Postpartum Thyroiditis

A week ago, I took Sydney in for her two month doctor's appointment. My doctor asked if I needed anything... I told her I had been feeling extremely tired and dizzy lately.

By tired I mean, more than I should for having three kids, one of them being a baby and nursing around the clock. Which would mean I'm REALLY tired.

By dizzy I mean, I stand up for an hour to make dinner, then feel so dizzy when I sit down to eat that I have to lay on the couch.

So basically, things have been rather interesting around here.

My doctor said my thyroid looked inflamed, so she ordered a blood test. Sure enough, I have Postpartum Thyroiditis.

In essence, it's a "post baby" thing, and it can be Hyper or Hypo, or even switch between the two. Some of the symptoms of each are the same, and some are different. About 5-10% of women get it, but I'm guessing most pass it off for normal "post baby" issues such as tiredness, irritability, weight loss or gain, etc etc.

My immunity is down, so in addition this lovely condition, I am catching EVERYTHING from pink eye to a horrible sore throat and cough and runny nose. Which makes it hard to function sometimes.

Thankfully I get little bursts of energy here and there, and I have wonderful people in my life who offer to help.

I am being referred to an endocrinologist to see if I should be put on medication. From what I understand, that will depend on the severity of my symptoms. Some women get over it on their own, some do with medication, and others continue to have thyroid issues forever. I hope I'm the first, and I hope it's soon.

I was thinking the other day that most of my health issues revolve around pregnancy/childbirth. Preeclampsia, high blood pressure, etc.

And then I wonder why this came about at all? Reading about it online, I don't seem to be in the high risk group for developing this. Though I did have an inflamed thyroid when I had mono during college. I wonder if it is related.

In the meantime, if I don't call you back or I don't sound like myself, it's all part of this lovely condition. Basically, my brain is only partially working!