6 minute read
HYPOTHYROIDISM
WRITTEN BY SABRINA ORTIZ | DESIGNED BY NIHA KANUMURI
THYROID
What do Oprah Winfrey, Sofía Vergara, Hillary Clinton and I all have in common? We all have a condition called hypothyroidism.
Towards the end of the Spring 2021 semester, I was too exhausted to do everyday tasks and I constantly asked myself, “Why do I feel like this?” With it being more than a year since the pandemic began, I attributed the way I felt to the intense circumstances we were living through. After all, people from all around the world were experiencing burnout and a lack of motivation. When I tested positive for COVID-19 in March 2021, I blamed my tiredness on lingering symptoms. I was consistently reassured by everyone I talked to that the tiredness I felt was normal.
Not only did I feel tired, but I also felt myself gaining weight very quickly. The few times I had the courage to bring up the delicate topic of my weight, something I have struggled with in the past, I was met with dismissive responses. I was told that I was exaggerating and that I looked fine. I was also met with the complete opposite response, reassuring me that everyone gained weight in quarantine or that my body was just growing into “the body of a woman.” Instead of trusting my intuition that something was off, I chose to listen to everyone else’s thoughts and opinions about my body. Feeling unhappy with the way my body was functioning, I questioned if it would be my new normal.
In August, it was time for me to return to UNC-Chapel Hill after taking classes remotely for a year and a half. This meant packing, moving into a new house, fearing the COVID-19 risks. on campus and readjusting to school in person
HYPOTHYROIDISM
after being cooped up for so long. I was already overwhelmed with all the changes coming my way, so I decided to only focus on getting back to campus. My mom, however, insisted that I get my yearly checkup done at the doctor’s office before I left for school. I pleaded that I had too many things to worry about and did not want to go, but, as mothers do, my mom got her way, and I went to the doctor’s office one week before leaving New York.
Shortly after that visit, I received a voicemail from my doctor saying that there was something unusual in my blood test results. When I called back, my doctor told me that my thyroidstimulating hormone (TSH) levels were unusual, and I likely had hypothyroidism. My doctor, who has taken care of me my entire life, sensed the apprehension and fear in my voice and reassured me I had nothing to worry about. I just needed to see a specialist as soon as possible. As I hung up the phone, I cried to my mom, whom I had watched struggle with hypothyroidism my entire life.
My visit to the endocrinologist only confirmed what we already knew; I have hypothyroidism caused by Hashimoto’s disease, which occurs when your immune system attacks the thyroid gland, preventing it from producing enough hormones, resulting in hypothyroidism. This thyroid hormone deficiency can have many symptoms, including weight gain, fatigue, mood swings, cold sensitivity and hair loss. If untreated, this disease can be life-threatening, but treatment is simple: taking medication regularly to regulate hormone levels. I was excited to finally have a solution to all my issues that had been dismissed by everyone I had talked to previously.
My mom, two of my best friends and my boyfriend’s dad all have hypothyroidism, so the concept was not completely new to me. According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases,
NEARLY 5 OUT OF 100 AMERICANS AGES 12 YEARS AND OLDER HAVE HYPOTHYROIDISM
with most cases having mild or few obvious symptoms. Despite being so common, it is not a condition that many people are aware of. Even though I was surrounded by it I did not think of it as a possibility for me.
Treating hypothyroidism has been a journey, but, like all things, good things come with time. Shortly after being prescribed my first medication, I started feeling worse. I would get so tired that I needed to nap in the middle of the day just to be able to function. I remember one weekend, my boyfriend came to visit me. We woke up late and went to Carolina Coffee Shop to get brunch. By the time I got home, I had to go right back to sleep because I was so exhausted. Even walking for too long down Franklin Street was a challenge. When I met with my specialist, she reassured me that it was normal to feel the way I did as my body adjusted. She switched me over to a different pill for good measure and told me to trust the process. Today, over six months after my diagnosis, I am glad I did.
With the medicine I am on now, I feel like I am back to my normal self. I have enough energy for class, my internship, extracurriculars and working out without taking any naps throughout the day or needing caffeine. This impacts my overall mood, productiveness and my self-esteem. My best friends, who both also got diagnosed and put on medicine, also have had positive experiences. Both of their levels normalized and they do not need to take medication anymore. In my case, my doctor said I will likely have to stay on medication permanently because of how high the dosage is, but I am okay with that because I am feeling great.
Getting diagnosed and receiving treatment gave my body the reset it deserved. My body was given a chance to work at its full potential and to heal itself from what it was undergoing. The entirety of my time experiencing symptoms, my body was trying to warn me that something was going on. Instead of listening and taking care of my body, I chose to ignore it, and as a consequence, both my mental and physical health suffered. This experience taught me important life lessons, the biggest being: listen to yourself and your body.
The truth is, only you know what your body is experiencing, and no one else in the world will know it better. I knew I was gaining weight, but when no one believed me, I chose to ignore my feelings and just go with their perception of me. I have and continue to struggle with body dysmorphia, so when I was constantly told that I was not gaining weight, I believed it. Gaining weight didn’t mean I was feeling overweight, which is what people immediately thought I meant. I knew the weight gain was out of the norm for me, and I should have trusted that. The same concept applies to the fatigue I was feeling.
This situation can also serve as a reminder to be mindful about how you approach someone else’s health concerns. Whether it concerns physical or mental health, only the person living it knows what they are experiencing, so the best thing you can do is offer support. We typically think of nourishing our bodies as eating healthy and drinking water; however, an extremely important part of self-care is going to the doctor regularly to make sure everything is okay. My mom had to pull my teeth to go to the doctor and get my checkup done. If I had gone earlier, the issue could have been identified earlier. Another way to think about it is, if you have a car, you are going to bring it to the mechanic every year for its inspection to make sure everything is okay with it, right? Your body is so much more valuable than any car, and you need to make sure everything is running properly too. Go make that doctor’s appointment!
As college students, we often juggle what feels like a million tasks. However, it is vital to not lose sight of what is most important: your well-being.
