I've had thyroid issues for about fifteen years now. In my early twenties it completely crashed. In two months time I gained thirty pounds and was sleeping close to fifteen hours a day. I was so depressed and completely exhausted both mentally and physically. A visit to the family doctor finally solved the mystery: hypothyroidism. Oh, yay.
I started taking a natural thyroid medicine and continued to do so until recently. My old doc was an osteopath so natural medicine was the obvious choice. It worked well over the years. At least I think it did. I stopped gaining weight (although I failed to ever lose the initial thirty brought on by this condition), the depression was under control, I stopped sleeping my life away, etc. It had to be working well or I'd have never gotten pregnant two years ago.
Ironically, my pregnancy is what started my current problems. Since unbalanced hormone levels can affect the baby's growth in utero, I was taking monthly blood tests so the doc could keep an eye on things. Right from the very first draw only a few weeks after conception my levels were high...the opposite of where they would usually fall. And so the game began...
"Skip one pill a week and we'll see what that does." The doc's first attempt at getting me back on track.
"No, still too high. Take a whole pill one day and only a half the next..."
"Now it fell a bit low. Let's go back to full doses but again skip one a week."
"Nope, it's elevated again. Try skipping two a week..."
"Oh, now you're low again. Go back to skipping one a week."
I felt like a lab rat searching for the cheese in a trick maze.
Although my levels bounced around the entire pregnancy, thankfully they never hit extremes for long enough periods of time to affect Punky's development in any way.
It's a well-known fact that pregancy can wreak hovoc through the entire body, and the docs attributed my crazy fluctuations to the nature of the beast. So, based on that theory, we played the adjust-the-medication game monthly and assumed that things would return to normal post pregnancy.
Wrong. Incorrect. Not even close.
Punky is fourteen months old and I'm still playing follow-the-bouncing-thyroid. A few months ago the doc finally persuaded me to try a different medicine... a synthetic mix instead of the all natural stuff I prefer to take. We both hoped the change would be the answer and I'd finally level out once and for all.
Last week, after trying the new stuff for just over a month and getting the ritual blood draw, I held my breath when the doc's office rang my cell with the results.
"Too high. I am calling in a new prescription for you and mailing a lab slip for more bloodwork a month from now..."
Sigh. Sniff sniff... is that swiss?
I like your writing style a lot and I enjoyed reading a few of your posts. Though my child raising days are far behind me, I have a new granddaughter just 59 miles away who is almost 3 and so I can relate.
ReplyDeleteDid you ever get your thyroid problem solved? I am curious because I sleep a lot and I have gained beaucoup weight for no good reason. I take only one-half a pill. The whole one made me anxious and nervous. I surely would love to lose the weight.
You sound like any mom with their first child. You don't haved to take her off the bottle just because the doc says you do. Usually they will give it up when they are ready. No need to suffer through an abrupt withdrawal.
Just beam when someone comments on how small your child is and say "Yes, isn't she like a little doll?" and stick your nose up and walk away.
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