I'm firing a doctor
I was diagnosed as hypothyroid a few months after Audrey was born. My TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone, which is produced to, obviously, stimulate the thyroid as needed) was through the roof. My thyroid gland was not functioning properly, so my body was making more TSH to try to help it. I was diagnosed, went on Synthroid, and everything leveled off. I have to stay on these meds the rest of my life (I'm told), and get my TSH (and a few other things) checked a couple of times a year.
When I was pregnant with Aislinn, I anticipated needing, at some point, to increase my medication. Weight gain and hormones tend to make this happen. I get tested more often when I'm pregnant for this reason. Well...my levels stayed the same. Highly unusual, but not a bad thing. And after Aislinn was born, I was actually able to decrease my medication.
Fast forward to this pregnancy. The day my home test was positive, I had a regular follow up appointment scheduled. Since my last pregnancy, my doc had read a study that advised all pregnant women to increase their med dosage immediately upon becoming pregnant, since hypothyroidism carries an increased risk of miscarriage. If you know me or have read my blog for some time, you know I have a history of miscarriage, so I am extra cautious about such things. I did remind my doc of my previous pregnancy, in which I did not need to increase my dosage. I asked him specifically, "Increasing my meds is not going to make me HYPERthyroid, is it?" No, of course not, he reassured me. I agreed to increase my dosage, despite a nagging feeling I should wait until the next scheduled blood test to see what my levels were.
Always listen to those nagging feelings. That is your intuition. TRUST IT. I usually trust mine, but I did not in this case.
The past few weeks, even though I was at the end of my first trimester, I have been feeling more tired than I remember in previous pregnancies at this point. My appetite is not coming back. Yesterday, when I weighed myself at Curves (on traditional doctor's office balance-type scales), I noticed I had LOST a pound since the previous Wednesday. Not good. I started thinking about possibilities, and thought about my increased Synthroid dosage. I got online and did a little detective work. Hyperthyroidism was a definite culprit. I was supposed to get blood drawn that day anyway for an appointment scheduled for tomorrow. I went in yesterday afternoon, and Leo went in to pick up my results for me. No way was I waiting for the appointment tomorrow.
Guess what? My TSH is at ZERO. My thyroid is overactive, it doesn't need to be stimulated by TSH, so my body is not producing any. I AM HYPERTHYROID. This is exactly what my internist promised would NOT happen.
I've made an appointment with a new doctor down in the city we will (HOPEFULLY) be moving to. (It's only a half hour away in the meantime.) She doesn't have anything open until August 21, though. I don't really want to see my old doc again, but I think I have no choice at this point, as I'm not sure if I should just stop taking my current medication until everything levels out, or if I should go on a different medication lower my thyroid function more quickly.
Tomorrow is going to be hard. I am not good at confrontation, and I already have failed at confronting this doctor when I knew I should. I am terrible at giving doctors more authority over me than they should, which is why I usually shop for doctors that have the same mindset as I do (i.e. THEY LISTEN TO ME. This is yet another reason I give birth at home. I don't want to have to argue for what I want/don't want in a hospital setting. Midwives practice the way I think, so I rarely have to argue with them, and when I do, the one I've got has always acknowledged my wishes). In this case, I didn't have much choice. This doc is part of the only internist practice in town. I don't care anymore if I have to drive a half hour.
But I'm still going to have to work up the nerve to tell this guy he screwed up tomorrow.
When I was pregnant with Aislinn, I anticipated needing, at some point, to increase my medication. Weight gain and hormones tend to make this happen. I get tested more often when I'm pregnant for this reason. Well...my levels stayed the same. Highly unusual, but not a bad thing. And after Aislinn was born, I was actually able to decrease my medication.
Fast forward to this pregnancy. The day my home test was positive, I had a regular follow up appointment scheduled. Since my last pregnancy, my doc had read a study that advised all pregnant women to increase their med dosage immediately upon becoming pregnant, since hypothyroidism carries an increased risk of miscarriage. If you know me or have read my blog for some time, you know I have a history of miscarriage, so I am extra cautious about such things. I did remind my doc of my previous pregnancy, in which I did not need to increase my dosage. I asked him specifically, "Increasing my meds is not going to make me HYPERthyroid, is it?" No, of course not, he reassured me. I agreed to increase my dosage, despite a nagging feeling I should wait until the next scheduled blood test to see what my levels were.
Always listen to those nagging feelings. That is your intuition. TRUST IT. I usually trust mine, but I did not in this case.
The past few weeks, even though I was at the end of my first trimester, I have been feeling more tired than I remember in previous pregnancies at this point. My appetite is not coming back. Yesterday, when I weighed myself at Curves (on traditional doctor's office balance-type scales), I noticed I had LOST a pound since the previous Wednesday. Not good. I started thinking about possibilities, and thought about my increased Synthroid dosage. I got online and did a little detective work. Hyperthyroidism was a definite culprit. I was supposed to get blood drawn that day anyway for an appointment scheduled for tomorrow. I went in yesterday afternoon, and Leo went in to pick up my results for me. No way was I waiting for the appointment tomorrow.
Guess what? My TSH is at ZERO. My thyroid is overactive, it doesn't need to be stimulated by TSH, so my body is not producing any. I AM HYPERTHYROID. This is exactly what my internist promised would NOT happen.
I've made an appointment with a new doctor down in the city we will (HOPEFULLY) be moving to. (It's only a half hour away in the meantime.) She doesn't have anything open until August 21, though. I don't really want to see my old doc again, but I think I have no choice at this point, as I'm not sure if I should just stop taking my current medication until everything levels out, or if I should go on a different medication lower my thyroid function more quickly.
Tomorrow is going to be hard. I am not good at confrontation, and I already have failed at confronting this doctor when I knew I should. I am terrible at giving doctors more authority over me than they should, which is why I usually shop for doctors that have the same mindset as I do (i.e. THEY LISTEN TO ME. This is yet another reason I give birth at home. I don't want to have to argue for what I want/don't want in a hospital setting. Midwives practice the way I think, so I rarely have to argue with them, and when I do, the one I've got has always acknowledged my wishes). In this case, I didn't have much choice. This doc is part of the only internist practice in town. I don't care anymore if I have to drive a half hour.
But I'm still going to have to work up the nerve to tell this guy he screwed up tomorrow.
posted by Andrea | 9:49 AM
3 Comments:
Good luck with saying what you need to say. I know you can do it :-)
good luck! I know doctors can be so cocky, because well, they have to be, otherwise every person will come in second guessing them. But with all the BS I've gone through with doctors lately, I am so with you. Always trust your body!
Or if anything you can call your insurance and have an 'advocate' tear them a new one like I did! :)
Hi Andrea, I was recently diagnosed with hyperthyroidism aka Graves Disease. I was online searching for information and came across this posting. I hope you did find your voice and told your doctor what he did. I just wanted to wish you luck and thank you for sharing.
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