Living life with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis for almost 23 years. This blog are my experiences and any other content that I might useful or interesting.
Thursday, January 8, 2015
Wow....It's Been Three Years Since I Last Posted.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
It's Been Awhile...
Monday, January 26, 2009
Basic Thyroid Tests You Should Receive or Ask For
A lot of doctors tend to base whether or not you have thyroid disease SOLELY on TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) tests. This was probably the reason mine was not discovered for a long time, because it was always in the normal range. If it had not been for the doctor that discovered my kidney stone, after years of being told I had only UTIs (urinary tract infection), I probably would not have had my thyroid checked out completely by and endocrinologist.
With that said, I wanted to share with you the most basic profile you should get or ask for when testing for thyroid disease.
* Thyroid (TSH)
* Free T4 (FT4)-measures that total amount of circulating thyroxine in the blood.
* Free T3 (FT3)-measures free unbound triiodothyronine in your bloodstream.
* Thyroid Peroxidase Antibody (TPO)-this is the test that is used to check for Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis, post partum thyroid disease, and other types of thyroiditis.
* Thyroid Antibody (Anti-thyroid AB)-this is to test for hyperthyroidism
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Could It Be Thyroid Disease? Signs and Symptoms
There are signs and symptoms that can signal thyroid disease. Some people get only one or two of these symptoms, some get several of these. For myself I had, and still have on occasion, every symptom listed here with the exception of five of them. Here is a list that is taken from http://thyroidawarenessmonth.com, but can be find almost anywhere during research into thyroid disease. If you find yourself with some of these symptoms, have your thyroid check. My next post will be the suggest ‘first time’ labs that should be done and what your exam should be like when getting checked for thyroid disease.
___ Low body temperature
___ Particularly low or high pulse re
___ Unusually low or high blood pressure
___ Enlarged, tender, or sensitive neck or lump in neck
___ Hoarse, husky, or gravelly voice
___ Extreme thirst or hunger
___ Noticeable change in weight (gain or loss) despite no change in diet and exercise
___ Feeling warm or hot when others are cold, or cold when others are warm
___ Heart palpitations, flutters, skipped beats, strange patterns or rhythms
___ Constipation and or diarrhea/loose stools
___ Fatigued, weakeness
___ Pains, aches, and stiffness in various joints, hands, and feet.
___ Carpal tunnel, tarsal tunnel, plantar’s fascitis
___ Puffiness around my eyes
___ Loss of outer eyebrow hair
___ Lesions on lower legs, feet, toes, arms, face, shoulders and/or trunk.
___ Hair loss
___ Dry eyes
___ Swollen hands or feet
___ Dry, sensitive, gritty or achy eyes
___ Changeable moods
___ Brain fog, difficulty concentrating or remembering
___ Depression
___ Anxiety, panic attacks, jumpy
___ Tremors
___ Insomnia
___ Irregular periods
___ Low sex drive
___ Infertility
___ Miscarriage or multiple miscarriages
___ Difficulty breastfeeding
___ Leaking milk when not lactating or breastfeeding
___ Difficult perimenopause/menopause symptoms
Monday, January 5, 2009
Brrrr....It's Cold in Here
Guess it's good to laugh about it. I don't want to be serious all the time in regards to my thyroid disease, because it's something that I live with everyday. I am SERIOUS about it when I need to get my TSH regulated, finding a doctor who knows more than the basic medical school crap and actually LISTENS. It's proven difficult so far as I have changed primary physicians about five times in the last four years. But, I digress.
These low temps are why many people with hypothyroidism are cold when no one else is. You can read about my little basal temperature experiment here. If you have Hashimoto's/hypothyroidism, and you take the basal temperature experiment, let me know your results. It will be interesting to see how many are or aren't like me in regards to the temps and overall wellness.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Top Ten Thyroid Symptoms Explained
The first symptom we'll talk about is fatigue. This is a common one, and a lot of times it can be due to lack of sleep, however, those with a thyroid condition don't necessarily have a lack of sleep. They, in fact, can have eight to ten hours of sleep, but still feel like they need more. Some need a nap to get through the day. It is also possible to be hyperthyroid (I'll delve into that at some point in another post) as well as hypothyroid which causes sleep problems.
This was one of the first symptoms to strike me. I was tired all the time. I was working at the time this symptom appeared. I would always complain that I was so tired. My coworkers thought that I was just having 'extracurricular' activities. NO, that wasn't it. I would get plenty of sleep, but I could barely keep awake. Until I was put on medication, I felt almost comatose at times. I was happy that I never fell asleep at the wheel which I felt like doing a LOT. I actually became a bit hyperthyroid, too, and now I'm up until 3 AM some nights. I don't require a nap as much now. I'll get into the reason for that later.
Weight Changes-Those with thyroid disease suddenly gain an excess amount of weight without eating, eating very little, and regardless of exercise (Hypo). Some may eat the same or more, but lose a lot of weight (Hyper).
This was another prevalent symptom for me. I was gaining weight so rapidly and hadn't changed my diet in the slightest. When my ex-husband and I used to work out at the gym everyday, I only lost ONE pound in a month whereas he had lost a few. It's funny how a lot of people who didn't really know my situation, and still don't, said that I would lose weight if only I didn't eat a lot. They never saw me eat. If they did, they would see I ate maybe one, two at the most, meals a day. My current husband used to comment how I would eat like a bird just pecking at things. I get full within five minutes of eating. Then I turn around and get hungry again a few hours later. Though I have the hunger, I don't feel in the mood to eat.
Depression and Anxiety: Depression that doesn't respond to antidepressants can be a sign of thyroid answer.
In my case, I went between being very down, to feeling anxiety about life, to being easily irritated, and back again. The moods changed from day to day. I was going through a separation at the time when I was given a prescription for Zoloft. I knew that depression wasn't the problem. I never got that prescription filled. I'm glad I didn't. I still have my days, but it's much better than before when I hadn't gotten the right diagnosis.
Cholesterol Issues: thyroid disease can cause increase in cholesterol. If it doesn't respond to dieting, medications, exercise, etc., it could indicate a thyroid problem.
I never really had an issue with these, but like I said, symptoms vary from one person to another.
Family History: From the research I did for a paper in my college health class, it was said that they weren't sure if it was genetic. I believe it's more likely to have a thyroid problem if there is a family history.
As far as I know, no one in my family has had a thyroid issue. I have several relatives that I don't know or who have passed long ago that I know no medical history of. I do know I'm the first in my immediate family.
(to be continued...)
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Top Ten Signs That May Signal Thyroid Disease
2. Weight Changes
3. Depression and Anxiety
4. Family History
5. Cholesterol Issues
6. Menstrual Irregularities and Fertility Problems
7. Bowel Problems
8. Hair/Skin Changes
9. Neck Discomfort
10. Muscle and Joint Pains, Carpal Tunnel/Tendonitis Problems.
I'll be expanding on these on the next post along with my experiences.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Taking It Off Together Tuesday Week #19
You would think after NINETEEN weeks, I'd be further along than this. But no, here I am 'stuck' once again. After the major swelling from last week, I'm just grateful that it's gone down, and the weight is back to normal. I guess you could say that I've been sort of PMSing this week, too, which meant wanting food a lot more than normal, easily stressed, among other things. I've been feeling slightly dizzy these last couple of weeks, too. I'm not sure what is triggering that. I just know that I'm tired of it. I'm tired of being tired really. LOL Anyways, here are this week's results:
This week our contest is sponsored by Tammy! She is offering a copy of Superfoods for the prize for this week! If you’d like to sponser a prize, let me know! We are currently out of prizes!
The names of this week’s “losers” were dropped into a coffee cup and this week’s WINNER is Chris!
Congrats to Clara for being this week’s biggest loser of pounds!! Be sure to cruise over to her blog and congratulate her!
Chris - 1 LOSS
Tammy - 1.5 GAIN
Life With Hashi-Thyroid Blog - No Change
Grace - 0.4 GAIN
Leigh - No Change
Clara - 1.5 LOSS
Julie - 0.8 LOSS
Cheryl - no report
Audrey - 2.2 GAIN
Christy - 0.2 LOSS
Tina - 2.0 GAIN
Danielle - no report
Jessie - no report
Steph - no report
CYN - no report
This week’s total - 2.6 GAIN! EGAD!
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I'll be posting more thyroid related news/info soon.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Taking It Off Together Tuesday Week #18
This is how bad the swelling is this week: one, my feet feel like they're going to burst, two, as I took my girls to school this morning I slipped on my oldest daughter's flip flops quickly. She says to me, "You can't fit those. Your feet are too big. They're all puffy!" I asked, "You can tell they're swollen?" She said, "Yes." My girls have never really understood, until now i think, that my body really does swell up when I say it does. LOL This kind of swelling happens once a month, and I don't have a cycle as I had surgery to stop them, it also happens if I'm not well rested or if I get sick. Anytime I have a cold or flu, I swell up. When I had my fall down the stairs in my house earlier this year, my body swelled up. As a matter of fact, my right shin, still has a dent that looks bruised. If anyone bumps into it, it still hurts. This accident happen several months ago. Doctor said it would heal up in two months, it's probably been more like seven or so, and it's not completely healed. I tell you, I love thyroid/autoimmune disease! LOL
I'm hoping that the swelling will start to go down this week. Sometimes it will take a week, sometimes two. I want to be able to report something next week, whether it be a loss or a gain, but an accurate one.
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This week our contest is sponsored by Christy! She is offering an Earth Theraputics Foot Care set for the prize for this week! If you’d like to sponser a prize, let me know! We are currently out of prizes!
The names of this week’s “losers” were dropped into a coffee cup and this week’s WINNER is Tammy!
Congrats to Christy for being this week’s biggest loser of 3 pounds!! Be sure to cruise over to her blog and congratulate her!
Chris - 1 GAIN
Tammy - 1.0 LOSS
Life With Hashi-Thyroid Blog - No Report
Grace - 1.1 LOSS
Leigh - 0.5 LOSS
Clara - 2.0 GAIN
Dette - 0.5 GAIN
Julie - 1.4 GAIN
Cheryl - No Report
Audrey - 0.8 LOSS
Christy - 3.0 LOSS
Tina - No Report
Danielle - 2.0 LOSS
Jessie - No Report
Steph - No Report
CYN - No Change
This week’s total - 3.5 LOSS!
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Signs of A Stroke
Symptoms of Stroke:
*Sudden confusion or trouble speaking
*Numbness or weakness of the face, arms, legs, especially on one side.
*Sudden trouble seeing
*Sudden trouble walking
*Dizziness or loss of balance
* Severe headache with no known cause.
A stroke is the third leading cause of death in the U.S. If you know the signs, you can act immediately. Getting help quickly can save brain tissue and decrease long-term damage.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Taking It Off Together Tuesday Week #16
I was slow in reporting in and look what was offered as a prize! Darn it. Oh, well. I guess my prize is that I'm still down just the one pound I was down after last Monday's official weigh in.
This week our contest is sponsored by Clara who writes the Coming Back to Life! She is offering a hand made tote as a prize this week! Here is a picture! Oh it is SOOO cute and perfect for fall!
The names of this week’s “losers” were dropped into a coffee cup and this week’s WINNER is Julie!
Congrats to Grace for being this week’s biggest loser of 3.2 pounds!! Be sure to cruise over to her blog and congratulate her!
Chris - 2 LOSS
Tammy - 1 LOSS
Life With Hashi-Thyroid Blog - 1 LOSS
Grace - 3.2 LOSS
Leigh - 2.5 GAIN
Clara - 2.5 GAIN
Dette - 1.0 GAIN
Julie - 0.6 LOSS
Cheryl - NO CHANGE
Audrey - no report
Christy - 2.4 LOSS
Tina - 1.4 GAIN
Danielle - NO CHANGE
Jessie - NO CHANGE
Steph - no report
And welcome back CYN who is reporting no change this week.
This week’s total - 0.8 LOSS! (not the right total...will have to insert that later since I just posted my weight loss and waiting on a couple of others)
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Taking It Off Together Tuesday Week #15
Anyways, I offered to make the prize for this week and have finished it. I will put a pic up later to show Danielle what she has won this week. :)
Here it is: It's just a simple bracelet (I'm an amateur in this jewelry making thing lol, and I didn't want Leigh to have to come up with the prizes every week). I chose the charm "believe" because I 'believe' in everyone to beat the weight loss battle, and isn't it nice to have something to remind you that if you 'believe' in yourself anything is possible? :)
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Last week we continued the contest where everyone who reported a LOSS had their name added to a drawing for a lot of 100 Mary Kay samples! The names of this week's "losers" were dropped into a coffee cup and this week's WINNER is Daniellehttp://alberts-family.blogspot.com/">Danielle!
Tammyhttp://crazymomw4boys.blogspot.com/">Tammy - 1 gain
Life'http://life-w-hashi.blogspot.com/">Life With Hashi-Thyroid Blog - 1 loss
Gracehttp://andthisismypart.blogspot.com/">Grace - 2.2 gain
Leighhttp://eternal-flux.com/">Leigh - 1 gain
Clarahttp://quiltscatsandotherthings.blogspot.com/">Clara - 2.5 loss
Dettehttp://muthahoodcrib.com/">Dette - no change
Juliehttp://duvallschafer.blogspot.com/">Julie - 1.4 gain
Cherylhttp://cheryl-journey-of-life.blogspot.com/">Cheryl - no report
Audreyhttp://makethisthelastone.blogspot.com/">Audrey - 2.4 loss
Christyhttp://www.myspoileddogs.blogspot.com/">Christy - 3.2 gain
Tinahttp://mom2boys2008.blogspot.com/">Tina - no report
Daniellehttp://alberts-family.blogspot.com/"> Danielle- 2 loss
Jessiehttp://jjjjspot.blogspot.com">Jessie - no change
Stephjeffstephplus5@blogspot.com">Steph - no report
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Taking It Off Together Tuesday Week #12
This week we are adding a contest! It seems we all need motivation after all. So, for everyone who reports a LOSS (maintaining doesn't count, sorry!) on the next weigh in will have their name put in a drawing for 100 assorted Mary Kay samples! So drink your water and count your calories. We can all do this!
And check it out! We had an over all loss! Congrats to Christy for being this week's biggest loser of 5 pounds!!
Chris - 3.2 LOSS
Tammy - 1 LOSS
Life With Hashi-Thyroid Blog - 0.4 GAIN
Grace - 0.4 LOSS
Leigh - 0.5 GAIN
Clara - 0.5 GAIN
Dette - no report
Julie - 0.2 LOSS
Cheryl - 0 CHANGE
Audrey - 2 GAIN
Christy - 5 LOSS
Tina - 1 LOSS (from last week)
Jessie - 0 CHANGE
Danielle - 2 LOSS
This week's total - 9.0 LOSS!!
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Taking It Off Together Tuesday Week #11
A few days ago I was trying to read a new magazine I received in the mail, and right in the middle, I started dozing off. I was reading, I was sitting upright, but it was almost like being someone narcoleptic. I had ZERO energy which meant no working out. I couldn't understand. I figured it was just that one time a month or every couple of months that I get a little rundown, but this was ridiculous.
One morning I had to go to the bathroom. It kind of burned. It wasn't that intense, but as the day progressed, I was going to the bathroom every five minutes to empty my bladder with very little coming out, a whole lot of pain and increase in blood. I had a nasty UTI. It was kicking my butt: hard.
Luckily, when I called for an appointment so I could get some type of antibiotics, they directed me to the advice nurse and said that they would just start me on the antibiotics. I was glad for that, because if it's not necessary, then why do it.
What's weird is how my body reacted to having this infection. I was retaining water or something, because my body was swelling. Every time I swell, I can feel it in my hands and feet...almost like my skin was too tight for my body (if that makes sense).
I picked up my antibiotics within an hour of calling them, and also picked up AZO pain reliever that's made especially for that specific pain. I took it, and the pain was gone. The antibiotics help me to swell a bit, too. It's weird, because those types of medications never made me do that before thyroid. It also made me a little dizzy, but I figured I could handle that in light of the fact that it was going to help with the infection.
Ha Ha I guess I just repeated myself as I had posted something similar in the last post to this one. Oh, well.
It seems a lot of us are struggling this week, but I know we can come back and have losses to post next week! :)
Here are this week's results:
Chris - 2 GAIN
Tammy - 1 LOSS
Life With Hashi-Thyroid Blog - 0 CHANGE
Grace - no report yet
Leigh - 3.5 GAIN
Clara - 4 LOSS
Dette - 2 GAIN
Julie - 0.2 LOSS
Cheryl - 0 CHANGE
Audrey - 2 LOSS
Christy - 2 GAIN
Tina - no report yet
Danielle - 0 CHANGE
Jessie - 0 CHANGE
This week's total - 2.3 GAIN!
Thursday, August 21, 2008
UTI's Are No Fun
The first time or two it was just terrible to go to the bathroom. Then I started needing to go about every five minutes. All of a sudden, there was blood in the urine. I called for an appointment, but they had me speak to the advice nurse. It really is quite convenient when you are basically just going to be put on antibiotics anyways. I was told it could take up to four hours to get my medication, and by that time, the pharmacy would be closed since it was already after 3 p.m. (pharmacy closed at 6 p.m.).
The nurse told me about some OTC drugs to help with the urinary tract infection symptoms (the pain, the urge, the pressure). They were Azo and Uristat. I HAD to get something. I couldn't keep going to the bathroom every five minutes.
I decided that I would go into town and at least get the pain med. I figured that I would call and maybe, by some miracle, it would be filled (it had only been an hour). Low and behold, it was! I also lucked out in finding Azo was sold there, too, which was great because I didn't want to make several stops. The Azo worked great with the exception of some pressure when I actually go. At least I'm not going every five minutes now. There is only one problem with Azo though. You have to make sure that when you're using the bathroom not to get any urine on clothes as it turns it orange and will stain.
It's bad enough that the thyroid slows me down some days, but when I get sick or infections of any kind, it takes me longer than a normal person to recover. I still have a lump in my right shin from my fall several months ago. At least it doesn't hurt anymore when you press it.
Friday, August 15, 2008
Photo Weight Loss Journal-Picture 1
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Taking It Off Together Tuesday Week #9
Here are the reports for this week.
Chris - no report
Tammy - 1 LOSS
Life With Hashi-Thyroid Blog - .6 LOSS
Grace - 1.4 LOSS
Leigh - 5.5 LOSS
Clara - 2 LOSS
Dette - 1 GAIN
Julie - 0 CHANGE
Cheryl - 4 LOSS
Cyn Blue - no report
Audrey - 0.6 LOSS
Christy - 7.2 LOSS
Tina - 0.5 GAIN
Please welcome Danielle to the group with her starting result of 0 Change!
This week's total - 20.2 LOSS!
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Taking It Off Together Tuesday Week #8
Here are everyone's results for the week:
Chris - 3 GAIN
Tammy - 0 CHANGE
Life With Hashi-Thyroid Blog - 1 LOSS
Grace - 0.4 LOSS
Leigh - 2.5 GAIN
Clara - 0 CHANGE
Dette - 0.5 LOSS
Julie - 1 LOSS
Cheryl - 0 CHANGE
Cyn Blue -0 CHANGE
Audrey - 5.2 LOSS
Christy - 3 LOSS
Tina - no report
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Taking It Off Together Tuesday Week #7
I'm proud of everyone in our weight loss group. Whether we lose, gain, or stay the same, we've all committed ourselves. We also are a great support system. You all keep me honest. In the blogging world it would be easy to lie.
Chris - 2.8 LOSS (-5.8 overall)
Tammy - 2 LOSS (-7 overall)
Life With Hashi-Thyroid Blog (Ciara)- 2 LOSS (-2 overall)
Grace - 1.6 LOSS (-51.6 overall)
Leigh - 4 LOSS (-31 overall)
Clara - 1 GAIN (-9.5 overall)
Dette - no report...?
Julie - 1 GAIN (-4.1 overall)
Cheryl - 2 GAIN (+2 overall)
Cyn Blue - no report
Audrey - 2.6 GAIN (-0.4 overall)
Christy - 0 (-11 overall)
Tina - 1 GAIN (0 overall)
Totals:
this week - 4.8 LOSS
over all - 120.4 LOSS
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Taking It Off Together Tuesday Week #6
I have to admit that I have not exercised since I've been home, but I have just cut down the amount of calories I took in: 1200. It's been kind of hard. It's amazing what kind of willpower I have when I really want to do something. I tried to do the cold turkey route with the sodas, but I can't. What I have been able to do though is limit myself to one can per day. I drink half in the late morning/early afternoon and the other half at night. The rest of the day is all water.
I have been pretty hungry cutting down. With thyroid disease, I have to or I won't lose any weight. My metabolism is pretty much non-existent. It's funny, I've always gotten full relatively fast since my thyroid problems started, but even more so now. I figure I could probably really be losing more than this if I started exercising again. Now I just gotta stop being lazy! LOL
I just wanted to say thanks to all of you with all your support and encouragement. It's helping more than you know (especially when I hear about the weight loss because it makes me determined to lose as much, too).
Here are the reports for this week:
Chris - 1 GAIN
Tammy - 1 LOSS
Life With Hashi-Thyroid Blog - 1 LOSS
Grace - 1.4 GAIN
Leigh - 0.5 GAIN
Clara - 0.5 LOSS
Dette - -1.5 LOSS
Julie - 2.2 LOSS
Cheryl - 1 GAIN
Cyn Blue - 0 CHANGE
Audrey - On VACATION
Christy - 8 LOSS!! You go girl!
Welcome new member Tina with a 1 pound loss!
Total : 11.3 LOSS WOOT!!
UPDATE: To our new member Tina...it would be nice if you posted your results on your blog. I want to be able to check in on you and give you encouragement. :) I also realize my post may be confusing. When I gave Leigh my weigh in I only was down ONE pound....but today, when I weighed in before posting, I was down TWO. (yesterday: 215 today:214)