Balance

Since nothing’s ever relentlessly bad, I thought I’d share some GOOD news with you!

As some of you know, I had hyperthyroidism (over active thyroid gland) which flared up in spring 2003, and for which I had radio-iodine therapy in May 2004. By Sept 2004 blood tests revealed my thyroid was working normally, despite medical predications that it would go UNDER active, and I’d be on medication for the rest of my life. By 2005, I was downgraded to six monthly blood tests to keep an eye on it. Every one has turned up text book normal.

My experience of thyroid disease was pretty miserable, although since it dramatically sabotaged my memory, most of my experience of it is from looking back on that time, rather than being very aware of all the nuances then and there. I didn’t have a particularly serious condition, but it affected me pretty badly. I stayed in work, but only just, and only after I recovered did I learn how many people were expecting me to be on long term sick leave any day now…

I learned far more about what my thyroid condition was doing to me, AFTER I recovered. It has had impacts on my weight, fitness, memory, decision making, crisis management, fatigue, methods of dealing with anxiety, relationships and (least forgivably) fertility… there’s very little of importance in my life that it hasn’t touched.

I don’t need to tell you how much I don’t want my thyroid to start playing silly buggers again.

I don’t often worry about it, only when the six monthly blood tests come round again, I start to get a little anxious. And since anxiety feels a lot like how I used to feel when I wasn’t well, that’s a bit of a vicious circle!

Got my results today. “Please tell patient, “normal”.”

Never had normal been more appealing. Too, too good.