Hope or Delusion?
Monday, July 31, 2006
It's amazing what hope can do. Or maybe I'm just delusional. This morning I found out that my thyroid problem is an autoimmune hypothyroid condition. Sounds like bad news right? Not when you google it along with "colitis" and find that IBD (inflammatory bowel disease) is linked to autoimmune hypothyroid disease and that sometimes the colitis goes away when you fix the thyroid imbalance.
Hubby had been telling me about this connection over the past few days. At first I felt like he was sticking his head in the sand and completely ignoring the fact that I was just diagnosed with this chronic, life-threatening disease. But after reading some of the articles, I'm starting to feel more hopeful. On the advice of my primary care doc, I made an appointment with an endocrinologist. They can't see me until the end of next month so I'm on senthroid for now. There is a 90% chance that the endocrinologist is going to biopsy my thyroid nodules to make sure they are benign (something we've been assuming so far). Ouch. Apparently it really hurts because they can't give you any anesthetic. I'll just have Hubby drive me and give me lots of TLC afterwards. I guess it's better to be safe than sorry when cancer is a concern.
Meanwhile, I ordered a book called, "Self Healing Colitis & Crohn's". It was written by someone who used raw foods to heal himself from Crohn’s disease many years ago. It advocates a raw food diet, which sounds a bit extreme and maybe a little whacky (especially for a disease where you have to eat a low-fiber diet), but what do I have to loose at this point?
UPDATE: I was daring and tried one of my mom’s homemade cinnamon rolls. Now I’m paying for it. I guess I just can’t eat grains (except rice). It really makes me wonder if this could all be my thyroid. It seems unlikely at the moment. I’m really just grasping at straws. Hopefully I’ll find the right one…
posted by Avorie @ 2:06 PM,
7 Comments:
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At 10:28 PM,
Reesh said...
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I felt like crying when you e-mailed and told me you got this book. I REALLY believe that raw food is the way to go for you and I hope you find answers reading that book. But mostly I just want you to feel better, and soon...
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At 8:35 PM,
liz said...
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I have to tell you, Synthroid saved me. The thyroid is a weird and powerful thing... when your thyroid is imbalanced, it can really mess you up.
I hate to wish that for you, because it seems weird, but it's really easy to balance out the thyroid. I've been on synthroid for hypothyroidism for almost 3 years now. Both my mother and grandmother had the same problem, it just hit me when I turned 30.
Once my levels evened out, my hair grew back, my skin was better, my stomach was better, I lost the weight, my nails were in better shape.
I montior my levels every 6 months now, after every month during pregnancy. Having a huge drop (or increase) in thyroid following delivery is pretty common, too. I almost think that every OB should monitor the thyroid postpartum as part of the 6 week postpartum visit.
Either way, I hope you're feeling better soon. -
At 7:13 PM,
AnnaBana said...
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No worries, I'm sure you'll get it all figured out soon! Hope you feel better...
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At 6:23 PM,
Emmakirst said...
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Wouldn't that be amazing if it were as simple as thyroid (well you know what i mean by saying simple)
Sorry to hear you were unresponsive and allergic to the meds they used to treat you. It truly is an awful thing to have to live with. I have to go on Imuran as soon as I stop nursing the baby. -
At 7:50 PM,
Unknown said...
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I really hope this is what works for you!! Keep us updated, please!
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At 1:24 AM,
Timi said...
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Delurking here...
I just want to say that I hope you feel better soon. And as crazy as it sounds it really could be your thyroid causing all of the problems (or at least making them worse). Your thyroid controls EVERYTHING in your body. And when it's off, even a little bit, you can feel awful. Hopefully fixing your thyroid will at least tone down a lot of your symptoms so that you can figure out which ones are not caused by the thyroid.
Good luck. And find a doctor who will make sure you feel better, not just have accptable numbers (does that make sense?). -
At 8:28 AM,
Nap Queen said...
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I second what Lizzy said. I have been tired my entire life. Tired. All the time. I never had a weight problem, so no one ever tested my thyroid hormone levels. It wasn't until my hair started falling out that we figured out what was happening. I've been on synthroid for a little over a year, and it really helps. The thyroid is a powerful thing that you don't notice until something isn't right! I'm sure your endocrinologist will have you fixed up in no time :)
