Insomnia

My lovely doctor called this morning and I told her about this weekend, how I woke up at 11:30 on Saturday night with my heartbeat so slow that I couldn't move my body and I was swirling in and out of consciousness. Low calcium, I told her, it's gotta be. I've been feeling numbness and tingling in my hands and feet all week. The last time I had hypotension like that was right after my thyroidectomy and I had to be put on a calcium drip for four days to get my levels up.

She mentioned that my thyroid levels were pretty good, TSH is at a 0.39 or something, which is still pretty hyper, but my thyroglobulin antibodies look nice and low. Oh, I think I can post a screenshot of my results; the power of technology!



She wants me to do thyrogen shots soon and most likely another WBS. Blech.

I'm still feeling off. Napped for two hours today so of course it's nearly midnight and I can't sleep. Hands and feet are quite numb. Heart seems okay.

Medicine: 100mg Synthroid, 7.5mcg Cytomel, calcium, iron, vitamin D.

Lub Dub, Lub Dub

Two weeks ago I spent two-and-a-half hours at the doctor's office--shirtless--as a nurse made three hundred attempts to get this holter monitor to work. She'd hold up her cheat sheet, stick a few stickies on my chest, attach the electrodes color-by-color, turn on the monitor, wait for the blinking green light.... yellow, yellow, yellow.... remove all electrodes, remove batteries, remove memory card, reattach stickies and electrodes, wait for the blinking green light.... still flashing yellow, rinse and repeat. After that unsuccessful appointment I was glad to hear that I wouldn't need to go back for some time to try again to put on this heart monitor.

This morning was round 2, and the nurse was able to get the thing to work on the second try.

Of course two weeks ago we weren't in this heatwave.

This monitor is just a precaution, really, because every time I go into the hospital for thyroid cancer issues my heart overreacts and I'm hooked up to a bunch of EKG machines and blood pressure cuffs. When I mentioned to my PCP that I have pretty rough palpitations now and then he prescribed a 24-hour holter monitor "just to be safe".

And since heart disease is a number one killer of women, I am more than happy with being safe. Especially because I experience heart pain often and am hypocalcemic. A lack of calcium affects muscles, the heart included.



I'm supposed to be writing down all of my activities for the next 24-hours, recording all exercise (yeah right), resting periods (fingers crossed I get eight hours tonight), sexual activity (who would have sex while wearing a heart monitor??), and the like. Here's what I've got written down so far:

10:30AM: took the kids for a walk in the thousand-degree weather to the town hall. Pushed one child in a stroller while wearing a baby in a moby wrap.
11:30AM - 3PM: Photo shoots and wrestling kids to eat lunch, wash hands, use potty, etc. etc.
3:00 - 6PM: Played with kids, watched movie, had dinner. Blah blah blah.
7:46PM: Son took first poop in the big boy potty on his own. No assistance. I expect to go absolute tachycardic at 7:46.

And now it's time for rest.