They missed the vein. So very painful when that happens. I had to tell her to stop and take it out. They then tried my other arm and were able to draw blood just fine.
Sometimes I don't know how I am going to do this.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
A couple of bad days
Tomorrow I go in for bloodwork and to get my meds readjusted. I have been having a few crappy days. My feet and hands are numb again and I feel my energy and ambition draining away. This is a scheduled step up in treatment so I am not worried or surprised. Just struggling to get through the next couple of days.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Medication
Ok when am I supposed to take this pill? I can't have Dairy or antacids within an hour of taking it. I can't have calcium, magnesium or iron within 4 hours of taking the medication. I am supposed to avoid soy products and it's best taken on an empty stomach.
Get up at 5 am and take it?
Get up at 5 am and take it?
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Diagnosis and the other symptoms
Ok, Now I know I have something wrong with my thyroid. The Doctor put me on a lose dose of Levothyroxine because he was worried about my heart. Heart disease runs in my family and this condition messes with the heart. I already had a slow heart rate from it. Every 6 weeks I have to get my blood tested and he will adjust my medication until I get to a level that is right for me. Then I have to keep getting blood work done to make sure I am getting enough thyroid hormone. He told me it could take up to a year to get the dosage just right. After living this long, feeling so bad, I didn't care.
Antibodies in my blood indicate it is Hashimoto's disease. Basically my immune system has been attackingmy thyroid and slowly killing it off. My Doctor figures I have had this for a very long time. At first I probably had very little symptoms or none at all. I may have even had bouts where my thyroid was over active.
I discovered that so many of the things I thought were part of the aging process was actually part of Hasimoto's and hypothyroidism. I found a check list for both conditions and was astonished to realize how many of those little things I never really thought fit did belong. Yes I gained a lot of weight and I was snoring a lot lately. They go hand in hand don't they? Well 3 days on the thyroid hormone and I stopped snoring. Which is good because my own snoring was actually waking me up.
Two weeks later and the alligator skin I was developing is starting to fade. My extra dry hair and skin are returning to normal. The carpel tunnel and numbness in my hands and feet are almost gone. The ringing in my ears that I was blaming the mp3 player on is gone. Even the constant feeling of cold has finally stopped.
I still have a lot more symptoms and some days are worse then others. I shaved my legs in April for Easter and the hair hasn't grown back. It's not stubble it's as smooth as the day I shaved them. I still get vertigo and weakness in my legs and arms but I can climb a flight of stairs without having to stop and rest when I reach the top. My face is still puffy and my hands and feet still have swelling as well as some pain in my back that lingers. Writing this shows that I am starting to find interests again. Just sitting there is no longer as exhausting as it once was. I have even managed to get out in the garden more then once this spring.
Antibodies in my blood indicate it is Hashimoto's disease. Basically my immune system has been attackingmy thyroid and slowly killing it off. My Doctor figures I have had this for a very long time. At first I probably had very little symptoms or none at all. I may have even had bouts where my thyroid was over active.
I discovered that so many of the things I thought were part of the aging process was actually part of Hasimoto's and hypothyroidism. I found a check list for both conditions and was astonished to realize how many of those little things I never really thought fit did belong. Yes I gained a lot of weight and I was snoring a lot lately. They go hand in hand don't they? Well 3 days on the thyroid hormone and I stopped snoring. Which is good because my own snoring was actually waking me up.
Two weeks later and the alligator skin I was developing is starting to fade. My extra dry hair and skin are returning to normal. The carpel tunnel and numbness in my hands and feet are almost gone. The ringing in my ears that I was blaming the mp3 player on is gone. Even the constant feeling of cold has finally stopped.
I still have a lot more symptoms and some days are worse then others. I shaved my legs in April for Easter and the hair hasn't grown back. It's not stubble it's as smooth as the day I shaved them. I still get vertigo and weakness in my legs and arms but I can climb a flight of stairs without having to stop and rest when I reach the top. My face is still puffy and my hands and feet still have swelling as well as some pain in my back that lingers. Writing this shows that I am starting to find interests again. Just sitting there is no longer as exhausting as it once was. I have even managed to get out in the garden more then once this spring.
Six weeks ago
I thought I was going to die. I really did. I felt so bad I finally went into the Doctor. I had so many weird things going on in my body I was certain he would think I was crazy. I certainly felt crazy.
The scariest thing was I couldn't breath without pain. My throat and tongue felt swollen. My fingers and toes felt numb. Pins and needles. My back, oh it hurt so bad. All the way up my shoulder and under my right breast. Pain that would not go away with pain killers. Sometimes I even felt something like bugs crawling under my skin.
I would wake up in the morning after sleeping 6 to 8 hours and just getting up was exhausting. I would sit for an hour or two gathering strength to go to work. Walking was an effort. My legs felt so weak. Some days every bone in my body hurt. I was constantly cold. Frozen. I felt like I couldn't think. I certainly couldn't remember anything and talking was sometimes hard. Even my voice had gone hoarse.
Each evening I curled up and rested with my cats. Just working up the strength to do simple stuff like laundry. I lost interest in doing things. A trip anywhere was just too much. Even posting to people at night was sometimes more effort then I could do. I was scared but it was time I got in to the Doctor before it was too late.
My Doctor looked at my file and asked me why I hadn't had my blood work done when I was supposed to. I said I wanted to but things were not good for me this year and everything seemed to be getting away from me. He asked me what was happening and I told him some stuff. I told him about losing a cat and he asked me about her. It made me cry a little. He was very good about it.
After he listened to me about my symptoms he asked me what I thought it could be. I don't know I told him. Maybe, my thyroid, or my heart. He agreed and told me there were several other things it could be too. Such as Diabetes or MS. Then he looked at me and asked me something I didn't want to hear. "What else could it be? Something that you are worried about?" I told him my fear. Cancer. He nodded and said it was very possible. Quietly he told me there was a strong possibility and we had to check it out first and foremost. Right away. Then he took a tissue and wiped away my tears and told me he was going to do everything he could to heal me so I could heal from the loss of Miss Minnie. That really scared me because my Doctor is a little more on the gruff then gentle side.
He sent me to get chest xrays, spinal xrays and a whole host of tests and of course the dreaded bloodwork just in case. With an appointment in a week to follow up.
I know some people stay calm and cool. I may have seemed it but inside me, my anxiety levels were through the roof.
Here in Canada if something shows up, the Doctor will call when the tests come back and ask to see you right away. I had my tests and my bloodwork all completed on a Friday. Monday came and went and no phone call. Whew! I think I am in the clear. Then Tuesday afternoon the phone rang. It was the Doctors office. I was shaking as the receptionist at the Doctors office explained that all my tests came back. Then she told me I had an very low thyroid and they wanted me to get on thyroid medication right away. They called in prescription and had me pick it up on the way home from work. I actually cried with relief when she told me this.
The scariest thing was I couldn't breath without pain. My throat and tongue felt swollen. My fingers and toes felt numb. Pins and needles. My back, oh it hurt so bad. All the way up my shoulder and under my right breast. Pain that would not go away with pain killers. Sometimes I even felt something like bugs crawling under my skin.
I would wake up in the morning after sleeping 6 to 8 hours and just getting up was exhausting. I would sit for an hour or two gathering strength to go to work. Walking was an effort. My legs felt so weak. Some days every bone in my body hurt. I was constantly cold. Frozen. I felt like I couldn't think. I certainly couldn't remember anything and talking was sometimes hard. Even my voice had gone hoarse.
Each evening I curled up and rested with my cats. Just working up the strength to do simple stuff like laundry. I lost interest in doing things. A trip anywhere was just too much. Even posting to people at night was sometimes more effort then I could do. I was scared but it was time I got in to the Doctor before it was too late.
My Doctor looked at my file and asked me why I hadn't had my blood work done when I was supposed to. I said I wanted to but things were not good for me this year and everything seemed to be getting away from me. He asked me what was happening and I told him some stuff. I told him about losing a cat and he asked me about her. It made me cry a little. He was very good about it.
After he listened to me about my symptoms he asked me what I thought it could be. I don't know I told him. Maybe, my thyroid, or my heart. He agreed and told me there were several other things it could be too. Such as Diabetes or MS. Then he looked at me and asked me something I didn't want to hear. "What else could it be? Something that you are worried about?" I told him my fear. Cancer. He nodded and said it was very possible. Quietly he told me there was a strong possibility and we had to check it out first and foremost. Right away. Then he took a tissue and wiped away my tears and told me he was going to do everything he could to heal me so I could heal from the loss of Miss Minnie. That really scared me because my Doctor is a little more on the gruff then gentle side.
He sent me to get chest xrays, spinal xrays and a whole host of tests and of course the dreaded bloodwork just in case. With an appointment in a week to follow up.
I know some people stay calm and cool. I may have seemed it but inside me, my anxiety levels were through the roof.
Here in Canada if something shows up, the Doctor will call when the tests come back and ask to see you right away. I had my tests and my bloodwork all completed on a Friday. Monday came and went and no phone call. Whew! I think I am in the clear. Then Tuesday afternoon the phone rang. It was the Doctors office. I was shaking as the receptionist at the Doctors office explained that all my tests came back. Then she told me I had an very low thyroid and they wanted me to get on thyroid medication right away. They called in prescription and had me pick it up on the way home from work. I actually cried with relief when she told me this.
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