Actually, in the whole scheme of things, my prognosis is very good. Once my pit failed, I was diagnosed within a year. Sometimes, especially women with Sheehan's that have a delayed onset, it can take years before they are properly diagnosed. So for me, the good news is that I was diagnosed pretty early compared to others who suffer. I'm on lifetime hormone replacement therapy. As I've been told by my family doctor, I'm very lucky. I'll never be 100% like I was before, but that's ok. I'll be happy with 80%, and I'll be darned if I'll let this disease get the best of me. I'm still working full time, and I don't intend to quit. I've made choices in my life to keep only the most important things. I spend my time wisely, and I try not to allow myself to get in a position or do things which could compromise my health and make me sick. Fatigue is a horrible thing that comes along with it. Someone shared a really good story with me called the 3 spoons. Here's link. http://www.butyoudontlooksick.com/spoons.htm Good luck on your endo appointment. Don't be discouraged if you don't get all of your answers first appointment. I don't know if you are actually seeing someone who is a pit specialist, but if you're not understand that pit disorders are very difficult for a common endo to diagnose. If you talk to enough people with pit diseases, they usually will tell you that they have changed doctors several times to find a good specialist. Because pit disorders/diseases are difficult to diagnose, sometimes even finding the proper physician to interpret the diagnostic testing can make a world of difference. When my blood work first came back abnormal, they ran an MRI of my pituitary gland. It was interpretted as being normal. So, because it was normal there were tests that they didn't think that they needed to run. As I deteriorated over the next couple of months, they started running additional tests one at a time. Eventually, because my testing didn't appear to the endo to be "conclusive" he was considering weaning me all of the hormone replacement meds. That's when I very quickly collected up all of my records and went to a pituitary center with a endo who specialized in pituitary diseases and disorders. When reviewing my MRI, he determined it was abnormal. And, some of my blood tests results were also abnormal which were previously read to be within normal range. So, just keep in mind that doctors don't always know everything. They are human too. They make mistakes. Only you know how you feel, and only you know what it is to live a day in your shoes. If you don't agree with what you hear from the doctor that you see, use your gut instincts on whether you really can accept what you're being told. Before being correctly diagnosed, I kept going back to see my endo and internist because I kept getting more sick. At my very last appointment, I could tell that the internist was very aggravated with me. I told her I felt so bad, and I wanted to go back over my history to make sure that we weren't missing something. She was very stern with me, and she told me that there was NO WAY I would have a pituitary disorder because my MRI was normal. Knowing what I do know, I feel half tempted to schedule another appointment with the internist to be stern with her and say you were WRONG!! Be prepared for your appointment. Keep a list of the symptoms you have. Take them with you. Write down all of your questions. Your time in the examination room with the doctor is precious. Ask every single question you can think of. Don't leave any of your symptoms out. Even if you think they are silly. Share everything you can to educate your doctor. Get your records. You'll be paying for your visit, so make sure you get your money's worth! Don't hesitate to ask any questions. I will answer as many as I can. But most importantly, just keep your best spirits. The worst thing you can do is let yourself get down. I don't know anything about tumors, but I do know the TSH/T4 thing. My eyes were so dry that I know have a disease in my eyes as a result. My eyes were so dry from the thyroid being out of whack that my corneas were erroding. My mouth was so dry, my teeth began to decay. And, yes, these are all things because of your thyroid being out of order. So, although you may not think it could be connected to your pit, write down everything that is now different than before. Share it with your doctor. |
