First off...why are these boards all changed???
Now, the reason for my post...I'm So exhausted with drs & tests!!!
Dr #1 sez...not in menopause/thyroid normal/just "getting old"...Dr #2 sez...In Meno, test just isn't showing it because of birth control pill, ran extensive thyroid tests, sez it's normal...referred me to an endo for other hormone reasons...NOW>>>the referred ENDO is stearing more toward THYROID problems, and running yet MORE THYROID tests!!!
Meanwhile, my preggo looking belly is getting bigger each day, my forgetfulness/confusion is worse than ever, my sex drive is ZILCH (it was previously my best asset!)....and my husband thinks I don't love him and is panicing!!!
Each dr/test is 1 hr drive away, and takes 3 weeks for results! This endo is also running a 24 hr urine cortisol test (requires 2 trips 1 hr each!)....I am just venting, needing some answers. Just how many drs does it take to tell ya if you need thyroid meds or HRT, or is it all in my head??????

I can't appreciate what you are going through, its very frustrating trying to find answers at times.
I can see in your voice that you must be very scared, confused, hurt and anxious.

I hope you get your answers soon- so you can deal with your problem with all the information- whatever that may be. Its hard not knowing....

I wish only good things for you.

Just offering moral support.

I haven't been following the progress of your plight to know the history, so I'll just throw this out there and you can bat it back if it's been considered before.

All of the above can be symptoms of candida (as well as a million other things). Has this been tested?

(I think doctors are the most overrated thing ever invented)

Thanks so much for both of your replies.
For Barbie...what is candida? That's a new one to me.

Sometimes, I so totally agree. I have not been to any who could match me in what I know about the systems I wanna know about (and they were specialists in their field - who were just perpetuating the same ole same ole without any new research). Clueless! Especially endocrinologists (where's me a pblsttststststs smiley?). It can be so totally frustrating to go round and round with them, not quite knowing what's wrong with you but knowing full well that the answers they gave you aren't right.

Off soapbox -- maybe


Cadillac: I'm so sorry for this hard time you're going thru. It can be so exhausting looking for these medical answers to our medical puzzles.

First, I know nothing about candida, so cdnbarbie may be right.

Second, here's what I was thinking:
-The BCP, they can make you feel like total crap. Even if you have been on them for a long time. The effects are cummulative with them. They way lowered my sex drive over time, and gave me these feverish feelings sometimes, plus a lot of other metabolic junk. They deplete magnesium and B complex vitamins along with a few other essential nutrients.
-NEVER trust a doc who says, "Well, you're just gettin old." That is a no-good answer and it's not a correct one IMO. I here that so much that it makes me wanna puke. Sure, it's the accepted norm, but as far as I'm concerned -- taint true!
-About menopause. I'm not sure about whether or not the BCPs would affect testing. The hormones in em aren't bioidentical and I believe the ones they test for are bioidentical, so they may not affect the testing. I could be way off base on that one, but it's worth looking into. You can go into pre-menopause for some time though. And, women are going into pre-menopause (annovulatory cycles, PCOS, etc.) earlier and earlier because of diet and artificial hormones. It won't work since you are on BCPs, but if you decide to stop taking them at some point, you can get a big handle on the premenopause thing by charting your ovulation (by taking waking temps and charting cervical fluids --lots of info online and I can tell ya a lot about it if you want). It can definitely tell you a lot, but it doesn't work on BCPs.
-Thyroid -- I have no idea, but could be. Any changes in appetite? Huge weight fluctuations that you wouldn't expect using LC lifestyle? Also, according to Dr. Schwarzbein, you need to be careful with thyroid hormones, because they are given way too often when dietary changes would remedy the problem, which sets up other hormonal imbalances.

My first red flag was the BCPs. They set up a hormonal imbalance just by the way they work. If you have one hormonal imbalance, you knock them all out of balance. The weight gain around the middle can also indicative of developing insulin resistance which BCPs can really aggravate. And, IR can prematurely start you on the road to menopause. The test you would need for that would be a fasting blood insulin level (Not a glucose or Hemoglobin A1C either. Endos will use those instead of the insulin sometimes, and it just doesn't cut it in the case of IR). Dr. Schwarzbein talks about it a lot in The Schwarzbein Principle II.

The cortisol test may be a good thing. The 24 urine would be the most accurate, however it IS a pain, I understand. You can opt to do the cortisol testing by saliva doing a 4x a day (you don't need a doc order for this either) which will give you a pretty good idea about your adrenal function. I'm not sure how it relates to thyroid (haven't gotten that far in my reading).

I am not going thru the same thing you are, but so understand how frustrating all this can get. Drs who all contradict each other and are taking stabs in the dark. It can be really frustrating to try to put all this medical knowledge together ourselves, but being an overeducated patient really helps weed out the docs you know for sure are full of it. Hang in there, you'll get it. {{{HUGE HUGS}}}


Oh, and a word on HRT. If you determine you need it, make sure you get compounded bioidentical hormones and stay away from premarin and the likes.

cadillac,

Candida is a good old fashion yeast infection. It does not always materialize as a vaginal problem. Here is the list of various symptoms:

(From www.atkins.com site)

Take this self-test to see if you may be suffering from a sensitivity to yeast. It may be the reason your weight has plateaued.

Do you suffer from sinus headaches or congestion?
Do you have a runny nose or postnasal drip?
Do you often feel "spaced out" or “foggy”?
Are you bothered by odors such as perfume or chemical fumes?
Do you feel worse on damp, humid days?
Are you often depressed, low or irritable?
Do you crave sweets and certain other foods?
Do you retain water or get puffy?
Is your energy low, even when you get enough sleep?
Do you get skin eruptions, hives, rashes and such?
Do you get rectal or vaginal itching?
Do you experience PMS, low sex drive, irregular menses or impotence?
Do you suffer from recurrent vaginal, prostate or urinary symptoms?
Are you susceptible to a variety of infections?

Here is a link to the full information (or if you have a copy of DANDR read chapter 25) Candida

If you have any more of the above symptoms it may be worth your time to read up about it. Also, you may want to do a web search for additional information.

There are also several threads on these boards (use the search function) from those who are dealing/have dealt with this problem.


Hope this helps!

http://www.drnorthrup.com/menopause.php

This is a book that may be able to help you. I saw Dr. Northrup on PBS and think her approach is great - very in line with Dr. S.

I wouldn't do anything before going to your local bookstore and reading relevant chapters, if nothing else.

I've been there with all the symptoms (BC pills are the velvet noose in my opinon, and a really bad joke: sure, you can have 'unprotected' sex, BUT YOU DON'T WANT TO ANYMORE, ha ha, joke is on you! AT least this was my experience after a while. However, I'm sure other lifestyle factors contributed...)

Wishing you the best,

JInx

PS My doc once said that we have the best EMERGENCY care in the world, and have the ability to perform miracles. BUT, to know that otherwise, our medical communities are close-minded and far behind others.

Here's one thing I've learned. Medicine is an inexact science yet the profession often treats it as if it isn't. We shouldn't blame doctors for not always having answers, but blame them for often thinking that they know all the answers, which sets us up to THINK they should have all the answers. An "I don't know" goes further with me than "you're just getting older".

Like Jinxy says, I'd seriously reconsider going the synthetic hormone replacement route. If you have to, find a doctor that prescribes bioidentical hormones. If you can get your hands on a copy of SPII, she has a great chapter on HRT. There's also very good information in her book about thyroid (metabolic & lifestyle causes). Your best bet is to learn everything you can about these conditions so that you can make some informed choices. About.com has a good forum on thyroid.

Having said that, those are symptoms of candida too (as well as unbalanced hormones). You could try eliminating candida-friendly foods to see if you have any relief. That's at least proactive for you in the meantime. Problem is, candida diets are very hard to do correctly. I've been there. You have to commit to eliminating sugary and moldy foods, if not, it won't tell you anything. That means absolutely nothing processed, canned or bottled, eating leftovers ASAP, eliminating sugar (duh!), vinegar, mushrooms, many fruits, flours (unless freshly milled or 100% stone-ground), all dairy, AS and peanuts. I'm sure I've missed some, but you get the idea. It's not easy but worth it if candida is your problem. There are also many helpful supps you can take.

Good luck!

Wanda

Hi girls! I haven't been here in several months, looks like things have changed a bit! Anyway, Cadillac, I see you live in Pittsburgh, cool! Where do you live? I live in the South Hills and work in Oakland.

I'm on the Estrostep BCP which is a low dose pill they often prescribe to women as they move into menopause (I'm 47). My doctors seem to think I'm to young to start menopause or even be premenopausal which I think is crazy. I had a terrible time w/anxiety earlier this year (and I do mean terrible, ready to admit myself into a hospital and take a leave from my job) which I also blamed on possibly menopause or even my thyroid meds. I'm hypo and take 100 mcg Synthroid every day; this has been tested and just recently retested and my endo says my numbers are perfect and beautiful.

As far as the sex drive, I went off the pill in the hopes of it resurfacing again, but it wasn't much better off the pill. My gynecologist says that is the number 1 complaint she hears all day long, from women young and old, that they are concerned about their sex drive. So that made me feel better! I have just had to accept the fact that my sex drive is going to ebb and flow and I try not to worry about it too much. My DH is 7 yrs younger than me and he is concerned about it too, but he now sees that it comes and goes and has relaxed about it more too.

I totally had to step away from the TSP II stuff because after reading her book, it was making me crazy! I still lean more toward TSPI, am forever off of caffeine, watch the sugar, and I know that reduced simple carbs and more complex carbs is definitely the way to go, for me anyway. But the other thing is recently I've been eating anything I want, not really worrying about it all that much, and I feel fine and am sleeping fine. When I was on TSPII I was worried every time I ate a small bite of chocolate or some sugar that it would keep me up all night, and it would, don'tcha know??

I think someone like me who is prone to anxiety just had to stop interrogating everything I ate and its affect on me, whether or not I'm IR or IS, whatever. I am forever grateful to Dr. S for opening my eyes to many things, esp not eating processed food, etc., but I can't buy her whole deal. For me, it's just unrealistic and I'm okay with it.

I still would like to lose 20 lbs and am working on a modified carb lifestyle like Dr. S suggests; I'm also leaning more toward integrating her low saturated fat more into her regular mod carb diet.

Anyway, too much info, I'm sure, but I just got so excited when I saw you were from Pittsburgh! Rosemary

PS Hi Wanda! I've missed you!

Hi Rosemerry:

I've missed ya too! I posted in your journal.

Wanda

Thanks so much for all your replies & emotional support.
I've been off the board for a few days, because my teenage daughter was admitted into the hospitol for a bad throat infection/dehydrated/etc..(added MORE stress to my life!!!).
For Rosemerry....I live in a small town called Ellwood City... north of Pittsburgh. Ever here of it? My endo is in Sewickley, my dr in Butler.
And my husband is a musician...band called Lexxus...they play alot in Pittsburgh & I always go, so maybe we can meet someday!