October 1998: I'm feeling
better. I'm busy with a lot of things. I had no energy to do very much at all a year ago.
My regular visits to the chiropractor have been worthwhile. I cleaned the bathtub this
morning and never once hesitated, worrying that I would be in pain by afternoon. My TSH
levels have been normal. I insisted on having an ultrasound done in August as I was still
getting discomfort in the area where the cyst is located. I asked my family doctor for
copies of the ultrasound results which are now posted on another page on this site. The
chiropractor said he thought the discomfort was probably muscles and it seems he was
right. My dry, uncomfortable eyes problem has been gone for a couple of months - maybe
permanently? I've finally started to sleep in until 8 or 9 am like in the 'old days'. I
don't know if that's because of the thyroid treatment or the back/neck chiropractic
treatments. Maybe it's both. I weigh 108 pounds, still not quite up to my old normal 110.
January 1999: I now weigh 110
pounds which is what I consider my 'normal' weight. It's been just over a year since I had
RAI. I would really like to know - now that I'm feeling so much better and back to a
semblance of mental alertness - why the doctors didn't start me on Tapazole and on
medication to alleviate the awful hyperthyroid symptoms I had between May 1997 and October
1997 (a 5 month wait until I received treatment when the specialist finally had time to
see me). It seems ridiculous that the family doctors/general practitioners I went to
during that time let me suffer and just passed the buck ("Nothing we can do, you must
wait for your appointment with the specialist", they said).
If I'd been a cat with a hyperthyroid condition (cats can have hyperthyroid problems) I'd
have got into a veterinarian in less time. There'd have been humane societies to see that
I got immediate medical care.
I haven't had any coughing in the middle of the night episodes. I think the May/June
problems with this could be an allergy - something that's not in the air this time of
year, or possibly house dust - the house is cleaned more often now than before.
April 1999: I'm waiting on a
callback from the specialist's office. Since I've been going to the lab once per month for
a TSH test since January 1998, and had only that one Synthroid dosage change one year ago,
I don't think I need to go in every month. The staff at the nearest lab are always in a
big hurry to go on to the next lab rat - I mean patient - so they never let a person use
that little cotton ball long enough to stop the bit of bleeding from the needle. A couple
of months ago the bandaid came off when I rolled my sleeve down. I didn't notice that
until I got home. Luckily the blood didn't permanently stain the sleeve:(
Last month, for the first time ever, I had some swelling in the area where they took the
blood sample. I've never had that happen before, but I guess it's not unknown, nor
anything serious.
I now weigh 114 pounds. Is this good or not? Am I going to have a weight problem?! Other
than a low sodium diet during my first pregnancy for temporary health reasons, I have
never had to diet in my life.
(Except for a time when I couldn't afford food - but that's a whole other
webpage, when I
get around to it).
Later in April: I received a call
from the specialist's office staff. The TSH tests have all been normal, so I'll only need
to have a blood test every 6 or 12 months now. The specialist is turning things over to my
regular doctor and won't be involved any longer.
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