Wise reader Emily commented yesterday that perhaps what is going on with my health is an under-treated thyroid.
Boy were YOU ever right, Emily!
Well, at least that’s what it looks like. One of the most common complaints thyroid sufferers have is that their doctors do not listen to them and, as Emily said, patients end up having to demand or force their doctors to help them into feeling better. (Emily, I’m going to continue to use you as my example, sorry!)
Like Emily, I have a TSH that falls within the normal range (though it’s 2.78, which is high within the range), and so my GP, in her words, has said I’m “fine.” And I don’t completely blame her. I don’t. I don’t have her medical training, and she’s within her right to her opinion as it’s – you’ll forgive the phrase – and industry standard that the majority of doctors adhere to. Fortunately for me, I have this blog, and one of my readers (Hi Erin! Owe you an e-mail!) lives in Chicago and introduced me to a specialist who is one of those rare doctors who believes the industry standard is crap and we do a disservice to women by telling them to take their little pill and shut the heck up.
So my doctor ran that slew of tests two weeks ago. I don’t have an insulin resistance. I am not gluten intolerant – though he said that I could be one of the rare cases who exhibit problems without a clinical diagnosis since I feel so crappy after eating anything with gluten in it. My liver is fine. I don’t have any candida problems, though he’s glad I’m continuing to take probiotics since they help with my digestive issues, too. He’s not entirely convinced that I don’t have PCOS, but it seems unlikely now.
What I do have are a ton of thyroid antibodies swirling around. Like four times the amount I should have. I’ve never been tested for them (probably because I don’t have any obvious goiters), so there was no reason to think I had Hashimoto’s Disease. But a crap ton of antibodies suggests otherwise, so I’m off for a thyroid scan this week.
It is worth pointing out that since the beginning of July till now, I’ve managed to drop my total cholesterol by 40 points. It’s still high, but it’s something and I’m taking it.
So it seems I have an under-treated thryoid, plain and simple. The high cholesterol, the weight, the exhaustion – I just woke up after sleeping for 10 hours last night. TEN hours. Granted I did two miles worth of sprints yesterday morning before work but still. – and, he thinks, our inability to get pregnant after three months, are all related to the thyroid. I’ve read stories where some women registered in the normal range, but things didn’t start functioning normally until their TSH went much, much lower. My doctor seems to think the same goes for me, which is great. Like I said, having a doctor take me seriously is a wonderful feeling.
