Some Rights Reserved
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons
Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0
United States License.
Twenty-Ninth Entry: Thyroid Literary Contest – Three Words of Encouragement
Believe, Hope, Support and Knowledge.
I just found out that I have a 1.5 cm nodule on the right lobe of my Thyroid. I am so afraid I may have cancer! My father just died 2 years ago this weekend of lung cancer. I will find out if I need a biopsy and/or surgery this week.
This has been a long ordeal just to get to this point. I believe something has been wrong with me for quite some time but the doctors kept dismissing me, saying its just part of getting old, exercise and watching what you eat, etc. Well I do watched what I ate and exercised 3-5 times a week for years. This past year my bad cholesterol (LDL) was high; I was diagnosed with mild Osteopenia. I have gained over 20 pounds and have no energy to do the things I normally do.
Last August I started having pain/numbness and tingling on the back left side of my neck going up the left side of my head to the crown. Because I have chronic sinusitis they told me to see an ENT, which I did and they took a tissue sample just in case it was something else and found a staph infection. I thought that might be the answer but after the antibiotics cleared the infection the pain, numbness and tingling was still there along with all the other normal symptoms of thyroid problems. My primary care doctor ran blood tests with my TSH in the “normal” range but my CRP was high. I was then told to see a neurologist who finally found the nodule with the cervical spine MRI.
I know I am not alone in this because it has been amazing the people I have run into in my exercise class, church, kids sports etc that have told me their stories where in the end with medicine they feel so much better. They have offered support by giving me doctors/hospital/website names and given me hope that everything will be ok. All the research I have done says that most nodules are benign and with treatment and monitoring you can live life to the fullest.
The butterfly painting reminds me of a saying my Maya Angelou “We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.” which I think also is true of the process people go through with Thyroid Disease. I am 46 year old, single mom that wants to be around for my sons and want to feel like “me” again.
By, Kim
—
Please cast your vote in comments
Tags: check your neck, learn about your thyroid, painting donated by Allyson Averell, save your life and your friend and family's lives, send your four words of encouragement and what they mean to you, support thyroid awareness month, thyroid awareness month literary contest
Follow Dear Thyroid on Twitter/@DearThyroid | See our Facebook Page | Become a Fan on Facebook | Join our Facebook Group
You Can Create a Dear Thyroid Profile and share with friends!
Reader Feedback
2 Responses to “Twenty-Ninth Entry: Thyroid Literary Contest – Three Words of Encouragement”
Leave a Reply
Comments are moderated in an effort to control spam. If you have a previously approved Comment, this one should go right through. Thanks for your patience!
Your story is very similar to my own my nodule was benign so keep hoping that yours is too and if it isn’t you will do whatever you have too be there for your sons.. I like the saying by Mayo so true..good luck let us know how you get on and you got a vote from me too. Good Luck.
I have researched many years since i was kid.
Medicin facinating me, and radiation, poisions material. Etc healing of the body.
I always wanted to become reasearcher in the field of dna or any kind body structure for better understanding sickness humanity etc.
I been living in war for 4 years in sarajevo, in war i became sick couldnt walk at all. Food shortage, my mom helped me giving me the right food.
To make the story short. After i started walking but got sick from acne etc polluted cities, i ocntinued my reasearch on my own without school.
The reason i m writing this is. The thyroid protection system which blocks the dangerous material. Kills the thyroid gland but lets the human live, in many cases even if many die. The body tries to protect the body but the thyroid suffers.
The reason thyroid effected are can be of radiation, pollutated area, etc chemicals. Treatments are there ,iv researches so much, if u want to save your self, u must do it yourself doctors wont, help you! They cant help you! They just want to sell medicine.
Good luck
denbeg