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I know Jake has responded about BP, but it could also be a thyroid issue. I was getting really cold hands and feet, (and being very tired all the time) and at my annual checkup, mentioned it to my doc. He ran some blood work, and found I had really low thyroid levels. Now that I'm on meds, I'm back to normal. Well, I was never really
normal.....
I'm fairly sure my Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (what they tell you that you have, if your tests are otherwise normal even if borderline) is at least thyroid-RELATED if that's not the total problem
my HMO's range of "normal" leaves me .001 inside of the normal range, on the low side ... so my primary doctor (who is trained as an endocrinologist !!!) cannot prescribe thyroid meds for me
I suspect it is analogous to Type 2 diabetes, in that I produce sufficient hormone, it just doesn't attach to the appropriate receptor sites, consequently my temperature-controlling mechanism acts like a poorly functioning thermostat, I cycle between too hot (NOT menopausal hot flashes, had those, got over them, this feels different) and too cold; if I put my mind to it (biofeedback, sort of), I can get my body temp back into comfortable range, but it takes awhile and often overshoots to the other extreme
am sure my pituitary isn't working quite right either
metabolism very sluggish; I've always had low blood pressure, a somewhat slow heart rate, and a lower than normal basal body temp ... was an Rh baby and I'm sure my immune system was compromised by that -- at least I was lucky, my fraternal twin sister died at 6 months gestation .... they did a D&C, got her out, and 3 months later I was born
luckily no arthritis (not yet anyway), my clumsiness comes from having had a brush with polio when I was 4; wish I had had that post-menopausal surge of energy that Margaret Mead talked about, but no luck on that
anyway, I feel for you fellow sufferers ...
I have (among the rest) Hashimoto's Thyroiditis.
Auto immune diseases are applesauce.
They are watching me now for my adrenal levels.
Don't just look at the tyroid, look at the adrenal gland as well!
Just sayin'