eat more spinach?
// April 14th, 2008 // 2 Comments » // me, medical
diagnosis: anemia
treatment: take iron for 2 weeks and return for more extensive testing
I think I need to visit Kari for a second opinion. When my mother was about fifteen years older than I am now, she started losing her hair. The doctors blamed it on stress. Then, she complained about fatigue. The doctors prescribed potassium. Next came scary heart symptoms. This brought on extensive and invasive testing. Eventually, it was diagnosed as a thyroid problem. She had radioactive isotopes put in her thyroid and will take medication to replace the dead thyroid for the remainder of her life. In the YEARS it took to get a diagnosis, she lost most of her hair. So, you will forgive me if I am doubtful of this “take iron” and wait diagnosis. Especially since my hair started thinning when I was still taking prenatal vitamins and is now embarrassingly thin. What bothers me only slightly less than my hair loss is the fact that I have met and read so many, many women who start having health problems when they are perimenopausal and doctors ALWAYS follow the pattern of diagnosing it as stress, then it’s aging and finally it’s some variation of chronic fatigue. I don’t want to be one of those women who are constantly whining about their physical health issues and shopping for better doctors. I may as well buy a good wig and just accept that doctors don’t know jack. Every day I understand better why generations of women before me were addicted to valium and alcohol. A spoonful of sugar helps ease the bitterness.
