Guest guest Posted November 8, 2011 Report Share Posted November 8, 2011 That's too bad it's so far. I used to live in Texas and I know what it's like to drive across the state and feel you drove halfway across the country and you still have hours to the state border. Maybe you could have a goat in your backyard. There are people around me that raise goats and they don't need a lot of room. The local ordinances may even allow it. I just started raising chickens and people said that you can't have them or roosters where I live. They were wrong. I checked and they were wrong, I could even have a rooster. I just needed to keep the coop smaller than 10x10 and couldn't have a massive chicken production going. Al Re: New Member >> > >> >I am sooo jealous! My nearest raw milk is 4 hr away and it's $10-12 per gallon. I am trying Organic Valley pasteurized (not ultra) from Sprouts at $5.99 per HALF gallon. >> >Lala in RGV >> > >> > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 1, 2012 Report Share Posted March 1, 2012 Welcome to the group, . wrote: > > ... I cannot say 100% that I have Achalasia. ... > Most people with problems swallowing do not have achalasia. It has a prevalence of 1 in 10,000 people so it is rare. It is not considered to be inherited so the fact that your cousin has it does not imply anything about you having it. Hiatal hernia is one of the conditions that is sometime misdiagnosed when people do have achalasia. Most people seem to progress faster than you are, but it took decades for me to get to where I had surgery. I can't be sure though that all those years were just achalasia because I did not get tested until late. You may want to get another barium swallow to see if the esophagus is getting dilated. If it is you may want to do something before the dilating progresses, whatever it is caused by. If it could be achalasia the best test to confirm it is a manometry test where the motility of the esophageal muscles is measured by pressure sensors. If you ever have heartburn, common with hiatal hernia, it could actually be spasms from achalasia. Not everyone with achalasia has spasms, heartburn or other NCCPs (Non-Cardiac Chest Pain). notan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 1, 2012 Report Share Posted March 1, 2012 Welcome . I hope for you that you do NOT have achalasia.  You're right - this is a wonderful group of people - I'm blessed to have found them. We're here to help if we can. Kim ________________________________ From: <scottsegall@...> achalasia Sent: Thursday, March 1, 2012 4:00 PM Subject: New Member  Hello everyone! My name is , and I am 52 and live in New Jersey. I fist want to say how terrific it is to find this group - and I am very moved by the support and care all of you have for each other. I cannot say 100% that I have Achalasia. I have had " trouble " swallowing probably since I was about 30 years old. I can't recall the onset. Over the past 20+ years, I'd have to say that it has not gotten any better, nor worse. It seems to happen more with meats that I do not chew enough. Also tends to happen more with apples. I suspect it has to do more with the size of what I am swallowing rather than the texture. Around 8 years ago I had a test done where I drank some fluid and they put me in some kind of machine to watch my swallowing etc. They did NOT tell me I had Achalasia. Rather, I was told I had a Hiatal Hernia. (spelling?) I had not heard of Achalasia until last week when I was with a cousin of mine who told me he had this 'swallowing problem' and that he had surgery to correct it. That is the first time I heard the word Achalasia. When I read up on it, it seems more of what I have than a Hiatal Hernia. But I am unsure. It does seem to me that some people on this list (and in the general public) have it much more severe than I do. I don't have spasms. I am able to eat most of the time. Yes, there have been many times in the past 22 years that I have to 'wait' for the food to 'go down'. And on occasion, I have to vomit up my food to clear my esophagus. (Well, that is what I think I am doing). As I said above, it has not gotten any better or worse over the years. I just try to chew really well to avoid the whole problem. You all may be wondering why I am sharing my story... I guess I am interested in getting feedback as to whether I need to investigate further if I indeed have Achalasia, or, since I am not getting any worse and able to eat, if getting a true diagnosis would be helpful in some way? Perhaps I should seek out a specialist in New York City to at least have someone that can verify and also watch how I change (or not change) from year to year? I would love to get any feedback - and if anyone knows of a good specialist in New York City - that would be good information to have, whether I need the specialist now, or in X amount of time. Thanks again to everyone on this supportive group! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 1, 2012 Report Share Posted March 1, 2012 Nolan, Thank you for your response! I think you are right, I need to see if I have Achalasia. Can you or someone else in this group let me know how to go about finding the right 'expert' in New York City? I might as well go to the most experienced and best I can find from the 'get go'. Thanks again! > > > > ... I cannot say 100% that I have Achalasia. ... > > > > Most people with problems swallowing do not have achalasia. It has a > prevalence of 1 in 10,000 people so it is rare. It is not considered to > be inherited so the fact that your cousin has it does not imply anything > about you having it. Hiatal hernia is one of the conditions that is > sometime misdiagnosed when people do have achalasia. Most people seem to > progress faster than you are, but it took decades for me to get to where > I had surgery. I can't be sure though that all those years were just > achalasia because I did not get tested until late. You may want to get > another barium swallow to see if the esophagus is getting dilated. If it > is you may want to do something before the dilating progresses, whatever > it is caused by. If it could be achalasia the best test to confirm it is > a manometry test where the motility of the esophageal muscles is > measured by pressure sensors. If you ever have heartburn, common with > hiatal hernia, it could actually be spasms from achalasia. Not everyone > with achalasia has spasms, heartburn or other NCCPs (Non-Cardiac Chest > Pain). > > notan > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 2, 2012 Report Share Posted March 2, 2012 Hi, ! Try this link: achalasia/message/60248 Also: put NYC in the search box at the top of this page. . . . Good luck! in the Wilds of Wonderful West Virginia > > > > > > ... I cannot say 100% that I have Achalasia. ... > > > > > > > Most people with problems swallowing do not have achalasia. It has a > > prevalence of 1 in 10,000 people so it is rare. It is not considered to > > be inherited so the fact that your cousin has it does not imply anything > > about you having it. Hiatal hernia is one of the conditions that is > > sometime misdiagnosed when people do have achalasia. Most people seem to > > progress faster than you are, but it took decades for me to get to where > > I had surgery. I can't be sure though that all those years were just > > achalasia because I did not get tested until late. You may want to get > > another barium swallow to see if the esophagus is getting dilated. If it > > is you may want to do something before the dilating progresses, whatever > > it is caused by. If it could be achalasia the best test to confirm it is > > a manometry test where the motility of the esophageal muscles is > > measured by pressure sensors. If you ever have heartburn, common with > > hiatal hernia, it could actually be spasms from achalasia. Not everyone > > with achalasia has spasms, heartburn or other NCCPs (Non-Cardiac Chest > > Pain). > > > > notan > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 2, 2012 Report Share Posted March 2, 2012 Hello . I am glad that you found our group. Being you are in New York you are not to far from the Cleveland Clinic and Dr Rice. That is one of the best places to go if you can get over there. If you have any questions or want to talk I am always free and you can contact me anytime. in Georgia Sent from my iPhone On Mar 1, 2012, at 16:00, " " <scottsegall@...> wrote: > Hello everyone! > My name is , and I am 52 and live in New Jersey. > > I fist want to say how terrific it is to find this group - and I am very moved by the support and care all of you have for each other. > > I cannot say 100% that I have Achalasia. I have had " trouble " swallowing probably since I was about 30 years old. I can't recall the onset. Over the past 20+ years, I'd have to say that it has not gotten any better, nor worse. It seems to happen more with meats that I do not chew enough. Also tends to happen more with apples. I suspect it has to do more with the size of what I am swallowing rather than the texture. > > Around 8 years ago I had a test done where I drank some fluid and they put me in some kind of machine to watch my swallowing etc. > They did NOT tell me I had Achalasia. Rather, I was told I had a Hiatal Hernia. (spelling?) > > I had not heard of Achalasia until last week when I was with a cousin of mine who told me he had this 'swallowing problem' and that he had surgery to correct it. That is the first time I heard the word Achalasia. > > When I read up on it, it seems more of what I have than a Hiatal Hernia. But I am unsure. > > It does seem to me that some people on this list (and in the general public) have it much more severe than I do. I don't have spasms. I am able to eat most of the time. Yes, there have been many times in the past 22 years that I have to 'wait' for the food to 'go down'. And on occasion, I have to vomit up my food to clear my esophagus. (Well, that is what I think I am doing). > As I said above, it has not gotten any better or worse over the years. > I just try to chew really well to avoid the whole problem. > > You all may be wondering why I am sharing my story... > > I guess I am interested in getting feedback as to whether I need to investigate further if I indeed have Achalasia, or, since I am not getting any worse and able to eat, if getting a true diagnosis would be helpful in some way? > > Perhaps I should seek out a specialist in New York City to at least have someone that can verify and also watch how I change (or not change) from year to year? > > I would love to get any feedback - and if anyone knows of a good specialist in New York City - that would be good information to have, whether I need the specialist now, or in X amount of time. > > Thanks again to everyone on this supportive group! > > > > > > > TODAY(Beta) • Powered by > Man's forehead rebuilt using stomach fat > A few years after surgery left Tim Barter with a dented skull, he has experienced an amazing recovery. > Privacy Policy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 2, 2012 Report Share Posted March 2, 2012 :  I have been to Dr. Traube in NYC. Very knowledgeable and caring.  530 1st Avenue New York, NY 10016  212-263-3095  NYU Medical Center.  ________________________________ From: <scottsegall@...> achalasia Sent: Friday, March 2, 2012 12:07 AM Subject: Re: New Member  Nolan, Thank you for your response! I think you are right, I need to see if I have Achalasia. Can you or someone else in this group let me know how to go about finding the right 'expert' in New York City? I might as well go to the most experienced and best I can find from the 'get go'. Thanks again! > > > > ... I cannot say 100% that I have Achalasia. ... > > > > Most people with problems swallowing do not have achalasia. It has a > prevalence of 1 in 10,000 people so it is rare. It is not considered to > be inherited so the fact that your cousin has it does not imply anything > about you having it. Hiatal hernia is one of the conditions that is > sometime misdiagnosed when people do have achalasia. Most people seem to > progress faster than you are, but it took decades for me to get to where > I had surgery. I can't be sure though that all those years were just > achalasia because I did not get tested until late. You may want to get > another barium swallow to see if the esophagus is getting dilated. If it > is you may want to do something before the dilating progresses, whatever > it is caused by. If it could be achalasia the best test to confirm it is > a manometry test where the motility of the esophageal muscles is > measured by pressure sensors. If you ever have heartburn, common with > hiatal hernia, it could actually be spasms from achalasia. Not everyone > with achalasia has spasms, heartburn or other NCCPs (Non-Cardiac Chest > Pain). > > notan > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 2, 2012 Report Share Posted March 2, 2012 Thank you , , and , for your recommendations! I will report back when I have ascertained whether I indeed have Achalasia and what the doctor says. Thanks again, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 5, 2012 Report Share Posted March 5, 2012 Hello , Your symptoms sound exactly like mine: 20+ years of difficulty swallowing but you are still able to eat and not lose weight, difficulty especially with some foods (also steak and apples for me), never had any spasms, sometimes had to wait/force food to go down, on occasions needed to " clear " the esophagus. Ended up in the ER one day from severe dehydration and found out I had A. When I first discovered this web site I was also surprised how debilitating this condition is for some people. I can tell you that even though I thought I had a relatively normal life in my case surgery helped immensely, solved problems I didn't realize I had. You can see my story at: http://f1.grp.fs.com/v1/0LhUT58CKdK4KKQRK0FKE9RzruwMDmaX7HIuBmlTCCVH1btH_EV\ cvxi29MQnyjUGEIdLZxEPmsY_qnQgHp-3Vfxqh_Ikb84AKA/Member%20Stories%20%26%20History\ /s_Achalasia_Story.txt Also if Boston is convenient I can tell you first hand there are great doctors (Rattner, Hutter) and top notch facilities here. > > Hello everyone! > My name is , and I am 52 and live in New Jersey. > > I fist want to say how terrific it is to find this group - and I am very moved by the support and care all of you have for each other. > > I cannot say 100% that I have Achalasia. I have had " trouble " swallowing probably since I was about 30 years old. I can't recall the onset. Over the past 20+ years, I'd have to say that it has not gotten any better, nor worse. It seems to happen more with meats that I do not chew enough. Also tends to happen more with apples. I suspect it has to do more with the size of what I am swallowing rather than the texture. > > Around 8 years ago I had a test done where I drank some fluid and they put me in some kind of machine to watch my swallowing etc. > They did NOT tell me I had Achalasia. Rather, I was told I had a Hiatal Hernia. (spelling?) > > I had not heard of Achalasia until last week when I was with a cousin of mine who told me he had this 'swallowing problem' and that he had surgery to correct it. That is the first time I heard the word Achalasia. > > When I read up on it, it seems more of what I have than a Hiatal Hernia. But I am unsure. > > It does seem to me that some people on this list (and in the general public) have it much more severe than I do. I don't have spasms. I am able to eat most of the time. Yes, there have been many times in the past 22 years that I have to 'wait' for the food to 'go down'. And on occasion, I have to vomit up my food to clear my esophagus. (Well, that is what I think I am doing). > As I said above, it has not gotten any better or worse over the years. > I just try to chew really well to avoid the whole problem. > > You all may be wondering why I am sharing my story... > > I guess I am interested in getting feedback as to whether I need to investigate further if I indeed have Achalasia, or, since I am not getting any worse and able to eat, if getting a true diagnosis would be helpful in some way? > > Perhaps I should seek out a specialist in New York City to at least have someone that can verify and also watch how I change (or not change) from year to year? > > I would love to get any feedback - and if anyone knows of a good specialist in New York City - that would be good information to have, whether I need the specialist now, or in X amount of time. > > Thanks again to everyone on this supportive group! > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 5, 2012 Report Share Posted March 5, 2012 Hi , And thank you for your message! The link you provided did not work, it kept going to a web page that said the document was not there, or some kind of error. Maybe it's no longer on the web? I have a question..how did you go from being somewhat of a mild case of swallowing issues to being in the ER dehydrated? Is it that with Achalasia that you can go from mild to extreme very quickly? Thanks, > > Hello , > Your symptoms sound exactly like mine: 20+ years of difficulty swallowing but you are still able to eat and not lose weight, difficulty especially with some foods (also steak and apples for me), never had any spasms, sometimes had to wait/force food to go down, on occasions needed to " clear " the esophagus. > Ended up in the ER one day from severe dehydration and found out I had A. > When I first discovered this web site I was also surprised how debilitating this condition is for some people. I can tell you that even though I thought I had a relatively normal life in my case surgery helped immensely, solved problems I didn't realize I had. > > You can see my story at: > http://f1.grp.fs.com/v1/0LhUT58CKdK4KKQRK0FKE9RzruwMDmaX7HIuBmlTCCVH1btH_EV\ cvxi29MQnyjUGEIdLZxEPmsY_qnQgHp-3Vfxqh_Ikb84AKA/Member%20Stories%20%26%20History\ /s_Achalasia_Story.txt > > Also if Boston is convenient I can tell you first hand there are great doctors (Rattner, Hutter) and top notch facilities here. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 5, 2012 Report Share Posted March 5, 2012 wrote: > > Is it that with Achalasia that you can go from mild to extreme very > quickly? > We are all different some just progress slowly but some have these events where all of a sudden the esophagus just seem to shut down. Often these events are temporary but sometimes people end up in the ER for dehydration and then sometimes remain in the hospital waiting for treatment. notan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 5, 2012 Report Share Posted March 5, 2012 Notan, I agree. I did just fine, no real pain or anything, just the inconvenience of having to force food into my stomach for 19 years. Then, one day I regurgutate what I think is some stuck pizza and all that comes out was blood! We just never know when things can go from seemingly harmless to life threatening! Heroldachalasia From: notan_ostrich@... Date: Mon, 5 Mar 2012 08:52:04 -0700 Subject: Re: Re: New Member wrote: > > Is it that with Achalasia that you can go from mild to extreme very > quickly? > We are all different some just progress slowly but some have these events where all of a sudden the esophagus just seem to shut down. Often these events are temporary but sometimes people end up in the ER for dehydration and then sometimes remain in the hospital waiting for treatment. notan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 6, 2012 Report Share Posted March 6, 2012 Maybe the long linkd didn't make it through. You can navigate to my story (and others) directly on the left pane of this groups web site: " Files " -> " Member Stories & History " -> " s_Achalasia_Story.txt " My Achalasia didn't suddenly get worse, it just to an combination of circumstsnces to discover I had Achelasia. I often had troble swallowing, and about once a month food wouldn't go down, even if I tried to force it. I couldn't eat or drink any more and I'd wait for a few hours for the food pass on its own. By chance one of those days was a hot summer day when I had a very competetive ultimate frisbee game (requires a lot of sprinting). I was playing quite hard, tried to stay hydrated, but the water kept coming up. Near the end I almost passed out; I never got to that point before so my wife brought me to the ER. When they saw I couldn't swallow water they put me on IV to re-hydrate and called in an available GI (who just happened to be the head of the department). He saw the impacted food and immediately suspected achalasia. By next morning the food passed through and I was able to eat again, so was back to what was " normal " for me - difficulty swallowing but it would go down. The tests confirmed his diagnosis, and I scheduled a Heller Myotomy for about 5 months later. In the 5 months between the ER and surgery I made sure to chew more fully and drink plenty of liquid before, with, and after any food. In those months I never had another " would not go down " episode, and since surgery I've had no difficulty swallowing. > > > > Hello , > > Your symptoms sound exactly like mine: 20+ years of difficulty swallowing but you are still able to eat and not lose weight, difficulty especially with some foods (also steak and apples for me), never had any spasms, sometimes had to wait/force food to go down, on occasions needed to " clear " the esophagus. > > Ended up in the ER one day from severe dehydration and found out I had A. > > When I first discovered this web site I was also surprised how debilitating this condition is for some people. I can tell you that even though I thought I had a relatively normal life in my case surgery helped immensely, solved problems I didn't realize I had. > > > > You can see my story at: > > http://f1.grp.fs.com/v1/0LhUT58CKdK4KKQRK0FKE9RzruwMDmaX7HIuBmlTCCVH1btH_EV\ cvxi29MQnyjUGEIdLZxEPmsY_qnQgHp-3Vfxqh_Ikb84AKA/Member%20Stories%20%26%20History\ /s_Achalasia_Story.txt > > > > Also if Boston is convenient I can tell you first hand there are great doctors (Rattner, Hutter) and top notch facilities here. > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 6, 2012 Report Share Posted March 6, 2012 wrote: > > By chance one of those days was a hot summer day when I had a very > competetive ultimate frisbee game (requires a lot of sprinting). I was > playing quite hard, tried to stay hydrated, but the water kept coming > up. Near the end I almost passed out; I never got to that point before > so my wife brought me to the ER. > Before my myotomy I used to climb the mountain trails around this city. I found it like clock work that part ways up I would no longer be able to drink. I would start early but here it can get very hot fast and often by the time I got back home I was fairly dehydrated. Kind of scary but I didn't want to give it up. Back home it didn't take long for things to calm down to where I could start drinking slowly again and then faster a little later. I suspect that the hard breathing on the steep climbs stimulated the trachea, lungs and heart so also stimulating the vagus nerve which then aggravated the achalasia. Just a guess but that is how it seemed to me. Another theory would be that all the hard impact on the feet caused trapped food to become more impacted in the bird beak. To me it seems things were worse on the way up where the breathing was hard, but the impact on the feet was not as hard as on the way down when breathing would be easier. So I go with the breathing not the hard foot impacts. Perhaps there are other ways of stimulating achalasia to be worse that don't involve physical exertion. A stuck pill irritating the esophagus for example. Whatever the causes, I think many of us have had these kind of episodes. Some like mine are short but others can last for days. notan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 7, 2012 Report Share Posted March 7, 2012 , Thanks for the feedback. I have scheduled my initial appointment with Dr. Traube in NYC. Reading tons of past posts in this group - so much great info! Thanks to everyone.. > > Maybe the long linkd didn't make it through. You can navigate to my story (and others) directly on the left pane of this groups web site: > > " Files " -> " Member Stories & History " -> " s_Achalasia_Story.txt " > > My Achalasia didn't suddenly get worse, it just to an combination of circumstsnces to discover I had Achelasia. > I often had troble swallowing, and about once a month food wouldn't go down, even if I tried to force it. I couldn't eat or drink any more and I'd wait for a few hours for the food pass on its own. > > By chance one of those days was a hot summer day when I had a very competetive ultimate frisbee game (requires a lot of sprinting). I was playing quite hard, tried to stay hydrated, but the water kept coming up. Near the end I almost passed out; I never got to that point before so my wife brought me to the ER. > > When they saw I couldn't swallow water they put me on IV to re-hydrate and called in an available GI (who just happened to be the head of the department). He saw the impacted food and immediately suspected achalasia. By next morning the food passed through and I was able to eat again, so was back to what was " normal " for me - difficulty swallowing but it would go down. > > The tests confirmed his diagnosis, and I scheduled a Heller Myotomy for about 5 months later. In the 5 months between the ER and surgery I made sure to chew more fully and drink plenty of liquid before, with, and after any food. In those months I never had another " would not go down " episode, and since surgery I've had no difficulty swallowing. > > > - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 Hi I am taking 150mcg Levothyroxine daily and have been taking it for approx 15yrs. My symptoms are thinning hair, chilliness, dry skin, pain in joints, extreme exhaustion and weight gain. I put on 3 stone. I eat a very healthy diet, lots of fruit and veg, I dont like sweet things or fizzy drinks. When I feel low I take a liquid vitamin and mineral supplement for a week or two. I am aged 63 and have also had menopause symptoms for the last 10 yrs approx, with hot flushes. My Gp has in the past advised diet and excercise. He referred me to a nutritionist who looked at my food diary and told me I was not eating enough. I cannot swim and my joints are painful so when I went to the gym they made it clear did not want me to join. I am too exhausted anyway. Several years ago I told my GP I wanted to stop taking Levothyroxin and he was horrified , and panicked me so I carried on with it. I had a hysterectomy (not ovaries) approx 20 yrs ago and gall bladder removal approx 6yrs ago. I have Sarcoidosis of the lungs (which is inflamation of the lymph glands) since I was in my twenties and it flares up from time to time with Erythemia of the legs, and I have been hospitalised and treated with Prednisilone. My history is complicated and I have been treated for bouts of depression in the past. I am begining to realise all these things add up. I have started taking my temperature at night and morning and have ordered some T3 online and intend to start taking it when it arrives. All the information from TPA is daunting but I will make an appt to see my GP and ask for the blood tests. It is hard to take it all on board, but I really appreciate your help, Terry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 8, 2012 Report Share Posted March 8, 2012 Hi Terry Before you change your thyroid hormone replacement for T3, please check out the details below and go through all of these to ensure you are not suffering with any of these. Any of these could stop your thyroid hormone from working, and it will be of no use you changing to T3 if this is the case. You need to go through each one of these by way of a process of elimination, and you have to be really strict about this. Doctors are not even aware that any of these could be a problem, but we have done our research and know that they are. There are MANY reasons and many medical conditions associated with thyroid disease that stop thyroid hormone from getting into the cells, where it does its work. I mention these over and over and over again - ad nauseum - people must be bored with the same old stuff, but as each new member joins us, they need to know about these. The main condition responsible for stopping thyroid hormone from working is, quite simply, a patient’s thyroid hormone dose is too low because the doctor or consultant refuses to increase it, because the serum thyroid function test results appear OK. Sometimes, the thyroxine dose is too high, yet patients still don't feel well. They continue to suffer. Some reasons for this: 1. You may be suffering with low adrenal reserve. The production of T4, its conversion to T3, and the receptor uptake requires a normal amount of adrenal hormones, notably, of course, cortisone. (Excess cortisone can shut production down, however.) This is what happens if the adrenals are not responding properly, and provision of cortisone usually switches it on again. But sometimes it doesn’t. If the illness has been going on for a long time, the enzyme seems to fail. This conversion failure (inexplicably denied by many endocrinologists) means the thyroxine builds up, unconverted. So it doesn’t work, and T4 toxicosis results. This makes the patient feel quite unwell, toxic, often with palpitations and chest pain. If provision of adrenal support doesn’t remedy the situation, the final solution is the use of the active thyroid hormone, already converted, T3 - either synthetic or natural. You can check for such a possibility by going to the FILES SECTION of our forum http://health.grouops//thyroid treatment/files/ and scroll down to the folder entitled 'Medical Questionnaires' and complete the Adrenal one. Let us know how you score. You can also get the 24 hour salivary adrenal profile from Genova Diagnostics. See the File entitled 'Discounts on Tests and Supplements'. When ordering, write that Thyroid Patient Advocacy is your medical practitioner. They will send out a kit to you and the results will be sent direct to you. When you receive these, post the results on the forum with the reference ranges and we will help with their interpretation. 2. Then, we have systemic candidiasis. This is where candida albicans, yeast, which causes skin infections almost anywhere in the body, invades the lining of the lower part of the small intestine and the large intestine. Here, the candida sets up residence in the warmth and the dark, and demands to be fed. Loving sugars and starches, candida can make you suffer terrible sweet cravings. Candida can produce toxins which can cause very many symptoms of exhaustion, headache, general illness, and which interfere with the uptake of thyroid and adrenal treatment. Sometimes the levels - which we usually test for - can be very high, and make successful treatment difficult to achieve until adequately treated. As above, do the 'Candida Questionnaire' and let us know how you score, and again, you can be tested by Genova Diagnostics to give you diagnosis. 3. Then there is receptor resistance which could be a culprit. Being hypothyroid for some considerable time may mean the biochemical mechanisms which permit the binding of T3 to the receptors, is downgraded - so the T3 won’t go in. With slow build up of T3, with full adrenal support and adequate vitamins and minerals, the receptors do come on line again. But this can be quite a slow process, and care has to be taken to build the dose up gradually. 4. And then there are Food allergies. The most common food allergy is allergy to gluten, the protein fraction of wheat. The antibody generated by the body, by a process of molecular mimicry, cross reacts with the thyroperoxidase enzyme, (which makes thyroxine) and shuts it down. So allergy to bread can make you hypothyroid. There may be other food allergies with this kind of effect, but information on these is scanty. Certainly allergic response to certain foods can affect adrenal function and imperil thyroid production and uptake. 5. Then we have hormone imbalances. The whole of the endocrine system is linked; each part of it needs the other parts to be operating normally to work properly. An example of this we have seen already, with cortisone. But another example is the operation of sex hormones. The imbalance that occurs at the menopause with progesterone running down, and a relative dominance of oestrogen is a further case in point – oestrogen dominance downgrades production, transportation and uptake of thyroid hormones. This is why hypothyroidism may first appear at the menopause; the symptoms ascribed to this alone, which is then treated – often with extra oestrogen, making the whole thing worse. Deficiency in progesterone most especially needs to be dealt with, since it reverses oestrogen dominance, improves many menopausal symptoms like sweats and mood swings, and reverses osteoporosis. Happily natural progesterone cream is easily obtained: when used it has the added benefit of helping to stabilise adrenal function. 6. Then, there is the possibility of mercury poisoning, caused through amalgam fillings - these might need to be removed but you need to seek a Dentist who specialises in the removal of amalgam fillings. 7. One of the main reasons why thyroid hormone is not being utilised at the cellular level is because you might be suffering with low levels of iron, transferring saturation%, ferritin, vitamin B12, vitamin D3, magnesium, folate, copper and zinc - these have to be tested for, and treated. When you have been quite unwell for a long time, all these problems have to be dealt with, and since each may affect the other, it all has to be done very carefully. Ask your doctor to work with you to help you find the cause. The balancing of these variables is as much up to you as to your doctor – which is why a check of morning, day and evening temperatures and pulse rates, together with symptoms, good and bad, can be so helpful. To this end, check out Dr Rind's Metabolic Metabolic Temperature Graph http://www.drrind.com/therapies/metabolic-temperature-graph If your doctor tries to tell you that low levels of the above mentioned nutrients have nothing to do with your low thyroid state, copy out the following of just a few references to the research/studies that have been done to show that there is a very big connection. Doctors are not taught about this at medical school, so we have to help them where we can - so they, in turn, can help their other patients. Low iron/ferritin: Iron deficiency is shown to significantly reduce T4 to T3 conversion, increase reverse T3 levels, and block the thermogenic (metabolism boosting) properties of thyroid hormone (1-4). Thus, iron deficiency, as indicated by an iron saturation below 25 or a ferritin below 70, will result in diminished intracellular T3 levels. Additionally, T4 should not be considered adequate thyroid replacement if iron deficiency is present (1-4)). 1. Dillman E, Gale C, Green W, et al. Hypothermia in iron deficiency due to altered triiodithyroidine metabolism. Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology 1980;239(5):377-R381. 2. SM, PE, Lukaski HC. In vitro hepatic thyroid hormone deiodination in iron-deficient rats: effect of dietary fat. Life Sci 1993;53(8):603-9. 3. Zimmermann MB, Köhrle J. The Impact of Iron and Selenium Deficiencies on Iodine and Thyroid Metabolism: Biochemistry and Relevance to Public Health. Thyroid 2002;12(10): 867-78. 4. Beard J, tobin B, Green W. Evidence for Thyroid Hormone Deficiency in Iron-Deficient Anemic Rats. J. Nutr. 1989;119:772-778. Low vitamin B12: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18655403 Low vitamin D3: http://www.eje-online.org/cgi/content/abstract/113/3/329 and http://www.goodhormonehealth.com/VitaminD.pdf Low magnesium: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC292768/pdf/jcinvest00264-0105.pdf Low folate: http://www.clinchem.org/cgi/content/full/47/9/1738 and http://www.liebertonline.com/doi/abs/10.1089/thy.1999.9.1163 Low copper http://www.ithyroid.com/copper.htm http://www.drlwilson.com/articles/copper_toxicity_syndrome.htm http://www.ithyroid.com/copper.htm http://www.rjpbcs.com/pdf/2011_2(2)/68.pdf http://ajplegacy.physiology.org/content/171/3/652.extract Low zinc:http://www.istanbul.edu.tr/ffdbiyo/current4/07%20Iham%20AM%C4%B0R.pdf and http://articles.webraydian.com/article1648-Role_of_Zinc_and_Copper_in_Effective_Thyroid_Function.html · NOTE: When your blood tests come back, ask your doctor for a copy and remember to always get the reference range and post them on the forum. This is because doctors will often tell you that there is not a problem because blood tests have come back within the reference range. You need to know where about in the reference range they are. We will again, help with their interpretation. · Vitamin B12 levels for both men and women need to be at the top of the range in a reference interval of around 175 -900. · Vitamin D3 levels need to be about 50. · Magnesium levels need to be at the top of the range Luv - Sheila My history is complicated and I have been treated for bouts of depression in the past. I am begining to realise all these things add up. I have started taking my temperature at night and morning and have ordered some T3 online and intend to start taking it when it arrives. All the information from TPA is daunting but I will make an appt to see my GP and ask for the blood tests. It is hard to take it all on board, but I really appreciate your help, Terry No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 2012.0.1913 / Virus Database: 2114/4858 - Release Date: 03/08/12 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 9, 2012 Report Share Posted March 9, 2012 Hi Sheila I have made an appointment to see my gp next week to get blood tests done and have filled in the adrenal and candida questionaires. The Adrenal questionaire scores as follows: Questions answered 37 Points: Key signs and symptoms 25 Energy patterns 12 Frequently Observed 4 Food Patterns __8___ Aggravating Factors _6____ Relieving Factors __1___ Total Points _69____ Asterisk 2 Candida: A 49 B 57 C 24 Total 130 Many thanks Terry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 12, 2012 Report Share Posted March 12, 2012 welcome! I am obsessed too!! I havent gone out of town since I got my vitamix but I know I would be taking it with me too!! I LOVE mine!! Patti From: swirlam <dollbuyer@...> Sent: Monday, March 12, 2012 12:20 PM Subject: New Member Hi Everyone! I joined a couple of weeks ago. You guys are a busy group to keep up with. I can see I'm going to learn a lot. After looking at a VitaMix for a couple of years, I finally splurged a few weeks ago and bought one a Costco. I was looking forward to making a variety of whole food smoothies. I use it at least once a day. I recently went out-of-town for a few days and had to take my machine with me. I guess I'm still a little obsessed with it. Rai Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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