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Is it Over?

Is it over? It’s just been one of those weeks that needs to end like yesterday. We finally have the volume at work, but our boss is so far up everyone’s asses it’s not cool. Of course I’m thrilled that our volume has increased. I just don’t and have never appreciated micromanagement. To be fair, I’m way more sensitive than normal due to a liquid only diet and asthma that continues to be a pain in the arse.

So after my doctor’s appointment, to which I was a bit unpunctual having parked on the wrong side, I found out a lot of the family I saw on Saturday has come down with Covid. So far I’ve tested negative. Two of the tests I used, however, were expired. I’m a bit nervous to start the steroids after having been exposed to Covid. I’m waiting to hear back from my doctor’s office as to whether or not I should wait to start taking them. There’s a reason I’m waiting and it’s because prednisone can compromise your immune system. Obviously, I don’t need that ball of fun in my life.

What daily habit do you do that improves your quality of life?

There are a couple of things I do daily that improve my quality of life. Firstly, I start everyday with my Dunkin’ coffee. Secondly, I drink water incessantly and stay well hydrated. Additionally, I have a robust exercise routine baked into my day that keeps me going. Lastly, I end my day by reading my book. I read everyday no matter what I did that night.

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Challenging

Today’s run was challenging. Heck all of the runs this week have been challenging. First of all, I can’t remember the last time I ran outside. I think it may have been in time immemorial. Running outside is harder than running on the treadmill, but I also found it way more rewarding. Secondly, I’ve been in an autoimmune flare for over a week. This means everything is angry including my stomach and lungs. To be fair, my lungs have been angry since we were hanging out in the smoke filled Minnesota air in May.

5 day streak! Hit my goal

I’ve got an appointment on Wednesday with my doctor to make sure I’m in the right meds for the allergies and asthma. I do hate taking prednisone though because it keeps me up all night. It should, however, help fuel my workouts. Now I’m sure you’re wondering why the hell I’m working out through a flare. The answer is simply because it helps alleviate it. I cannot express how much better feel mentally and physically after working out. The key is to not over do it. Running on a track this week was the perfect way to get my workout in without being too far from home or the bathroom. I should also mention my Endo and PCP are both on board with my workout routines.

Tomorrow and Sunday will be full rest days, less some restorative yoga and Pilates. Since I ran hard all week, I’m going to enjoy a full 48 hour break from the cardio. I’ll be staying Kayla Itsines HIIT program Monday. I finished her beginner program last week. I started back at he beginning since I had taken quite a bit of time off and I don’t need to hurt myself. Her workouts are great! They will definitely make my muscles quiver. The morning after leg day is usually the worst.

How would you design the city of the future?

If I could design the city of future it would be walkable and full of coffee shops (including my personal favorite Dunkin Donuts) and dogs.

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Why?

Why must all Mondays be a clusterfuck? Is there an unwritten law in the universe that I’m unaware of? My Monday started when I woke up late for work. Now this is truly an astonishing feat as my desk is five paces from my bed. Yet here I was sleeping away like Sleeping Beauty until 8:06 am. Whoops! Fortunately, I was able to get up and on the computer without much effort. I just wasn’t mentally present for the first forty five minutes. I was so tired, I felt like a martian.

On top of my late start, my allergy/exercise induced asthma has been wreaking havoc in my lungs today. If you listened to my last phone calls, you would think I had just ran ten miles after smoking 59 cigarettes. I’d love to say that my voice sounded raspy and sexy prompting my custom get to buy , but I think they felt sorry for me. Thank god for prednisone and rescue inhalers. Albeit, I had to go out and get both since the stuff I had on hand was used up or expired. Nevertheless, the meds should help clear up my lungs pretty quickly.

In between the wheezing and phone calls, I completed my annual compliance training. It was a wonderful reminder that I longer work at a place where work place bullying is venerated especially for the upper echelons. Honestly, I miss the workplace bullying about as much as I miss smelling the reheated five day old fish. Anywhere else, HR would have put a stop to both, but hey that’s not my problem anymore. And guess what I guarantee you, there will be no reheating of five day old fish in my new office.

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Change

Well, there hasn’t been much change from yesterday. Well, except I’m now taking eight pills plus using a steroid cream to keep this thing at bay. Naturally, I’m still miserable with my patches of itchiness/hell and my husband is still an unpaid volunteer. Hopefully, I’ll start to see a change in the skin irritation rather soon. I’d really like to go back to my regular workouts and wear shirts. I’ve resorted to wearing a loose hoodie over my sports bra to stay comfortable. Or at least, try to stay comfortable.

I can’t say that I’m feeling great either. I’m not sleeping well, so I’m super fatigued. Unfortunately, I think the fatigue is magnifying my discomfort. The patches are quite painful and itchy today, which sucks. I feel better today than yesterday. Truthfully, the Mayor saved the day yesterday when he reminded my hubby to pick up my script. My hubby forgot to pick it up on his way home but forgot. Since we’re down to one vehicle at the moment that would have meant I would have had to wait to get my script filled until this evening. As it happened, the rink canceled the Mayor’s practice, so we would have been able to pick it up yesterday evening. Since he had no practice, the Mayor also made dinner. He really saved my evening.

Actually, I lied there has been one change since yesterday. I haven’t received a call from Herz’s vehicle recovery department. Yay for the small victories in life. This may be a byproduct of the flurry of tweets and Facebook messages I sent them yesterday. Unfortunately, I still have not received my closed contract or receipt for the rental. Nor have I heard back from Hertz about either item. Hopefully, the lack of a call this morning forebodes the resolution of my rental car debacle. At this point, I don’t know what’s more painful the shingles or the Hertz rental experience. Either way, stay tuned for an update.

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Ready for Bed

I’m ready for bed and it’s 8:05. Honestly, the temptation to skip writing the blog tonight was very real. The Mayor had two games in Estero today, which equated to an early morning this morning. This in the heels of one too many vodka sodas last night was a recipe for a winning day. Fortunately, I only woke up tired and not tied and hungover. Nevertheless, here I am at 8:05 ready for bed.

The problem this whole week is I’ve been fighting an autoimmune hangover since Chicago. What exactly is an autoimmune hangover? In my world, it’s incredible fatigue coupled with inflammation. Unfortunately, I’ve found that during this period of “hangover” I need to chill or my body will rebel. I certainly don’t enjoy an autoimmune flare after having spent years trying to calm it down.

Consequently, I’ve been shopping for saunas all week. One of the great things about my Endocrinologist is that she’s given me a lot of tools to manage the autoimmune side of Graves’ disease. Typical Graves’ disease treatment only addresses slowing down the toxicity of a hyperactive thyroid. It doesn’t address the underlying autoimmune inflammation that causes your thyroid to go insane. Honestly, it’s because we still don’t understand autoimmune diseases well.

So a sauna not only feels fantastic but is also great for reducing inflammation. Naturally, I have to go back to eating really clean, which will also help. Hopefully, this week I can get back to my workout routine. I try to work out daily, but I’m careful never to overtax my system. It’s a delicate balancing act between building my fitness and avoiding a flare. Anyway, I’m off to bed because I’m next level tired.

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Two for One

It’s a two for one sale here at hockey mom did. That’s right folks two blogs in one day. Since I have no good excuse, outside of poor planning on my part, for missing my post yesterday: it’s only fair that I write two today. After all, it’s not like I did much of anything today. In fact, I slept late, kept off my foot and cuddled with my puppies. It was a great day.

Actually, my foot feels a lot better today, but I felt it prudent to hold off running for a bit longer. I’ll try my luck on Tuesday, which is a normal run day for me. Naturally, it’s good to take your foot off the pedal some time. This is especially true for those of us that suffer from autoimmune diseases. Too much stress on the body be it from exercise or other external forces can lead to a flare up that will set me back further. Consequently, I have to be more flexible in my mindset. In fact, I have to accept that some days the healthiest choice for my body is to rest. Honestly, it feels so odd saying it because I’m used to pushing myself to limits.

We finished off Seinfeld today. I think I like the finale better now than I did when it first aired. As for my Hubby, he still thinks it’s an abomination. Nonetheless, the show hasn’t lost its relevance or its hilarity. I’ll probably rewatch it again and then binge watch Curb. Maybe the second or third time my boys see it, they’ll start to understand it’s genius. We followed up the Seinfeld, with some It’a Always Sunny. These are the perfect shows to have in the background as you’re getting work done. Moreover, they keep me awake when I need to be productive, but would rather be taking a siesta.

This evening I cooked the family a Thai inspired tilapia meal courtesy of Blue Apron. Honestly, I was surprised that both boys tried it with an open mind and little rancor. Ultimately, the Mayor liked it while Goalielocks did not. Although Goalielocks ate way more of this fish than I had expected. Also, he didn’t make a spectacle when he didn’t like the flavor, which has been the hallmark of my Mayor this week. As for me, I really liked the spice of the fish with the sushi rice and green beans. Ultimately, it’s been fun trying a bunch of different recipes through these services.

Here’s a list of our day’s activities:

*Reading O Pioneers by Willa Cather

*Morning and afternoon meditation

*Took obligatory picture of Anakin

*Obedience training Anakin

*Facetime with my airmen!!!! I miss and love him so much!

*Week 4 BBG 2.0 day 7 rest

*Offered two for one special on my daily blogs on account of my planning yesterday.

*Took Anakin, Maya and Athena out for a walk

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What Next: taking supplements

So you’ve been diagnosed with an autoimmune thyroid disease, what next? Can you still take my supplements? When I was diagnosed with Graves Disease, my life was flipped upside down. There are plenty of treatment decisions to make, but there are immediate consideration as well. In fact, I had to evaluate all the supplements I was taking. Anything that was considered goitrogenic had to go because it could cause a thyroid storm. Moreover, I had to make decisions on how to mitigate the symptoms before treatment.

Here are the supplements I’m using to cope with my autoimmune disorder (as a major caveat everything I take has been played by my endo:)

1. Selenium – this mineral is essential for normal thyroid function and is beneficial for hyper/hypothyroid patients.

2. L-Carnitine – before I was given beta blockers, I used L-Carnitine to mitigate the hyper thyroid symptoms. Once I was post-RAI, I stopped taking this supplement.

3. CoQ10 – I was taking this before I got diagnosed and was advised to continue. Apparently, patients with Graves’ disease have lower amounts of CoQ10 in their blood.

4. Zinc – I just added this to my regimen after meeting with the registered dietician at my Endo’s office. There is evidence to support that zinc supplementation helps support thyroid function.

5. Collagen – I’m loving Vital Proteins Collagen Powder. It ‘a flavorless, can be mixed into coffee, is only 70 calories and has 17 grams of protein. As for why I’m taking this, it’s really about my vanity. I’m trying to keep my hair, skin and nails as healthy as possible. Thyroid disease and thyroid hormone supplementation can lead to hair loss. I am not about that life.

6. Biotin – see the explanation above.

7. Essential oils – no I don’t think they are a cure all, but lavender has helps calm me down if I’m Graves’ raging. Peppermint and Eucalyptus are critical in relieving congestion . Since my blood pressure is not always normal, I avoid taking decongestants.

I used to take a multivitamin and myriad of other supplements, but had to stop them once diagnosed. There are a lot of supplements that interact with the thyroid or thyroid medication, so you have to be careful. I have a lot of friends that have great results with Thrive and other supplements. The temptation to try those supplements is real, however, until my doc gives me the all clear, nothing in my small regimen will change. What’s next: adjusting my exercise routine.

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