Informed

How has a week already gone by? I swear I just left my appointment with Dr C, however that was now a week ago. Time seems to be flying by lately. I look up, and it's August. How? Anyways, I think I'm still slightly in shock as to how well the appointment actually went last Tuesday. For months my cycle has been abnormal, last month with a cyst and two months before that dealing with a chemical pregnancy. All in all my charting has been all over the place. Super long mucus cycles, clotting, barely there periods.....too many things to list.


In my amazement, this cycle, oddly enough that started the day of my surgery, has been the most normal in months! Dr C was pretty amazed too. Usually they advise you to wait a month before "trying" again. However he said "Don't pass up this month, go home and try if you're comfortable." He proceeded to go over the blood work he had me doing timed with my previous cycle. He found 8 causes of concern from one blood draw! 8! Nothing serious that couldn't be fixed. However there was one thing that was causing everything else. 


For some reason my immune system is very low. (No shocker there seeing as I get sick very easily.) Because my immune system is low, my t-cell count was not up to par. The t-cells work as "Pacmen" (you know, the video game) and they target the endomeitriosis tissue and kill it when it shows up where it shouldn't be. When t-cells can't do their job, your antibodies step up and kill anything resembling the tissue. Meaning they can attack your uterine lining, ovaries and some times your pituitary gland, which mine was. Your pittuitary gland controls your ovulation letting your ovary know it's time to release it's egg. It also controls your thyroid. Because it was attacking my thyroid as well, it caused my levels to elevate resulting in hypothyroidism. I started on Levothyroxine a couple days after surgery. 


Dr C also gave me a Rx for Low Dose Naltrexone, an endorphin blocker usually used for alcoholics and heroine addicts. He said to be prepared for a funny look from the pharmacist. So because my t-cells are low and my immune system is not functioning properly, apparently that indicates low endorphins. Why, might you ask, would he put me on and endorphin blocker then? The blocker is taken at night, right before bed. Your endorphins build up as you sleep and spike right before you wake. As the day progresses, they continuously drop. Mine aren't building up properly. The Naltrexone allows me to not build any until mid night sleep that way they will last longer during the day. You start with a very low dose and build up over a month. This will hopefully allow them to build back up to a healthy level. I should only need to take it for about 6 months. At that time my immune system should no longer be under attack, nor should my thyroid. So there is an end in site. The other 6 causes of concern in the blood work stemmed from these issues and are already being corrected. 


As for now, my job is to:
1. stay stress free
2. work out 4 times a week
3. sleep with socks on
4. eat more fish and cheese
5. have planned intercourse, I prefer to use the term lots of love making ;)
6. keep the same diet, except for the add ins of course
7. sleep in pitch black room
8. continue taking magnesium, prenatal, D3
9. only take B6 during peak mucus or ovulation time


For those of you who pee on stick everyday, sometimes twice a day like me, I highly recommend purchasing the single test strips. They are far less expensive and produce much less waste. Click the link below to see Amazon.com's recommendations. Your wallet and husband will thank you!
http://www.amazon.com/Wondfo-Pregnancy-Test-Strips-50-count/dp/B004AOMAOG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1312382495&sr=8-2

Everybody Poops

Let's face it, everybody poops. It's parting of being alive.

So here I am, sitting on my sofa doing a "bowel prep" before my surgery tomorrow. Which basically means I'm a pooping machine today. Having already had a colonoscopy at the ripe age of 27, this is not my first bowel prep. However, your mind kind of blocks out what the last one was like. But thankfully I'm not drinking the jug of salt water that makes you heave every time you smell it. I must say, magnesium citrate is the way to go to flush out your system. Pop it in some hot chamomile tea with a little lemon juice, you won't taste a thing. However your mind will not let you forget that the tea is going to make you shit your brains out. Best of luck.

As I'm sitting on my sofa waiting for the poop to come, my mother in law phones. Apparently Dr. C left a message that he needs to speak with me as soon as possible and to have him paged if he's with someone. A little bit of panic set in, but I attempted to remain calm and phoned his office. After a 5 minute wait he picks up. The blood work that I had done on Sunday indicated I have yet another ovarian cyst. Not entirely surprised since I've been held up on the sofa all week in pain and the swelling has been ridiculous. The fortunate thing being I have surgery tomorrow. So due to my bowel prep, he recommended holding off on an ultrasound and calling the surgeon's office to inform them.

The other unfortunate thing being the blood work also revealed I have hypothyroidism. Shocker. It runs in my family. Symptoms: brittle nails & hair, dry flaky skin, cold sensitivity, weight gain and fatigue. BUT it can also cause infertility and miscarriage. He simply suggested a synthetic version of the hormone that will help to regulate my system. This is to commence after my surgery followed by blood work after a month to retest my levels. It may take a couple months to find the right dosage, but it should make a difference. 

So as I wait for the surgeon to phone back and the poop to exit my body, I'll continue to starve myself eating only jello and sipping Gatorade while watching the entire first season of My So Called Life.

What else is there to do?

INFO on Hypothyroidism:
The thyroid is a butterfly-shaped gland situated in the lower neck just above the collarbones. It secretes hormones that control general metabolism and influences a wide range of other biological functions including body temperature, blood calcium, weight loss, and menstrual periods.Studies show that under active thyroid- hypothyroidism can result in increased risk of miscarriage, premature birth, maternal high blood pressure during pregnancy and pre-eclampsia, a potentially serious condition that develops during the last trimester of pregnancy.