…To move forward despite having little energy to do so. That’s my new mantra! Along with “fake it till ya make it”. Ha!
Went to the doc this week and still don’t have a diagnosis. My TSH levels dropped back down to a more normalish range, though apparently you can still feel crappy at 3.35 but the doc can’t do anything about it till you’re over 5.0 (my previous test was 4.91).
On the one hand, I am happy that maybe I don’t have a thyroid problem…..on the other hand…well, then what is my problem?
What’s a gal to do? Well, her nails and to start watching Seasons 1 and 2 of House (lent to me by a colleague), photo for Jan 27.
What else can I do? Eat healthy! Jan 28 – Slow Cooker Pork with Beans and Greens. JD gave it a 10/10! I liked it too, but not quite that much. Recipe from SparkPeople.com.
Doc has now signed me up for a sleep clinic as she wants to rule out sleep apnea. JD says I definitely do not have sleep apnea, though I am snoring a lot (blush!), he says. Sleeping in a strange place, hooked up to a lot of wires and people watching/videoing you sleeping….hmmm, not something I’d ever consider doing but….my dad had sleep apnea. I remember listening to him snore when I was a kid, and then he’d stop and I’d wait and wait and want to run in the room and scream “Start breathing again, dammit!” (I swore a lot back then).
Heck, he had even had awake-apnea. Dad smoked like a chimney up until the last few years of his life and I remember a particular coughing fit of his at our cottage in which he actually passed out from lack of oxygen! When he came to, he denied that he passed out but it was pretty obvious. Men! Cough, cough, cough, cough, topple over, lay there, open eyes, look dazed, get up, cough some more. Thankfully he was on the floor already fixing something by the wood stove when he passed out so he didn’t have far to fall. 
What else can I do to make myself feel better? Well, despite my lethargy (0r maybe because of it) I should be forcing myself to move more. So behold my new pedometer (Jan 29th photo). It arrived today from Well.ca
I find wearing a pedometer very motivating. Something about seeing those numbers and wanting to see what it takes to make more of them! DATA! Give me DATA! And it does. It even distinguishes between basic wandering around and AEROBIC STEPS. What be AEROBIC STEPS? I guess I’ll be finding out!
Excitement! Mystery! Suspense! Stay tuned.
You know I am self-medicating because of how lousy I feel. That’s right, after about 15-20 years off of the stuff, I am back to drinking coffee again. A half cup in the a.m. with lots of milk seems to clear up the brain fog a wee bit. Not even close to the gallons of straight black Columbian I used to enjoy, but I am on the slippery slope, yessir.
I mentioned this to my doc, thinking it would alarm her but NO. She told me “We docs drink coffee to stay alert – it’s a stimulant you know. I drink about 2 cups a day myself…so you go girl! Enjoy your coffee.” Huh? Coffee not bad? Especially for my gastric reflux?
What next?!? If I tell her I am uptight from too much coffee is she going to suggest a ciggie and a cocktail, to take the edge off? “Yes Mizz D, we docs often get liquored up and smoke like fiends – it helps after a long hard day of doctoring people like yourself.”
Hmmm, I just don’t know how I feel about coffee. On the one hand, I like to think clearly (and clearly, who doesn’t?), on the other….I have an addictive personality so I am a bit concerned that my “lil’ helper” could turn into a big ol’ monkey on my back (again) before I know it. I even feel guilty having caffeinated tea more than once in a wee while. Hmmm.
‘Course, if I lost some weight, my gastric reflux might disappear and IF I had sleep apnea, that might disappear, and if I exercised more I MIGHT just feel a whole lot better and fitter and maybe my brain would clear up on its own?
So that leaves me where I started with this blog. Determined to take better care of myself, since medicine doesn’t have any answers for me at this moment.
Hey Pal…. are you eating many soy products? They can effect your thyroid adversely. I found out I can't go near the stuff, makes me gain weight and feel really sluggish, always tired. So I avoid the stuff like the plague.
Here's to "House"! I'm watching it as well- Season 2 right now. Enjoy it a lot.
There's a lot of studies out saying coffee is actually good for you – antioxidants and all, plus they think it may help ward off altzheimers. I also had trouble with sleep – and was booked to go to a sleep clinic. Howvere, I found if I stopped with the coffee at noon and took melatonin at night, I sleep! YAY!! Just a thought.
Anyways enjoy reading what's going on in your life! XOXOX Lafang!
Thanks Fang!
I rarely eat/drink soy. Maybe a soy latte once every other month. So I doubt that's the culprit. I have been reading that stress affects the thyroid. What doesn't stress affect, really? And Nov/Dec was extremely stressful – burning the candle at both ends. I am starting to feel better lately and my TSH levels are improving so perhaps I am just recovering from being so out-of-balance.
I am trying to enjoy the occasional cuppa joe sans guilt. Yeah, I read about the antioxidant power of coffee too, so it can't be all that bad. I just hate the thought of getting addicted to it again. Melatonin is a thought – I will check it out!
Thanks for reading pal! I enjoy your blog as well.
Hugs, NG