About three months ago I came across your website and it was and is a refreshing experience! I have been enduring the physical and mental affects of hypothyroidism since in my early twenties (I'm 53) and was never diagnosed or assisted until I threw a tantrum in my HMO's office and asked to be tested for low thyroid. This tantrum was a result of being told maybe "we" should learn to push away from the table more often!

It was apparent that this medical practitioner (a woman) was totally insensitive and disinterested in my condition. I had explained that I had always been very active and followed a healthy diet (meat, fish, fowl, green and yellow veggies, some whole grains) and that at approximately 38 years of age I begin to gain weight, felt fatigued, etc... her response was that I had decreased my exercise and obviously was eating too much. NOT TRUE! There is also a history of vascular disease in my family as well as diabetes.

After the testing she agreed to prescribe levothyroxine and promptly wrote out a prescription for .150. I ingested the pill and within a short period of time experienced rapid breathing, tingling of the lips and ringing in my ears. I had a book on prescription medicine and their side effects, read the section on thyroid medicine and learned this should have been administered in micro amounts until my system adjusted to the medication and responded properly. I called my HMO this doctor was out of town and I explained my situation to the ER nurse. A new prescription was called in and I was given .050 mg BIG CHANGE! I never saw the other doctor again and she made no effort to contact me!

Years went by, I continued to gain weight (a total of 50 lbs), I begin to experience all the negative feelings one does about oneself and felt I was a hopeless case. My medication wasn't increased until age 50 when I went to see my daughters ob-gyn and he listened and helped!

When I came across your website (I was taking by that time .125 mg) I felt I had finally found a friend who could help and confirm I wasn't a sloth....just a gal going through menopause and suffering from hypothyroidism! I printed out information from your site and Dr. Gillespie, took the information to my Primary care at the HMO and he promptly told me I was chronically fatigued because I was overweight, had troubling sleeping, etc. and most likely needed counseling for chronic depression (oh yeah, he also offered to prescribe lithium for my depression) and felt I should get into group counseling immediately!

My TSH results were 6.6 ..he said I was normal! Needless to say I went into a deeper depression!!! Then, I went back into the website, learned more about TSH levels and so-called "normal ranges" per individual lab. I made an appointment with my ob-gyn and he said "I'd be depressed too if I were so darn tired"! God love 'em! We ran the TSH again...he said we needed to up the dosage to .150 mg).

Guess, what?? I feel like the weight of the world has been lifted off my shoulders!! I've lost 10 pounds so far and I now walk 30 minutes 5 times a week. I smile a lot more....back to being the funny, creative person I've always been and I now have the knowledge I'm headed down the right path to RECOVERY!!!!!! Thank you from the bottom of my heart...my thyroid thanks you too!!

Victoria, woman, wife, mother, grandmother and hypo

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