Life As We Know It: Underactive Thyroid

So 4 years after my last blog and I am back again. A lot has happened in those intervening years.

I am still battling the thyroid issues in my last blog to the point that in Mid-2010 I was seriously ill until my doctor doubled my medication. I have now been stable for a year which has given me time to deal with a new health issue – Irlen Syndrome, but more of that in a moment.

Aside from that, the last 4 years has seen me be proposed to, get married, achieve a foundation degree, start a masters course and successfully complete my 1^st year, be promoted 2 grades, nearly made redundant, headhunted, become a dog owner and I am now contemplating starting a family! Now, after a detour via the North West for a year, I am back in my Sheffield Office getting to grips with a totally new payroll system. What I do now isn’t a career decision, but a survival one in tough times and a chance to complete my MBA with the minimum of further stress on my health…Which brings me to Irlen Syndrome.

Many of my symptoms - tiredness, aching eyes, headaches, poor concentration and clumsiness - I had put down to my thyroid disorder, but this was blown out of the water a few months ago on hearing everything was stable - so what was wrong with me? A good friend of mine had been saying for years that I had "light sensitivity" but I constantly brushed it aside, not as nonsense as such, but more due to having enough to deal with already. Things came to a head a couple of months ago I was struggling to read not only for my MBA, but also for pleasure. This was heartbreaking as I have always been a big reader. This was followed by 5 consecutive days where I travelled home from work in severe distress and pain. Since then I have officially been diagnosed (more details here: http://irlen.com/index.php?s=what) and am now taking steps to resolve my issues by removing fluorescent lighting as much as I can and printing on blue instead of white paper as immediate changes to my environment.

It’s a struggle dealing with both the underactive thyroid and Irlen. Generally I am fit and well, I just tire slightly more easily and have to take steps to protect myself in certain environments. Additionally having both an illness and a disability that people can't see is stressful no least because of people’s perception. I have had my fair share of hypochondriac comments and "why didn't you sort this out sooner" remarks. The question is - in today's breakneck society, how do you know when something like this jumps up to bite you? How many people are walking around out there struggling with something they can't put their finger on as I have done for more years than I want to count?

So next time your friend/work colleague/family member says that for whatever reason they just don't feel right - listen to them as they may have a point...

Originally posted 4th September 2007 on MySpace

So…. I thought it time to write a new blog.

Some of you may have noticed I've not been too vocal on myspace for a little while. Well there is a reason for this and it's not because I don't want to talk to you all lol…

For about 10 years I have not felt "right" for want of a better word. I have become increasingly tired and have put on weight without really knowing why. Although it was annoying, I could live with it until about 2 years ago when things started to get a whole lot worse. I started to forget things and slur my speech (and I don't even drink… much lol). I would have tremendous trouble concentrating to the point that it has affected my work at times. I also suffered from mild depression on and off, which along with the concentration problem made it very difficult for me to keep up with myspace and my other internet friends as I just didn't have the patience, the energy or the motivation. I would wake up with awful headaches that would sometimes last all day and would regularly lose my voice and fall over for no reason. Most frightening of all… about 2 months ago I developed a lump in my throat and a pain in my chest.

So… about 6 weeks ago I went to my doctor… He said the pain in my chest was most likely just a strained muscle as everything sounded ok, but he would do a full blood test just to make sure. So off I went to see the most evil nurse in Rotherham to have the test done (she practically impaled me!). The results were back within a couple of days so off I went back to the doctor… There was a 3 day gap between the surgery phoning me and me actually being able to get an appointment. In that time I went from thinking I'm probably just a bit run down, to thinking I maybe had something a bit more serious like a virus to finally thinking I had some sort of brain tumour!!!

Those 3 days felt like an eternity… I was even more tired because I wasn't sleeping because of the worry, which then made all the other symptoms worse as well. When I finally got the doctors Phil had to come with me because I was a gibbering wreck. So… I went in, sat down and was told that the reason I felt so tired and had all the other symptoms was because I had an under active thyroid. Nothing life threatening. It's not even really that much of an issue as long as there is a treatment plan in place. I then let rip at the doctor as there is no reason why when the surgery rang they couldn't have said that it's nothing life threatening at the very least and in fairness he apologised profusely for worrying me so much. He explained that the lump in my throat is because my thyroid has become enlarged and the chest pain was due to general muscle pains you get with an under active thyroid. The doctor said he wanted to do another blood test and an ECG to make absolutely sure, which came back and confirmed the diagnosis.

So I am now on a hormone called thyroxine. For those who are not medically inclined, an under active thyroid is basically where the thyroid does not produce enough thyroid hormones. This has wide ranging effects on the body especially affecting my metabolism which is the reason I have put on weight. By taking thyroxine I am putting into my body the hormone my body cannot make on its own. It will take a little time for the tablets to work – 2 weeks minimum, but the lump in my throat already seems to be going down slightly and I do feel a bit more energetic. I am aware that this could be because psychologically it's what I expect the tablets to do though! Although I will now be on this medication for the rest of my life, I am only taking something my body should be making naturally and I am not taking a nasty cocktail of chemicals. This means apart from taking a tiny little tablet every day for the rest of my life, there should be no effect on the way I live. To me this is a very small price to pay to finally have an answer as to why I have felt the way I do for so long.

Thank you to you all, my dear myspace friends, for being so patient with me. If I had known there was something actually medically wrong with me I would have sorted this out some time ago but you feel a bit daft telling your doctor that you have gone to see him just because you feel tired! Well I did anyway lol. Some of you deserve a special mention for being so wonderfully supportive – Dave, J, Elaine, Nic and of course Phil who has been nothing short of an absolute diamond… but you have all helped me in your own special ways by just being my friend despite probably never realising anything was wrong!…. Thank you

If you are interested in knowing more about under active thyroids or thyroid problems in general, I have put some links below for you:

http://hcd2.bupa.co.uk/fact_sheets/html/underactive_thyroid.html

http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/articles/article.aspx?articleId=206

http://www.patient.co.uk/showdoc/23068762/

http://www.btf-thyroid.org/