Hypothyroidism: An unnamed epidemic
For at least 10 years I’ve known that my metabolism was below par. I constantly fought fatigue and a fuzzy brain. My weight slowly and steadily climbed. My eyesight suddenly grew worse and I had to begin wearing glasses. I had muscle aches and insomnia, depression and a sense of dread when nothing was wrong. Three times I went to the doctor and asked to have my thyroid checked. Both my grandmothers took thyroid medicine. My mother and my sister have problems with their thyroid. I’d done some reading, and I knew I probably did, too.
But when every test came back, the doctor would shake his head and say, “You’re within normal ranges.” They’d shut their folder and say, “It can’t be your thyroid.” Things continued to grow worse. Finally, when the fourth doctor sang the same tune, I said, “I want to see a specialist.” He looked doubtful but pulled out his pad to write the order.
The endocrinologist took one look at the same test results and said, “Your thyroid is under stress.” He asked me about my symptoms and checked my reflexes. They were non-existent. He felt my neck and said, “Your thyroid is enlarged. Let’s try you on medication and see how you react. These numbers don’t tell the whole story. There are a lot of other factors involved.”
Within a week of being on a low dose of Synthroid, I began to feel a drastic change. I had energy. My head was clear. I could remember things that I knew I would have never remembered before, like the name of my husband’s elderly employer when he was 13 yrs old. My muscle aches vanished. I felt like a new person.
Thank God for my endocrinologist, a man willing to look beyond the protocols to see the person. All of this made me wonder how many other undiagnosed suffers are out there because of a numbers system that is far too wide. Normal ranges from 0.5 to 5 on the scale when even a few tenths of a point make a vast difference in how a person feels.
Today, I feel good. God bless that doctor and make him prosper.
My say for today,
Rosey
July 22, 2008 at 7:24 pm
Dear Rosey, Am so sorry to hear that no one realized how you could be helped, before, with hypothyroidism. That must be pretty frustrating! My husband seems to have some of those symptoms.
If you could, I truly believe you would be so glad to get a copy of the book by Dr. Stephen Hotze, called _Hormones, Health and Happiness_. I have only read a little in my copy.
If you are not taking Armour Thyroid medicine, as Dr. Hotze recommends, I wish you would. It can make a tremendous difference for women!
My husband is not even to the point, yet, of going to get checked for what he needs to take. ;o) (not laughing; just smiling) We have begun a home-based teaching ministry, called the Life in the Bible Institute. The site is: http://www.lifeinthebible.com I only mention it to say that we cannot afford to go to a doctor, at this point in time. ;o) But God, if He wants to, makes ways for needs to be met. He is amazing and awesome!
The Lord bless you, Rosey, and fill you with His enabling Grace, and with His rest-filled, Shalom Peace! Kathy Aprile, in n.e. Tennessee, among the Appalachian Mtns. http://soulstirringmusic.wordpress.com