Of interest to possibly no one but me
This will be a chronicle of my battle with some recent health issues. I am posting it mainly as a record for myself. If you feel like reading along, more power to you, but it is not expected. Feel free to comment or make suggestions, as you wish.
Shortly after my graduation from vet school, so around the first of June, I developed a rash on my torso that some attributed to the hot tub, others to a river rafting trip, and still others to reasons unknown. It doesn't really matter. The long and the short of it is that right after this rash, my life changed. Something in my immune response to whatever it was went wacko. My previously extremely high energy level came crashing down. The woman who was spending her post-vet school days arranging the kitchen, taking cello lessons, going to the gym, training for a 5K, making jewelry, planning a vacation, and so on, while also working part time and feeling bored, suddenly could not find the energy to get up out of a chair and unload the dishwasher. Just planning meals took too much effort. Thinking beyond just putting on my gym clothes, going to my work out and then coming home to nap was exhausting.
And then there was the weight gain creeping up. I started at my gym just after graduation. I have never been a dieter. I am of the belief that in order to burn calories, you have to consume enough of them in the first place. I don't deprive myself, but I also make sensible and healthy choices. So it was mystifying, to say the least, to be going to work out with a professional trainer three times a week, doing weight training to build muscle, and then on my alternate days running 2-3 miles at an aerobic pace (keeping my heart rate in a fat burning zone, not a glucose burning zone), and yet, instead of losing weight, or inches, I was gaining them. And before you say it was muscle, I assure you, it was NOT. Over the course of 3 months, I gained 12 pounds of fat. My pants got tighter, not looser (with muscle, you get leaner, not plumper). Muscle does not look like cellulite. And all the while, Alan was working with the same trainer and losing 27 pounds, so I can't blame the trainer. Nope--something did not add up.
And my moods, oh, my moods! I was getting so ANGRY all the time. And when I wasn't angry, I was lethargic, or just...apathetic. I went from being someone who cared VERY much about the appearance of my house to being someone who just didn't give a fuck if the house was falling down around me.
And my sex drive, well, let's just say I could be the president of the Asexuals of America right now. I don't care what it looks like, male or female. I am just. not. interested.
My eyes got puffy and my eyelids swelled up. My normally soft and shiny hair became brittle and frizzy. My fingernails became ridged and brittle. My skin began to crack in regions no one should have cracks. My thinking became fuzzy, words became difficult to process. And the migraines started to come daily. I took FIFTEEN maxalt in a single month, and that's only because I ran out of them.
So I did what any sane person would do. I saw my doctor and told her something was horribly wrong. But of course, telling your doctor that you have gained weight when you are still what many people consider thin, well, that just gets you a pat on the head. And saying you have no sex drive, are moody and that you just feel WRONG all the time, when you are 45, well, that just gets you a, "well, of course, you ARE a woman of a CERTAIN AGE." So I did the hormone tests, and they show that I am not in menopause. And as far as my doctor was concerned, that was that. But she put me on topamax, and that helped the migraines, so she was happy. But I was still WRONG inside.
I did some reading and became convinced my thyroid gland had taken a swan dive. I began recording my basal temperature every morning before getting out of bed. MUCH peer reviewed literature shows that basal temperature is the most reliable indicator of thyroid function. Well, my basal temperature every single morning for the last 6 weeks was between 96.1 and 96.4 F. Anything below 97.6 is a pretty good indication of hypothyroidism. AHA! I figured now that I had this information, along with my long list of CLASSIC symptoms, I could tell my doctor this was the problem we should test for.
Well, she agreed to test, but I could tell she was skeptical. She did not do the full thyroid panel, though she should have. But she tested my TSH and my free T4, and both came back very low normal. So she interpreted that to mean I am normal. Well, let me just say that is not accurate. You see, if one has a low level of thyroid hormone (T4), then one should have a higher end level of TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) because the pituitary gland should be signaling the thyroid gland to wake up and stop doing such a crappy job. Never mind that taken by itself, my T4 is actually low enough to be considered hypothyroid by every lab in the country EXCEPT, apparently, the lab my doctor uses. All I know as a veterinarian is that if I were a dog with my clinical signs and these lab results, I would be very suspicious of central hypothyroidism, ESPECIALLY given the sudden onset of severe migraines with ocular manifestations. But I am not a human physician, so I have to play the game.
So, I then requested a T3 test and anti-thyroid antibodies. They consented only to the T3. I am not sure why. Whatever. I am still waiting on those results. In the mean time, my GI system has completely rebelled. I think the sub-optimal body temperature has messed up my digestive enzymes. I can no longer tolerate lactose at all. I went off dairy completely and was doing great. Then last week, something else, though I have NO clue what, upset the whole apple cart again. I spend my days, and nights, bloated, full of horrible, FOUL gas, have to use the bathroom at least ten times a day, and in general am just not a happy camper.
So, to that end, I am trying an elimination diet of sorts. Tomorrow I am going to try to eliminate all gluten, dairy, amines, most salycilates, and soy. I am already vegetarian (and that is not an option to change, so don't suggest it). I can't eliminate fructose just yet, but will if I have to. For the next few days, I am going to try to get by on rice, coconut milk, sweet potatoes, vegetable broth, pears,and some low salycilate, low amine vegetables and fruits. I need to find a source of protein, and may try eggs, but I am not sure yet how I react to them. I think tomorrow I will go egg free. If my gut clears up completely, and I do mean COMPLETELY, I may try an egg. I know I cannot eat this way for long, and I know it is not balanced, but I HAVE to give my digestive system a rest and then add back one food at a time. Here's hoping.
Shortly after my graduation from vet school, so around the first of June, I developed a rash on my torso that some attributed to the hot tub, others to a river rafting trip, and still others to reasons unknown. It doesn't really matter. The long and the short of it is that right after this rash, my life changed. Something in my immune response to whatever it was went wacko. My previously extremely high energy level came crashing down. The woman who was spending her post-vet school days arranging the kitchen, taking cello lessons, going to the gym, training for a 5K, making jewelry, planning a vacation, and so on, while also working part time and feeling bored, suddenly could not find the energy to get up out of a chair and unload the dishwasher. Just planning meals took too much effort. Thinking beyond just putting on my gym clothes, going to my work out and then coming home to nap was exhausting.
And then there was the weight gain creeping up. I started at my gym just after graduation. I have never been a dieter. I am of the belief that in order to burn calories, you have to consume enough of them in the first place. I don't deprive myself, but I also make sensible and healthy choices. So it was mystifying, to say the least, to be going to work out with a professional trainer three times a week, doing weight training to build muscle, and then on my alternate days running 2-3 miles at an aerobic pace (keeping my heart rate in a fat burning zone, not a glucose burning zone), and yet, instead of losing weight, or inches, I was gaining them. And before you say it was muscle, I assure you, it was NOT. Over the course of 3 months, I gained 12 pounds of fat. My pants got tighter, not looser (with muscle, you get leaner, not plumper). Muscle does not look like cellulite. And all the while, Alan was working with the same trainer and losing 27 pounds, so I can't blame the trainer. Nope--something did not add up.
And my moods, oh, my moods! I was getting so ANGRY all the time. And when I wasn't angry, I was lethargic, or just...apathetic. I went from being someone who cared VERY much about the appearance of my house to being someone who just didn't give a fuck if the house was falling down around me.
And my sex drive, well, let's just say I could be the president of the Asexuals of America right now. I don't care what it looks like, male or female. I am just. not. interested.
My eyes got puffy and my eyelids swelled up. My normally soft and shiny hair became brittle and frizzy. My fingernails became ridged and brittle. My skin began to crack in regions no one should have cracks. My thinking became fuzzy, words became difficult to process. And the migraines started to come daily. I took FIFTEEN maxalt in a single month, and that's only because I ran out of them.
So I did what any sane person would do. I saw my doctor and told her something was horribly wrong. But of course, telling your doctor that you have gained weight when you are still what many people consider thin, well, that just gets you a pat on the head. And saying you have no sex drive, are moody and that you just feel WRONG all the time, when you are 45, well, that just gets you a, "well, of course, you ARE a woman of a CERTAIN AGE." So I did the hormone tests, and they show that I am not in menopause. And as far as my doctor was concerned, that was that. But she put me on topamax, and that helped the migraines, so she was happy. But I was still WRONG inside.
I did some reading and became convinced my thyroid gland had taken a swan dive. I began recording my basal temperature every morning before getting out of bed. MUCH peer reviewed literature shows that basal temperature is the most reliable indicator of thyroid function. Well, my basal temperature every single morning for the last 6 weeks was between 96.1 and 96.4 F. Anything below 97.6 is a pretty good indication of hypothyroidism. AHA! I figured now that I had this information, along with my long list of CLASSIC symptoms, I could tell my doctor this was the problem we should test for.
Well, she agreed to test, but I could tell she was skeptical. She did not do the full thyroid panel, though she should have. But she tested my TSH and my free T4, and both came back very low normal. So she interpreted that to mean I am normal. Well, let me just say that is not accurate. You see, if one has a low level of thyroid hormone (T4), then one should have a higher end level of TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) because the pituitary gland should be signaling the thyroid gland to wake up and stop doing such a crappy job. Never mind that taken by itself, my T4 is actually low enough to be considered hypothyroid by every lab in the country EXCEPT, apparently, the lab my doctor uses. All I know as a veterinarian is that if I were a dog with my clinical signs and these lab results, I would be very suspicious of central hypothyroidism, ESPECIALLY given the sudden onset of severe migraines with ocular manifestations. But I am not a human physician, so I have to play the game.
So, I then requested a T3 test and anti-thyroid antibodies. They consented only to the T3. I am not sure why. Whatever. I am still waiting on those results. In the mean time, my GI system has completely rebelled. I think the sub-optimal body temperature has messed up my digestive enzymes. I can no longer tolerate lactose at all. I went off dairy completely and was doing great. Then last week, something else, though I have NO clue what, upset the whole apple cart again. I spend my days, and nights, bloated, full of horrible, FOUL gas, have to use the bathroom at least ten times a day, and in general am just not a happy camper.
So, to that end, I am trying an elimination diet of sorts. Tomorrow I am going to try to eliminate all gluten, dairy, amines, most salycilates, and soy. I am already vegetarian (and that is not an option to change, so don't suggest it). I can't eliminate fructose just yet, but will if I have to. For the next few days, I am going to try to get by on rice, coconut milk, sweet potatoes, vegetable broth, pears,and some low salycilate, low amine vegetables and fruits. I need to find a source of protein, and may try eggs, but I am not sure yet how I react to them. I think tomorrow I will go egg free. If my gut clears up completely, and I do mean COMPLETELY, I may try an egg. I know I cannot eat this way for long, and I know it is not balanced, but I HAVE to give my digestive system a rest and then add back one food at a time. Here's hoping.