Shelley's Story
I had my first anaphylactic reaction to antibiotics when I was 5, taking penicillin for rheumatic fever. And ever since I have racked up all the rest of the antibiotics as allergies. Having to take high dose steroids for the allergic reactions and for bad asthma combined with lots of stress lead to the death of my adrenals.
I was pregnant with my 3rd boy and having trouble with kidney stones (again) and asthma. I was put on steroids often during this time so I could breath. During labor Nathan's O2 would drop way down so I was given steroids during labor and straight O2 so he would be ok. Nathan had to have surgery when he was 3 days old to remove his right testicle because it had gangrene and there were some complications, not major but he ended up in the hospital for 2 days instead of one. The OB left packing material inside of me from the stitches and I got a pelvic infection. Nathan was discharged and I was immediately placed in another hospital for the infection. I had an allergic reaction to 2 different "a"s at that time but the infection did clear up. Of course I was on high doses of pred. for the allergic reactions. I think all this stress on weakened adrenals was the death knell for them.
I never seemed to recover from the birth. I was very very tired and thirsty like crazy and fainting and dizzy all the time. I dislocated each knee twice and one ankle while fainting during this time. Then I started having horrible racing heart. I was put on heart monitors and tons and tons of tests. I was having chest pain and would end up in the er because of the tachycardia. One time I was put in the hospital for two weeks (seeing as this was an HMO that was an incredibly long time) I left with no firm answers and still tachy. Finally almost 2 years after my son was born I went to the er yet again and this young doc said he was going to look for the zebra. He ran and ACTH test and sent me home after giving me fluids. The next day I got a panicked call from my primary doc telling me to immediately get the pred. filled and start taking it. And I was sent to see the only endo for the entire HMO system in Seattle area. And she tried to kill me. At the time I was pregnant I was a ballet teacher. I had been thin and very active all my life. I was so ill that I had to quit teaching altogether. The endo put me on 7.5 or pred everyday. I felt better but still having tachiness, dizziness and the worst muscle cramping ever! Every muscle in my body would charlie horse up...feet, legs, stomach, back, hands, neck and even my tongue when I would yawn. It would get stuck in the back of my throat. When I complained to this endo repeatedly she would only up my pred. I got to the point where I was taking 10 mgs. a day. I never had the nausea and weight loss and skin darkening that most ADer's have. Well taking that much pred and going from being super active to not active at all made me gain 100 lbs. in 1 year. I kept trying to walk but I could only walk for 6 min. tops. Finally a cardiologist had words with the endo and I was put on florinef. It was like someone switched on the light. I felt almost human again. I finally was able to function. It was another 6 months to a year later that I was dx with POTS... postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome. I was given more meds for that and that increased my functionality. A year and a half ago we moved from damp, moldy Seattle to dry, easy to breath Idaho. My asthma is all but gone and I feel so much better. I also figured out that I have fibromyalgia and began a treatment discovered by Dr. Amand. It is a guaifenison protocol. Well the final problem was taken care of....I can walk again! I have been walking as much as 2.5 miles at a time. The cramping has finally ceased after 9 years of daily pain and cramping. So now after 9 years I am starting to teach ballet again and I lost 40 lbs. I was on a low carb diet then my hubby was out of work due to a back injury so I had to go off that diet. I gained back 20 of it. BUT he will start working soon and we will have enough money for me to go back on that diet. My goal is to lose the 100lbs. that I gained while under the care of the killer endo.
Thank you for sharing, Shelley.
