RE: Weaning off Cortef and some interesting findings!

[Guest guest]

I finally sat last night in front of the computer and imputed all of my labs

since I have been seeing this doctor into an excel spreadsheet. Man what a

difference in seeing trends and patterns. I wanted to share this.. I found

several interesting things by doing this. First... when I went to this

doctor... it was because I had went to an endo whom wanted to take me off

Armour and switch me back to Synthroid (we have all been through the

drill)... she said that I appeared to be on the hyper end of the scale with

regards to my Thyroid tests. I was still very hypo feeling so I didn't

agree with her and fired her. Then I went to the doctor I am currently with

and she ran the same tests... hmm something happened during this time. My

TSH was around .35 at the endo I fired and then 17.35 when I went to the new

doctor! My meds had not changed one bit. From there you can see a trend

where my cortisol levels took a dive about three months after having the

17.35 TSH. This is when I was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. My cortisol

was low but not outside of the range (of course these are always skewed a

bit in my opinion because I felt awful) It was around 3.4. The doctor put

me on Cortisol and the next test which was 2 months later my cortisol rose

to 26.5. I stayed stable there up until last month. This is what I find

interesting! I had went in for testing last month and was in a what I call

a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this would be

captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of whack when

these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to 3.9 very

low for me! This explains why I felt like crap! So I wonder now... I was

taking my meds like always...why would my body crap out like that after

being stable before? Did it use all the cortef because of maybe some stress

and I should have added more to stabilize? OR was it a crisis all together?

Maybe some of the folks here can shed more light on this for me. At any

rate... I have my spreadsheet ready to share with the doctor with all my

symptoms that I currently have been dealing with! I will let you guys know

how the weaning process goes for me. Folks on the boards have said if it

goes slow enough then, I should not crash too bad. The doctors though get a

VERY serous look and say " Are you ready to be sick for about 3 months? "

They have explained the weaning process is tough. We'll see though! Sorry

it's so long but I just had to share what I discovered by putting my tests

into a chart!

Regards,

LaCretia

[Guest guest]

>>My cortisol was back to 3.9<<

Why with Cortisol this low would you try to wean off it now? Wouldn't it be

better til it is stabilized at a higher level first?

*Artistic Grooming * Hurricane, WV

Fat cat? Diabetes? Listowner for overweight or hypothyroid cats

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hypokitties/

[Guest guest]

At a tsh of 17 you have have adrenal fatigue and fatigue on everything else in

your body. Is that result for cortisol a 8:00 am fasting with no caffeine test

both for the 26 and for the 3.9 something? What was the range? Taking cortisol

suppresses your own ability to produce. The theory for some is that if they are

stressed, you take the cortisol and it allows the adrenals to rest. Like you

said, no one seems to get off. I have heard of 2 people in all my research that

have. Not hearsay mind you, but people that I was able to contact. I have heard

lots of people say oh yeah, I know someone that weaned off ok. When you ask to

speak with them, they seem to have forgotten the name or how to reach them. Fill

in the above questions please. Thanks. By the way, could you afford three months

of really sick?

RE: Weaning off Cortef and some interesting

findings!

I finally sat last night in front of the computer and imputed all of my labs

since I have been seeing this doctor into an excel spreadsheet. Man what a

difference in seeing trends and patterns. I wanted to share this.. I found

several interesting things by doing this. First... when I went to this

doctor... it was because I had went to an endo whom wanted to take me off

Armour and switch me back to Synthroid (we have all been through the

drill)... she said that I appeared to be on the hyper end of the scale with

regards to my Thyroid tests. I was still very hypo feeling so I didn't

agree with her and fired her. Then I went to the doctor I am currently with

and she ran the same tests... hmm something happened during this time. My

TSH was around .35 at the endo I fired and then 17.35 when I went to the new

doctor! My meds had not changed one bit. From there you can see a trend

where my cortisol levels took a dive about three months after having the

17.35 TSH. This is when I was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. My cortisol

was low but not outside of the range (of course these are always skewed a

[Guest guest]

It has been stable for 9 months...other than this flare up. This was the

first low reading in nine months...out of no where. I plan to ask the doc

why this happened. These are the flare ups I describe and it showed me that

when they do occur... my cortisol is low. This can happen if you have a

very stressful few days before getting tests done. I had been on vacation

the week before so this may be why I had the flare up. When taking any kind

of trip, I have noticed a few days afterwards that I crash. I could never

figure out what was causing the crash. The doctor had told me when going on

vacation or activities to increase the cortef during that time and I would

avoid the crash. I was too scared to increase the dose though so I would

just suffer. I kept thinking it couldnt' be that. I've learned otherwise

now! I hope this explains why the reading would be low and why I still need

to get off the cortef!

LaCretia

>

>

> >>My cortisol was back to 3.9<<

>

>Why with Cortisol this low would you try to wean off it now? Wouldn't it be

>better til it is stabilized at a higher level first?

> *Artistic Grooming * Hurricane, WV

>Fat cat? Diabetes? Listowner for overweight or hypothyroid cats

>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hypokitties/

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

This did show up...3 months later... adrenal fatigue was diagnosed!

All tests were done in the afternoon. The range for afternoon was something

like (sorry don't have it with me) 3.0-24 something like that... sorry. For

the 9 months I was receiving slightly more cortisol than the test range

would like but the doctor left me that way. I suspect it's like the TSH

test where you feel better a little over the range. When it was on the low

end it wasn't outside of the range but...boy did I feel like crap. Again...

like the TSH... if you are on the low end but within range...you feel like

crap.

This was the goal of taking the treatment for 1 year!

>

>At a tsh of 17 you have have adrenal fatigue and fatigue on everything else

>in your body. Is that result for cortisol a 8:00 am fasting with no

>caffeine test both for the 26 and for the 3.9 something? What was the

>range? Taking cortisol suppresses your own ability to produce. The theory

>for some is that if they are stressed, you take the cortisol and it allows

>the adrenals to rest. Like you said, no one seems to get off. I have heard

>of 2 people in all my research that have. Not hearsay mind you, but people

>that I was able to contact. I have heard lots of people say oh yeah, I know

>someone that weaned off ok. When you ask to speak with them, they seem to

>have forgotten the name or how to reach them. Fill in the above questions

>please. Thanks. By the way, could you afford three months of really sick?

> RE: Weaning off Cortef and some

>interesting findings!

>

>

> I finally sat last night in front of the computer and imputed all of my

>labs

> since I have been seeing this doctor into an excel spreadsheet. Man

>what a

> difference in seeing trends and patterns. I wanted to share this.. I

>found

> several interesting things by doing this. First... when I went to this

> doctor... it was because I had went to an endo whom wanted to take me

>off

> Armour and switch me back to Synthroid (we have all been through the

> drill)... she said that I appeared to be on the hyper end of the scale

>with

> regards to my Thyroid tests. I was still very hypo feeling so I didn't

> agree with her and fired her. Then I went to the doctor I am currently

>with

> and she ran the same tests... hmm something happened during this time.

>My

> TSH was around .35 at the endo I fired and then 17.35 when I went to the

>new

> doctor! My meds had not changed one bit. From there you can see a

>trend

> where my cortisol levels took a dive about three months after having the

> 17.35 TSH. This is when I was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. My

>cortisol

> was low but not outside of the range (of course these are always skewed

>a

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

"

I had went in for testing last month and was in a what I call

a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this

would be

captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

whack when

these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to 3.9

very

low for me! "

Just a note here, blood work is the not an accurate reading for

cortisol. Saliva is, as well the 24 hour UFC, (uinary free

cortisol). Your cortisol will go high and low all day long.

Depending on your day. There is ONLY so much cortisol you SHOULD

make in a day, but what is important is it's rhythm. If you get

your blood drawn as soon as you get out of bed it should be higher,

but at bedtime it should be lower. If you have it drawn at like 2-4

in the afternoon it could almost be nil, which would LOOK like you

are in an addison state. BECAUSE cortisol bounces around all day

long, you really need to either do the saliva testing or a UFC.

Hugs,

Canasa

> I finally sat last night in front of the computer and imputed all

of my labs

> since I have been seeing this doctor into an excel spreadsheet.

Man what a

> difference in seeing trends and patterns. I wanted to share

this.. I found

> several interesting things by doing this. First... when I went to

this

> doctor... it was because I had went to an endo whom wanted to take

me off

> Armour and switch me back to Synthroid (we have all been through

the

> drill)... she said that I appeared to be on the hyper end of the

scale with

> regards to my Thyroid tests. I was still very hypo feeling so I

didn't

> agree with her and fired her. Then I went to the doctor I am

currently with

> and she ran the same tests... hmm something happened during this

time. My

> TSH was around .35 at the endo I fired and then 17.35 when I went

to the new

> doctor! My meds had not changed one bit. From there you can see

a trend

> where my cortisol levels took a dive about three months after

having the

> 17.35 TSH. This is when I was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. My

cortisol

> was low but not outside of the range (of course these are always

skewed a

> bit in my opinion because I felt awful) It was around 3.4. The

doctor put

> me on Cortisol and the next test which was 2 months later my

cortisol rose

> to 26.5. I stayed stable there up until last month. This is what

I find

> interesting! I had went in for testing last month and was in a

what I call

> a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this

would be

> captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

whack when

> these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to

3.9 very

> low for me! This explains why I felt like crap! So I wonder

now... I was

> taking my meds like always...why would my body crap out like that

after

> being stable before? Did it use all the cortef because of maybe

some stress

> and I should have added more to stabilize? OR was it a crisis all

together?

> Maybe some of the folks here can shed more light on this for

me. At any

> rate... I have my spreadsheet ready to share with the doctor with

all my

> symptoms that I currently have been dealing with! I will let you

guys know

> how the weaning process goes for me. Folks on the boards have

said if it

> goes slow enough then, I should not crash too bad. The doctors

though get a

> VERY serous look and say " Are you ready to be sick for about 3

months? "

> They have explained the weaning process is tough. We'll see

though! Sorry

> it's so long but I just had to share what I discovered by putting

my tests

> into a chart!

>

> Regards,

> LaCretia

[Guest guest]

"

I had went in for testing last month and was in a what I call

a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this

would be

captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

whack when

these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to 3.9

very

low for me! "

Just a note here, blood work is the not an accurate reading for

cortisol. Saliva is, as well the 24 hour UFC, (uinary free

cortisol). Your cortisol will go high and low all day long.

Depending on your day. There is ONLY so much cortisol you SHOULD

make in a day, but what is important is it's rhythm. If you get

your blood drawn as soon as you get out of bed it should be higher,

but at bedtime it should be lower. If you have it drawn at like 2-4

in the afternoon it could almost be nil, which would LOOK like you

are in an addison state. BECAUSE cortisol bounces around all day

long, you really need to either do the saliva testing or a UFC.

Hugs,

Canasa

> I finally sat last night in front of the computer and imputed all

of my labs

> since I have been seeing this doctor into an excel spreadsheet.

Man what a

> difference in seeing trends and patterns. I wanted to share

this.. I found

> several interesting things by doing this. First... when I went to

this

> doctor... it was because I had went to an endo whom wanted to take

me off

> Armour and switch me back to Synthroid (we have all been through

the

> drill)... she said that I appeared to be on the hyper end of the

scale with

> regards to my Thyroid tests. I was still very hypo feeling so I

didn't

> agree with her and fired her. Then I went to the doctor I am

currently with

> and she ran the same tests... hmm something happened during this

time. My

> TSH was around .35 at the endo I fired and then 17.35 when I went

to the new

> doctor! My meds had not changed one bit. From there you can see

a trend

> where my cortisol levels took a dive about three months after

having the

> 17.35 TSH. This is when I was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. My

cortisol

> was low but not outside of the range (of course these are always

skewed a

> bit in my opinion because I felt awful) It was around 3.4. The

doctor put

> me on Cortisol and the next test which was 2 months later my

cortisol rose

> to 26.5. I stayed stable there up until last month. This is what

I find

> interesting! I had went in for testing last month and was in a

what I call

> a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this

would be

> captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

whack when

> these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to

3.9 very

> low for me! This explains why I felt like crap! So I wonder

now... I was

> taking my meds like always...why would my body crap out like that

after

> being stable before? Did it use all the cortef because of maybe

some stress

> and I should have added more to stabilize? OR was it a crisis all

together?

> Maybe some of the folks here can shed more light on this for

me. At any

> rate... I have my spreadsheet ready to share with the doctor with

all my

> symptoms that I currently have been dealing with! I will let you

guys know

> how the weaning process goes for me. Folks on the boards have

said if it

> goes slow enough then, I should not crash too bad. The doctors

though get a

> VERY serous look and say " Are you ready to be sick for about 3

months? "

> They have explained the weaning process is tough. We'll see

though! Sorry

> it's so long but I just had to share what I discovered by putting

my tests

> into a chart!

>

> Regards,

> LaCretia

[Guest guest]

That's why I'm weaning off completely. I want to take the ACTH STim test to

confirm diagnoses. I realize the Cortisol test is not that accurate

however, neither is the TSH but if you use it as a guide then you can see a

pattern over time. The good part is I go to the doctor in the afternoon

almost at the same time for the past year! So, I do think it's helpful to

see what kind of pattern gets created. If I was normal/high for the past

8-9 months and then BAM low and all the tests are taken about the same time

then I think it's significant to use this information to see why I felt so

cruddy that day. As soon as I wean off...I will get the official tests done

to confirm either 's or I may still have adrenal fatigue. I just

want to determine which before I keep going with the treatment. The

treatment long term has some VERY unwanted side effects so, if I can get

off...I'm going to try. Thanks for posting the information...I'm sure many

can benefit from hearing all of this! As I have from you guys

LaCretia

>

>

> "

>I had went in for testing last month and was in a what I call

>a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this

>would be

>captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

>whack when

>these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to 3.9

>very

>low for me! "

>

>Just a note here, blood work is the not an accurate reading for

>cortisol. Saliva is, as well the 24 hour UFC, (uinary free

>cortisol). Your cortisol will go high and low all day long.

>Depending on your day. There is ONLY so much cortisol you SHOULD

>make in a day, but what is important is it's rhythm. If you get

>your blood drawn as soon as you get out of bed it should be higher,

>but at bedtime it should be lower. If you have it drawn at like 2-4

>in the afternoon it could almost be nil, which would LOOK like you

>are in an addison state. BECAUSE cortisol bounces around all day

>long, you really need to either do the saliva testing or a UFC.

>

>Hugs,

>Canasa

>

>

> > I finally sat last night in front of the computer and imputed all

>of my labs

> > since I have been seeing this doctor into an excel spreadsheet.

>Man what a

> > difference in seeing trends and patterns. I wanted to share

>this.. I found

> > several interesting things by doing this. First... when I went to

>this

> > doctor... it was because I had went to an endo whom wanted to take

>me off

> > Armour and switch me back to Synthroid (we have all been through

>the

> > drill)... she said that I appeared to be on the hyper end of the

>scale with

> > regards to my Thyroid tests. I was still very hypo feeling so I

>didn't

> > agree with her and fired her. Then I went to the doctor I am

>currently with

> > and she ran the same tests... hmm something happened during this

>time. My

> > TSH was around .35 at the endo I fired and then 17.35 when I went

>to the new

> > doctor! My meds had not changed one bit. From there you can see

>a trend

> > where my cortisol levels took a dive about three months after

>having the

> > 17.35 TSH. This is when I was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. My

>cortisol

> > was low but not outside of the range (of course these are always

>skewed a

> > bit in my opinion because I felt awful) It was around 3.4. The

>doctor put

> > me on Cortisol and the next test which was 2 months later my

>cortisol rose

> > to 26.5. I stayed stable there up until last month. This is what

>I find

> > interesting! I had went in for testing last month and was in a

>what I call

> > a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this

>would be

> > captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

>whack when

> > these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to

>3.9 very

> > low for me! This explains why I felt like crap! So I wonder

>now... I was

> > taking my meds like always...why would my body crap out like that

>after

> > being stable before? Did it use all the cortef because of maybe

>some stress

> > and I should have added more to stabilize? OR was it a crisis all

>together?

> > Maybe some of the folks here can shed more light on this for

>me. At any

> > rate... I have my spreadsheet ready to share with the doctor with

>all my

> > symptoms that I currently have been dealing with! I will let you

>guys know

> > how the weaning process goes for me. Folks on the boards have

>said if it

> > goes slow enough then, I should not crash too bad. The doctors

>though get a

> > VERY serous look and say " Are you ready to be sick for about 3

>months? "

> > They have explained the weaning process is tough. We'll see

>though! Sorry

> > it's so long but I just had to share what I discovered by putting

>my tests

> > into a chart!

> >

> > Regards,

> > LaCretia

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

That's why I'm weaning off completely. I want to take the ACTH STim test to

confirm diagnoses. I realize the Cortisol test is not that accurate

however, neither is the TSH but if you use it as a guide then you can see a

pattern over time. The good part is I go to the doctor in the afternoon

almost at the same time for the past year! So, I do think it's helpful to

see what kind of pattern gets created. If I was normal/high for the past

8-9 months and then BAM low and all the tests are taken about the same time

then I think it's significant to use this information to see why I felt so

cruddy that day. As soon as I wean off...I will get the official tests done

to confirm either 's or I may still have adrenal fatigue. I just

want to determine which before I keep going with the treatment. The

treatment long term has some VERY unwanted side effects so, if I can get

off...I'm going to try. Thanks for posting the information...I'm sure many

can benefit from hearing all of this! As I have from you guys

LaCretia

>

>

> "

>I had went in for testing last month and was in a what I call

>a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this

>would be

>captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

>whack when

>these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to 3.9

>very

>low for me! "

>

>Just a note here, blood work is the not an accurate reading for

>cortisol. Saliva is, as well the 24 hour UFC, (uinary free

>cortisol). Your cortisol will go high and low all day long.

>Depending on your day. There is ONLY so much cortisol you SHOULD

>make in a day, but what is important is it's rhythm. If you get

>your blood drawn as soon as you get out of bed it should be higher,

>but at bedtime it should be lower. If you have it drawn at like 2-4

>in the afternoon it could almost be nil, which would LOOK like you

>are in an addison state. BECAUSE cortisol bounces around all day

>long, you really need to either do the saliva testing or a UFC.

>

>Hugs,

>Canasa

>

>

> > I finally sat last night in front of the computer and imputed all

>of my labs

> > since I have been seeing this doctor into an excel spreadsheet.

>Man what a

> > difference in seeing trends and patterns. I wanted to share

>this.. I found

> > several interesting things by doing this. First... when I went to

>this

> > doctor... it was because I had went to an endo whom wanted to take

>me off

> > Armour and switch me back to Synthroid (we have all been through

>the

> > drill)... she said that I appeared to be on the hyper end of the

>scale with

> > regards to my Thyroid tests. I was still very hypo feeling so I

>didn't

> > agree with her and fired her. Then I went to the doctor I am

>currently with

> > and she ran the same tests... hmm something happened during this

>time. My

> > TSH was around .35 at the endo I fired and then 17.35 when I went

>to the new

> > doctor! My meds had not changed one bit. From there you can see

>a trend

> > where my cortisol levels took a dive about three months after

>having the

> > 17.35 TSH. This is when I was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. My

>cortisol

> > was low but not outside of the range (of course these are always

>skewed a

> > bit in my opinion because I felt awful) It was around 3.4. The

>doctor put

> > me on Cortisol and the next test which was 2 months later my

>cortisol rose

> > to 26.5. I stayed stable there up until last month. This is what

>I find

> > interesting! I had went in for testing last month and was in a

>what I call

> > a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this

>would be

> > captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

>whack when

> > these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to

>3.9 very

> > low for me! This explains why I felt like crap! So I wonder

>now... I was

> > taking my meds like always...why would my body crap out like that

>after

> > being stable before? Did it use all the cortef because of maybe

>some stress

> > and I should have added more to stabilize? OR was it a crisis all

>together?

> > Maybe some of the folks here can shed more light on this for

>me. At any

> > rate... I have my spreadsheet ready to share with the doctor with

>all my

> > symptoms that I currently have been dealing with! I will let you

>guys know

> > how the weaning process goes for me. Folks on the boards have

>said if it

> > goes slow enough then, I should not crash too bad. The doctors

>though get a

> > VERY serous look and say " Are you ready to be sick for about 3

>months? "

> > They have explained the weaning process is tough. We'll see

>though! Sorry

> > it's so long but I just had to share what I discovered by putting

>my tests

> > into a chart!

> >

> > Regards,

> > LaCretia

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

That's why I'm weaning off completely. I want to take the ACTH STim test to

confirm diagnoses. I realize the Cortisol test is not that accurate

however, neither is the TSH but if you use it as a guide then you can see a

pattern over time. The good part is I go to the doctor in the afternoon

almost at the same time for the past year! So, I do think it's helpful to

see what kind of pattern gets created. If I was normal/high for the past

8-9 months and then BAM low and all the tests are taken about the same time

then I think it's significant to use this information to see why I felt so

cruddy that day. As soon as I wean off...I will get the official tests done

to confirm either 's or I may still have adrenal fatigue. I just

want to determine which before I keep going with the treatment. The

treatment long term has some VERY unwanted side effects so, if I can get

off...I'm going to try. Thanks for posting the information...I'm sure many

can benefit from hearing all of this! As I have from you guys

LaCretia

>

>

> "

>I had went in for testing last month and was in a what I call

>a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this

>would be

>captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

>whack when

>these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to 3.9

>very

>low for me! "

>

>Just a note here, blood work is the not an accurate reading for

>cortisol. Saliva is, as well the 24 hour UFC, (uinary free

>cortisol). Your cortisol will go high and low all day long.

>Depending on your day. There is ONLY so much cortisol you SHOULD

>make in a day, but what is important is it's rhythm. If you get

>your blood drawn as soon as you get out of bed it should be higher,

>but at bedtime it should be lower. If you have it drawn at like 2-4

>in the afternoon it could almost be nil, which would LOOK like you

>are in an addison state. BECAUSE cortisol bounces around all day

>long, you really need to either do the saliva testing or a UFC.

>

>Hugs,

>Canasa

>

>

> > I finally sat last night in front of the computer and imputed all

>of my labs

> > since I have been seeing this doctor into an excel spreadsheet.

>Man what a

> > difference in seeing trends and patterns. I wanted to share

>this.. I found

> > several interesting things by doing this. First... when I went to

>this

> > doctor... it was because I had went to an endo whom wanted to take

>me off

> > Armour and switch me back to Synthroid (we have all been through

>the

> > drill)... she said that I appeared to be on the hyper end of the

>scale with

> > regards to my Thyroid tests. I was still very hypo feeling so I

>didn't

> > agree with her and fired her. Then I went to the doctor I am

>currently with

> > and she ran the same tests... hmm something happened during this

>time. My

> > TSH was around .35 at the endo I fired and then 17.35 when I went

>to the new

> > doctor! My meds had not changed one bit. From there you can see

>a trend

> > where my cortisol levels took a dive about three months after

>having the

> > 17.35 TSH. This is when I was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. My

>cortisol

> > was low but not outside of the range (of course these are always

>skewed a

> > bit in my opinion because I felt awful) It was around 3.4. The

>doctor put

> > me on Cortisol and the next test which was 2 months later my

>cortisol rose

> > to 26.5. I stayed stable there up until last month. This is what

>I find

> > interesting! I had went in for testing last month and was in a

>what I call

> > a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that this

>would be

> > captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

>whack when

> > these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back to

>3.9 very

> > low for me! This explains why I felt like crap! So I wonder

>now... I was

> > taking my meds like always...why would my body crap out like that

>after

> > being stable before? Did it use all the cortef because of maybe

>some stress

> > and I should have added more to stabilize? OR was it a crisis all

>together?

> > Maybe some of the folks here can shed more light on this for

>me. At any

> > rate... I have my spreadsheet ready to share with the doctor with

>all my

> > symptoms that I currently have been dealing with! I will let you

>guys know

> > how the weaning process goes for me. Folks on the boards have

>said if it

> > goes slow enough then, I should not crash too bad. The doctors

>though get a

> > VERY serous look and say " Are you ready to be sick for about 3

>months? "

> > They have explained the weaning process is tough. We'll see

>though! Sorry

> > it's so long but I just had to share what I discovered by putting

>my tests

> > into a chart!

> >

> > Regards,

> > LaCretia

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

" I realize the Cortisol test is not that accurate " Good stuff,

either way you are doing it the right way. Checking it twice so to

speak.. right ON!

Okay now remember if you make cortisol with the ATCH it doesn't

completely warn off an adrenal problem. If you infact have what I

call a " wild child adrenal gland " (basically it is an adrenal gland

with hyperplasia, or a tumor, or some kind of problem and won't

listen to the pituitary) I passed my stim test, only to find out my

adrenal gland had a 2.8 cm cortisol producing tumor on it. So I

PASSED the " gold standard " test. Which means that most endos would

have quit on me. What made my endo pursue it, was my cortisol was 3

times normal values, so he just figured it was a co-inky dink that

day of the stimulation test. Basically he put it down to my adrenal

gland being a " good child " that day. It got the message from my

pituitary gland and behaved. I don't know that stats on acth stim

tests but I know they can be wrong.

By the way, I found out from the path report that my thyroid gland

lesion was also hyperplastic, is that basically the same as

hyperplasia? Or am I presuming something here? My Endo said it was

a bunch of condensed cells producing too much? <--- Or did I

misunderstand him...? Anyone?

Hugs,

Canasa

> > > I finally sat last night in front of the computer and imputed

all

> >of my labs

> > > since I have been seeing this doctor into an excel spreadsheet.

> >Man what a

> > > difference in seeing trends and patterns. I wanted to share

> >this.. I found

> > > several interesting things by doing this. First... when I

went to

> >this

> > > doctor... it was because I had went to an endo whom wanted to

take

> >me off

> > > Armour and switch me back to Synthroid (we have all been

through

> >the

> > > drill)... she said that I appeared to be on the hyper end of

the

> >scale with

> > > regards to my Thyroid tests. I was still very hypo feeling so

I

> >didn't

> > > agree with her and fired her. Then I went to the doctor I am

> >currently with

> > > and she ran the same tests... hmm something happened during

this

> >time. My

> > > TSH was around .35 at the endo I fired and then 17.35 when I

went

> >to the new

> > > doctor! My meds had not changed one bit. From there you can

see

> >a trend

> > > where my cortisol levels took a dive about three months after

> >having the

> > > 17.35 TSH. This is when I was diagnosed with adrenal

fatigue. My

> >cortisol

> > > was low but not outside of the range (of course these are

always

> >skewed a

> > > bit in my opinion because I felt awful) It was around 3.4.

The

> >doctor put

> > > me on Cortisol and the next test which was 2 months later my

> >cortisol rose

> > > to 26.5. I stayed stable there up until last month. This is

what

> >I find

> > > interesting! I had went in for testing last month and was in a

> >what I call

> > > a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that

this

> >would be

> > > captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

> >whack when

> > > these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back

to

> >3.9 very

> > > low for me! This explains why I felt like crap! So I wonder

> >now... I was

> > > taking my meds like always...why would my body crap out like

that

> >after

> > > being stable before? Did it use all the cortef because of

maybe

> >some stress

> > > and I should have added more to stabilize? OR was it a crisis

all

> >together?

> > > Maybe some of the folks here can shed more light on this for

> >me. At any

> > > rate... I have my spreadsheet ready to share with the doctor

with

> >all my

> > > symptoms that I currently have been dealing with! I will let

you

> >guys know

> > > how the weaning process goes for me. Folks on the boards have

> >said if it

> > > goes slow enough then, I should not crash too bad. The doctors

> >though get a

> > > VERY serous look and say " Are you ready to be sick for about 3

> >months? "

> > > They have explained the weaning process is tough. We'll see

> >though! Sorry

> > > it's so long but I just had to share what I discovered by

putting

> >my tests

> > > into a chart!

> > >

> > > Regards,

> > > LaCretia

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

" I realize the Cortisol test is not that accurate " Good stuff,

either way you are doing it the right way. Checking it twice so to

speak.. right ON!

Okay now remember if you make cortisol with the ATCH it doesn't

completely warn off an adrenal problem. If you infact have what I

call a " wild child adrenal gland " (basically it is an adrenal gland

with hyperplasia, or a tumor, or some kind of problem and won't

listen to the pituitary) I passed my stim test, only to find out my

adrenal gland had a 2.8 cm cortisol producing tumor on it. So I

PASSED the " gold standard " test. Which means that most endos would

have quit on me. What made my endo pursue it, was my cortisol was 3

times normal values, so he just figured it was a co-inky dink that

day of the stimulation test. Basically he put it down to my adrenal

gland being a " good child " that day. It got the message from my

pituitary gland and behaved. I don't know that stats on acth stim

tests but I know they can be wrong.

By the way, I found out from the path report that my thyroid gland

lesion was also hyperplastic, is that basically the same as

hyperplasia? Or am I presuming something here? My Endo said it was

a bunch of condensed cells producing too much? <--- Or did I

misunderstand him...? Anyone?

Hugs,

Canasa

> > > I finally sat last night in front of the computer and imputed

all

> >of my labs

> > > since I have been seeing this doctor into an excel spreadsheet.

> >Man what a

> > > difference in seeing trends and patterns. I wanted to share

> >this.. I found

> > > several interesting things by doing this. First... when I

went to

> >this

> > > doctor... it was because I had went to an endo whom wanted to

take

> >me off

> > > Armour and switch me back to Synthroid (we have all been

through

> >the

> > > drill)... she said that I appeared to be on the hyper end of

the

> >scale with

> > > regards to my Thyroid tests. I was still very hypo feeling so

I

> >didn't

> > > agree with her and fired her. Then I went to the doctor I am

> >currently with

> > > and she ran the same tests... hmm something happened during

this

> >time. My

> > > TSH was around .35 at the endo I fired and then 17.35 when I

went

> >to the new

> > > doctor! My meds had not changed one bit. From there you can

see

> >a trend

> > > where my cortisol levels took a dive about three months after

> >having the

> > > 17.35 TSH. This is when I was diagnosed with adrenal

fatigue. My

> >cortisol

> > > was low but not outside of the range (of course these are

always

> >skewed a

> > > bit in my opinion because I felt awful) It was around 3.4.

The

> >doctor put

> > > me on Cortisol and the next test which was 2 months later my

> >cortisol rose

> > > to 26.5. I stayed stable there up until last month. This is

what

> >I find

> > > interesting! I had went in for testing last month and was in a

> >what I call

> > > a flare up when she took the blood... I was so excited that

this

> >would be

> > > captured on my blood work and maybe I could see what was out of

> >whack when

> > > these flare ups occur. Well, boy did I! My cortisol was back

to

> >3.9 very

> > > low for me! This explains why I felt like crap! So I wonder

> >now... I was

> > > taking my meds like always...why would my body crap out like

that

> >after

> > > being stable before? Did it use all the cortef because of

maybe

> >some stress

> > > and I should have added more to stabilize? OR was it a crisis

all

> >together?

> > > Maybe some of the folks here can shed more light on this for

> >me. At any

> > > rate... I have my spreadsheet ready to share with the doctor

with

> >all my

> > > symptoms that I currently have been dealing with! I will let

you

> >guys know

> > > how the weaning process goes for me. Folks on the boards have

> >said if it

> > > goes slow enough then, I should not crash too bad. The doctors

> >though get a

> > > VERY serous look and say " Are you ready to be sick for about 3

> >months? "

> > > They have explained the weaning process is tough. We'll see

> >though! Sorry

> > > it's so long but I just had to share what I discovered by

putting

> >my tests

> > > into a chart!

> > >

> > > Regards,

> > > LaCretia

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >

> >