July 11, 2010
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the worst side effect…
During the past few months I have experienced all the symptoms of both hashimoto’s thyroiditis along with low adrenal function. Not only am I now 40 but I have spent this year a slave to hormones. Why am I putting myself through all this? Because I have to learn to chang my mind. So simple and so diffacult.
I can tell that I am getting better. I have to limit my intake of coffee and my fatigue levels have improved dramatically. I am so grateful that the “brain fog” has lifted. I felt trapped by my inablity to have my mind move quickly through problems. Finally, I am able to process at a good clip again. Imagine looking at an excel worksheet full of calculations and you simply know the answer before you hit click on any equasion. This was my normal pace. During my “brain fog” I would be confused about how I even came up with the calculations nonetheless what the answer might be. I had to check and recheck and recheck everything.
My adreanals however have been a bit trickier. Persnickety really is the word. My adreanals have a problem because of stress. I don’t mean the “I am stuck in traffic” type of stress. I am talking a result of a series of events over the past four years that individually are overwhelming but collectively was more that I was able to manage well. I am a type A. I can handle a lot. You aren’t a female roofer if you are faint of heart. This means that no matter how well I may have managed any situation, I was a terrible failure at learning how to manage my perception. This in turn pegged my cortisol levels for months and now my adrenals are forcing me to manage stress differently.
So the first question the my dr asked me when I visited him was “Since you are unable to do Bikram yoga (**side note I can not work out in my usual 105 degree heat as my body cant handle that stress right now) what are you doing to relieve stress”? Oh oh. Is that a trick question?
I did have one good answer. Peanut, the new doggie. I didn’t give up agility and in fact Peanut is now working on her agility skills. The rest of my answers were a clear indication that I have learned close to zero.
The worst side effect of stiking a balance of correct thyroid levels and adrenal meds is the occasional anxiety. I can wake up at 3am panic stricken or at 1pm suddenly really worried about almost nothing. The only productive way to combat anxiety is to do exactly what I never got right and thus caused my adrenal issues ~ relax. CHANGE YOUR MIND. Change the perception of the item.
A big task for me. At least my body isn’t asking me to change my perception of chocolate!
