Playing Catch-Up

Where in the World is Jaime?

Once again, I've disappeared into the great blue yonder. There has been so much happening in the last three months I've barely had time to catch my breath! I am going to make a list below so that you can hold me accountable in the future. Something to the effect of, "Hey Jaime, what about that story about so-and-so you were going to tell me...?" I have already promised in a previous entry that I would talk about Hyperthyroidism, so I will do that now... right after my list:

1. Hanging Out with the Band: My James Blunt Experience
   
2. When Bad Allergies Go Even Worse
3. To Crown or Not to Crown, That Is The Question!
   
4. SACS Hell and Other Work Related Items
5. Cooper River Bridge Run in Charleston, SC
6. Babies, Babies and More Babies!
7. Shall We Cruise?

Those of just some of the exciting topics, coming soon to a blog near you. Now here's everything you ever wanted to know about Hyperthyroidism...

Last November, I was diagnosed with Graves' Disease. Before you start crying me a river, it's not as serious as it sounds. The condition was simply named after the Irish physician who first described hyperthyroidism in women: Robert Graves. In basic terms, your immune system "attacks" your thyroid into making lots and lots of thyroid hormones: T3 and T4. About one percent of the population develop hyperthyroidism. About 80% of those people are women. It's also genetic. It usually develops in the early 30's for most people.

On the up side, the person suffering from Graves' disease rarely gets sick and will probably lose weight. On the down side, if left untreated, the patient can have a heart attack or stroke. Essentially, hyperthyroidism speeds up everything in the body: heart rate, metabolism, hair growth, etc. It causes trouble sleeping, anxiety and hot flashes. My eyes felt like they had grains of sand in them... literally. Talk about getting cranky! I was not fun to be around before I started treatment!

Ask any endocrinologist or general MD, they will tell you that the typical treatments are thyroidectomy, anti-thyroid medication, beta blockers to control heart rate or (my favorite) radioactive iodine. Ack! I didn't want to do any of these simply because after any one of those treatments the patient has to stay on Synthroid (synthetic thyroid hormone) - FOREVER! While this works (and prevents death) I have talked with many who are taking Synthroid and they all say that their bodies don't function quite the same as before developing hyperthyroidism. The thyroidectomy and radioactive iodine essentially damages or completely removes the thyroid so it doesn't function anymore. :(

I am a very lucky woman. I haven't had to do any of those treatments. I have a very hip General Practitioner. By working with my nutritionist, we came up with a plan for diet modification and infusing special supplements. I am now 6 months from the first diagnosis and my thyroid production is NORMAL! Yay! We were only able to do this treatment because of the type of hyperthyroidism I have. Since the immune system is involved, removing wheat and sugar from my diet causes inflammation levels in the body to go down. Once inflammation levels go down, my immune system stops "pinging" my thyroid. If I had straight-up hyperthyroidism, diet modification and taking supplements would not work. The supplements I take include glutithione (a cream applied directly to the skin that covers my thyroid) and Vitamin D. Glutithione supports healthy function and Vitamin D supports my immune system. Note: Be careful taking Vitamin D. It is fat-soluble and can cause toxicity in certain important organs.

Since January of 2008, I have been sick four times. Not fun! But that also means that I am getting better. I initially took beta blockers to maintain a steady heartbeat... my blood pressure was wacky when I first started, like 130 over 70. Now it's about 110 over 70. Much better! While beta blockers won't prevent a thyroid storm, it does help prevent heart attacks. My last set of blood tests showed my thyroid hormone production as normal. The pituitary gland still shows a little abnormal, but my doctor says we'll watch it to see what it does. Maybe it just hasn't gotten the memo! (For those of you who are curious, the pituitary gland - located in the brain - takes measure of the thyroid hormones in the body and sends a signal to the thyroid either produce more hormones or sends no signal at all.) When my last set of tests came back so well, I stopped taking the beta blockers. My next set of tests is scheduled for July 17th. I can't wait! The optimal results we are looking for the same T3 and T4 levels as in April and a normalized TSH (pituitary gland). Wish me luck! Go thyroid!

Cheers,
J.