I have a new diagnosis to add along with PCOS... hypothyroidism. Yaaaaaaay. I had bloodwork done sometime early this year and everything checked out fine. My first hint that something was off is that I gained 25 lbs in just a few short months. I knew I wasn't eating as well as I should, but Steven was convinced that I wasn't eating badly enough that I should have put on more than 5 or so pounds. Then last week my neck started hurting, sort of in my lower throat/neck area. It wasn't like a sore throat, and my first thought was thyroid, except I remembered that my bloodwork had checked out fine. So then I started thinking of worse things! Steven pushed me to make an appointment (which is good, because the pain disappeared the day of the appointment and hasn't come back, so I probably would have let it go!), and I went last Thursday. The doctor... ahem... physician's assistant palpated my thyroid and said she could feel a small lump. I tried not to freak out and went down the hall for my labs. Today I got a call from a nurse that I had hypothyroidism and where would I like to pick up my Synthroid prescription?
Ok, let me break to say that that type of thing really puts me off. First of all, you are telling me there is something wrong with me. So can you explain what is wrong and ask if I have questions? And THEN tell me about the prescription with, oh I don't know, maybe some information about side effects, dosage, and alternatives? I asked a few questions and got off the phone. Then I started googling. I looked into coconut oil but I can only find anecdotal information about it. I won't ditch the medicine route unless I find solid research, something peer reviewed, which I haven't. But I did discover that there is a natural medication, made from pig thyroid *shudder*, which I would prefer over the synthetic. So I'm waiting to hear back from the doctor as to whether or not she will write the script for that. I've been told to be prepared for a fight because there aren't kickbacks for prescribing it and because it hasn't been marketed the way Synthroid has.
I'm going to start the coconut oil anyway and, if it works, then we can adjust the medication down or get me off of it. If it doesn't, no problem because I'll already be on the medication. My "I want to try natural options first" side and my "The doctor is going to roll her eyes at me, and she clearly knows more than me" side clash. Often. It's hard work getting the two sides together to find a compromise, but I think I found one.... if my doctor will play nice :). Six weeks after starting the meds, I'll go back for follow up bloodwork.
And to draw this out more, my gyn was going to start me on Clomid in the next few weeks to induce ovulation and then have me give myself hcg after ovulation to replace the progesterone and estrogen levels I'm missing, so I'll ovulate on my own each month. But now I'm thinking that the reason my regular-for-me 45 day cycles disappeared is because of my thyroid. They were regular-for-me from when I went off the pill Nov 2011 until our wedding in April of this year. After our wedding, the pounds packed on and my periods disappeared. So my next step after getting the script figured out is sending all of this info to my gyn so he can decide if he wants to play the wait and see game longer or continue with the original plan.
Hi my name is Stacy and I'm a medical malady.
more than coconut oil, a complete diet overhaul should be considered. here are some links with numerous posts to review.
ReplyDeletehttp://robbwolf.com/?s=Hypothyroidism
http://chriskresser.com/thyroid
your intentions will be in my prayers. ALL FOR!
I have hypothyroidism too (actually I have auto-immune thyroid disease). I really recommend getting the opinion of an endocrinologist, who may also be interested in checking your antibody levels to see if your problem is auto-immune related. I was interested in the "natural" option too and brought it up with my endo. He said that it does not work as well. When the thyroid hormone is taken from the pig, the levels won't necessarily be as consistent than the synthetic version, which they are able to make very precisely. The synthetic version is actually much closer to what your body would produce. A pig's thyroid is much different. My Dr also got me an Rx for levoxyl (a different brand than Synthroid), which is gluten-free and definetly not as widely known as Synthroid.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your journey on this!
Thank you for that info!!! So helpful! I am thinking the doc will turn down the Armour thyroid, but the up side is that it gave me tonight to find helpful info like this :).
DeleteOh I am so glad I could be helpful! :)
DeleteI think you're more of a medical anomaly than a medical malady. :) (I'm one too.)
ReplyDeleteI've been on Synthroid for 3 years and I have no complaints. It's a low dosage (my mom who had part of her thyroid removed is on three times my dose) and it's been around long enough that it's cheap in its generic form. I'd definitely try the coconut oil and changing up your diet but I did want to tell you that it's one of the few meds I don't question being prescribed... and I ask A LOT of questions.
Oh man, you need to get all fixed up!! My throid levels border being hyperthyroid but are still in the normal range for now. So I try to eat as a hypothyroid should - high protein, barely any carbs, little to no caffeine. It stinks, but it makes me feel so much better!!
ReplyDeleteI am sorry but hypothyroidism is not the worst diagnosis. I was diagnosed hypothyroid in 1999. They've learned a few things about the way the body absorbs the synthetic since I began taking Synthroid in 1999, but since my levels wouldn't stabilize on Synthroid, they switched me to Levoxyl. I hope you get it stabilized soon. It isn't the worst diagnosis but it can be a nuisance.
ReplyDeleteNo need to apologize... I understand that it isn't the worst diagnosis (by far!), but any diagnosis is worse than none, right? Ideally, I would have none :).
DeleteSign me up for none! :) I don't think I know any people with none though. Whether it is a physical ailment, mental illness, spiritual problem or otherwise, everyone has some diagnosis. :\
DeleteBeen using this oil for more than a year already and I know that all of its health benefits are indeed true. Coconut oil is actually my health partner and I even use it on my skin and hair.
ReplyDeleteI hope you don't choose to take Synthroid.....I listened to my doc who I "thought knew best" when she prescribed it for my hypothyroidism but that was a mistake. Read the Stop the Thyroid Madness website or get the book and find out that the natural pig thyroid has been around for a long time is very safe and a great way to to treat your hypo symptoms. It really is a better option--listen to others who made the mistake of taking synthroid (I am one of them it made my hair fall out and I gained tons of weight and still had all my hypo symptoms) and learn all the facts about the natural desiccated before you rule it out.
ReplyDeleteI insisted on Armour and it has been working wonderfully :). I knew going into it I didn't want synthetic unless natural didn't work. My doc got big points for not even questioning me once I shared my research with her.I mean, it should always be that way, but that hasn't been my experience with most docs!
ReplyDelete