I just wanted to slip these websites in here today: http://www.coconutdiet.com/thyroid_health.htm
http://www.drmarinajohnson.com/Articles/Hypothyroidism/tabid/181/Default.aspx
On the one about coconut oil, I'm not sure I agree with it - but the rest of it seems to make tons of sense, and I thought it might be helpful to "my" readers who have thyroid issues.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Stable...
I have been on Armour thyroid now for a week. The first three days I had taken a portion of my calcium with the med every morning without realizing that calcium blocks it from the thyroid gland, so I changed it to taking all of my calcium at night. This hasn't made a huge difference yet in my energy level, but I am starting to feel a little more stable emotional-wise...I didn't realize that I was feeling as emotional as I was. I knew that I'd felt more anxious over the last 6-8 months, but I was attributing it to the infected tooth that I had pulled in October and figured it would eventually go away. What didn't make sense to me was why I was still feeling anxious recently when I didn't see any need to be. This makes sense now that the thyroid could be causing it, not that I won't get anxious again, I just feel "different", as if the anxiety is not going to happen as often if at all. I was never an anxious person before this last summer, so to have these feelings come on was rather frustrating and sometimes very frightening. I thought I was losing my mind.
I am finding yet that I still have headaches and muscle weakness and achiness in my arms and legs. The most frustrating of all though, is that I'm still feeling off-balance almost constantly and have frequent dizzy spells. Dr. S didn't want me taking the vitamin D just yet (why I'm not sure), but I did some linking research on vitamin D and some of these symptoms and found a little correlation. I also know that these symptoms could be still part of the big picture of mercury toxicity causing my body not to use vitamins and minerals properly, and I do know that I am still anemic and have a zinc deficiency to go along with the vitamin D deficiency. The combination of all of these could be attributing to the problems, but until I can get the rest of the amalgam out and detoxify I probably won't be able to fix them. I just wish things would move along a little faster in the dental revision department. If it weren't for the infected tooth fiasco, I'd probably be done by now and on my way to recovery. What can you do though, when the timing isn't in our hands? I must sit back and wait and be patient.
I am finding yet that I still have headaches and muscle weakness and achiness in my arms and legs. The most frustrating of all though, is that I'm still feeling off-balance almost constantly and have frequent dizzy spells. Dr. S didn't want me taking the vitamin D just yet (why I'm not sure), but I did some linking research on vitamin D and some of these symptoms and found a little correlation. I also know that these symptoms could be still part of the big picture of mercury toxicity causing my body not to use vitamins and minerals properly, and I do know that I am still anemic and have a zinc deficiency to go along with the vitamin D deficiency. The combination of all of these could be attributing to the problems, but until I can get the rest of the amalgam out and detoxify I probably won't be able to fix them. I just wish things would move along a little faster in the dental revision department. If it weren't for the infected tooth fiasco, I'd probably be done by now and on my way to recovery. What can you do though, when the timing isn't in our hands? I must sit back and wait and be patient.
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Some Results...
Yesterday I went and got my test results from the nurse practitioner I saw about a week and a half ago. The results of the thyroid test did not show my thyroid as bad as we believed it to be, but bad enough to warrant a low dose of thyroid replacement. The test results also showed that I was extremely deficient in vitamin D, so I was put on a high dose of that as well and will be rechecked in 3 months.
I do have a couple of theories about this - mind you they are just theories, but with all of the reading I've done I really believe it's plausible.
Theory #1: Mercury toxicity in my body is causing a false-positive reading for my thyroid levels. What I mean is, the mercury that's running around my body wreaking havoc has done damage to my thyroid, but not enough to cause the blood not to be carrying around enough of the hormone for it to think it's well. It's like I explained in a post several months ago about the battery and the toy: this particular toy (the thyroid gland) needs a battery (thyroid hormone) to work. The battery is not able to be placed properly in the toy however, because the "fake" battery mercury has slipped into its place, blocking it. Now the toy knows there's something there, but this "dead" battery won't do its job. My theory is that the T4 and T3 and TSH tests I had done were showing inaccuracies because the mercury is in the way, pretending to be a hormone. My symptoms highly indicate my thyroid has stopped working properly, but the tests show that there are only minimal problems. What will be interesting to see is how much the thyroid meds help now and what it will be like after I have the rest of my amalgam removed and start detoxing.
Theory #2: has to do with the adrenals. The more and more I read up on the adrenals and symptoms of adrenal fatigue, the more I'm positive that the thyroid and the adrenals function together and have both been stressed by the mercury running around my body. I talked briefly with my doctor about my adrenals at my last visit with him, and Dr. S said that my adrenals are malfunctioning, he's just not sure what went first - the adrenals or the thyroid. If you try to heal one without healing the other, you won't get very far. I didn't realize it until I looked up a lot of what Dr. S has me taking, but we are addressing the adrenals, so I'm thankful for that.
Theory #3: Vitamin D. Obviously I knew I was going to be very low, just didn't know how low. I don't eat dairy to get the fortified Vitamin D (lactose intolerance), and I don't spend a lot of time outside (extremely cold temps due to winter, and living in the Northern Hemisphere). Vitamin D is made by the sun on your skin, and not really anywhere else. No food can give you enough to supply what your body needs, and it can't make it by itself. My theory here is that due to my inability to be outside in the sun due to where I live is huge. Even in the summer months I don't spend a lot of time outside, so I may have always been deficient and didn't know it. I'm not sure I can blame mercury on this at all, other than to say if I didn't have all these other health problems going on, I'd probably spend a lot more time outdoors with my kids (who I might add are probably deficient in Vitamin D as well!). The nurse yesterday said a doctor once told her that people who live in the Northern hemisphere could run around in the sun naked for 3-5 hours every day for the rest of their lives and still not get enough vitamin D. Can anyone say a month long Caribbean cruise?
I do have a couple of theories about this - mind you they are just theories, but with all of the reading I've done I really believe it's plausible.
Theory #1: Mercury toxicity in my body is causing a false-positive reading for my thyroid levels. What I mean is, the mercury that's running around my body wreaking havoc has done damage to my thyroid, but not enough to cause the blood not to be carrying around enough of the hormone for it to think it's well. It's like I explained in a post several months ago about the battery and the toy: this particular toy (the thyroid gland) needs a battery (thyroid hormone) to work. The battery is not able to be placed properly in the toy however, because the "fake" battery mercury has slipped into its place, blocking it. Now the toy knows there's something there, but this "dead" battery won't do its job. My theory is that the T4 and T3 and TSH tests I had done were showing inaccuracies because the mercury is in the way, pretending to be a hormone. My symptoms highly indicate my thyroid has stopped working properly, but the tests show that there are only minimal problems. What will be interesting to see is how much the thyroid meds help now and what it will be like after I have the rest of my amalgam removed and start detoxing.
Theory #2: has to do with the adrenals. The more and more I read up on the adrenals and symptoms of adrenal fatigue, the more I'm positive that the thyroid and the adrenals function together and have both been stressed by the mercury running around my body. I talked briefly with my doctor about my adrenals at my last visit with him, and Dr. S said that my adrenals are malfunctioning, he's just not sure what went first - the adrenals or the thyroid. If you try to heal one without healing the other, you won't get very far. I didn't realize it until I looked up a lot of what Dr. S has me taking, but we are addressing the adrenals, so I'm thankful for that.
Theory #3: Vitamin D. Obviously I knew I was going to be very low, just didn't know how low. I don't eat dairy to get the fortified Vitamin D (lactose intolerance), and I don't spend a lot of time outside (extremely cold temps due to winter, and living in the Northern Hemisphere). Vitamin D is made by the sun on your skin, and not really anywhere else. No food can give you enough to supply what your body needs, and it can't make it by itself. My theory here is that due to my inability to be outside in the sun due to where I live is huge. Even in the summer months I don't spend a lot of time outside, so I may have always been deficient and didn't know it. I'm not sure I can blame mercury on this at all, other than to say if I didn't have all these other health problems going on, I'd probably spend a lot more time outdoors with my kids (who I might add are probably deficient in Vitamin D as well!). The nurse yesterday said a doctor once told her that people who live in the Northern hemisphere could run around in the sun naked for 3-5 hours every day for the rest of their lives and still not get enough vitamin D. Can anyone say a month long Caribbean cruise?
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Monday, January 28, 2008
Adrenal Fatigue Syndrome
I just happened to come across some great websites regarding adrenal fatigue syndrome. It can be brought on by mercury toxicity.
http://thyroid.about.com/cs/endocrinology/a/adrenalfatigue.htm
http://www.womentowomen.com/adrenalfatigue/default.aspx?id=1&campaignno=adrenalfatigue&adgroup=ag1adrenalfatigue&keywords=adrenal+fatigue
http://www.jigsawhealth.com/articles/adrenal-fatigue-syndrome-dietary.html
One word is all I can say: Unbelievable.
What body part does mercury not attack? Answer: NONE - it attacks all parts.
If the adrenals shut down completely, it's most times fatal. WOW.
http://thyroid.about.com/cs/endocrinology/a/adrenalfatigue.htm
http://www.womentowomen.com/adrenalfatigue/default.aspx?id=1&campaignno=adrenalfatigue&adgroup=ag1adrenalfatigue&keywords=adrenal+fatigue
http://www.jigsawhealth.com/articles/adrenal-fatigue-syndrome-dietary.html
One word is all I can say: Unbelievable.
What body part does mercury not attack? Answer: NONE - it attacks all parts.
If the adrenals shut down completely, it's most times fatal. WOW.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
The next step...
I thought I should update since it's been a while again. There has not been much progress in the way of getting my thyroid to work. I ended up being told by Dr. S to go have a full panel thyroid screening done, so that took place this last week. We'll have the results in a week and a half. The Nurse Practitioner I saw was absolutely wonderful, and willing to work with the same type of thyroid replacement (if I need it) that Dr. S said he could work with best so that I wouldn't have to stay on it forever. I am very happy about that.
I also have my next dental revision appointment made for March. I was bummed to know that was the first date that Dr. C had open, so it's going to be a longer wait than I anticipated. The good thing is, he'll be taking care of all the crowns on the right side of my mouth, not just one section, so I'll only need one more appointment for the other side and then I'll be amalgam free. I'm hoping that appointment can come quickly after the first one. If I'm going to feel terrible afterward, I want to get it all done and not have to keep feeling awful in segments. One good thing about having to wait until March is that it will give the thyroid replacement time to work and that might be very helpful to my immune system and I may not feel so badly after the revisions.
I haven't had much time as of late to do any more research on mercury amalgam, but I can still tell you I know it's bad, bad stuff. No one, under any circumstances, should have to have it in their bodies! I just read a book from Dr. Joseph Mercola entitled "Take Control of Your Health". He had some more great information regarding mercury in vaccines and how the lobbyists for the drug companies are unbelievable in their tactics to get the government to allow them to do what they do. It was a good read. I don't agree with all of what he says, but there are several things that I'm in huge agreement on and trying to make those changes for my family and me.
I also have my next dental revision appointment made for March. I was bummed to know that was the first date that Dr. C had open, so it's going to be a longer wait than I anticipated. The good thing is, he'll be taking care of all the crowns on the right side of my mouth, not just one section, so I'll only need one more appointment for the other side and then I'll be amalgam free. I'm hoping that appointment can come quickly after the first one. If I'm going to feel terrible afterward, I want to get it all done and not have to keep feeling awful in segments. One good thing about having to wait until March is that it will give the thyroid replacement time to work and that might be very helpful to my immune system and I may not feel so badly after the revisions.
I haven't had much time as of late to do any more research on mercury amalgam, but I can still tell you I know it's bad, bad stuff. No one, under any circumstances, should have to have it in their bodies! I just read a book from Dr. Joseph Mercola entitled "Take Control of Your Health". He had some more great information regarding mercury in vaccines and how the lobbyists for the drug companies are unbelievable in their tactics to get the government to allow them to do what they do. It was a good read. I don't agree with all of what he says, but there are several things that I'm in huge agreement on and trying to make those changes for my family and me.
Sunday, January 6, 2008
The long road continues....
I apologize for not updating in a while. It's been a busy month, and extra time was no where to be found. Now that I've got a few things off my plate, I have a little more "spare" time to share what's been happening with me as of late.
We are still treating my thyroid with diet. It was going well for a while, but it seems that my morning temps are getting stuck at an average of 96.5 and have been for about two weeks. My doctor hasn't had me change anything, so everything must be going as expected, though.
I saw my doctor just before the 1st of the year, and while palpating my head to adjust it, he noticed that my eustachian tube on the left side was twisted out of proportion, which was causing a lot of my pain on the left side. He adjusted it, and will continue needing to adjust it until it is "trained" to stay untwisted. This probably was the cause of my off-balance feelings and dizziness, because once he did that I've had only minimal of either problem. I can't believe the difference that one little tube has made in the problems I was having!
The next day, I also saw my dentist, and he fitted me for a night guard to help me stop either clenching or grinding my teeth at night. He felt with what symptoms I was explaining to him that my jaw was out of occlusion (proper bite) from doing one or the other, and needed rest. He and I discussed the reasons for the bruxism (grinding or clenching), and came upon the conclusion that it is because of all the work I've had done on my teeth over the last year it has changed the way my jaw rests. If the night guard helps (which it seems to be), there may be a more permanent solution to fixing the occlusion once we finish the last 5 crowns, and that would be to have braces to adjust and settle my bite.
It continues to be a very long road to regaining my health, but it seems like we're closer to it than we have been in a long time. The more mercury I continue to get out of my body the better I am feeling. There's still much ahead, however, so I'm not getting too excited. I now have the go ahead from my doctor to start working on the last five crowns, so I'll be making my next appointment with the dentist soon. In a way I'm looking forward to it, and in another I'm dreading it since it could mean more pain and suffering in new and different ways as my body adjusts to each revision.
We are still treating my thyroid with diet. It was going well for a while, but it seems that my morning temps are getting stuck at an average of 96.5 and have been for about two weeks. My doctor hasn't had me change anything, so everything must be going as expected, though.
I saw my doctor just before the 1st of the year, and while palpating my head to adjust it, he noticed that my eustachian tube on the left side was twisted out of proportion, which was causing a lot of my pain on the left side. He adjusted it, and will continue needing to adjust it until it is "trained" to stay untwisted. This probably was the cause of my off-balance feelings and dizziness, because once he did that I've had only minimal of either problem. I can't believe the difference that one little tube has made in the problems I was having!
The next day, I also saw my dentist, and he fitted me for a night guard to help me stop either clenching or grinding my teeth at night. He felt with what symptoms I was explaining to him that my jaw was out of occlusion (proper bite) from doing one or the other, and needed rest. He and I discussed the reasons for the bruxism (grinding or clenching), and came upon the conclusion that it is because of all the work I've had done on my teeth over the last year it has changed the way my jaw rests. If the night guard helps (which it seems to be), there may be a more permanent solution to fixing the occlusion once we finish the last 5 crowns, and that would be to have braces to adjust and settle my bite.
It continues to be a very long road to regaining my health, but it seems like we're closer to it than we have been in a long time. The more mercury I continue to get out of my body the better I am feeling. There's still much ahead, however, so I'm not getting too excited. I now have the go ahead from my doctor to start working on the last five crowns, so I'll be making my next appointment with the dentist soon. In a way I'm looking forward to it, and in another I'm dreading it since it could mean more pain and suffering in new and different ways as my body adjusts to each revision.
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