Menu

I'm so sick and tired of being sick and tired

by Renee
(United States)

Hello,
I found this website through conducting research to determine what is happening to my body.

I just turned 48 years old and starting peri-menopause.

I had always been extremely healthy and never had a weight problem or any other health problem until I took Depo Provera for 3 years in my late 20s.

In those 3 years, I went from 117 pounds to 209 pounds. For those 3 years on Depo I had a constant low grade fever and elevated liver enzymes and high blood pressure. I broke my shoulder and my wrist while on Depo. I got kidney stones and do not have a history of kidney stones. Since going off the Depo, I have never been able to completely shed the weight.I was never able to conceive a baby after I stopped taking it. I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and adrenal exhaustion after stopping the Depo Provera. Since then I have always been overweight. I believe in my heart that Depo Provera negatively impacted my health.

I was able to see a naturopathic doctor in my early 30s and he did a saliva test on me and told me that my body was in hormone shock and not making any progesterone and that my adrenal glands were completely exhausted. He put me on progesterone cream, a host of supplements, and Armour thyroid because he said I had also become hypothyroid. I did quite well under him and was able to lose about 50 pounds and the PMS symptoms were alleviated. Unfortunately, I ran out of money and had to discontinue seeing him. Then I had to see a regular doctor who switched me to Synthroid (in my mid 30s) and I've experienced a host of issues ever since. PMS has just gotten worse through the years. For the last decade, I only have one good week out of every month where I am not in pain with PMS symptoms.

It got really bad 3 years ago when I was exercising every day. I managed to lose 18 pounds in 8 months and felt pretty good. One day on the treadmill, I felt a sharp pain in my Achilles tendon and that was the beginning of the end.

I was blamed for my Achilles tendon problem (being obese and exercising on the treadmill too much). I was put in a walking boot and did physical therapy...neither of which did one thing to help the problem in my Achilles which has now spread to the other foot as well. (The walking boot caused me to have back problems, but that's another story)

Then the panic attacks and migraines started and I NEVER had a history of panic attacks or migraines. I also started having terrible heart and chest pain and premature ventricular contractions and palpitations. I had a second EKG done and it was fine. Doctor gave me Xanax and sent me on my way.

She had me on 125mcg of synthroid even though my TSH levels were low (0.19) for almost 3 years. The last two months have been so bad that I was having full blown panic attacks every day, PVCs, chest pains, and PMS that was literally debilitating. 24 hours after ovulation, I am bloated, have cramps, am constantly nauseated, dizzy, anxiety ridden, have insomnia...among other things. This goes on for two weeks. The week before my period, I spot off and on and am in so much discomfort that I have to take sick days and just lie in bed.

I called the doctor last month and she took me off the synthroid completely. She said she will recheck my blood after 3 months of being off because I was likely being overmedicated on the synthroid.

I've been off the synthroid for 1 month so far and a lot of the hyperthyroid symptoms have disappeared BUT the PMS symptoms have not at all. I should also say that I gained 14 pounds in 10 months even though I drastically changed my diet to compensate for the lack of exercise.

My doctor refuses to do hormone testing on me.
She did test for vitamin D and told me to take 2000iu per day.

I have all the symptoms explained on this website. I know I am starting peri-menopause, but I don't think it should be this bad. The quality of my life is terrible right now.
I just want to feel normal again. My life has been impacted to the point where I have stopped interacting with my friends and I just come home from work and try to avoid any type of social activities because I just feel so bad and have no energy. I feel fat and bloated, lethargic and disgusting.

I don't sleep well and I am nervous and irritable. My skin is dry and looking papery. I hate having to take the Xanax, but it is the only thing that helps the anxiety. I want my energy back...I want to start exercising again. I can't lose any weight even though I only eat about 1,000 calories per day. I think I need progesterone, but my doctor won't test me and I cannot afford a naturopath. Because of all of this, I am getting depressed and I REFUSE to take anti-depressants, which my doctor is all to willing to put me on. I've spent the last week doing research to find out how I can help myself without my doctor. Thanks for reading.

Comments for I'm so sick and tired of being sick and tired

Click here to add your own comments

Feb 15, 2016
 I know what you are going thru
by: Paige

I posted here as well and I know what you are going thru. I have been on the progesterone since Dec 28th and thought I had things under control until Saturday. I had a full blown panic attack, vomiting and shaking, and chills so bad that I went to the doctor. Everything checked out fine and they just gave me an IV thinking I was just dehydrated and sent me on my way. I have ben dizzy, the anxiety is thru the roof, I am not sleeping and I feel like I just can't go on. This all occured after ovulation and I am going into my 2 weeks before my period. I thought I was getting a handle on things, but this past attack set me back. I noticed that when I applied the progesterone cream during my panic attack, it didn't help this time. Maybe I was just so full blown into it? Im just not sure. I feel for you and just wanted to let you know that you are not alone. The girls here have been a great support system during this awful time in our lives. Like you, I never had anxiety or depression before and it comes from out of nowhere. I won't take an antidepressant and had a family member hooked on benzo's so I just work thru it and take Bach natural Rescue Remedy. Hugs to you, Im right here with you.
Feb 15, 2016
 I understand
by: Kaylana

Dear Renee,

I understand and feel your pain! It's not easy living life the way it is now for you. I have shared my story here over the past 4+ years and let me say, it can and does get better!!

I changed my diet (wheat/grain free) to the Paleo style, used progesterone cream and got my life back despite everything else falling apart around me. My baby girl (my 4th child) is 2 1/2 now and I have more energy and strength than I did 8 years ago! Four years ago when I jumped and tickled my second son and he squealed, "Do it again, mom!" I knew my life had turned around for the better!

Please be encouraged! Keep reading and looking for answers. Better health is out there!
Best wishes!
Feb 15, 2016
 I'm so sick and tired of being sick and tired
by: RJ

Hello Renee!
You have found the right place! There is tons of information on Wray's site that will put you on the right path. If you put my name in Wray's search bar you can read my story and see how similiar it is to yours...give or take a bit. This is such a hard time for all us women..men too lol. It is hard to accept that we go from regular, breeze-through cycles to this horror. Don't fret, this is normal for we women if we don't take the correct things. Four years ago I started Natpro, didn't listen to Wray initially, because I was scared and didn't feel I should take such high dosages of cream and/or that it wouldn't help. I fussed around with dosages for a few months until I got so fed up I thought what do I have to lose. Non-stop, since I began this journey, I take 300-1,000 mg a day of progesterone. It is trial and error for each person, you may need more or less. This month you may bleed profusely with clots and next month you don't bleed a bit. I haven't bled for three months and three weeks ago I had what I consider a normal period for me, it stopped for five days and started up again with a fury. Guess it was catching up with those three months of no-shows lol. So, I upped the dosage to 650mg and it is finally starting to taper off. It's estrogen causing you to spot and it will cause you to bleed continuously too. Have your family hide any axes they may own or we just might take it and start chopping heads lol. Oh it can get so very bad. I know it's time to increase progesterone when my son says "you're crabby". Where is your D level? You should be in the 70-80's. Plus there is several supplements you should be taking to help progesterone's effectiveness. Wray told me that my uterus was unhealthy and told me to take 2,000mg a day of NAC, which I didn't do in the beginning but did eventually. Now I take 1,500mg a day. You need lots of Omega 3's, magnesium, zinc, boron, K3, taurine (helps the heart), selenium, B vitamins, Vitamin C..the list goes on and on when we feel so bad. For the weight, in my 20's I weighed 125lbs...haven't seen that number in years. I had our first child and gained 80lbs and that was the end for me. Each child I had I would gain 50 more pounds, until I got as high at 305lbs and currently I am holding steady at 250lb...not an excuse, but my stress is super high and I haven't been following the proper eating habits. I will send along some links for you to read. Type in any of your ills in their search bars. Wealth of information out there. I will say I have no faith in "whitecoats", yes there are good ones out there...lifesaving ones....but they are impossible to find and if you do finally find one they are no longer taking new patients. You are at a juncture where you are going to have to take care of your own health because the doctors don't believe you...it's all in your head cause the tests say you're fine...or they have no time for you and you do not fix the "norm". If ten people have high blood pressure and atenelol brings down nine of the patients readings that one and only one who is still battling it will be left behind or told they are not doing as the doctor told them. Their case is out-of-the-box and doctors are so overwhelmed by patients that they have no time for those cases. Isabella Wentz has a great site for thyroid issues. My mother had her thyroid removed due to cancer and how I wish I had found Isabella's site before that happened. Also, look into gut health. Our guts are where 90% of diseases and ills start. Get on a good probiotic...my family takes 50-100 billioin cfu's a day. Look into The Virgin Diet and how seven common foods cause us to be in a constant inflamed state...that can cause tons of issues for everything. How is your iodine level? Read Dr. Brownstein's theory on iodine. That can help your thyroid. But I think the most important thing for thyroid is what we eat. I saw it and still see it in my mother today. She refuses to drop gluten and she is constantly having troubles with her RA, stomach, bowels, joints and thyroid levels even though she is on Synthroid. And now her parathyroids are giving her a fit too. It's all a result of inflammation. The body is attacking itself because we are eating stuff it doesn't want. Try ginkgo biloba for depression....GABA helps too. How about your Vitamin B levels? They play a huge part in emotional well-being, energy..just so much. I have been reading on Isabella's site about thiamine deficiency and it has been an eye-opener. Hang in there, like I said you have found the right place to get help. I tell people all the time Wray is God's angel to we women. Start researching you will find relief once you incorporate all the changes you are going to read about. God Bless! RJ

thyroidpharmacist.com
draxe.com
greenmedinfo.com
drericz.com
bodyecology.com
organiclifestylemagazine.com
thetruthaboutcancer.com
drbrownstein.com
Feb 15, 2016
 1000 cal
by: H

Hi,

Sounds really bad what you're going through. Not that I'm doctor or anything, but I don't think it's good that you only eat 1000 cal a day. Your body is probably totally stressed and is stressed even more by the cal-restriction.

I know it's frightening to eat normal when the body is just hanging on to the weight. But I think that a period of weight gain is inevitable if you want the balance back.

I'm 33 and was down with stress in 2012 and still struggling with fatigued adrenals. Like you, I had no weight problems before, and in the beginning of my stress period I was in a state of panic because I could just feel that my body was hanging on to the weight. So I was over-training, which was a big mistake. After a while I realized that I was pushing my stressed body beyond its limits and I accepted that I had to live with the weight gain if I wanted the body to get the break to heal. It's been a couple of years - and I think that my body is slowly starting to let go of the fat. The healing is slow but certain. I think there's no way around a period of weight gain if you want to heal properly.

Recently I've also started vit D, because of deficiency and it seems to be working well. I've quit the progesterone after 1,5 years - it has helped me a lot, while being stressed, but I also think the body is meant (and able) to manage it on it's own. But maybe it's a good idea for you, if your body is stressed and doesn't produce enough.

Can you get a saliva-test for your hormone levels from a private company, if your doctor won't help?

Well.. This was just my thoughts.. Don't know if you can use any of it. I think a lot of us here have problems with stress, and that the stress is what we really need to focus on. And that this shit takes time. Frustrating as it is. Sleep, rest, eat well, be kind to yourself.

Best wishes!
H
Feb 15, 2016
 I'm so sick and tired of being sick and tired
by: Joy

Hi Renee

Your research has led you to the right place. Peri-Menopause can be a killer for some woman, but it need not be with the correct use of progesterone. I personally do not have anything positive to say about Depo Provera, in fact Wray has a long post on it, the adverse symptoms it causes is simply not worth it as you have found out. All drug based BCP’s and HRT have a potential to cause harm.

I feel that you would benefit greatly by the Ketogenic Diet, please consider trying it. Try and cut out all carbs and increase your protein and fat. What progesterone cream where you advised to use and how much did you use per day? It is very clear that you are suffering from Estrogen Dominance and you would benefit greatly by using progesterone. It always amazes me when I read that the doctors refuse to do hormone tests. Why? Because it is expensive or because answers will be revealed? I find that totally unacceptable. You might like to consider ordering your test kits online, try ZRT Labs in USA or Birmingham Hospital. So many women are taking matters into their own hands, I certainly did.

Do you actually know what your Vitamin D3 level is? I would imagine that it is low as you are not taking enough, it should be 5 000iuy’s per day. Please also take note of Magnesium, one of the most important co-factors when taking vitamin D3. A vitamin D3 deficiency reduces the benefits of progesterone and is connected to every single functioning cell in our bodies.

Please read the following pages:


How to use Progesterone Cream

Estrogen Dominance

Peri-Menopause

Menopause

Anxiety

Headaches and Migraines

Vitamin D3

Ketogenic Diet

Hope this helps you.

Feb 16, 2016
 Depo
by: Tammy

Hi reene
Just reading your posts and for a long time Iv been saying I think my thyroid problem and infertility had been caused by the injection depo, and I was on it for about 5 years too! !im hoping I'm not to late to conceive a baby , which lead me to this site ,
I wish you all the luck and hope you get your health back 110% xxxxxx

Click here to add your own comments

Join in and write your own page! It's easy to do. How? Simply click here to return to Progesterone faq.

Share this page:
Find this page helpful? Please tell others. Here's how...

Would you prefer to share this page with others by linking to it?

  1. Click on the HTML link code below.
  2. Copy and paste it, adding a note of your own, into your blog, a Web page, forums, a blog comment, your Facebook account, or anywhere that someone would find this page valuable.

Search over 8,400 pages on this site...