Resolved, that I will lose 35 pounds and start to feel human again

Hi. I'm Mary, a 50-year-old mother of two terrific daughters (ages 11 & 15), and wife of 16 years to the same handsome husband. I'm also a high school English teacher and part-time freelance writer.

The truth is that I never really had a weight problem until about eight years ago. Oh sure, I'd gain five or ten pounds now and then, but in the past when I dieted and exercised, it came off again.

I'm not sure exactly what happened to change my metabolism, but of course hitting my 40s didn't help. Also, I started teaching about eight years ago; I think that the added stress of teaching high school students may have had something to do with it.

It wasn't until mid-2009, when I read an article in a woman's magazine, that I realized my thyroid might be underactive. I have minimal HMO insurance, but I scheduled an appointment with my primary care doctor and he agreed to send me for some labwork.
It showed that I had high cholesterol, was anemic, and mildly hypothyroid (Free T4 = 1.0, TSH = 3.12), with low calcium and vitamin D levels.

At those levels, my doctor said I had normal thyroid function.

But I had/have other symptoms:
My hair has been falling out for years, and is thin and fine.
My nails are brittle and thin.
I pretend like I have energy, but the truth is I slog through every day like I am swimming upstream. My perfect vacation would be a week alone in a hotel room.
Sex drive? Go away.
Depression? Yes, it's a constant companion. Some days... well. I'm a mom; I have to keep up appearances.
Constipation. I am embarrassed to reveal that I go for a week at a time between movements.
Weight gain? After the birth of my second daughter (I was 39), I got back down to 115-117 and I was comfortable there. But in the last eight years, I've gradually increased 5 pounds here, 5 pounds there, until at that time, in mid-2009, I was 144 pounds, one gross.

But I wasn't convinced that my doctor was correct about my "normal thyroid". I went on the internet and I discovered Mary Shomon's website. I learned that a TSH of 3.12 is actually slightly high, and according to standards that were updated in the spring of 2003, could be an indicator of low thyroid function.

So, I made another appointment with my doctor to ask him to consider thyroid medication.

I listed my symptoms. He agreed that I might be mildly hypothyroid. I had read about Armour thyroid medication, and although my doctor initially wanted to prescribe Synthroid, I begged him to let me try Armour. He finally agreed to prescribe it.

I took it for about a week and didn't notice any difference. The, one morning I woke up feeling strange. I started cleaning. Then, I put on some music and I started dancing with my girls. And I realized that there WAS something different: I felt happy, and I felt an upwelling of energy that is hard to describe. When I suddenly realized that it was probably due to Armour, I cried. You have no idea what a relief I felt; I felt that just maybe, I was on a track to a better life. For two amazing weeks, I felt good. And, what was more, my constipation improved and I lost a couple of pounds.

Then, we took a one-week family vacation, and I made a mistake: I forgot to bring the Armour. We were only gone for a week, but it was long enough for me to notice a significant difference in my energy. Constipation hit. But I was certain, then, that it was Armour that had given me such relief. It was validating.

When my 90-day prescription was up (in the fall of 2009), I had to go in for more blood tests. I asked for a refill on the Armour, which my doctor gave me.

I took it straight to the pharmacist, only to be told that Armour was temporarily unavailable. They told me to check back in a few days, which I did -- still unavailable. I did some research on the internet to try to find an alternative source, and I discovered that the makers of Armour were reformulating the product.

I was chagrined, but I read that other hypothyroid patients had experienced good results with Wes-throid or Nature-throid. I called my physician and had him e-mail a prescription for Wes-throid to my pharmacist. Unfortunately, when I arrived to pick up this prescription, the pharmacist told me that Wes-throid was also now unavailable because the backorder on Armour had caused increasing demand for Wes-throid. He said it might be months before he could get it.

I cried; I went to bed in the middle of a Saturday afternoon and I cried in frustration and helplessness. Then I went on the internet and discovered a source in the U.K. where I could order Nature-throid. There was no prescription required; I ordered a six month supply.

When it finally came, I started taking it, of course, even though the label looked different than the Nature-throid product I saw on the internet. But after two weeks with no discernable relief from symptoms, I knew something was wrong. It was different; it was clearly not the same as Armour. I took it for a month, with no help. My pharmacist called and said that he had received some Armour. I again got my doctor to forward a prescription for Armour to the pharmacy, and I eagerly began taking it again.

But something was different. Research showed that Armour had, in fact, been reformulated.

Finally, I gave up and called my doctor and requested Synthroid. It is a much more expensive drug, but at this point I was completely convinced that hypothyroidism was responsible for my misery, and I was desperate.

I used the 90 day supply of Synthroid, and frankly, I saw little if any benefit from the product. I felt depressed and defeated. The truth is that I still feel depressed and defeated. I could go back to my doctor and get another prescription for Synthroid, but I don't believe it will do any good.

So, for the last four months, I haven't been treating myself for hypothyroidism. Oh, I've been eating plenty of salads and I haven't been eating more than about 1400 calories per day; sometimes only 1000 calories per day. But I've been in a funk, have had no energy and haven't been exercising much at all, and I've gained about 15 pounds in the last six months. It seems I am also perimenopausal.

I weighed myself today, and I tip the scales at 157 pounds.

I cannot live this way. I continue to gain weight. I am miserable. I must do something.

So, this is the beginning of my blog: Hypothyroid Dieting.

I plan to record my weight, food/calories consumed, daily exercise. I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I will post links to any research that I find about the subject of treating hypothyroidism with diet and exercise. I welcome suggestions, advice, and words of encouragement.

I am starting with a book that I've just purchased: The Thyroid Diet: Manage Your Metabolism for Lasting Weight Loss, by Mary Shomon.

My life is literally on the line with this program. It must succeed, not only for my own sake, but for my family.

Resolved: I will lose 35 pounds during 2011, and I will become a human being again.