Uuuuh! Molly, you’re gonna be in trouble for not taking your meds 
Glad to know you’re feeling better.
insanely busy last couple of days… be back on in a few days =D
Hey Molly-
Hope all is well!
Just wanted to ask, as this has been on my mind a TON lately, but are you going as far as reading labels to avoid gluten?..like someone with celiac disease in other words…or are you just avoiding the obvious culprits?
I’ve been doing a lot of reading about gluten intolerance’s, and I’m surprised to learn it goes way beyond just avoiding wheat and there counterparts!
I am following your lead and avoiding it too…even more so, because I believe I have a real gluten intolerance anyway…and that makes total sense as to why I now have a thyroid problem…
Im so silly…that 90% rule doesn’t work for me anymore either…I remember a month or so ago I had a bagel because I hadn’t had one in FOREVER…I felt like I was in a coma for the next two days!
So what about dairy? I try to stay away from it as best I can, but again, allow it 1-2 times a day thinking it’s only a little and can’t hurt…what have you found out about dairy that could relate to the thyroid? Or are you not doing dairy for other reasons?
Aaaggghh! Still insanely busy! But today was my BIRTHDAY! So it was a good busy… all had a GREAT appt with my Dr… will try to update tomorrow or Wednesday… =P
Happy belated Birthday to you!!
Hope you were able to enjoy it 
[quote]mom-in-MD wrote:
Hey Molly-
Hope all is well!
Just wanted to ask, as this has been on my mind a TON lately, but are you going as far as reading labels to avoid gluten?..like someone with celiac disease in other words…or are you just avoiding the obvious culprits?
I’ve been doing a lot of reading about gluten intolerance’s, and I’m surprised to learn it goes way beyond just avoiding wheat and there counterparts!
I am following your lead and avoiding it too…even more so, because I believe I have a real gluten intolerance anyway…and that makes total sense as to why I now have a thyroid problem…
Im so silly…that 90% rule doesn’t work for me anymore either…I remember a month or so ago I had a bagel because I hadn’t had one in FOREVER…I felt like I was in a coma for the next two days!
So what about dairy? I try to stay away from it as best I can, but again, allow it 1-2 times a day thinking it’s only a little and can’t hurt…what have you found out about dairy that could relate to the thyroid? Or are you not doing dairy for other reasons?[/quote]
Will get back to these questions soon… for now just copying and pasting my update from my FA journal…
So, as any of you all know… I had previously made the decision to NOT take the medication my Dr had prescribed (synthroid, cytomel, glucophage/metformin)… I wanted to try to heal myself using dietary changes, vitamins/supplements, exercise and sleep. I had cut out wheat, rye, barley, oats, rice, corn, nuts, dairy and avocado.
So I has my Dr. appt last Monday (the 27th… my B-day) and I explained my position to my Dr about how I had done some research of my own… and that I was not interested in using prescription drugs and I wanted to heal myself naturally… blah blah blha…
Long story short… she was super supportive of my decision. She said if I didn’t want to use them, that I didn’t have to… BUT she honestly believes that I need to take a couple steps back and run some more tests. She wants me to have a very high tech allergy test done through Genova Diagnostics and THEN figure out what foods to eliminate. She is worried that I may be unnecessarily eliminating some foods, while possibly still consuming some that I am allergic to (she, for example, is allergic to turkey and broccoli)…
SO, she said she would like me to eat EVERYTHING that I think I am allergic to for the next 3 weeks and THEN take my allergy test (I have to eat the foods I am allergic to in order for them to show up on the test)… I will get the test back about 4-6 weeks later, and then I will know what to eliminate. She also REALLY wanted me to stay on the Synthroid and Cytomel over the next 9 weeks since my thyroid will take such a beating from re-introducing all the “bad foods”… she has basically promised me that I am taking the meds in such low doses for such a short amount of time, that they will cause NO long-term effects to my thyroid… but that they will only let it rest for a little while and keep it from “pooping out” from trying so hard to produce thyroid hormone. She also said that once I discover EXACTLY what I am allergic to, that she is FINE with me coming off meds totally and trying the completely natural route…
I really think she has my best interest at heart and she is so smart! She also said coming off of the Glucophage/Metformin is OK. I was only using it to make myself more insulin sensitive (I am insulin resistant) but I can do this with diet as well (by limiting carbs and if I ever eat them, have them with plenty of protein and fat =D)
SO… in short, I have been able to enjoy myself food-wise at all of my birthday celebrations (had 4 cheat days last week =D) and my weight is right back down to the lowest it’s been in a while… YAY! =D I also look a lot leaner than I did a couple of months ago… YIPPEE!
Strength in the gym is OK… I am getting a little bored and doing some weird stuff with my workouts… but OH WELL! I will get back into a normal routine in no time! =D
Thanks for following along! please let me know if you have any questions!
[quote]mmgalb727 wrote:
So, as any of you all know… I had previously made the decision to NOT take the medication my Dr had prescribed (synthroid, cytomel, glucophage/metformin)… I wanted to try to heal myself using dietary changes, vitamins/supplements, exercise and sleep. I had cut out wheat, rye, barley, oats, rice, corn, nuts, dairy and avocado.
So I has my Dr. appt last Monday (the 27th… my B-day) and I explained my position to my Dr about how I had done some research of my own… and that I was not interested in using prescription drugs and I wanted to heal myself naturally… blah blah blha…
Long story short… she was super supportive of my decision. She said if I didn’t want to use them, that I didn’t have to… BUT she honestly believes that I need to take a couple steps back and run some more tests. She wants me to have a very high tech allergy test done through Genova Diagnostics and THEN figure out what foods to eliminate. She is worried that I may be unnecessarily eliminating some foods, while possibly still consuming some that I am allergic to (she, for example, is allergic to turkey and broccoli)…
SO, she said she would like me to eat EVERYTHING that I think I am allergic to for the next 3 weeks and THEN take my allergy test (I have to eat the foods I am allergic to in order for them to show up on the test)… I will get the test back about 4-6 weeks later, and then I will know what to eliminate. She also REALLY wanted me to stay on the Synthroid and Cytomel over the next 9 weeks since my thyroid will take such a beating from re-introducing all the “bad foods”… she has basically promised me that I am taking the meds in such low doses for such a short amount of time, that they will cause NO long-term effects to my thyroid… but that they will only let it rest for a little while and keep it from “pooping out” from trying so hard to produce thyroid hormone. She also said that once I discover EXACTLY what I am allergic to, that she is FINE with me coming off meds totally and trying the completely natural route…
I really think she has my best interest at heart and she is so smart! She also said coming off of the Glucophage/Metformin is OK. I was only using it to make myself more insulin sensitive (I am insulin resistant) but I can do this with diet as well (by limiting carbs and if I ever eat them, have them with plenty of protein and fat =D)
SO… in short, I have been able to enjoy myself food-wise at all of my birthday celebrations (had 4 cheat days last week =D) and my weight is right back down to the lowest it’s been in a while… YAY! =D I also look a lot leaner than I did a couple of months ago… YIPPEE!
Strength in the gym is OK… I am getting a little bored and doing some weird stuff with my workouts… but OH WELL! I will get back into a normal routine in no time! =D
Thanks for following along! please let me know if you have any questions! [/quote]
Molly that’s great that you have such a supportive doctor that is willing to take the time and make the effort to help you get better on your terms rather than forcing you to accept hers.
You may end up having to go the drug route but you may not. In my opinion, it’s better to make the effort to do it yourself rather than sit back and be told what to do. I think sometimes just the fact that you are taking an active role in your own health leads to better health.
I’ve been doing a lot of reading about people who go back to eating gluten just for the test, only for it not to show up…and they endured weeks of torture for nothing!
I don’t feel like I need to eat gluten to prove that I am allergic/intolerant to it…following your lead I have given it up, and I down 4lbs in a week!
I have an appt on the 19th, and this is where I too will explain my displeasure in taking the meds, and that I believe I can heal myself through my diet…I haven’t taken my meds for almost 2 months and have more energy than ever…no brain fog either! We’ll see what the test says!
Is this allergy test covered by insurance?
You are a trooper Molly, and an inspiration!
[quote]mom-in-MD wrote:
I’ve been doing a lot of reading about people who go back to eating gluten just for the test, only for it not to show up…and they endured weeks of torture for nothing!
[/quote]
please post links to this.
I’ll try, but I read it in books about celiac disease…
Here are a few I found…a couple are just from forums of ladies giving advice…
http://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/index.php?showtopic=53252
http://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/index.php?showtopic=38122
http://www.glutenfreedom.net/celiac-disease-testing.asp
http://www.celiacdisease.net/assets/documents/CDCFactSheets_Allergies_v2.pdf
Sorry they are not all scientific-y!
Heres a good one of people talking about the spectrum that is celiac disease:
http://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/index.php?showtopic=37572&mode=linearplus
Miss you around here Molly!
I read on the other forum that you are getting an allergy test done? I was wondering if you could tell me more about that! Is it an out of pocket expense? Will it be just the common suspects tested(soy, dairy, wheat, corn, nuts,etc)
Hey Betty! Sorry have been so MIA! =P
Yeah I am getting the allergy test done next week through Genova Diagnostics. Apparently it’s the most sophisticated allergy test out there right now and test for several hundred different types of foods… everything from wheat to rice to soy to broccoli and turkey! The test is costing me $129 out-of-pocket, and I may have to pay Quest Diagnostics around $30 or so (the place that draws my blood for me).
But my Dr. said that I have the best insurance for the tests she is running. If you DON’T have Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield like I do, I believe the blood test is around $700-something… YIKES! (Maybe that’s for people with NO insurance…I can’t remember for sure… but I think it’s anyone without Anthem)…
Anyway, I have to bring the blood home with me and mail it off to North Carolina and my Dr. gets the results in 4-6 weeks… :::SIGH:::: I feel like the whole process is HURRY UP… and WAIT!
Anyway, I am feeling pretty shitty again… headaches, exhaustion, crappy workouts… I am sure it’s from the re-introduction of the wheat and dairy and other foods.
I am also NOT squatting, benching or deadlifting for 3-4 weeks. I might die during that time period. If I do… it’s been fun! But hopefully I will survive. I will only be doing assistance work and conditioning (this is per my Coach who knows my body is burned out and needs a break…)
So, that’s it for now! Be back soon! =D
So as many of you know, I had been doing the 5/3/1 program for the last several months (changing up exercises every 4-5 weeks). However, since my energy and workouts have been kinda crappy… I decided that trying to lift a certain % of my 1RM max each workout was going to do nothing but make me feel worse about myself =P
So I decided to do 3 full body workouts a week (since I can only get to the gym 3x a week right now anyway). However, since my recovery is not so good right now, I will only be doing 1 (MAYBE 2) movements for lower body each workout (I can’t recover from beating up my legs 3x a week right now) and probably 2 pulling movements, 2 pushing movements, and an ab movement.
I am doing the exercises in a circuit fashion and will probably do something like this:
Pushing movement for 5 reps
Pulling movement for 5 reps
Lower body movement for 5 reps
rest 2-3 minutes
Repeat 4x for a total of 5 circuits
Pulling movement for 10-12 reps
Pushing movement for 10-12 reps
Ab Exercises for 10-12 reps
rest 1-2 minutes
Repeat 2x for a total of 3 circuits
Again, this is not set in stone… I will have to see how I feel… but it sounds like fun and I think I will benefit from it.
Plan on having my allergy test done on Monday (keep procrastinating because I have to get up at 8 AM to do it and I do not do well getting up early… especially when I am exhausted and need my sleep!)
So I had a pretty good workout last night. I am SORE this morning!
Pullups (5 reps/4 reps/4 reps/3 reps/2 reps)
supersetted with*
DB Push Press (5 sets of 6 w/ 30 lb DBs)
supersetted with*
Zercher Alternating Reverse Lunges w/ Cambered Bar (aka HELL =D)(5 sets of 6 each leg with 68 lbs)
5 x 5-6
1 Arm DB Row (10 reps/10 reps with 80 lb DB) <— much more controlled than a Kroc Rpw
supersetted with*
Bulgarian Split Squats with a Plate held overhead (10 reps/10 reps with 35 lb plate Overhead)
2-3 x 10-12
I am feeling it all over today! Feels good! =D Numbers aren’t where I like them to be… but I’ll get there!
numbers look pretty good to me!
I thought I was a bad ass using the 60lb db for rows
I covet those pull-up numbers. And the 80# dumbbell rows. Nice work!
soooo… she FINALLY submitted her blood sample and sent it out for her allergy testing.
she’s been working 2 (maybe 3? I can’t keep up) jobs, and doing a lot of resting when she can.
all in all, she’s still one of my favorite peoples.
but don’t tell her I said the last part. then she’ll know.