So I'm NOT crazy!

My health has been pretty poor the last few years. I haven't been really sick, but I have had some persistent, nagging symptoms that I've been dealing with.

• Exhaustion, like bone crushing, can't put one foot in front of the other exhausted. Going to bed early doesn't help. Sleeping late does some, but what mom can do that everyday?
• My allergies are worse than ever. And I just feel pretty poopy all around.
• I'm over weight. I certainly don't expect to look like I did in high school or college (I mean, I wouldn't hate it if I did...) but I understand that I am at a different season in my life, and I am honestly ok with that. But THIS overweight isn't ok. I had an eye injury 9 years ago that damaged my optic nerve, so to preserve my eye and vision, I was put on high doses of Prednisone for 9 weeks. That's a long time to be on such a strong steroid, and I gained a lot of weight on it. Baby weight fell of me (thanks breastfeeding!) but that steroid weight is a little more stubborn. I've worked at it over the years with little to no results, so never stuck with anything for very long. And of course, my food allergies prevent me from eating super clean.
• Remember when you're pregnant and you get brain fog? Mine never went away. I forget why I walked in to a room. I'll forget to run an errand that Cameron needed. I'll forget to feed my kids. Not really on that last one, they'd never stand for it ;)
• I lose patience with my kids too easily. And my husband is not excluded from this. I'm weirdly emotional about EVERYTHING.

The hardest part of all of this was that, at this point in my life, with the family and life that Cameron and I have created, I am the happiest I have ever been. And I don't feel well enough to enjoy it.


Moms, I know that most of y'all deal with similar stuff. But I felt like my case was severe. So I finally sought some help. I did some hormone testing, both saliva and blood tests. My results were horrible. And awesome. Horrible, as in my body does not function. Like, at all. I'm not producing much progesterone. I'm not producing hardly any testosterone. My adrenals are fatigued, which means they're not producing cortisol or DHEA. I won't go in to what all these hormones affect, but it's basically everything that has been wrong with me. And my thyroid levels are really low, as well. I started researching, and oh my goodness! These hormone deficiencies explain everything! That's the awesome part. To quote the NP who was consulting me, the results were very validating. I love that word. I'm not crazy! I'm not just lazy, and unmotivated, with no will power and a temper. Now, believe me, I know that I can't blame 100% of where I am, where my body is, on this new information. But the psychological effect of feeling so horrible for so long, and nothing I had done helped, makes you just kind of... give up. Or as they've said for years, let myself go.


So, I now get to figure out a way to right all that is wrong.

• I've started taking a bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT) to replace what I'm not producing. My thyroid levels are low, but not low enough to start any therapy for it yet. I will have my levels rechecked every 6 months. The idea is just to take them for a few months, to give my glands a much needed rest and begin functioning properly again.
• Even though eating clean is extremely difficult for me, I'm just going to have to do it. My list of things I can eat will be minimal, and I will get sick of them so very quickly, but it's something I have to get over. And of course, my most difficult task, finally kicking my coke addiction.
• A difficult part of adrenal fatigue is that strenuous exercise exacerbates the problem. I won't be able to work out much for several more weeks. I can walk, do some yoga, maybe some light strength training, but my adrenals need to recover before I can really get after it. But now, I'll have the energy to actually do something! Because....

One of the nurses at one of my many doctors visits over the last few weeks suggested something else I might try, in addition to the BHRT. She said, "Have you ever heard of a product called Plexus?"
Um, YES! I had several friends begin taking Plexus over the last few months. Their results, both weight and overall health, were amazing. I ordered a trial from a friend and LOVED THIS PRODUCT! I took it for a week, and felt better than I had in years. I still felt like I had some issues that needed to be addressed by a medical professional, so I didn't proceed with it. But to have a NURSE recommend it for my severe issues?! I was so excited to hear that!
So I've been back on it for a couple of weeks. And I don't feel fantastic. But I feel better. I have more energy, earlier in the day than I had. I would probably feel even MORE better (how's that grammar for you!) if I could remember to take what I needed every day.
There are a lot of products out there right now. I've tried a few of them. Of course, now I know why my body didn't respond to any of them. But it did respond to Plexus. Even before I'd started on the BHRT. I am so grateful to have found bioidenticals AND Plexus. I plan to be off the BHRT just as soon as my body allows, but Plexus will be something that I think will benefit me for years to come.