Monday, July 12, 2010

Second Opinion

I went to see a Nurse Practitioner for a second opinion about hypothyroidism (when your thyroid produces too little thyroid hormone). I believed she would have different conclusions, that perhaps my regular doctor was just overreacting or mistaken. I kept resisting taking this thyroid medication, mostly because I did not like the way it made me feel. When I first tried the generic version of Synthroid, about a year ago, I felt terrible. It's difficult to continue taking a medicine when it makes you feel worse, not better. The attitudes I got from doctors were all similar: are you sure? most people have no problems taking synthroid. Is it possible you're just being emotional?

I did not appreciate this mentality of just take this medicine because I say so.

When I went to see a Nurse Practitioner recently, I was surprised and thrilled when she showed an interest in educating me about why I should take the thyroid hormone. Below is a picture she drew for me, showing how your pituitary gland acts like a thermostat, sending TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) to your thyroid to tell it to make thyroid hormones (T3 and T4).

The effects of hypothyroidism, as shown below, include swelling, slow reflexes, hair loss, dry skin, high cholesterol (and therefore greater risk for heart attack and stroke), miscarriage, and more.



When I was there, the Nurse Practitioner recommended I have a test I hadn't had before, to measure the level of antithyroid antibodies in my blood. She explained that if this was abnormal, it indicates an autoimmune issue: your body is attacking your thyroid and it is only a matter of time until the thyroid quits working.

Below are my test results:

I was stunned. I really expected the antithyroid antibody test to come back normal. When I got these results, I had this feeling like I'd been sentenced and no matter what I do, I can't fix this issue. However, I have started seeing a certified ayurvedic practitioner whose response to this was "what goes largely unrecognized [in our culture] is that you can do alot with diet and exercise." This statement gave me alot of hope. I have been working with her to develop a new eating plan, consisting of little meat and lots of grains, beans, fruits, and vegetables. Also, I've incorporated some herbal treatments and after much thought, I took the Nurse Practitioner's advice and filled the prescription for Synthroid. I have been taking the lowest dosage (25 mcg) for about two weeks now and so far so good.