Hello!

Let's see, I wasn't diagnosed with it until after my last child was born, but I've *very* rarely had medical insurance or care, so it's not really surprising that it took so long. I've been struggling with fatigue, cold-sensitivity, hair loss, bad nails and weight issues for as long as I can remember. My first child was born when I was 19, but they never tested me for TSH, so I had no idea that it might be the issue. Lost insurance, had another kid and despite me telling them something was wrong, they STILL wouldn't listen to me.

I used to work from home and I remember days when I'd get up at 8 to start work and by 10, want to go right back to bed. I fought for so long, thinking I was just *lazy* and then getting depressed about it. When I was finally diagnosed, I was so ridiculously happy, just to know that I wasn't really lazy or crazy or any other -zy.

I am not insured right now, and I'm trying to fight with a doc I'm paying cash to see who refuses to listen to me, refuses to admit I just *might* know what's going on with my body and know when something's not right. Whee!

Thanks for this group! I'm glad ot know it's here.

---

Welcome aboard! It can definitely be depressing when you want to get things done but physically just can't do it because your body is so burnt out from fighting itself. I remember crying when I got my hypo Dx because it finally made sense after going years wondering what was going on. When I got my Hashi Dx I hardly reacted at all because I had a gut feeling I had it, it was just confirmation of what I felt already.

If you are already paying cash to see a Dr, perhaps going to see a Naturopath would work better for you. I would go to one if I could afford to pay cash for treatment because I've heard a few good ones will actually help you find and treat the CAUSE of your Hashi's, not just patch you up with T4 meds. Good luck to you!!

-Sara

I've started writing this a few times...I tend to write WAY too much, so I'll try to keep this (relatively) short.

Childhood - fit, happy, active, mild sleep troubles (but generally well-rested feeling), exceedingly healthy (like, I rarely even got a cold), super skinny.

Puberty - went through most of the "normal" hormonal changes, got massive cramps with my periods, got cramps/diarrhea various other times. A lot. Less healthy, happy and active, but not "unhealthy" (just more "normal"), depressed, or lethargic.

Age 16 - After having the worst sore throat of my life for several days I went to the doctor, because it was an emergency visit I couldn't see my regular doctor (who I have been going to since I went through puberty at age 10, and who has been seeing my parents since I was about 6 or 7) and had to be seen by one of her associates. She looked in my ears, nose, eyes and throat and said "You have strep." and gave me a Rx for Amoxicillin. Over the course of the next two weeks I had a severe rash over my entire body. I went crazy trying to figure out what from. I thought it might be from my boyfriend's pets (he had a long-haired dog and 4 little kittens, and I spent a LOT of time at his apartment), or some allergen from the outdoors (it was June, I think), or maybe I had developed a food allergy? The next month I had a physical with my Primary. I told her about the strep diagnosis, the Amoxicillin, and the mysterious rash. She informed me that since I had not had a throat culture (seriously, who Dx's strep when there is no history of it WITHOUT a culture?!) she probably would not be able to tell for sure whether I had actually had strep, but the Amoxicillin can cause rashes in people with mono and that she would run the blood test for that. It came back positive and I spent the rest of that summer in a really weird, sleepy state.

16-19 - Through these years I got progressively more tired, no matter how much I slept/napped. I also started getting colds more often, and nearly every cold I got turned into a severe sinus infection. I also was taken to the ER during the time for severe abdominal pain that would not subside with heat (how I would usually deal with it) and was "A TEN! A GODDAMN TEN!!!!" The attending physician diagnosed me with IBS-A (to be followed up with my doctor to rule out Chron's, Celiac, etc) and gave me a shot of an anti-spasmodic. Followed up with the doctor, and was officially diagnosed with IBS-A. A couple of months before my 20th birthday, I finally got my first "real" job.

20 - At first the adrenaline/excitement of working for the first time in my life and bringing in a real paycheck to save up for my first apartment kept me from being too exhausted at work. However, I would come home and absolutely crash. I was physically in a lot of pain, and emotionally I was severely depressed. I started dating a new guy, and stopped getting along with my family entirely. As soon as I had saved up $1000, I moved in with him.

21 - I continued feeling sick/exhausted nearly all the time. My doctor tested me for several AI problems (OA, MS, Lupus, a few others that I can't remember because they weren't the ones you hear about all the time) and they all came up negative. During this time, I did have the energy to get married. Which was the biggest blessing of my life.

22 - This is the year I was officially diagnosed with PCOS (I had been "tentatively" diagnosed with it at 17, but was told I had "too many" periods.) I had to quit my job (for various reasons, mostly health related) and my husband and I had to move in with my parents (who we now get along with better). Because I no longer worked full time, I lost my insurance and suffered in relative silence for a couple of years. We bought a dog with the last of our savings in hopes that having him would lift my spirits (in a way, he does. But, as you all know, there is no magic that can make you feel better).

22-24 - Lots of sleeping. Lots of crying. Lots of "feeling stupid". Lots of forgetfulness, edginess, anger, depression, you name it...

24 - New laws went into effect that let my dad put me on his insurance even though I'm married. Took advantage and went to get a physical (my first one in 4 years), told her of my increased exhaustion. She ran what she calls a "full blood panel", but there are still things it doesn't test for, obviously. But, she said she would specifically look at my thyroid levels and Vitamin D. She found my thyroid to be low (I was ecstatic to finally have a name for my issues, but I quickly found that people still think it's "all in my head"), and that I was deficient in vitamin D. I started supplementing the D and taking Synthroid 25mcg. She wanted to test me every month for the first while, and the next month my levels were still low, so she upped me to 50mcg. I tried to make some lifestyle changes, but found I was still exhausted. I had already enrolled in school and was quickly falling behind. I had also gained about 50 pounds in a single year, which scared the crap out of me since obesity runs in my family.

25 - Still exhausted by the time my physical rolled around. Upped the Synthroid to 75mcg (because my levels were still normal, but she found the antibodies suggesting Hashi's) and upped the D (I had gone from "deficient" to "severely deficient", as I had stopped supp'ing). A few months later I was the most exhausted and depressed I had ever been, but my insurance was about to run out (It was mid-November, and I only had coverage until December 31st), so we did what we could do before I lost my insurance. I did agree (after much deliberation...Like...Years of it) to try a very low dose of antidepressants. I am now on 50mg of Zoloft, which does help balance my emotions to a controllable level. She also tested me for CFS and I have the markers for that as well. Another invisible illness that so many people try to tell me isn't real...*sigh*

26 (aka: now) - I am finally at a mostly stable point emotionally. My husband and I had a weird falling out the day after our anniversary, but it let us rebuild in a much stronger way and we are now much more supportive (he also has CFS, and he has CP from encephalitis, so he is a paraplegic) and understanding of each other in addition to being much more honest and open in general. We're also starting a business, which is stressful sometimes, but very fun and rewarding, and we can work from home. I'm still chugging away at my schoolwork, with the knowledge that I simply might not finish, and that if I don't it doesn't mean I am dumb or a bad person, it simply means I have an illness that slows me down and I will have that many more credits toward my next try if I decide to go that route. I have slowly, but surely been making healthful changes in my life as far as my nutrition and exercise go. I don't want to do too much at once and sabotage myself. "Slow and steady wins the race", I find that to be super true in regards to AI problems. I am now drinking more water, and drinking tea or coffee (instead of Pepsi or Mountain Dew) if I need a caffeine boost (though, I try to avoid caffeine as well...Right now I'm "fixing" my sleep schedule, so I'm kind of living off of it for a while...lol), I'm eating more veggies/fruits/whole foods and less processed foods, etc. I have cut out all soda pop except for the occasional Sierra Mist Natural, I am getting my oral health taken care of (I have severe decay), I am taking my dog for at least a half mile walk every day, etc.

So...That was the short version...Are you scared of my wordiness yet? lol :laugh:

Hi again - I too posted my "hola I am here" message in the wrong thread...but anywho...I was diagnosed at age 19 during a physical for college after a very serious case of mono. I look back now and see all of the symptoms in pictures, weight gain - even though I was always athletic, chubby face, dry brittle nails and skin, thinning hair, no energy etc, etc, but it was ultimately the very enlarged goiter that tipped off my doctor. I haven't experienced a multitude of negative symptoms over the last 20 years - probably because I tend to think that all of these things are "just who I am" - always cold, especially after eating, symptoms mimicking depression and anxiety, insomnia, and exhaustion are what I am dealing with the most as I enter into my 40s in a few months. I have gained and lost weight many times - but luckily for me - I don't have a huge problem losing weight after I gain it....I just gain it really fast and really easily...stray only a little from my "normal" eating and exercise and BAM I puff up like a dang blow fish.

My "levels" are steady and within normal limits - which are ridiculously ambiguous and too broad of a range if you ask me. I have already received some amazing advice on natural hormone products on this thread and will be talking to my doctor about it at my next visit. I am excited to join you all and look forward to getting to know you.

Interesting thing I've noticed so far - a lot of people are diagnosed after a bout with mono....not sure what the connection may be...just thinking out loud here...

Hello everyone! I was diagnosed as hypothroid 20 years ago and have been taking Levothyroxine ever since. Initially I gained about 50 - 60 lbs, My hair fell out, my skin was dry and just plain horrible. My memory became very unreliable and I was beyond exhausted all of the time. I take 175mg daily and have been on this dose for most of the last 20 years. About 10 years ago I paid to see a specialist and was informed that my meds were all wrong and that I have Hashimotos. The specialist wrote to my GP and informed him of his findings (including a change in my medication). However my GP disagreed and my meds have remained the same.
Lately I am feeling 'rough' to say the least. I keep putting it down to the possibility of menopause (I am now 48) but I'm not sure. I have stalled in my weight loss (despite being under my calories daily) I can't sleep, am headachey and so tired I could cry.
My bloods are tested once a year (only TSH though as my GP believes nothing else is necessary). Am looking forward to sharing with people who know what it's like to be me.

Are you in a position to possibly change GPs? It's really aggravating when they will not look outside their "box." I ended up changing docs because my old one just told me to have a glass of wine or walk my dog to help me feel better. :grumble:

Well, since I'm new to this group I figure I might as well share some insight on my story as well.

When I was younger, I was always a bigger girl. By 5th grade (11 years old), I was the tallest in my class at 5'6. Being this tall, playing basketball was basically a given. I wasn't very good, but because of my height, I played every game. Throughout the rest of middle school, I began playing soccer, softball, and volleyball on top of basketball and was pretty athletic. My team went undefeated a whole 28 games my 8th grade year At this point, I was a little heavy, but with my activity level, my doctor said not to worry about it.

High school is when the problems came. I went from having 25 kids in my graduating class to have 678... Needless to say, I developed extreme anxiety and depression just from pure shell shock alone. I went from being friends with everyone to being friends with no one. None of my former teammates went to the same school as me, so I opted out of playing sports. When the weight began slowly creeping up on me, a former friend of mine and I decided to stop eating together. She was already a twig and she would call me about how "good" she was doing at not eating and I just couldn't help myself. My parents would notice if something was wrong, so I resorted to purging. This is where my relationship with not only food, but my body as well, took a turn for disastrous.

By junior year, I had slowly crept up to 168. Going to a catholic school, my uniform slowly stopped fitting and when friends asked to borrow my gym shorts (also uniformed), I had to make up excuses as to why I couldn't let them just to hide the embarrassment of having to wear a size XL. After a tumultuous breakup with my best friend/long term boyfriend, I was easily at 180 by senior year. I began dating my current boyfriend and I was finally happy. He loved my body which made me love it in return. 6 months after dating, he moved in with my family and I due to family issues. I didn't have a scale, but shortly after I just felt myself getting bigger. I started feeling tired all the time and was moody non stop. I attributed it to taking on some of his eating habits and having to share my bed.

Fast forward to January of this year. A friend of mine posted a picture of us on facebook from our junior year. I was wearing this cute top that I spent forever picking out. I totally forgot I even had it and quickly dug it out of my closet. What was once a flowy, flattering top turned into a tight and hideous mess. When did I get so big? I bought a scale and to my horror and dismay, topped 210 lbs. It was like I had been slapped in the face with a brick. I joined the gym the next week and worked my *kitten* off. For 7 whole months I went to the gym 5 days a week. I cut out processed foods and soda and started feeling myself getting stronger. I took measurements and weighed myself once a week. The results? After 7 months, I lost .5 inches overall and 1.4 lbs.

...WHAT?!

I was heartbroken. I was working so freaking hard. My boyfriend even LOOKED thinner and he stopped working out with me months ago. WHAT THE HELL. Finally, I gave up and "accepted" I would always be fat. After speaking to a family friend who was a pharmacist, I began researching hypothyroidism. I was literally the epitome of this disease. I was moody and depressed, I couldn't lose weight, and I would fall asleep 3 minutes into any movie despite just having woke up from a 14 hour slumber. I went to my Dr. and after running tests, confirmed my TSH was at a whopping 27.1 (as opposed to 1.1-4.0). I was put on 50mcg synthroid, 7 pills a week. Then after another test, 50mcg 8 pills a week. Then 50mcg 10 pills a week. And finally today, 75 mcg every day. At my last endo visit, it was also confirmed I have thyroid antibodies, confirming my suspicions that I had Hashimotos as well.

Hearing you have an autoimmune disease is a huge shell shock. I decided to stop TRYING to lose weight and focus more on being healthy. I hated hated hated going to the gym and decided to find other fun ways to workout. Thus, I took up pole dancing. I have never worked so hard for anything in my entire life. The community is absolutely amazing and helpful and understanding and accepting and honestly, life changing.

So here I am today. I love my body and what it is capable of and that's something I haven't been able to say my whole life.

Hi. I'm I was just diagnosed with Hashimoto's last Thursday. TSH levels were 55, so it's pretty bad. I knew something was wrong, since my skin has been unusually dry (even for desert living), I have gained a lot of weight, and can't seem to lose it even when I AM exercising, and worst of all (sorry, guys), I was having **extremely** heavy periods that lasted about 28 days per month. We found out my TSH levels were high and vitamin D was deficient earlier this year, and I started on 50mcg Levothyroxin and 100mcg of vitamin D, but when they just retested me, my levels had skyrocketed, they did a more thorough panel, and that resulted in the Hashimoto's Dx and a 100% increase in dosage. She wanted to jump it up to 125mg, but I asked if we could wait for the retest in six weeks. I'm already feeling a little jiffy at 100mcg right now, but hope it will settle down as I get used to it. They are also scheduling me for an ultrasound of my thyroid to see if there are any goiters(?).

Although Hashmoto's runs in my family (something I just found out this summer from a half-sister I met for the first time), I made it worse because as a gluten intolerant person (which I've known for many years), I chose to return to eating gluten about two years ago, despite the negative symptoms it caused. What I have learned in some of my research is that the gluten antibodies cannot differentiate between gluten and my thyroid, so they try to kill both. All because I couldn't resist the damned bread, which I have long used to self-medicate, since it acts as a sedative for me. It would be nice to connect with other folks on here who also have Celiac's or are gluten intolerant. My last two partners in relationships never really understood the gluten intolerance thing, and perpetually offered me things I should not be eating, and after a while it was just easier to say yes. That doesn't make it their fault. My diet is 100% my responsibility. But I am someone who grew up associating food with comfort and safety, and I have a tendency toward addictions anyway. I'm a recovering alcoholic with almost 6 years of sobriety. It would be great if I could use the same recovery-based thinking to get past this gluten/grain/sugar thing as I did to stop drinking, but I guess the diet never seemed as significant as the drinking did. Maybe it will now.

There are too many big changes to make all at once, so although MFP set me a caloric target, I don't care if I go over in calories right now, and I am not focused on working out, since I'm so busy with projects around the house that are keeping me moving. My main focus until the 6-week follow-up in mid-January is to stay 100% gluten free, and follow an anti-inflammatory diet, eliminating most grains and refined sugars. The diet will help with the joint pain and all of the gluten symptoms I have been ignoring so I could keep eating crap (brain-fog, rash, chronic tiredness, and intestinal issues).

Fortunately, I really love vegetables and healthy lean proteins, I drink tons of water because I like it, and I enjoy cooking, so it shouldn't be too hard to get back on track now that I am single and living alone again. Any other suggestions would be appreciated. Other than that, I will be poking around here for a while trying to learn more about how others have successfully lived with Hashimoto's. That's all for now. Thanks for being here.

Hi everyone, I was diagnosed in the spring of 2010 after probably having hypo for about 2 years before that. My junior year of college I gained 50lbs in about 6-8 months. I attributed it college and partying, but I wasn't doing anything differently from my friends, and couldn't understand why I was ballooning and they weren't. I graduated in May 2009 and that was when I really started to notice some symptoms and just chalked it up being out of college and in a different lifestyle. So after sleeping for hours on end and still being tired, crying and hating everything including myself, for no reason and finding clumps of hair all over the bathroom, my mom made me go see my doctor. I was then told I had hypothyroidism. I have been trying to figure out my levels since then, I was just upped this past week to 175mcg and finally had a sonogram done. I was finally confirmed that I have hasi thyroiditis. I am so tired of feeling sick and tired that I have decided 2014 is my year to fight for my health. I have started to clean up my eating, cutting out the unhealthy stuff and adding more of the healthy stuff. Getting to the gym 5 days a week and making sure I drink plenty of water. My doctor keeps telling me to lose weight and get my bp under control....well duh...that's what I'm trying to do, but it's an uphill battle. Today was what I like to call a zombie day...I was exhausted, in a fog, and just couldn't bring myself to really do much of anything. (thanks goodness it was a snow day...I'm a teacher) Finding this group was exactly what I needed today. Thanks for making this group, and here's to a happy healthy 2014!