New and confused. I think I have AF? 
Swansong
10 y
1,471
Hello everyone,
I'm new to the forum, but have been reading threads here for a couple of weeks. I'm a 34 year old female and I've been dealing with certain symptoms like brain fog, insomnia (waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to go back to sleep), depression, mild anxiety, headaches, and indigestion for a little over a year now. My energy levels have been pretty low for quite some time too. I've also gained about 15 pounds around my middle and have not been able to lose it, no matter how much I exercise. A friend of mine told me about the paleo diet, and I've been on that for about 6 months. I felt really good when I started it but I'm not sure if it is still as effective because I feel like I'm getting worse and there are new things going on that were not happening before.
In the past few months, my symptoms have gotten increasingly worse and I'm not sure what to do. My anxiety has been very high, I can't sleep, and my stomach is always bloated. My hands and feet are freezing cold all the time, and I've had some hair loss/thinning.
I went to my doctor and he tested my thyroid- said it was normal and that I was probably just too stressed out and needed to relax. He gave me a prescription for xanax which does take the edge off but I really don't like to take meds so I only use it when the anxiety is really bad. I started doing some yoga and that has helped a little, but my energy levels still continue to drop.
I'm really worried because I have no idea what to do. I have done some reading and I think I have adrenal fatigue. It's really confusing because my symptoms match a lot of other conditions too so I just don't know what to think.
Could this be adrenal fatigue? Sorry if I sound desperate but I'm really worried about this getting worse. I've already taken time off from my job and I'm feeling worse every day. Any help/advice is appreciated. Thank you!
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- Re: New and confused. I think I have... c.b.
10 y
1,354
This is a reply to # 2,164,941Change your doctor. Your symptoms sound like hypothyroidism to a T.
You probably had the TSH lab test done. "In your body, the actual Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) is synthesized and secreted by your pituitary gland…i.e. it’s a “pituitary” hormone, NOT a thyroid hormone." http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/tsh-why-its-useless/
Check out http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/
Lots of good info about dysthyroid.
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,284
This is a reply to # 2,164,976Thanks for the info CB, I will check that out. I have been on the thyroid madness website before but then my doctor said my thyroid was fine so I started looking for other things
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,284
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... wiredgeneration
10 y
1,671
R Educational
This is a reply to # 2,164,941Yes this sounds like AF/GAS.
Best thing to do is read Dr Lams website on Adrenal Fatigue, this will give you a good broad representation of AF.
Hypothyroidism comes hand in hand with AF, but dont treat your Thyroid before your adrenals, Dr Lam explains why. I highly doubt your thyroid is the main problem, and if it was your adrenals with surely be tanked taking up the slack from a knackered thyroid. the symptoms you describe are later stage AF it is common for those not experienced with AF to think that.
The hair thinning is possibly sodium loss (typical in AF), you can get a hair test to see your levels, always good to have a look at.
I imagine the reason you ended up here, like us all is because your doctor says you are fine, no amount of changing doctor will help unless you can find a good one who understands the endocrine system and views it hollistically rather than textbook. Just do lots of research yourself about AF.
Heres some good links
http://www.drlam.com/index.php
//www.curezone.org/forums/am.asp?i=2164044
//www.curezone.org/forums/am.asp?i=2163084
Do a little research, read the Clymer Healing Website, Dr Lams website, and get James Wilsons Adrenal Fatigue book. This will give you some good ideas about whats going on...
Hope that helps
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... #127161
10 y
1,486
This is a reply to # 2,165,002
Thyroid symptoms almost always come along with adrenal fatigue. Your body seems to down regulate the thyroid since it can't handle the energy.
Start with a 4 point saliva test (http://www.canaryclub.org/) is the cheapest place to order one. Look for cortisol irregularities. Depending on your country, you may need a naturopathic doctor to help you order the saliva test.
You should not try to treat the thyroid first. Several people here have made their adrenal fatigue worse by trying that.
Do your mind race all the time?
Do you startle easy?
Do you have afternoon or early evening energy crashes?
These are a couple of key symptoms of being wired and tired. i.e., you nervous system stuck in a stressed state, but running out of gas.
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,304
This is a reply to # 2,165,026127161,
I do have alot of that stuff going on, especially the energy crashes and the mind racing. I don't think I startle easily but lately I have been feeling really strung out. When I sleep, I wake up and it feels like I never slept, if that makes sense
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,304
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,278
This is a reply to # 2,165,002Thanks for all that info wired! I will definitely look into it. I was reading on Dr. Lam's website but I had to stop because it was scaring me too much!
It's really frustrating..my doctor keeps saying I'm fine when I know I'm not. All he wants to do is give me xanax! - Re: New and confused. I think I have... healthyartist
10 y
1,797
This is a reply to # 2,165,002These are good suggestions. I second the suggestion to look into the Clymer Healing center and consider working with Dr. Neville. He will help you to sort out the diet bit too.
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... wayfatcat
9 y
752
This is a reply to # 2,165,410I know it's been 19 months since you posted but I'm hoping to find out about Dr. Neville's pricing.
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... wayfatcat
9 y
752
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... #127161
10 y
1,486
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... wiredgeneration
10 y
1,380
This is a reply to # 2,164,941Stay off the carbs/sugar, Paleo diet is a good call for your stage at the moment
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,275
This is a reply to # 2,165,080I felt really good when I first started Paleo, but it doesn't seem to be having the same effect on me any more. I stopped eating fruit too because it started making me feel weird after I ate it, which is a shame because I really love fruit :(
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,275
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... c.b.
10 y
1,551
This is a reply to # 2,164,941If you want to get worse, than eat a low carbohydrate diet. Low carb diets cause numerous issues.
If you do have adrenal problems, then getting plenty of uninterrupted sleep is essential. Low carbing is going to completely ruin your sleep most likely.
Quite a few paleo dieters suffer from sleep disturbances (insomnia). Even the healthy ones.
You may also be suffering from poor digestion, maybe even a little bit of constipation...Paleo will clog you up even more. Which, btw, are also symptoms of hypothyroidism.
I've been down the low carb road and it ain't worth it and by far made things worse for me.
Here's a snippet from the World Health Organization:
"An un healthy Diet is one of the major risk factors for a range of chronic diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes and other conditions linked to obesity. Specific recommendations for a healthy Diet include: eating more fruit, vegetables, legumes, nuts and grains; cutting down on salt, Sugar and fats. It is also advisable to choose unsaturated fats, instead of saturated fats and towards the elimination of trans-fatty acids."
As a matter of fact, I remember quite recently another member posting that paleo was one of the worse things you could do for dysthyroid.
I am not saying you don't have adrenal problems, but your symptoms clearly point hypothyroidism.
Symptoms as reported by the National Institute of Health:
Hard stools or constipation
Increased sensitivity to cold temperature
Fatigue or feeling slowed down
Heavier and irregular menstrual periods
Joint or muscle pain
Paleness or dry skin
Sadness or depression
Thin, brittle hair or fingernails
Weakness
Weight gain
Late symptoms, if untreated:
Decreased taste and smell
Hoarseness
Puffy face, hands, and feet
Slow speech
Thickening of the skin
Thinning of eyebrows
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000353.htm
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... wiredgeneration
10 y
1,638
This is a reply to # 2,165,084I'd be concerned about taking advice from some who isnt sure whether he has Adrenal Fatigue or not...best to listen to those that have, and those that have gotten better...ALL of which used a low carb diet for the first 60% or so of there healing...
Also look up the banned user Natway, the similarities between him and the above user are uncanny, they really are. Natways favourite trick was as soon as a new poster posts, he would get the first post in about carbs! Seems like its happening all over again.
As stated, hypothyroidism comes hand in hand with AF, but the adrenals have to treated first.- Re: New and confused. I think I have... c.b.
10 y
1,364
This is a reply to # 2,165,088Or you could listen to someone who backs up their information with evidence.
Nope, I never got tested for adrenal fatigue. But that doesn't mean that I can't recognize symptoms of hypothyroidism or another disease, now does it?
You wonder why all the people eventually had to change over to a higher carbohydrate diet...because they couldn't get healthy without them.
The difference between me and natway is that natway pushes calories. While I do believe in adequate nutrition, thus the appropriate amount of calories, my beliefs are more nutrition based.
The fact is, you can't get healthy off of oils, which is a common calorie replacement when on the paleo diet.
5Tbl of coconut oil will get you 600 calories, but it'll also get you 0 vitamins and 0 minerals.
The World Health Organization recommends for a healthy Diet eating more fruits, vegetables, legumes and grains.
I didn't start healing until I got on a healthy Diet that, by coincidence, contained a healthy dose of carbs. The healthiest foods contain carbs.
A depleted body needs nutrients. Nutrient dense foods are carbohydrate foods.- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,304
This is a reply to # 2,165,091I don't know who this natway person is but it does make sense what you say about adequate nutrition. I have been working hard to try and find the right diet for me, but there's so many things going on I'm very overwhelmed. I thought coconut oil was supposed to be really good for you? Now I'm even more confused!
So you didn't have adrenal fatigue CB? Or you did but just never got diagnosed?- Re: New and confused. I think I have... c.b.
10 y
1,422
This is a reply to # 2,165,098Swansong, No I never got diagnosed with AF. I went to the doctor much like you after quite a bit of searching for answers on my own.
And because AF isn't recognized, I too, was given anti-depressants, which did not help.
All my symptoms pointed to AF...I was in the military for 8 years and deployed to the middle east 3 times in those 8 years. Obviously I was under a lot of stress. But to compound that, I was also an alcoholic, abused stimulants, very bad diet, IBS symptoms, lack of sleep, etc.
So, I can't really say for certain that I had AF. What I can say, however, is that I never got any better on low carb. I believe, from my research and experience that a healthy Diet is extremely important in restoring health.
The brain runs off of glucose. When there is no glucose, the body converts protein to glucose. Glucose is so important in the body that the liver stores it, just in case it might run out.
It is the essential source for energy in the body. The brain runs on glucose.
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... c.b.
10 y
1,422
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... wiredgeneration
10 y
1,437
This is a reply to # 2,165,091Natway used to do all of that as well!
Why not pop on the Chronic-Fatigue-Syndrome and ME boards as well, maybe POTS and Dysautonomia, they are other conditions you dont have , you can preach there as well. Why have you chosen this board out of interest?
I dont eat any coconut oil. Actually I dont eat many oils, my diet is FULL of vegetables and is probably more nutrient dense than yours and my calorie count is perfect.
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,304
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,253
This is a reply to # 2,165,088Wired, do you eat Paleo too? This natway guy must be pretty well known, he's been mentioned twice already. He got banned for posting about carbs?
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... wiredgeneration
10 y
1,474
This is a reply to # 2,165,099it wasnt really 'posting' about carbs, it was POSTING about carbs. Every single thread, almost every conversation, no reasoning with the carb fairies, even though all AF specialists, far more educated than them explain why high carb is bad in people with AF.
Natway had AF , then all of sudden after he got banned, he decided AF didnt exist, even though days earlier he was PLEADING with the Webmaster to allow him back on here as 'it was the last of his health problems he was dealing with'.
It infuriorated people and he got banned. It was quiet round here, till now...:)- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,227
This is a reply to # 2,165,104Ohhh I see. Well I didn't mean to start anything..I was just looking for some advice
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... Swansong
10 y
1,227
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... wiredgeneration
10 y
1,474
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... c.b.
10 y
1,364
- Expand 20 messages, 21 to 40 of 40 Swansong
10 y
1,288
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... wiredgeneration
10 y
1,638
- Re: New and confused. I think I have... c.b.
10 y
1,354
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