Thyroid Madness - And so it begins

As I sit here writing the next part of my blog, my head pounds and my back aches.  I struggled to get myself out of bed today. The person sitting beside me wouldn't even have any idea that I felt this way, I still have a smile on my face and I never complain.

Me aged 15 (back left)

It all started from a young age.  I was 13 years old and super excited about starting high school.  I missed the first two weeks of high school as I was in hospital.  Yep this was the start of it.  My doctors told my mum I had an eating disorder and she needed to keep a close eye on me... The reason I wasn't eating was because it physically hurt and it would come straight back up as soon as I ate something, so no dick head I didn't have an eating disorder. They didnt bother checking for other things so I was discharged. Thanks for that, this could have been picked up a long time ago! I have always known that "something wasnt right".

I also suffer from chronic migraines, so from very early age I would be hospitalised up to 7 times a year with the most insane pain I have ever experienced. Hospitals have become my second home.  I remember one particular time I all of a sudden lost my vision my words started to slur and I was rushed to the hospital.  Migraine, Migraine, Migraine.  I have only just learnt in the past couple of years that migraines and thyroid conditions go hand in hand, who would of thought?! In my first blog I wrote about struggling to mantain my body temperature, the thyroid system is supposed to maintain normal body temperatures. Low body temperatures can result in recurrent migraines..... hmmmmm you would have thought after 13 years off suffering with migraines and having every test known to man and every other "strange" thing that was happening with my body that someone should have connected the dots somewhere.


Going through my teens and high school was not an easy road but I never gave up.  I was ALWAYS sick and this is where my weight started to yoyo.  I'm sure my friends thought I was putting it on, it just never seemed to end.

I was the class clown at school, a very outgoing bubbly girl and still am to this day although I struggled with anxiety and often looked at myself in the mirror and hated the way I looked. One minute I was tiny the next minute I was big again, what a nightmare especially for a young girl. Again shouldn't this have been picked up?  I was so sick of the doctors telling me I was a hypochondriac and nothing was wrong with me... HA how wrong you were!


Ashton X

Thyroid Madness - Lets start at the begining

Firstly I want to say thank you for taking the time to read my blog. This is my very first one, so please excuse any "mistakes" not to mention the fact it can sometimes be very hard for me to remember what I am trying to say. This is a pretty crazy journey that I have been on since a very young age. The daily confusion (thyroid patients call it "brain fog"), memory loss, emotions, joint pain, hair loss, weight gain/loss, difficulty regulating body temperature, chronic fatigue, adrenal fatigue and that's just a very small list of symptoms that not just I deal with, but a lot of other Thyroid Disease sufferers deal with day in day out.

What is the Thyroid?? The thyroid is our master gland of metabolism and energy. Every single body function that requires oxygen and energy. Basically, everything that goes on in our bodies requires thyroid hormone in proper amounts. That means we need the proper balance of thyroid hormone in order to feel and live well. We need thyroid hormone to think clearly and remember things, to maintain a good mood, to grow hair and nails, to have basic energy to get through the day, to see well, to digest our food, to burn calories, to be fertile, to get pregnant and have a healthy baby, to have a good sex drive, and much, much more. In some ways, you can think about thyroid hormone as the gasoline that makes the car go. No gas, and there's no way to move forward.

By no means is this a sympathy blog so if you feel the need to leave any nasty comments please don't bother. If I can help or inspire even one person by sharing my story then my mission here is complete. There could also be a bit of swearing, so sorry in advance.

So here it goes...

My name is Ashton, I am 27 years old and I have Thyroid Disease (Sounds like I should be standing at the front of a room at an AA meeting).  I was born on the 26 June in Brisbane to Sheree.  I was born 8 pound and I was 4 weeks premature, I can only imagine how big I would have been if I had of stayed in there! At 36 weeks gestation mum was hit by a car and in turn her pancreas was damaged and she developed gestational diabetes and still to this day almost 28yrs later she still has diabetes.  I was born a diabetic baby but soon grew out of it.  I wonder if being born with diabetes and not being in the womb for the full term of the pregnancy contributed to my Thyroid Disease???

My family history of Thyroid issues most definitely contributed.  My Grandmother had her thyroid removed, mum has Hashimotis Hypothyroidism, my uncle an under active thyroid.... the list goes on.

Anyone that suffers from Thyroid Disease would know that trying to explain to someone exactly how you are feeling is almost impossible but over the next couple of weeks I'm going to take you through my life in stages and how I have found ways and still find ways to get through every day. Some days its very hard to even get out of bed.  If someone was looking at me I look quite "healthy", but on the inside, there is a whole other story.........


Ashton X