Its Been Awhile....
December 9, 2008 11:08am
Haven't been on this site in awhile. Things have been really hectic and busy. I'm feeling better than I did when I wrote my last …
treetopp
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About Me
treetopp
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About Me
Married, stay at home mother of two boys ages 15 & 18. Love to read and sleep. Have a B.S. in Chemical Engineering & Chemistry from Purdue University. Interested in computers and computer programming and have worked in that field years ago. Have had problems with depression, endometriosis and underactive thyroid for a number of years, which has left me very frustrated and looking for help. Diagnosed with sleep apnea Dec. 2007
Married, stay at home mother of two boys ages 15 & 18. Love to read and sleep. Have a B.S. in Chemical Engineering & Chemistry from Purdue University. Interested in computers and computer programming and have worked in that field years ago. Have had problems with depression, endometriosis and underactive thyroid for a number of years, which has left me very frustrated and looking for help. Diagnosed with sleep apnea Dec. 2007
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Recent Activity
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Journal
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Journal Entry for October 10, 2007
October 10, 2007 1:23pm
Still super super tired. At least I paid the bills today. Thank God for online banking and billpay. Can't seem to get motivated to do anything …
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Journal Entry for October 5, 2007
October 5, 2007 2:23am
I am so mad now! I just completed my journal entry then didn't push the right button and lost it all. Thank goodness it wasn't very …
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Journal Entry for October 3, 2007
October 3, 2007 2:24am
Been feeling really crappy lately. About 2 weeks ago I felt pretty good, got lots of things done, exercised. Then I got really tired and have …
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Photos
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Support Groups
Close Endometriosis
Endo found when I was having a tubal ligation Sept. 1994. Had another laparoscopy to remove endo in Oct. 2004. Pain returned, had an enlarged uterus & was having excessive bleeding, so had a total hysterectomy March 2006. Lots of endo found. A layer had grown between my vagina & rectum, they had to remove half of my rectum & reconnect with colon. Endo also on my bladder. Found several large nodules along back abdominal wall behind uterus and large chocolate cyst.
Treatments
- Surgery Somewhat Helpful
- My hysterectomy surgery took 7 hrs & 5 doctors. Two ob-gyns, 2 bowel surgeons & a kidney specialist. Recovery was the worst experience of my life. Because of the removal of half my rectum going to the bathroom was quite painful & I was constantly getting constipated. My surgery was about 1 1/2 years ago & I still don't feel well & am still bothered with constipation & pain during bowel movements. Tired all the time, low iron, depressed, & still have severe pain that started after surgery.
Close Depression
Type: Clinical (Major) DepressionDiagnosed with depression in Sept 1995. Took 10 yrs to find a combination of meds that worked ok. Currently taking Prozac, Lithium, Gabapentin, & Adderall. Part of the problem was underactive thyroid that went undiagnosed for many yrs. I had adverse reactions to many of the meds I tried. I've had a really rough time & had to give a up a dream job because I just couldn't cope. I felt pretty good for about 2 yrs ago, & then I had a hysterectomy due to endometriosis & haven't felt well since.
Treatments
- Celexa Working / Worked
- I took celexa for a couple of years and it worked ok - just seemed like I was in a fog all the time. Switched back to Prozac.
- Effexor Not Working
- I only took this for a couple of weeks. Caused vertigo and had to stop taking it.
- Prozac Working / Worked
- Prozac has worked the best for me. However early in my treatment it would work for about 6 months or so then stop. After years of switching back and forth between Prozac and other meds I was prescribed Lithium, along with the Prozac. Lithium is supposed to help augment the effects of Prozac in treament resistant patients, and it has worked pretty well. Side effects low libido, excessive sweating.
- Psychotherapy Working / Worked
- Saw a therapist for about two years. I think it helped mainly because I could talk to her about things I didn't want to talk to anybody else about.
- Trazodone Somewhat Helpful
- I took this when I was first diagnosed with depression. It was prescribed along with Prozac. When I first started taking Prozac I had a hard time falling asleep, so the Trazodone was supposed to help me sleep. It did, just a little too well. Stopped taking because took long time to wake up and could barely function in the morning. Also cause dry mouth.
- Wellbutrin Not Working
- Wellbutrin made me feel really good and increased my libido. Unfortunatly it also caused my blood pressure to sky rocket and gave me migraines that would last for days.
- Zoloft Somewhat Helpful
- Took Zoloft for about a year. Gained 30 pounds in 6 months while taking Zoloft. It made me very tired. After about year it wasn't helping with the depressive symptoms so the dosage was increased. Right after the dose increased I started bleeding vaginally not my period, no cramping, just uncontrollable bleeding. Had to stop taking the Zoloft. Had to be put on birth control pills for a month to stop the bleeding. Menorrhagia is a rare side effect of Zoloft its listed in the PDR.
Open Hypothyroidism
I suffered from depression for years with little success with the antidepressants I was trying. Finally I was diagnosed with an under active thyroid. It took a couple of years to get the dose correct but once I was put on a significant amount of thyroid medicine my antidepressants finally kept working. In addition a number of medical problems I was having disappeared - allergies, breathing problems, chronic sinus infections - all virtually disappeared once I was put on thyroid medicine.
Treatments
- Armour Thyroid Working / Worked
- I take my Armour sublingually so it gets absorbed right away. Seems to be working pretty well.
- Synthroid Working / Worked
- Took synthroid for a number of years felt better but never 100% I think the Armour works better.
Open Hysterectomy
Had to have a hysterectomy because of severe endometriosis
Treatments
- Estrogen Patch Working / Worked
- Started on lowest dose after hysterectomy and seemed to be working fine, but my ob-byn I thought I needed a higher dose. He increased the dosage and I felt terrible.
Open Sleep Apnea
Diagnosed Dec. 2007. After taking care of a number or other medical issues I was still tired all the time. All I ever looked forward to was taking a nap and going to bed at night.
Treatments
- CPAP Working / Worked
- Helps when I use it regularly. I have to use a full face mask because I'm a mouth breather and took a long time to get used to.
