I WAITED until I'd reached the sixth floor bathroom before I burst into tears. According to the endocrinologist I'd spent four years battling to see, my underactive thyroid was not only behind the sluggishness, the stomach issues and the weight gain I'd been experiencing for six plus years, but it was likely to be behind the month's-long brain fog that had started to make me think I was quite possibly losing my mind and at the very least losing my spark.
That was just the start of the bombshells, it transpired. Had my GP not told me I should be on a higher dose of medication? Did I realise that my thyroid condition may well affect my chances of getting pregnant if I planned to have a baby in the next few years? And was I aware I was likely to have this autoimmune thing called Hashimoto's disease, the predominant cause of hypothyroidism? "Hashi-what?" I repeated, not only completely overwhelmed but oddly embarrassed by the apparently gaping hole in my vocabulary.
"The bit that got me was when the consultant told me how lost I seemed," I voice-noted a friend on my way home from the appointment - the latest in a six-year rollercoaster with the whole thing, from years spent wondering what was behind my increasing fatigue, puffy face and ice-cold feet (yep, I'm that weirdo who wears socks in bed in July), to the see-saw of symptoms versus side-effects of the medication that's meant to help. "I think it was the kindness that made me cry," I went on, my brain playing me a highlights (lowlights) reel of all of those years of selfdoubt (maybe the low mood was job stress) and self-judgment (maybe I did need to do more exercise). "I guess it's just the first time that anyone's actually taken the time to piece all of this health stuff together and tell me I wasn't being hysterical after all." If you're wondering what on earth this thyroid thing is, you're not alone.
This story is from the May 20, 2024 edition of Evening Standard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the May 20, 2024 edition of Evening Standard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Only £65k a month to live like Boy George
The Karma Chameleon singer listed his house for £17m in 2022, turning down offers. Now, he's looking for a tenant
Welcome to London, unicorn capital of Europe
We're flying far ahead of anywhere outside US for tech investment
Arteta's Arsenal evolution The next phase
Malik Ouzia and Simon Collings assess how the Spaniard will try to bring down Man City after he signs up for another three years with the title in his sights
Title fight catches fire after Gunners embrace dark side
Arsenal-City clashes take on a welcome edge of animosity
Whack the hippy gong-boho's back
It happened in Paris one grey February day. Sienna Miller was in an oversized, black leather jacket, lace-trimmed silk slip and clumpy great wedges.
There's a Starlink waiting in the sky... 7,000 in fact.Can Elon Musk stop them crashing to Earth?
As he was preparing his fields for seeding this year, Barry Sawchuk came across a giant slab of space debris. It had come from a spacecraft belonging to Elon Musk’s company, SpaceX.
'Politicians are only into power-mongering, corruption and cronyism'
We speak to alt revolutionary DEEPAK CHOPRA about biomarkers, his digital twin and his work to save humanity from disease
I've been waiting for a production of Godotthis brilliant all my life
Ben Whishaw and Lucian Msamati bring a potent, tragicomic chemistry to James Macdonald’s rich revival of Samuel Beckett’s challenging play.
Trust me, the Ritz is London's bestrestaurant
To whom we turn in moments of gloom and glory can be instructive, a filter of our truest friends. I've fallen out with the Ritz a couple of times, including once after a visit to the bar which didn’t warrant a review (“But you said it was lovely!” they said.
'Healing is a dirty word'
After four traumatic years, FKA twigs is back with a new album -and a thrilling metamorphosis