The Doctor

I'm keeping my promise to write about my doctor appointment, but I've got something else to write about, so I'm going to move quickly! Here are the details:

For years, I've struggled with being quite tired (even though I push myself to get a lot done). Additionally, my cycles are somewhat strange. They're a relatively normal length, but within the cycle are some strange things going on. If you read the family planning posts before, you'll remember that I mentioned that I think charting is so helpful, even if you think your cycles are normal. My experience is the perfect example. It used to be the case that even the length and frequency of my cycles was abnormal, but now they're more reasonable. If I wasn't charting, I might think everything was fine. However, I know it's not.

As a result of these issues mainly, I have wanted to find a doctor who would know enough about my body to help me figure things out and possibly find remedies without just jumping to hormonal treatments. I was looking for someone who would be able to help me look at my lifestyle, diet and possible nutritional deficiencies and include modifications to these things as part of my overall wellness plan... if at all possible, anyway. One of my friends here described that she had just this type of doctor!

When I got the appointment, the office staff sent me my new patient packet to fill out. It was about 12-15 pages of questioning about my medical history. AMAZING!!!!! Included in the questioning were ALL of my symptoms along with many that I don't struggle with.

So, I went to that first appointment. The doctor read through my new patient packet in his office and made notes before he came in to talk to me. Then we basically went through the whole packet together. He did a little bit of basic examination. He found that my spine is out of whack and recommended that I visit a chiropractor. He said that my thyroid is a little bit bumpy and ordered a blood test to check this out. His suspicions are that I'm possibly dealing with a low adrenal function, irregular thyroid function, iodine deficiency, and vitamin D deficiency.

He asked what our insurance is like and whether or not he could run with the testing or if he should rank them in order of priority. Also AMAZING! So, he told me that the adrenal testing and the thyroid testing is the most important and gave me the option to do the iodine and vitamin D testing if it was cost-effective. I called the lab on my way there and determined that I'd skip the optional tests for now. The iodine test was about $450, and the vitamin D test was about $225... yikes! Our insurance covers 90% of lab testing charges, but this would still be an extra $75 for something optional. I figure it would probably be better to go ahead and add a supplement for these things anyway, so I'll just do it that way.

One interesting thing that the doctor pointed out is that the adrenal glands and the ovaries work the same way. So, if the adrenal glands are lacking what they need to function, then they strip it from the ovaries. The adrenals are necessary for life, whereas the ovaries are only necessary for reproduction. Isn't it cool to learn yet another example of how the Lord created our bodies to work so intricately?!? I knew that thyroid function impacted the function of reproductive organs, but I didn't realize that the adrenal glands are so directly tied to it as well. So he's ordered some very thorough testing of both the adrenals and thyroid to see if we can find what's going on. In the meantime, he gave me the name of an adrenal supplement that I can start if I want to.

As we talked through my family history, he described that MANY of the health issues my family has dealt with are often the result of insulin resistance. That made total sense to me as I look at the dietary choices and other problems many of my family deal with. So, while he doesn't suspect that I'm dealing with much insulin resistance, he recommended that I stick closer to a diet that supports insulin sensitivity. I don't need to freak out and quit eating all whole grains and fruit or anything, but it's definitely a good thing to keep in mind.

So I've started going to the chiropractor. Because chiropractic care can also often help heal many of the problems I'm dealing with, I decided (with the support of the chiropractor) to wait a couple of months before starting the adrenal supplement. Then I'll know if it's the chiropractic care that's helping or if I really do need something else.

I go back to the doctor the first week of August. We'll review my test results then and talk through a plan. He said it may take up to 2 years to get things really going well (which is what the chiropractor said in his office too). That's okay with me, especially if those two years are characterized by a gradual improvement throughout.