First off, I have not written a blog in quite some time! This is partially due to the demands of the holiday season. I love having my family visit, but there is quite a bit of preparation required when one has family members and friends over to visit . It is wonderful being able to have some " safe" family and friend time again, but it does require some work and planning. This involves the first challenge that I am going to talk about: fatigue.
It is difficult for anyone with a thyroid to imagine how much fatigue a thyroid cancer patient can be dealing with. No matter how good a thyroid replacement drug may be, medication can never completely duplicate the hormones made by a fully functioning ( or present) thyroid gland. Before thyroid cancer, I could push through being tired to accomplish whatever tasks that needed to be done; and we do have extra tasks during the holidays. We may enjoy them, they may be joyful, but they also may be over the top energy wise. I will hit a wall, so to speak, at times. I just can not make myself go past a certain point. My family understands this, for the most part, but no one understands like another thyroid cancer patient! I wish that I had the "magic remedy" for this, but sadly, I do not. One thing that needs to be considered, of course, is your thyroid blood work. Is your TSH, T4, T3, etc., levels within normal ranges? You need to have this discussion with your physician of course. Also, trying to get more rest (!) and enlisting help from friends and family are about the best things that one can do. And please remember to be patient with yourself. All one can do is one's best.
I am dealing with a new endocrinologist now, and trying to decide if this is a good fit for me. I have not made up my mind as yet. I have been searching for a while, and though I know that I will most likely never be able to replace my former endocrinologist, who every day is becoming more and more of a "saint", I would like to find one that I can work with. I want a doctor who listens to how I am feeling, does not only look at the numbers on my lab reports, and is willing to spend a little time with me during office visits. I am taking my own advice about being my best patient advocate, but finding a good physician is definitely more challenging now. More doctors have retired, increasing the work load on physicians who are still working. The endocrinologist that I am seeing now has reduced the dose of my thyroid replacement hormone. Yes, the dreaded " going down on the dose" syndrome. Almost every thyroid cancer patient knows the fatigue that one has when our doctor changes our dose. My TSH was too low, so she reduced the dose without discussion. We have communicated via email, which helped, but I would like to have had the opportunity to discuss this change of dose in person. I have an earlier blog on TSH- suppressed or not- during treatment for thyroid cancer if anyone cares to look back through my blogs for more information. While reducing the dose of my thyroid hormone replacement medication may be the best thing for me overall, it is adding quite a bit of extra fatigue to my holidays.
A second challenge brought on by the winter season is dry, itchy skin. When the regulatory hormones produced by the thyroid decrease ( as in hypothyroidism) or disappear ( due to thyroid loss) one problem is dry, itchy skin. What can one do? There are several ideas to help our skin during this cold, winter season. Along with low or missing thyroid regulatory hormones, we are having to use heat- which also dries out our skin. Here is a list of some ideas that may help our dry, itchy skin:
* Find a good skin moisturizer. Creams in a tub are a better choice than those with a pump. I was not aware of this until lately, but those that are dispensed by a pump contain alcohol and other additives which are used to get the cream to flow through the pump. The alcohol and other additives may dry out the skin even more. Creams with ammonium lactate or urea (keratolytic agents) help remove the dead , flaky layer of the skin. These allow for the moisturizing agents in the cream to get deeper into the skin layers. Another choice is coconut oil- a natural oil. I have tried the coconut oil, and use it occasionally, but it is a little messy for me. If you use this, apply after bathing when skin is a little warm, allow to dry a little, then remove excess with a towel. It is effective, just requires a little more effort. I do not recommend petroleum based products, as I feel they are not good for the environment and may be somewhat harmful in the long run. This is just my opinion, though.
* Use very mild, fragrance free cleansers/soap that contain emollients. Soaps can be very drying and can contain alcohol and other chemicals that may dry out or irritate the skin. For reference, I use a natural soap that contains goat's milk, shea butter, argan oil and dead sea minerals. It is very lightly scented with natural lavender oil, but it does not bother my sensitive skin. In fact, I find this soap very soothing. I also like organic soaps- as long as they do not contain strong fragrance.
* Keep bathing/shower time as short as possible and use warm, not hot water. This one is extremely hard for me, as I like longer showers with water leaning towards the hotter side! Just do your best with this one...
* Use a humidifier to add moisture back into the air. Good idea, but one must keep the humidifier clean to prevent mold, so there is a small price to pay.
* probably one of the most important things to do: DRINK LOTS OF WATER! I do not have a problem with this one. I have found that using a thermos, and carrying it around with me during the day at home, taking it in the car, and leaving it beside my bedside table at night is a great way to easily have water available all throughout the day. What happens on the inside of our bodies is reflected on the outside, I think.
And finally, if all else fails, and the itching becomes unbearable, or a rash develops, see a dermatologist. There are prescription creams available that might help. This is a wonderful time of the year! Try to enjoy the changing of the season and get as much rest as possible. Good skin care is so very important, too. Happy Holidays to everyone- which ever holiday one celebrates. And here's to a better and healthier New Year.
