As a mini recap, I started the year off with a goal that I
was going to get my health in check and see every standard practitioner. I made
appointments to see a dentist, an optometrist, a gynecologist, and a family
practitioner. All were able to set up standard testing so we could get a
baseline of my health started. Aside from a few dental follow-up appointments,
everything was looking to be pretty good, but then I got my family practitioner blood work back.
The waiting game that comes after blood work is where my
anxiety really sets in. The unknown of what could be. “Call me in a week and
we’ll go over it.” They make it sound so nonchalant, but this is my body we’re
talking about here!
Well, that week came and went and I ended up going into the
doctor's office to go over my results. My doctor's office was all the way
across town, leaving me with tons of tormented driving time. Awesome.
Anyway, I took a deep breath, did a little mini-meditation
to calm myself down (I'm telling you it was a nerve-wracking drive), and exited
the car to go inside.
Once again, I was greeted by the lackluster waiting office
but the receptionist was very cheery for 7:00 a.m. Surprisingly she calmed me
down just with her smile, so that was nice.
"Jordan, the doctor will see you now."
Okay, here we go. I sat in the patient room for a little
less than 10 minutes, giving me ample time to fester until my doctor came in.
He had a very calming presence so that was reassuring. Or maybe it was just the
adrenaline subsiding because it had been put into overdrive for a week and a
half. I'm going to go with his presence being calming.
He proceeded to take out my paperwork and go over everything
line by line like we were finding everything out together. After a few lines
down he said that generally, overall, I was looking pretty good. My heart sank
a little bit and relief flooded through my body. Yes. This is what anyone would
like to hear. He was impressed with a lot of my levels and that I was trending
to be an extremely healthy being.
My vitamin D level was looking really good because typically
us desert rats tend to stay indoors and escape the triple-digit heat waves. My
blood cell counts were all in the normal range. All cholesterol levels were
right where they were supposed to be as well.
I secretly hoped all of this good news deserved a lollipop,
but no such luck on that one.
When we were going over everything there was a tone in his
voice that expressed concern. If everything was looking great what could be the
problem? Leave it to the LAST line on my blood work to be the stickler. My
thyroid levels were reading low which meant my thyroid was having to work in
hyper mode to keep up.
My TSH level was reading at 5.91 and the normal range starts
at 4.5, so I had to bring my level down 1.41 just to start off in the normal range.
Damn.
It runs in the family.
As soon as he said the word "thyroid," I should
have known better. My mom's side of the family has been dealing with thyroid
complications for years! I guess I just never thought it could happen to me, or
if it did it would be years down the line.
Have you been experiencing any…
Fatigue, swollen ankles, unexpected weight gain, or itchy
skin? These are all symptoms of hypothyroidism. At that moment in time, I had
been breaking out on my arms more often than usual, but I thought it was
eczema, and I had gained 6 lbs. out of nowhere, but I also ate like crap
the week before I came into the doctor's office. I couldn't say I had
experienced any of that, but I also haven't been documenting or taking mental
notes about then I'm unusually tired.
Some of the symptoms made sense, but others I was a little
puzzled on.
So what does this mean?
What type of treatment are we
looking at? What happens next? He tells me that with hypothyroidism your
thyroid isn't producing enough TSH so it needs a little help. This can be done
by taking a thyroid pill to supplement TSH, but once you start taking it you
can't stop taking it. By taking this pill, your body is telling your brain it
doesn't need to produce this chemical anymore.
Essentially, at 25 I have to decide if I can handle the responsibility of taking medicine every day for the rest of my life. I can't
even remember the last time I took a vitamin, let alone a pill in any sort of
consecutive order.
Or this might be a one-off...
My doctor mentioned this could have been a fluke of the
system. There is a possibility it was low on the day we took the test.
Everything else looks really good, so it is strange that this particular level
is reading low. He gives me the option of letting me come back in three months
to do another round of thyroid testing to see where we are at.
As stated before, I know I am in no position to start taking
medicine every day, so I opt for the retest for two reasons.
1. I need a little time to process this and do some research
and find out my root cause of this condition.
2. I hate the "take a pill for an ill" mentality
in conventional care.
After having some time to reflect back on this appointment,
I really do appreciate my doctor giving me the opportunity to come back and
retest my TSH levels. A doctor that gives you options to retest or try
something else is so critical in these health checkups, which is exactly why I
will always go with a recommendation. I have specific questions I like to ask
about doctors I may potentially go visit and getting insight like that could be
so critical in your health journey.
I took these few months as an opportunity to take the reins
on my health journey. Be sure to come back next week (or subscribe to have it
sent directly to your inbox) to read the steps I took during those few months
and the results of my retest.
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