Long story with a good ending: MY HYPERTHYROIDISM

 I have been making it through the last 12 years by fighting. 

Not in the contentious way, but in the 'I'm not going to accept

 that feeling this bad is normal' fight. 

Some of the things I've had to fight through are depression, anxiety, constant pain and aches all over, hair falling out, either being too cold or too hot, foggy brain, constantly being exhausted, indigestion, etc.... I knew this could not be normal. This was not how life was supposed to be lived. Everyday should not be a struggle. So I searched and searched, and here is my story....

In Sept of 2000 I was in a pretty awful car accident. In the accident I split the right side of my forehead open in 3 different directions, down to my skull. Luckily there was a plastic surgeon on call. I was only 18, and was thankful to not start off my adult life looking like Frankenstein. He stitched me up, it took 75 stitches, and I was sent home hours later. 

Another couple things that the car accident gave me was whiplash and chronic pain. So for years and years I went from chiropractor to chiropractor, desperately looking for relief from my pain. I would come home from work and go straight to the bedroom and lay on my bed in the dark and just cry because I was stuck in this body that was torturing me with pain. I'm tearing up as I'm writing right now thinking about how I felt back then. I would try massage, but that only made me feel slightly better for the day. I went to my general physician, and after a recommended MRI, his diagnosis was that I "needed to relax". Thanks doc, good thing I got the $700 MRI  so you could give me that brilliant advice.

So thru the years I tried different general doctors, chiropractors, massage therapists, physical therapy, therapists and even acupuncture. If anything helped at all it was just for the day, and I would never feel completely better. About 4 years ago, after my 3rd child, the pain and the body aches were getting worse, and with 3 kids to take care of and working part time as a hairstylist, I was drowning. That is when I decided to start taking prescription pain pills. That was a big decision for me. I didn't like having to take them, but I knew I couldn't keep on going without something that actually helped. 

Through all this I prayed everyday for God to take away my pain. Sometimes I would wonder what I had done wrong to deserve such suffering, and some days I would be more hopeful that there would be an end. Some days I got so low that I wanted to actually die. I don't think I was suicidal, but death sounded like better than living. I don't know if anyone can understand that feeling without having been there themselves. I was in a deep depression sometimes, which at the time I just thought was from my chronic pain. 

All through this I suspected there was a problem with my thyroid. It ran in my family, my mom and grandma had taken medication for theirs, although now looking back I don't know how much it helped them. But every time I brought it up to doctors, they would either brush it off, or say my blood tests were 'normal'. 

Another thing that, through prayer, I knew I needed was to get out of Oregon. I felt that maybe some of my depression and some of my pain was from SAD- Seasonal affective disorder. Oregon (at least in Springfield/Eugene) is very rainy for 9 months of the year. Low gray clouds. Its super beautiful there, and I think what was going on with me made the weather seem worse than it really was. I had a friend who lived in Las Vegas, and I would go visit her every few months and loved it there. My husband and I prayed about it and last January we felt like we needed to move to Las Vegas (Henderson) as soon as we could. Two months later I was here with our kids, 6 months pregnant with our 4th child, and my husband joined me 3 weeks later. 

I did love the sunshine but my health problems didn't go away. After I gave birth to my daughter last May my symptoms started getting worse. I had days of extreme depression, extreme anxiety, gobs of hair would fall out, my digestive system was always messed up, my brain always felt foggy, and I was still in extreme, chronic pain. From the time I was a couple of months pregnant, to about 6 months ago, I was even trying a very low dose of Prozac, which seemed to help a bit when I was pregnant, but afterwards it was no good. 
When we felt like we were supposed to move I had a strong feeling that part of the reason was my answer to my health problems would be here in Las Vegas. I was hoping it would be an easy fix - that the sunshine would take away all my problems. If only :). 

During all this I had found this site: www.stopthethyroidmaddness.com. Its this amazing website about thyroid issues ran by patients, not by doctors or drug companies. Patients were telling their stories that sounded a lot like mine. 

This last November I was recommended by a friend to a doctor here in town. He was more of a natural doctor. His name is Dr Alex, or that's what I call him. Towards the end of the month I called up Dr. Alex to make an appointment. The receptionist told me the best way to go about things would be for me to get a blood test and then come see him. My sweet husband went and picked up the paper work for me and I went and did my blood test. About a week later I went in to see Dr Alex and he said I definitely have a thyroid problem, but I needed to do one more test to either rule in or out if I had an autoimmune disease. So I did that and then went back in to see him. Dr Alex looked at me and said 'You have hyperthyroidism'. I actually cried a bit when he told me because for so long doctors had not been able to figure me out, some thought it was all in my head, and some even thought I was just after drugs. Seriously that day was one of the best days of my life. I think Dr Alex was able to figure it out because he did a series of different tests, much more detailed than other doctors.

The results of my blood tests showed that my Triiodothyronine level was at 9.1 (the normal level should be somewhere between 2.0 - 4.4) and my T4 level was at 2.83 (normal is between 0.82-1.77). His normal range is different that other doctors normal range. And he's right. 

So I have been on some supplements and in just 7 weeks I am see a huge difference. I have no more brain fog, my anxiety level is down, I don't have days were I'm so depressed I want to stay in bed and sleep forever. If you would like information about Dr Alex or about the supplements I'm taking comment below and I will answer. My supplement cocktail won't be right for every person with hyperthyroidism, mine is personalized for me. And you don't have to be in Las Vegas for my doctor to treat you. Someone else in my family who lives in Oregon is being treated by him, and they're making it work by doing the tests in Oregon, and having one office visit here, and then skyping when needed. 

My supplement cocktail - Isn't it pretty?

I am feeling so much better and I don't want anyone else to feel like I did for a second longer than they have to. It took me 12 years to figure this out, and I'm going to use my experience to help as many people as I can. 

The moral of this story is to keep trying, you are the only one

 who is going to take care of you, you are the one in 

control of your health. Do not let a doctor tell you

 nothing is wrong when you feel terrible - when you

 feel terrible it is your body's way of telling you

 something isn't right