you already receive. For everyday strategies you can start now, read our post on 10 integrative tools for autoimmune disease.
You know your body better than anyone. When your symptoms keep returning but your results keep coming back “normal,” it may be time for a different conversation.
Let’s start that conversation together. Click HERE to book a complimentary phone consultation with one of our Wellness Consultants. Bring your questions, your symptoms, and your story. We will listen, with no pressure, and help you decide whether our integrative, root-cause approach is the right next step for you. It would be our privilege to serve you.
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Holistic, functional medicine doctors in Houston, Texas specializing in bioidentical hormones, hypothyroidism, adrenal fatigue, menopause, perimenopause, low testosterone, allergies and LDI treatment, candida, detoxification, nutritional deficiencies, longevity and aesthetics.
© Braidwood Management, Inc. All Rights Reserved. The information on this website is provided for educational purposes only, and does not constitute any medical advice. By using this website you fully waive all legal claims based on any information contained herein, and fully agree to this disclaimer.
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