EMFing

Every now and then if I've been on the computer for more than one hour, I become exhausted. It hits me like a ton of bricks. I become so exhausted I can't sit up and the weakness compels me to lay down. However, I have found if I don't lay down and instead get away from my computer and move around, I recover in about twenty minutes especially if I go outside. This exhaustion doesn't happen all the time, but I can't figure out the pattern or reason what might be causing it. It seems to be all about the computer.

EMFs?

I asked my new naturopath about this and I got the deer-in-the-headlights look which forced me to say quickly, "Never mind."

I just watched a new film called Surrounded by Sam Weider. Sam and his wife, Jacqueline, began having off and on unexplained health issues that became worse over time. Eventually Jacqueline was diagnosed with cancer and died. He discovered a book in her office called Zapped by Ann Louise Gittleman about EMF sensitivity. Then he contacted a EMF specialist or "building biologist" who tested his house. Sam features both the author and the biologist in his film.

It was fascinating and scary to watch the radiation tester beep like crazy around cordless phones, metal lamps, and air purifiers. Sam used to have tables with metal legs and it seems this caused his whole office to electrify like a giant microwave! His wife used to sit in the middle of this EMF shit storm. The building biologist also tested all the electronics in the bedroom: three lamps, an air purifier, television with DVD player, alarm clocks, cellphone chargers and, wait for it, the BED MATTRESS with METAL SPRINGS! With all these things plugged in, regardless of whether they are turned on or off, it electrifies the bed springs! Wow. How can one sleep well if one is wired?

Tips to reduce EMF exposure in your home:

Get all electrical devices out of the bedroom. Move your bed at least six inches away from a wall with electrical wiring and outlets. Sam actually had an electrician modify the electrical wiring and install a kill switch so everything even in the walls can be turned off at night. It doesn't matter if appliances or fixtures are turned on, the electrical current is still sending signals.

Disable cordless phones.

Disable WiFi.

Around the computer desk, use cable shields on the electrical cables.

Do not use fluorescent lighting of any kind including compact fluorescent light bulbs.

Don't use your cellphone in enclosed spaces, such as a car.

One of the most interesting facts was that cancerous tumors start appearing after ten years of cellphone use especially in those who use their phones continuously. Over the years I've read a lot of articles on how cellphone use causes cancer. It's shocking to me how the general public so addicted to their phones have discounted and ignored the warnings. I have a neighbor who is constantly on her phone. Even when she is walking her dog or riding a bike. No one seems to care.

Several years ago I visited the MCS/EMF sensitive community in Snowflake, Arizona and learned a lot from the residents there. 

I used to have a cordless phone, but now I avoid telephone use, especially cellphones, as they give me migraines. My Tracfone is rarely on and only if I must make a phone call. 

I have very little electrical devices in my bedroom, just my alarm clock as I can't stand the sound of ticking so little wind up clocks won't work for me. I have NEVER watched a television in my bedroom. The thought of destroying my sleeping area with radiation has always repulsed me. I only sleep in my bedroom. I don't even dress in this room.

I junked my microwave years ago. 

After this movie, I went around my whole house and unplugged all the lamps! I also realized in the fifteen plus years I've lived her, most of the room's light bulbs have never been changed. I'm very conscientious about turning off lights when not in a room

 So why do I become exhausted when on the computer? 

I have not one but TWO computers with screens and external speakers. I actually have three but the laptop is rarely turned on let alone used. In this same room, my office, I also have a router, a printer, two lamps, and a television with DVD player besides all the cables and electrical outlets. I'm surrounded by these devices. It's not clear why the exhaustion isn't all the time when I spend most of my time in this room.

It's such a mystery.

Drug Purge

I tried. I really did.

The first thing I noticed is eight hours after taking the 30 mg. thyroid pill, I'd get incredibly tired, crash, and feel the need to nap. I stopped crashing when I changed my diet so although low-level fatigue is what I was trying to address with these drugs, crashing was a newly returned symptom. My new health care provider agreed I should take a second 30 mg. pill in the afternoon. We assumed the drugs were wearing off. This seemed to work...for a short time. Then I started getting more tired in the afternoon, earlier in the afternoon each day, then waking early in the morning and beginning the day tired.  This was not an improvement.

I was also hungry all the time which wasn't new, but I started overeating.  Constant, compulsive overeating nearly to the point of vomiting. I had to pay close attention during a meal to know when to stop. I never felt real hunger and even after overeating, I'd still feel famished.

My legs and hips started hurting all the time. I read that hip pain is a hypothyroid symptom.

Then last week I started feeling borderline depressed. Just off. Like everything was not quite right. At first I thought this mild depression might have been residue from the heater chemicals offgassing. That would make sense, but it should have gone away once the heaters ceased to be a problem.

Prior to starting this Paleo with Hashimoto's Twist diet, I had severe inflammation, mostly at night. My skin would burn uncomfortably and my face was often burning red. It went away with the diet and since taking thyroid meds, it has returned. Inflammation is never good.

Unfortunately, all the muscle pain, muscle weakness and lack of muscle recovery never went away. The adrenaline rushes and hot flashes got worse. I had hoped a thyroid prescription would help with some of it. For a short time I did feel slightly more energetic and not as stress intolerant.

I worried about these new or returned symptoms and questioned whether things might get worse with a dosage increase.  I made an appointment with the formerly fired Nurse Lady.

Let me clarify. Yes, I had planned to fire Nurse Lady for failing at follow-through, but then I spoke to the pharmacist who said this was unusual behavior for her. So I thought I'd give her another chance. Maybe she was having a bad week? I know she wasn't having a bad week. She went to Hawaii. Can I blame her? Would I love to drop my life and go to Hawaii? Of course! But health care providers have a certain responsibility to their patients especially ones who's prescription needs refilling before it runs out. She should have done the research and settled her accounts before leaving. Instead she left me in a panic not knowing what to do. She never did get back to me about anything. Her failure makes that first appointment a waste of time and money.

Yeah, I should fire her, but then where do I find another fragrance-free health care provider? One who has Hashimoto's, acknowledges chemical sensitivity, recognizes my sensitivity to drugs, understands compounded pharmacies, and seems to have researched ideas relevant to my issues? Other than lack of follow-through, I really liked her. I wouldn't even know where to start looking for a new doctor. So she's not fired. I just won't rely on her to do what she says she will in the future. I really hate it we have to accept substandard health care for lack of any other choice.

My second appointment with her she said, "So, it's been over a year since you've been in?" Hmmm... I was in your office two months ago. She has no clue who I am nor what year it is. That did not inspire confidence. Did she leave her brain in Hawaii? I told her about my many new symptoms. The fatigue I have now is slightly worse, inflammation has returned, hips hurt, body hurts, and I am starving. During the course of the appointment I told her three times about the feelings of starvation and each time she stared at me with an occasional grimace. She had no clue. Her response was to give me dietary counseling. She knows I'm on the Kharrazian diet-that-saved-my-life and I know my diet is better than the diets of most Americans. It was frustrating to waste my time having someone tell me how to eat. I know my diet is what has improved my health, but she's not listening to me. I resent people who treat me like I'm a moron.

I did, however, lose two pounds which was odd since I'm eating like a horse, and my temperature is lower than the last visit (96.6). I asked her about how these meds work as I'm assuming they are killing my own thyroid's function causing more hypothyroidism which then demands a higher drug dosage to compensate. She disagreed but only on my choice of vocabulary. They suppress the thyroid. She told me people who take thyroid and want to quit can be weaned slowly off it and the thyroid will bounce back. I am skeptical. The thyroid gland doesn't just bounce back or no one would need any medication. I asked about a dosage increase since I read most people need to take three times more drug than I am, and she suggested the dose should be raised to 60mg. in the morning. The goal eventually was to take one pill strong enough to carry me through the day. I smell a drug addiction coming on. I just want to see an improvement. She ordered labs.

Breakfast...Yum.

So, the next day I took a double thyroid dose (60 mg.) and within an hour I was so incredibly hungry AFTER eating a multiple-course, multiple-helping breakfast, I wanted to eat my furniture. All day I was climbing the walls feeling like I was starving. I laid in bed that night and decided this isn't right. I checked online. There are others who have reacted to thyroid in the same way. Feelings of excruciating starvation not due to hunger. Their health care providers also had no answers for them.

The following day, I stopped the drugs. It was the first time in four months I was not hungry after eating a meal, did not overeat, and did not feel like I was starving.  Later that day, I felt no fatigue and it was the first time in four months I actually felt real hunger just before a meal. The next day I awoke to absolutely no depression and feeling really content and happy with everything.

Those damn drugs are poisoning me and messing with my brain.

Dessicated thyroid is real thyroid glandular from a pig, therefore, it has all the natural ratios of thyroid including T3 and T4. This natural balance is the reasoning behind taking it. Problem is it also comes with natural iodine, or iodide. Hmmm...I know people with Hashimoto's are supposed to stay away from iodine as it triggers immune attacks. Is this causing my reaction? Is this why I felt better at first and then slowly declined?

Kharrazian's book says taking thyroid medications unnecessarily will cause cells to develop a resistance to it creating pituitary hypofunction. The patient will feel fine at first, but then symptoms return. Hmmm....so the drug is killing off organs one by one? Kharrazian says your body's natural function will be permanently lost and dependency on medication will become lifelong. Great. That doesn't sound like anything will bounce back in fact quite the opposite. The whole thing is really frustrating and I get the impression most health-care providers fail to see the holistic side effects of any drug. Thyroid drugs are considered the easy answer, but everyone I know who takes them still suffers from fatigue which does not inspire confidence.

It's been a week and I actually feel much better without drugs than with them. I'm waiting for the thyroid lab results to see what has happened to my body while taking the drugs. I no longer think my low-level fatigue is related to just the thyroid, although I've been saying this for years. I was hoping this one piece of the puzzle would help a little. Not many people seem to know what to do with adrenal health problems. If I'm waking up every hour throughout the night with adrenaline rushes and hot flashes, it stands to reason I'd feel tired a lot. I read low cortisol incites the adrenaline rushes and this excessive cortisol will lower your blood sugar causing sugar cravings and digestive problems as well as muscle pain and weakness. I've known all along I should address the adrenal problems to support the thyroid and I've read if the adrenals aren't working properly, neither will any thyroid medication. Back to square one.

I'm currently trying to decide if I should go back to Nurse Lady or go to Gyno Doctor. The gynecologist has drug posters on the walls of her office and in the exam rooms. This indicates she will have little acceptance of chemical sensitivity, but she might know more about weird menopause symptoms than Nurse Lady. Also, her husband who shares the office with her is the only endocrinologist for miles. Still any treatments she will have will focus on chemical prescriptions and I already know I'm not very tolerant of drugs. What a game.

Health care sucks. It always feels like such a waste of money like I'm running in circles and getting nowhere. Just poorer.

Paleo/Caveman Diet with Hashimoto's Twist - Two Year Anniversary!

It's been just a little over two years since I started the Dr. Kharrazian Paleo-Hashimoto's diet and after writing my last post on the sacrifices we make to be healthy, I ventured over to the one year anniversary post I wrote in 2012 to review and reflect on my efforts.

What I'm eating now:

Meat, approved:  Lamb, cod, salmon, hamburger, eggs, chicken, tuna (gluten-free)

Meat, forbidden:  Oysters, prawns, clams, bacon

I've been going clam digging this year so my freezer is full. Honestly, I'd rather dig them rather than eating them. Maybe I'll find someone who wants them because I don't. I eat oysters or prawns maybe once a month and bacon is a special treat maybe once every two months for some variety. I have strange dreams when I eat shellfish so I avoid it, but other than that, I don't seem to have any reaction to these meats.

Fruits, winter:  Apples, oranges, avocados, lemons, frozen blueberries, pears, grapefruit, limes

Fruits, summer: Apples, grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe, avocados, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, nectarines, lemons, pears

Fruits, forbidden:  Bananas

I have a banana about once a month in the winter when so much is unavailable. I avoid them because they are high in sugar and must be imported from far away. I prefer local produce. I have no reaction to them.

Watermelon is supposedly forbidden on the diet, but what I don't understand is it has a lower glycemic value than blueberries, yet blueberries are allowed. In the hot summer months, watermelon makes me feel good with all that extra hydration.

Vegetables, consistently:  Squash (all kinds), lettuce, onions, garlic, peppers, Brussels sprouts, ginger, herbs, broccoli, kale (rarely), carrots, celery

Vegetables, forbidden: Potatoes, pickles, green beans

I crave hot foods when it's cold and try to make due with squash, but for a treat I add potatoes every now and then. After years of picklelessness, one day I just felt like I needed to eat a pickle. I bought the ones at the health store. I rarely eat green beans, but I do.

Other foods: Coconut milk, olive oil, herbs and spices

Other foods, forbidden: Gluten-free desserts, rice, maple syrup, yogurt, canola mayonnaise, peanut butter, carob chips

I know I'm not allowed, but every now and then, about once a month, I treat myself to a gluten-free dessert. They are often made with sugar, dairy and usually rice flour. I don't seem to have any reaction to them, but I know they are forbidden. I think if I ate them consistently, I'm pretty sure I'd have problems.

Unsweetened carob chips...I'm addicted, but they are a hour's drive away so they are easy to avoid.

I caved and bought a jar of peanut butter a few weeks ago and ate the whole thing over a few days! Tasted great, but I felt a little tired. Since giving up dried fruits, I don't usually feel tired so I'm blaming this fatigue on the very forbidden peanut butter which is not a nut, but a legume. The impulse is over. No more.

I'm still eating rice once every two weeks or so, but it seems less necessary and doesn't taste as good. Maybe that salt elimination diet helped?

I get organic, raw, grade B maple syrup and use it to sweeten hot tea for a warming winter drink. It's supposed to be high in vitamins and minerals. I don't use much, but any sweetener is forbidden.

I love yogurt. I buy Nancy's organic, unsweetened, full-fat. It's like ice cream to me. I put blueberries or apples on it.

I eat mayonnaise. The brand I buy from the health food store isn't as bad as the chemical-laden garbage in the grocery store, but it's still forbidden. I've worshipped mayonnaise all my life. I love it. Mooning over mayonnaise makes it sound like I'm eating gallons of it, but in truth, it's only a tablespoon here and there to spice up a meal like fish or salads.

Jeez! I look at that list and scream "CHEATER!" I have been feeling so good, I thought I was doing good, but I guess not!

Food I've Stopped Eating in the Past Year: 

Nuts and seeds...Not sure why but I'm just not interested in eating nuts or seeds anymore. Every now and then I'll buy a handful of pecans because I think I should eat some for the mineral content.  I was eating A LOT of nuts: pecans, almonds, pistachios, brazil nuts, cashews, sunflower seeds and buckets of cockroach-infested almond butter. No longer interested. There must be a reason so I'll listen to my body and obey. I wonder if my lack of nuts contributed to my impulse to buy peanut butter?

Peas...Not feeling the need to eat peas like I was before.

Agave syrup...I don't like it. I replaced it with organic maple syrup which has a higher mineral content.

Dried Fruits...Other than falling off the wagon in September with the dried Asian Pears, I haven't had dried fruits since the elimination test last August. Other than the peanut butter reaction, I've had no fatigue either. So happy to discover that!

Cherries...I used to eat a lot of fresh, in-season cherries in the summer, but someone told me it's impossible to get organic cherries. Even if they claim to be organic, they aren't. She made a really good case for this information so I stopped eating them. I miss them, but they are really expensive.

Pancakes, gluten-free...Not interested, but I'm sure gluten-free desserts are made with the same type of flour.

Hot Dogs...I used to buy the brand at the health food store made with beef and without chemicals or gluten. This was a forbidden food that was one of my every-so-often indulging treats for a while. The last hot dog made my whole mouth break out in blisters! It tasted fine at the time. I'm not sure if the manufacturer screwed up the recipe or if my body decided to scream a warning at me. I listened. I haven't eaten one since and that's a good thing.

 

I'm no longer suffering from exhaustion or fatigue. Few headaches and fewer pains. I haven't lost weight, but I haven't gained weight either. The diet still isn't perfect and neither is my health, but one thing I've realized is being isolated out in the middle of no where with little to do especially in the winter, eating IS my entertainment. Unfortunately. Indulging in a gigantic bowl of very expensive Moroccan Lamb Stew or a huge plate of spicy Jerk Chicken makes my whole day. A gluten-free cupcake every so often is the cherry on top! Eventually I'll be a dieting saint and eat a perfect diet. Maybe. If that's possible. It's hard being human.

Baby steps....

The Elimination Experiment, or Fatigue Testing

After five doctors and no answers, I'm determined to figure out why I'm always tired so I'm attempting some elimination tests.

The Paleo-Hashimoto's diet I been on has been very successful. I have not had any episodes of exhaustion. The "exhaustion" is when I am so tired I can barely move, lifting my arm takes enormous effort, and the only thing I am capable of doing is lying in bed. I'm not tired or sleepy and I can't sleep, I just can't seem to move. It's very frightening. It's the memory of those exhaustion episodes that helps me maintain my will power and keeps me from eating gluten and chocolate. I believe it's the gluten that provoke the autoimmune attacks on my thyroid.

The underlying fatigue started when I moved into this house eight years ago, maybe even a few years prior although it wasn't very apparent. I don't feel like exercising. I can often work through the fatigue with walking, gardening or projects, but no bike riding or stretching/exercising and even sitting still and reading feels like great effort. I experience the fatigue more in the spring and summer, and most often in the afternoon. I feel so tired I just want to nap, usually around 2pm to about 5pm.


Fatigue Theories:

Hay fever allergies are known for symptoms of fatigue and it's a little coincidental that most of my fatigue takes place in the spring and summer. As a child I lived in the country, dealt with hay fever, and as soon as I came of age I headed to the city where all my hay fever issues went away. I've now moved back to the country to get out of the pollution. There isn't much I can do about hay fever other than take drugs like Benadryl. Benadryl will clear up the respiratory symptoms like runny nose, sneezing, and sinus congestion, but it also causes fatigue. If all this fatigue is caused by hay fever allergies, my only alternative would be to move back to the city where I don't have allergies, but then I would have to suffer chemical exposures which are worse.

Air-borne chemicals  During the spring and summer the city sprays the streets, sidewalks and parks with herbicides and my neighbors spray their lawns. I do notice during the spring and summer there are days when if I go for a walk my lungs start feeling heavy and hurt. In addition, when my neighbor does laundry, it stinks to high heaven and pollutes the whole neighborhood. Incredibly toxic. Is it causing the fatigue?  Other than staying inside all summer, there isn't much I can do about air-borne chemicals other than to continue to do what I can to avoid exposure.

Mold  In the dirt? In the air? Spring and summer is when the ground and air warms. Does it activate mold growth? Every now and then if I dig in the garden, I become very tired. Might be a correlation or the correlation is the exercise? I don't know. I'll not dig in the dirt and use it as a test.

Computers and electromagnetic field exposures  I can keep track of the time I spend on the computer, but other than that it is another uncontrollable variable as I have to work.

Water-borne chemicals  I tend to feel tired once a month consistently and this leads me to believe there might be a connection to the city's water treatments and the fatigue I experience. I love soaking in the bathtub. I can take very short showers and see if that makes a difference and during the time period in question, avoid bathing all together and use it as a test.

Adrenal fatigue  Any number of things can contribute to adrenal fatigue, but stress is the number one factor.  I tend to be very reactive to emotions and sensitive to stress, but I don't have much on a daily basis. Bathing in hot water affects body temperature and puts a lot of stress on one's adrenals which could also affect energy levels. I have done some experimentation with adrenal support and nothing has made a difference. I'm at a loss for what else to try. No bathing might make a difference.

Diet  I've done well to reduce my intake of bad foods, but I still have my guilty pleasures and most of them are NOT on my Paleo-Hashimoto's diet. Although I don't eat a lot of the forbidden foods, every now and then I do treat myself.  Dried fruits are high in carbohydrates and affect blood sugar, and I'm addicted to raisins and dates as snacks. Yogurt (dairy) is known for inflammation, and unfortunately, when I get bored with the same old foods I treat myself with high fat, no sugar, plain yogurt. Potatoes are also high in carbohydrates (sugars) even though I eat them rarely, I haven't stopped completely. Grains are not on the diet either and I rarely eat gluten-free grain products with rice flour, potato flour or other substitutes, but every now and then for something different, I do. Rice is a carbohydrate and even though I don't eat it nearly as much as I did prior to starting this diet, I start feeling discombobulated if I go without it for up to two weeks. I also eat a lot of eggs, more than any human should consume. Are they causing fatigue? Let's find out. Can I give up these foods for three weeks? I'll need to add some recipes to my diet that will keep me full and satisfied like more beef and lamb.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome  One doctor suggested chronic fatigue, but I don't seem to have the other symptoms that accompany this condition. If so, there is nothing I can do about it.

Menopause and Hormonal Changes  Maybe. Not much I can do about this, either. Old people feel tired and nap a lot. I'm in that in between stage - I'm not old enough to retire, but I'm old enough to start feeling like I should. Damn.


Elimination Plan:

For three weeks I am not to soak in hot baths. Brief showers only except between the 19th and 25th when I sponge bathe in distilled water. No eating problematic foods (eggs, yogurt, dried fruit, potatoes or rice, gluten-free flours) for three weeks. I can't avoid the outside which would be ideal, but I can't stop what little exercise I'm getting and it's summer. I need sunshine for vitamin D. I'll keep track of everything I'm eating as well as anything unusual that I do or that happened during the day, for instance, air pollution encounters, labor-intensive projects, when I take a shower, and how often I'm on the computer.

Notes and Highlights:

The first day: NO FATIGUE. The second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth days: NO FATIGUE.  Even after strenuous work, walking, or computer time, I didn't feel the normal afternoon fatigue. There were a few days when I felt a little tired around 6pm, but nothing that stopped me from functioning. I had high hopes that I was doing something right until the evening of the ninth day.

Day eight I was exposed to long grass and my hay fever symptoms went crazy. Later that night, I wanted to eat eggs. I couldn't stop thinking about them. It's the only thing I wanted to eat, but I didn't. Sinuses were painfully raw and respiratory tract was uncomfortably congested. The next day allergy symptoms were still bothering me, but not as bad. Later that night I started pacing around the kitchen like a caged animal. I'm hungry, but nothing looks good. I didn't eat rice although I know it would have stopped me from pacing. Tenth day woke up tired and stayed that way all day crashing around two in the afternoon and sleeping for two hours. Allergies?? Or maybe coming down off of allergies?

Around day five I started feeling like I want to exercise! Nothing strenuous, just stretching and movement, but normally I don't even feel like I'm capable of any kind of exertion.

After a week of no raisins or dates, I didn't even care. I really thought I'd have problems giving up the sugary stuff.

Air-borne chemical encounters clearly gave me headaches and migraines usually within a few minutes and the intensity depended on the encounter. Getting one whiff of that sickly-sweet laundry detergent wafting over from my neighbor's house nearly killed me one morning. I ran back into the house and stayed there for a few hours with the windows closed until I thought their laundry was done. Didn't seem to have any correlation to fatigue, though.

Around day seventeen I was COLD. My whole body cold. And hungry. I wanted to take a bath just to warm up, but instead crawled into bed for about an hour. Didn't sleep because I wasn't tired. Hungry all day, but nothing sounded satisfying. Later in the day I wanted to eat eggs. I didn't. I ate rice...I couldn't wait any longer.

The Challenges:

I added a "forbidden" for one day and stop for four days to see what happens.

RICE: no negative effects, felt better, no hunger and no fatigue

GLUTEN-FREE CUPCAKE WITH SUGAR: YUM! I couldn't help myself. I was awake later than usual (lots of energy), I seem to have more hot flashes, and slightly tired about four hours later with slight headache, but no crashing type of fatigue.

EGGS: The cravings indicated eggs might be an issue, maybe associated with hay fever? Eggs are really high in zinc which assists detoxification. As soon as I ate them I kept having to clear my throat. Then I ate them again and again all day. I felt a little tired at the bewitching hour (2:00pm), but not much and no crashing. I ate them again and had no reaction at all.

YOGURT: The yogurt was heavenly, I slept good after, and awoke with lots of energy the next morning. It's not yogurt!

POTATOES: Yum! I baked them as French Fries in olive oil. No fatigue. I do wonder if I ate them a lot or repeatedly for days if they would also produce fatigue. So several weeks later I tried that and experienced no fatigue.

GLUTEN-FREE PANCAKES: These are made with rice flour and some other stuff. I eat them so infrequently, maybe once every two or three months so it's been a while since I've had them. I went picking blueberries and thought this would be a good opportunity to make blueberry pancakes and test the reaction. I ate one pancake and felt really awful. About an hour later the headaches started and then I crashed and slept for two hours. All before noon! Fatigue and headaches the rest of the day.

BATH: I was getting a strange rash on my calves before I started this experiment which only got worse every time I took a bath. It nearly all went away during the bathing elimination phase.  I took a fast dip in a cool bath thinking a hot bath was causing the rash, and my calves started burning anyway. I had planned to take hot baths the whole day to test the fatigue, but if one short cool dip would cause the burning, I decided to wait to add hot baths later. I took that cool dip when the chemicals in the water are at their worst.

About a week later, I just wanted a bath and it was time to do a bath challenge. To soak in hot water. It was wonderful. Two hours later I did it again. I felt tired immediately after and crashed, sleeping for two hours. Took another bath and the headaches and nausea started. I jump in the shower with a gallon of heated distilled water and tried to rinse the water off. Even so, I woke up the next morning with nausea, pain in my lower back, a headache and fatigue and later that afternoon, crashed and slept for one hour. It took two days to recover and the whole time I felt groggy and tired. Is it the chemicals in the water? I've had problems with them in the past. Or is it the heat stressing my adrenals? I have no idea. Maybe both. But the rash didn't come back with the second bath. I think maybe the rash and nausea are from the chemicals and the fatigue is from the heat.

DRIED FRUIT: Oh, raisins and dates...my addiction. I was surprised it was so easy to give them up. For me, dried fruit might as well be straight sugar. I had a bad feeling and almost considered not using them as a test, but I needed to confirm. I bought a small bag of dates and immediately felt sick after eating some. Ate a few more of the dates the next day and around 2pm crashed for nearly FOUR hours. Good to know.

DIGGING IN THE DIRT/MOLD THEORY:  This was the last test. I cut all my lettuce and gave it to the food bank then the next morning I dug out all the roots. I dug deep and got my nose down in the dirt to make sure the exposure was good. No fatigue at all.


Conclusion:

Besides the normal dietary restrictions of gluten, sweeteners, dairy, tomatoes, mushrooms, pork, shellfish, high glycemic fruits, juices, junk food and processed foods:

*Stay away from hot baths.
*Stay away from bath during city treatment periods.
*Stay away from flours or grains (other than rice).
*Stay away from dried fruits.

*Limit egg intake.

*Continue limiting rice intake no more than once every ten days.

*Avoid potatoes and yogurt because they aren't on the Paleo-Hashimoto's diet, but if I treat myself, I know these items not causing the fatigue.

*Hay fever reeks havoc on my body. Oh well.

*Stay away from chemicals. Knew that.

The closer I get to following Dr. Kharrazian's Hashimoto's diet, the better I feel. The rice is still a cheat but I don't have a clue why it makes me insane not to eat it. I'll avoid potatoes and yogurt, also cheats, even though they don't affect me. That random fatigue episode after the hay fever reaction is puzzling, but I feel closer to an answer. Non-scientific tests done at home without laboratory control are really inconclusive at best. I have no idea if combinations of things create the fatigue or other variables, but this is the best I could do.

The plan and challenges took about two months total. I'm so tired of eating pot roast...

New Doctor...New Disappointment

Once a year I become brave enough to try another doctor. I found one who has a fragrance-free office! So rare. This gave me so much hope. Finding a fragrance-free office is 80% of my battle with doctors. The office is nearly three hours away from my home, but if it's really fragrance-free, it's worth it.

With this visit I would focus on the fatigue and pain I was experiencing since I decided a few blog posts ago I might have another forty years of life in me and I really don't want to spend it tired and miserable. Somewhere, someone must have answers. My continual optimism never ceases to amaze me.

The office was very efficient and the doctor very kind and articulate. After looking over my forms and asking a few questions, she immediately told me to see a naturopath. I thought that was odd. Really odd. I didn't have the heart to tell her I'd seen eight in the last eight years.  So strange. How many AMA doctors give that advice? I wondered what I did to make her think I was crazy or beyond help. (I did not tell her I was chemically sensitive and I was being really careful with the crazy....)

 

She ordered a whole bunch of tests and off-hand mentioned the fatigue and pain just may be from hormones, or lack thereof. I love it when doctors slip ideas or "off-hand" mention something as if they are thinking aloud. Most are incredibly tight-lipped unless you pay for another appointment and then they will slowly disclose information, one appointment at a time. Ugh!

Her suggestion would be to try hormone replacement just to see if it makes a difference. The suggestion to see a naturopath threw me for a moment, but there it was: the easy slide into drugs.  With this advice I knew for sure she was an AMA doctor! She suggested drugs for only for a short time and if I had some bad side effects, she'll try to wean me off the hormone addiction.  Hmmm...no...not going to happen. I'll pass. I don't need my menopause symptoms getting worse. That sounds way too risky an experiment. I thought it was strange she made absolutely no comment about Hashimoto's Thyroiditis, a condition I clearly marked on my medical history form and known for fatigue as a main symptom. I always get the impression conventional doctors don't quite understand Hashimoto's as it defies their drug culture.

The labs were, gulp, really expensive. Shockingly expensive. More than double what any other labs I've had although they are the same lab tests I've had once a year for the last five years, but through a different doctor and a different laboratory.

But they came back the next day, which was shocking as well. Usually labs take a week to two weeks. And this office was so efficient, I could email the doctor, make appointments, and get lab results sent to me via the Internet. The convenience was almost worth the price. 

The lab results! OMG! They were ALL normal. Thyroid, vitamin levels, mineral levels, blood work, everything. Totally normal. All within normal range. According to conventional medicine standards, I am incredibly healthy aside from the pain and fatigue, of course.

"There is absolutely nothing wrong with you!" said my new doctor.

Really? Should I just ignore the pain and fatigue that affects my lifestyle on a daily basis?

 

The doctor included a Vitamin D test. I had one of these done last year for $65. This one cost almost $300. Last year's test came back as 25. This year it is 44, within range but at the lower end of the spectrum. After I hoorayed and cheered with joy, I pondered this change. That's a huge improvement, but I've done very little if anything to improve my Vitamin D levels.

As I pondered I remembered my naturopathic medical assistant training. Blood lab results in conventional medicine are based on lab result comparisons OR sick people statistics so their normal isn't really normal at all.  The premise is most blood tests are done because someone is sick. Throw those all in one big statistical pot and one has to question the validity of the ranges for healthy results. A naturopathic-oriented lab tweaks blood lab results to offer a more realistic view of what is going on. I know the doctors I worked for had lab result manuals they used as references to adjust and interpret the false positives. Hmmm...do they do that to sell more supplements? It made me wonder if we ever get correct information and how much physician agendas affect those results.


In conclusion, the new doctor offered no solution to my fatigue and pain other than a drug experiment. That only cost $600.

Paleo/Caveman Diet with Hashimoto's Twist: ONE YEAR!!

It's been exactly one year on the Paleo/Cavewoman Diet with a Hashimoto's Twist. How is it going?

Easier. It gets easier. At first I was hungry all the time. Not really hungry, just not satisfied with anything I was eating. I realized I really don't like vegetables and not being accustomed to eating meat, changing my diet was definitely an adjustment. Initially I was gorging on anything I could eat, but that didn't even help. I tweaked favorite recipes in hopes of satiety. Eventually, I stopped worrying and thinking about what I was eating, what I couldn't eat, and what I really wanted to eat. I started followed my instincts while attempting to follow the basic rules with a few tweaks.

What I eat consistently now : fish, beef, chicken, eggs, most vegetables, most fruits, nuts, and olive oil. All foods are organic and as healthy and wholesome as possible.

Blood Sugar.  In the beginning for the first three or four months, I kept crashing. I'd never experienced utter weakness from not eating before so this was new. If I didn't eat something every two hours or sometimes every hour, my head would start spinning and I could hardly walk. Some simple snack didn't work - I needed protein or a full meal, but even then I didn't feel satisfied. It was like I couldn't eat enough. Looking back, I think it was partly due to the overall dietary adjustment. Eating gluten and grains regularly would have kept my blood sugar elevated consistently. Cutting them out must have been a shock. OR it was the high-glycemic fruits causing too much blood sugar elevation and then a drop? I didn't realize eating bananas and dried fruits, drinking fresh-squeezed fruit juices might have been contributing to it. Once I stopped these foods regularly, I was fine, but these foods kept me from wanting sugar and sweeteners so it did get me through the initial adjustment.

Discombobulation.  After three months, I'd become unsettled and anxious about once every two weeks. I'd start pacing the kitchen, feeling really antsy, strangely anxious, like something wasn't right, all food became unappealing, and nothing sounded good but I was starving. I tried various foods in hopes they would do the trick, but nothing worked. I found eating rice is the key. All the discombobulation goes away. I feel great. I become calm. I have no idea why although it might again have something to do with blood sugar or something in my diet that's missing and rice has it. I don't eat rice all the time, maybe once every two weeks, and not nearly as often as I did before starting the diet which was almost daily. I have not experienced any side effects with rice.

Cheating. Well, maybe it got easier because I just learned how to cheat effectively? I've never been able to eat the same things over and over again without feeling crazy. Adding cheat eats helps. Here are my confessions:

Every now and then I eat green peas. I know! You are thinking peas are healthy! I think so, too, but they are legumes and not on the Hashimoto's part of the diet because of the way they affect blood sugar when digested. I eat them because they are easy and when I run out of food and can't get to a store right away, there the peas sit in my freezer. I am thankful they are there. Without peas, I might lose all willpower and go for the really bad stuff. I experience no reactions that I am aware of.

Every now and then I drink tea with agave syrup or eat something with some kind of sweetener. Bad! This has been just in the last couple months so I'm trying to rein it in. Maybe because of the cold weather change? I also eat dates and raisins every now and then.

Canola oil mayonnaise. I'm trying to get away from it. I did just read a book on a diet that highly recommends canola oil, but I'm not convinced. It's made from corn which is grown with an abundance of chemicals. I love mayo, and my brand of choice is without soybeans and all the garbage. Still, it is processed so it's cheating. I do have a recipe for Duck Egg Mayonnaise, that is just olive oil, lemon juice, salt and duck eggs, but I don't know anyone with duck eggs. Someday I'll try it.
   
About once a month I have some kind of shellfish: oysters or prawns. Again, I just need something different to eat.

Yogurt is another treat I eat on occasion. I buy the Organic Nancy's Whole Milk Yogurt. No sweeteners in it like some of her other flavors. I mix shredded apples or blueberries in it.

I've never cheated with gluten other than the few tablespoons of an ice cream sample that may or may not have had gluten as a hidden ingredient. Gluten scares me. I have also never cheated with chocolate. Chocolate is evil and is gluten's evil twin. No coffee or anything typically considered junk food like candy bars, soda pop, etc., and I haven't gone to a restaurant in over a year, happy to say.

I guess I should call this "The Cheating Diet". But it's working...

Supplements. I do have a method to my madness regarding some of these cheats. I don't do supplements. Vitamin/mineral supplements are usually synthetic, processed bits of fake nutrients and incredibly unnatural. They usually make me sick and I react badly to most herbal supplements as well. I am supported by a few authors who believe those with autoimmune diseases should not take supplements. Dr. Datis Kharrazian believes supplements are a necessary form of healing and should be taken to support the Paleo/Hashimoto's diet.  This is HIS diet. Obviously I disagree, but this puts me in a difficult position if the diet is supposed to work only with the addition of supplements. I get my nutrients through clean, wholesome, natural foods.  I justify eating yogurt as a digestive aid instead of the probiotics recommended, and oysters are really high in minerals, zinc in particular which is good for detoxification. Green peas? What is healthier than green peas? Loaded with nutrients.  Natural minerals assist in detoxification which is important due to my chemical sensitivity. I guess I should call this the Paleo/Hashimoto's/MCS diet.

OK, I can rationalize anything, but I've never had any reaction to my cheats. If I did, I would cease to indulge immediately. I even had something with real sugar in it about a month ago and had no reaction whatsoever although I kinda wish I had so it wouldn't make me feel so confident about cheating!

Blood Labs.  Last Spring my blood labs had all improved which gave me great hope.

Energy/Fatigue.  I haven't had any bouts of exhaustion since January when I just had one or two. I still get tired from time to time, usually 2pm - 5pm, but not nearly as bad as it was last year. In fact, I overworked myself this summer and had to take some time off to recuperate. This is a good sign. During the winter before starting this diet I didn't have much fatigue at all so I'm hoping to have more energy this winter than ever before!

Weight Loss.  Ah ha! Several people have emailed me or commented on their struggle with weight loss. We have all desperately wondered WHY we aren't losing weight especially with all the sacrifice. I am happy to say I finally am! I don't have a bathroom scale, but I can fit into pants I haven't been able to wear for about three years. In fact three years ago I couldn't get them on let alone button them up! They are now loose and comfortable.

Here are my thoughts on this. Initially I was gorging on anything I could eat desperate for satiety, mostly high fat foods, foods that would normally be filling: coconut milk, nuts, nut butters, and high-glycemic fruits. In January I went through a whole case of coconut milk! A doctor recommended pistachios because their good fat content is high and they are very healthy in terms of vitamins and minerals. He didn't mentioned they were exceptionally FATTENING, too. I still eat them along with pecans, Brazil nuts, and sometimes cashews, but now limited. I just got tired of nuts. I stopped eating bananas when I found out their glycemic rating was high and reduced my intake of high-glycemic dried fruits. Then I stopped eating almond butter when I found cockroach anatomy in one of the containers. I was eating A LOT of almond butter. Almonds are really good for you, but I draw the line at vermin body parts. I think giving up the almond butter did the trick. I also have decreased my portions of meat and fish. Again, I was eating a lot of anything that would fill me up. I don't seem to need as much anymore.

Some books say it takes two years for a person to see the changes in health and energy. It's been a year. I'm still not optimum, but I think I'm half way there!

The Three R's

 

The three R's? Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic? Only one of them begins with R which makes me question the education and intelligence of the person who coined this phrase...

My three R's: Rest. Relaxation. Recouperation.

August has been a busy month for me. Don't get me wrong! I love being busy and productive with a variety of projects on my list. I save so much for summer because it's when the weather is warm. It's impossible to paint in freezing temperatures or dig in the garden during a monsoon. This is my time of the year to get things done.


Summer is also when my fatigue kicks in so nearly every day between 2pm and 5pm I collapse. As usual, I have no idea why this happens. Why only in the afternoon and why only in the spring and summer? It's not Hashimoto's or any number of health issues I've had tested. I've totally re-structured my diet hoping for some answsers and nothing has helped. It's a mystery.


For instance, riding a bike is difficult due to the stamina required, but hauling a truck-load of beauty bark is do-able. Hiking is also challenging because one needs to maintain a level of energy for a period of time, but digging all the grass out of my front yard is fine. Reading can exhaust me, but mixing and pouring nine bags of 60 lb. concrete doesn't faze me. I wish I understood the reasoning behind this and what is causing the fatigue, but I'm at a loss. Activities that require stamina are out, short-term strenuous projects are in. Even with the fatigue I keep busy.


In addition to the loading beauty bark, removing lawn and making a concrete step, I spent August scraping paint off my roof eaves, supervising numerous construction workers (both competent and incompetent types - the idiots are much more work and stress, of course), moving heavy items and packing boxes for a garage sale, cleaning and painting the inside of my garage, building a succulent picture frame, re-designing some garden beds, ongoing gardening which includes weeding, cutting, trimming, and digging, and picking and freezing berries.


Nine bags of 60 lb. concrete for this tiny step!

Last, but not least, I washed my kitchen/laundry/bathroom/mud room tile floor which is about 60 square feet of white porcelain.  This is a project I do twice a year in the spring and in the fall. In between these major washing events, I spot clean and wipe spills, but this twice a year sterilization involves taking everything out of these rooms, scrubbing the floor on my hands and knees with Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid the all-purpose miracle soap and a dash of peppermint oil, rinsing with a mop, rinsing with a wet towel, drying with a white towel, and this year, re-sealing the grout which involves spraying the sealer and polishing it off.

THEN I put it all back together, hauling the furniture back in place which includes two sets of tables and chairs, two chairs, a step ladder, two cases of Planet Dishwashing Detergent, an ironing board, a drying rack, ten pairs of shoes, a shelf with books, three laundry hampers and five rugs. While I'm scrubbing the floor the rugs are in the washing machine and then hung to dry.

As I'm scrubbing, I imagine myself a novice in a nunnery suffering greatly for all the sins I have committed...too bad the miracle soap doesn't miraculously make the bruises on my knees disappear.

Sparkly clean!

It takes about five hours so as you can imagine with my fatigue issues I must time it right and try to find a day when I'm feeling uncommonly energetic and not swamped with other commitments. This year I missed the spring wash, but it was finally crossed off my to-do list a week ago. And it was haunting me the whole time. Not much worse than looking at a dirty, grimy floor...of WHITE tiles. Once they are clean they shine so beautifully it makes me not want to walk on the floor!


On top of all that, I work at a computer all day mousing, flipping screens and typing.

Needless to say, I am in PAIN. From the tips of my fingers to my shoulders my arms feel like they are being ripped off. Like I have pulled every muscle. Typing is excruciating. Lifting a glass of water makes me wince. Moving anything makes me whimper. Peter is lucky he's getting fed due to the weight of his feed dishes. I've overworked my appendages. About a week ago my whole body including my legs felt the same way from going up and down ladders for three days in a row, but thankfully the leg pain went away. Computer work and typing aggravates the arms making it worse.

Never used to be like this. When I first moved into this house I assumed all the work I'd be doing on it would build muscle, stamina and make me strong. Nope, pain and exhaustion. The last time I had this same pain was when I re-roofed my garage five years ago and all that hammering was crippling. At that time I vowed I wouldn't be doing anymore huge projects as it's too risky since it effects my employment. Who would have known all these little projects would create such paralyzing pain?  A few days ago I was typing with my right hand's index finger which is just a little less painful than my left. Needless to say, work is slow and now I'm avoiding my computer much to the dismay of my disappearing income.

So I'm trying very hard to Relax, Rest, and Recouperate. It drives me nuts to try to do nothing when I can see all the projects I still need to finish before the bad weather arrives. Watering the garden is even painful. The remedy: an ocean adventure! At the ocean I don't have to look at the projects not getting done, I can admire the scenery and breathe in the fresh air.

Fungus Among Us

Where I live in the land of no sun and overabundance of rain, mold is taken for granted. It infiltrates our lives living in the walls and basements of our homes, wafting through our car's heating system, floating in the air, and buried in the dirt. If I don't wash my van a few times each winter, green fungus-y growth can be seen in the outside seams of metal. Lovely. Our environment is so saturated with mold that state real estate laws were changed regarding disclosure statements. It doesn't matter if your home is crawling with the fungi, and no one cares if you disclose it because they won't be allowed to sue anyway. It's assumed if your house is located here, it's moldy. Everyone's house is moldy. That's life. Get used to it. Mold is our official state...flower? Animal? Is there such a thing as an official state environmental health problem?

Since I've lived here most of my life, I have a history of mold exposure. It's always fun to watch the eyes of a new doctor light up when I start confessing the highlights of my life: the basement of my family home used to flood every winter, I grew up around apple trees and my sensitivity tests claim an intolerance to apple mold, I lived in Arizona for a short time and I've tested positive for molds that grow in air conditioners, and right around the time my chemical sensitivity began disabling me I was living in a basement apartment with carpeting from the 1970s. Just saying basement apartment and holistic health practitioners get very excited.

Although conventional allergy testing rated me negative for mold, I don't know if it really matters in terms of danger.  There are thousands of different kinds of molds. Which molds did they test me for?  I never take the information from any doctor at face value.  Do you really need to be formally allergic to mold for it to affect your health?

One of my neighbors has never had allergies of any kind throughout his life, but his sinuses and lungs have been messed up since moving to the state of mold. His house is very old and wasn't very well cared for. He has since repaired it, rebuilt parts of it, and after getting rid of the water-rotten wood and termites, it all dried out so he claims there shouldn't be a mold problem. While inspecting the thick layer of dust on his computer I replied, "So you DRIED the mold and it is now AIRBORNE? Floating around like toxic dust?"  The furrows appearing on his forehead betrayed his confidence. Breathing for him has become uncomfortable for sure, but he's pretty lucky. At least he's not dying from it. Yet.

I knew a woman who's newly-constructed house came down with a bad case of black mold. Before she realized what was happening, all her pets died mysteriously, one after the other. The house was eventually condemned, unable to even be sold and her family after losing everything moved into a tiny apartment. Shortly after that her husband was diagnosed with a brain tumor and she died from ovarian cancer about a year later. She was only in her thirties.

So, I am properly afraid of mold. I should have seen the signs when I considered buying this house but I was so eager to get out of that basement apartment, I wasn't thinking rationally. First, there were air fresheners all over. Normally, I would walk away from any house that had air fresheners, but for some reason I held my mask tightly to my face and didn't run. The laundry room had walls removed and the floor removed down to plywood. I figured someone must have been remodeling. I justified purchasing this house because there were no obvious signs: no black fuzz crawling up the wall, no drips, no visible water leaks, the crawlspace didn't smell either. I had seen all manner of mold infestations in my very, very long search for a new home.  This house looked awesome in comparison, even with the air fresheners. I told the house inspector of my mold concerns and he said, "I don't know why people worry about mold. Mold is good for you!" I should have fired him on the spot, but I was desperate to get out of the basement apartment. And I really loved the house.

On purchase, I immediately removed the air fresheners and got a closer look at everything. I could smell the mustiness. Oh god, what have I done? I assumed it was the heating system that I found out hadn't worked for years and yeah, I got under the house and animals had made nests out of the heat vents. This was another clue I missed since lack of heat during the winter would have created a whole lot of dampness. I later found out the house was unoccupied for a few years, too. Who knows what can happen when tenants aren't there to watch over a house? I went to work eradicating the problem: spraying the whole crawlspace with Four Thieves Oil (herbal stinky stuff, but tolerable), re-covering the ground under the house with thick plastic, getting the heating system fixed, replacing the missing walls, having all the plumbing inspected, redoing the floors, fixing the rain gutters, and re-roofing the whole house. No more musty smells and I felt safe and secure. It worked.

Or did it?

Since I've been in this house I been in a constant state of fatigue. Every doctor I've seen is quick to assume any fatigue must be my thyroid, but thyroid medications don't help. My thyroid labs aren't really bad enough to cause these symptoms and the Kharrazian diet hasn't improved my energy on any level. In fact, nothing seems to work. During the spring and summer months when everything warms up I experience periods of exhaustion on top of the fatigue. Mold loves wet and damp, but warmth enables it to grow and spread.

My early theories were mold. I had an online chemically sensitive acquaintance from California who told me when she visited her friend in the moldy state she could smell the mold in the yard. Another chemically sensitive person said she was tested for dirt mold and came up positive. This got me thinking.  If it were thyroid, I'd be tired in the winter when the weather is cold.  Instead, it's seasonal during the warmer months, when the environment begins to heat.

In addition to the fatigue and exhaustion, about three years ago I started experiencing burning. It started at the back of my head, crawled up and over my head and down through my body. It's constant. I've been to many doctors and no one seems to have any idea. I've read a few possible theories online, but most information comes back to MOLD. Mold keeps popping up. Mold, mold, mold.

Is there a connection between mold and chemical sensitivity? Did the mold in the basement apartment contribute to my overexposure? Has continued mold exposure in my current house kept me from healing or detoxing adequately?  

So what to do?

There are diets that lower your yeast/fungus levels but that involves giving up fruits which are naturally moldy and I'm not sure I want to do that since the foods I can eat at this point are so limited. Besides, I really don't think if you live with mold as a roommate changing your diet is really going to make a difference.

I think the best plan is to move...easier said than done in this economy...but eventually. Where to go? Is there really any place that is safe?

I've heard Colorado doesn't have mold.

Hashimoto's Thyroiditis

One of the few advantages of being chemically sensitive is my immune system kicked into overdrive - I never get sick. No colds, no viruses, no flu, no sore throats. I can have sick people sneeze all over me and still I never get sick. When my first environmental medicine specialist explained my immune system was in overdrive, I remember thinking to myself how convenient, and then, that can't be good. Somewhere down the road I was going to pay for the extra energy my hyperactive body was expending to keep me well.

I was feeling tired anyway and assumed it was because I was under so much stress while working at the school that poisoned me. Some of the doctors I saw looked at my blood labs and told me I was fine. "But, but, what about that TSH thing? What is that and why is it high and out of range?" "Oh, no, you're fine," said the quacks still practicing medical theories from the 1950s. OK. I'll take that. I needed some good news.

A few years later I found someone on an online MCS support group with twelve years more seniority and experience dealing with chemical sensitivity. She had thyroid problems and was seeing Dr. William Rea, renowned environmental medicine specialist who is at the forefront of the latest treatments for MCS. She told me thyroid issues are common for the chemically sensitive. Chemicals mess with our hormone levels, in general, and we are more susceptible to these fluctuations. "Just wait!" she said. Great. Something to look forward to. This made me seriously question the competency of the doctors I had already seen who told me I was fine.

Tired of being tired, I eventually found a doctor who also questioned the TSH lab in conjunction with the complaints I had of not only fatigue, but exhaustion. Utter exhaustion. Exhaustion so profound there would be times I couldn't move even to raise my arm. She did the antibody testing for Hashimoto's.

I'd never heard of Hashimoto's. It's one of the most common autoimmune diseases and although said to run in families, no one in my family has this. My immune system is attacking my thyroid creating hypothyroidism or low functioning thyroid. Most people who have hypothyroidism are not diagnosed. They just continue their lives feeling tired, run down, depressed, and drinking lots of caffeine to keep going. Of those who ARE tested and diagnosed with hypothyroidism, most have Hashimoto's although few are tested or diagnosed for this. Why not? Most doctors believe the only treatment for Hashimoto's is thyroid medication and if the thyroid labs are already showing low function, why bother with the antibody test since it's the same treatment? In other words, doctors are lazy idiots who prefer to cut corners instead of find answers. Making patients well would affect their bottom line!

When I heard I had an autoimmune disease my first thought was, OK, this is it. This is what happens when your immune system becomes hyperactive. I wasn't surprised. I guess I was waiting for some indication my immune system was wacko. I was given thyroid drugs which did nothing except make me incredibly sick. I would have thought at least I'd lose weight or feel less tired as a benefit, but no, I was still tired and still chubby. I gave up the pills although I was told I had to be on medication because if my thyroid levels become too out of balanced, I could have a heart attack and die! Jeez. Nothing like a little fear to push you into a drug addiction.

I didn't buy into the drug therapy anyway. Hypothyroidism is a SYMPTOM of Hashimoto's, it's not the cause. WHY does everyone want to treat the symptom? Even naturopathic doctors want to give me thyroid drugs without addressing the cause of my autoimmune disease. Of course, I was already convinced chemicals were the cause of autoimmune diseases and I was already doing whatever possible to alleviate my chemical load and avoid exposures. There had to be more to this. Half-ass answers weren't going to help. Typical medical protocols weren't making sense. What's new?

My labs were never outlandish. Most people I read about have labs in the double, triple, or even quadruple digits. My cholesterol was higher than normal as I'd always had low cholesterol. I found out this is another indication of hypothyroidism along with depression, weight gain, skin dryness, constipation, forgetfulness, hair thinning and loss, gravelly voice, and increase infection. Thankfully, I only had the fatigue and high cholesterol. (Later, I also found out slow heartbeat, lack of perspiration and cracked heels are also symptoms, which I had.) More importantly, the paralyzing episodes of exhaustion were a concern. I began researching online and read every book on Hashimoto's and hyperthyroidism I could get my hands on. Not very many had any answers. Same old theories from decades ago. I tried that drug. And that one. And that one. I needed something new, some out-of-the-box-thinking.

Then a friend of mine told me about Dr. Datis Kharrazian's book Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms When My Lab Tests Are Normal. She has been on for thyroid drugs for years constantly in search of answers and she thought it might give me some answers as well. I found his website and blog www.thyroidbook.com or www.drknews.com discussing his diet protocols and various theories and other private websites with bloggers writing about their dietary changes and experiences. DIET. OK, I can do a diet. This addresses CAUSE, not just SYMPTOM. I felt hopeful for the first time in a long time.

His theory is gluten is the culprit. I had the gliadin tests which showed negative. I didn't have a gluten sensitivity. According to Dr. Kharrazian, it doesn't matter. Gluten is evil and most people can't digest it efficiently. In response, the immune system registers undigested gluten and goes crazy trying to get rid of the poison. It also thinks thyroid tissue is gluten because of their similar structure. More importantly, an immune response to gluten can last up to six months AND any little amount of gluten that is eaten can start the process all over again with a three week guarantee of a reaction, minimum. Although I had considered myself gluten-free for the last year, I cheated a lot. With each cheat, I was put right back at the beginning and getting no results. Most people eat gluten daily.

The Gluten Monster

In addition, other foods create health issues that put stress and strain on the thyroid by creating inflammation or blood sugar issues such as hypoglycemia or insulin resistance. These include sweeteners of any kind, other grains, dairy products, saturated oils, legumes (dried beans, carob, soy and peanuts), lectins (potatoes, mushrooms, and tomatoes), highly-contaminated meats (shellfish, and pork), and high glycemic foods such as bananas, watermelons, mangoes or dried fruits. Chocolate, although on the forbidden list because it's processed and is usually made with sugar, is also a gluten cross-reactor. Some foods trigger autoimmune responses because they act like gluten in your digestive tract. (Chocolate is evil!)

Every food item should be as wholesome, fresh and chemically-free as possible. Iodine-rich foods and supplements (like kelp) which are a common holistic treatment for hypothyroidism excite the thyroid gland and trigger an autoimmune response. I also found out most thyroid medications have iodine added. Just for that extra kick. No wonder why the drugs were making me feel worse! And although these drugs are known for weight loss, they can also make a chemically sensitive person gain weight. I love what doctors don't tell you...or don't know.

Unfortunately, all those forbidden foods were part of my normal diet. What the HELL was I going to eat?

I didn't care. It was hope. I'd much rather control my food than take useless drugs that would rob my bank account and not work. I'd give it six months and see what happens....

...To Be Continued....