A Hypothyroid Mom follower contacted me with a poem she wrote about her struggle with thyroid diagnosis and treatment. It was a poem that stayed on my mind for days.
Pain in the neck!
I think it started in my teens
Throughout my life, ‘was in my genes’
Lurking like some hidden mystery
But clear to see from medical history.
Fatigue, grey hair, and menstrual hell
Endometriosis, scarletina, glandular fever as well.
In better times, was still not ‘great’
My weight and moods would fluctuate.
Fainting standing on my feet,
Low iron, B.P., could not compete.
Outside the sun became an allergy
More drugs to take and mindless quackery.
And even as I grew in years,
More chronic symptoms soon appeared.
Wasted time in patient chairs,
Wondering how come no one cared.
I soon had children of my own,
Pregnancy fatigued me to the bone.
No blooming phase, just weak and weighty
Iron depletion, feeling fainty.
But following birth, my weight did plummet,
Massive hunger, fatigue was chronic.
More mindless chat, sympathetic stares,
‘I’m tired’, ‘new mum’, condescending ‘there there’s’.
A few years on, just before turning thirty,
Menstrual hell returns aplenty.
So bad I prayed this was ‘the change’
Lost so much blood, depleted, drained.
And still the white coats left me suffering
Day to day, fatigued and struggling.
‘It’s hormones dear, it will come right,’
But other friends were all alright?
Each day I froze down to my bones
In summer sun, out or at home.
and twenty odd repeat infections,
Still they missed the plain connection.
My hair was brittle, came out in handfuls
My skin so sore, now feeling dreadful.
Every ounce of energy, to rise from bed,
Walking zombie, living dead.
And then one day between my naps,
I chose to research all these facts.
Found support groups, online saviours
Explained in full, these strange behaviours.
My thyroid gland, plain and simple
Obvious cause, affecting many people.
And all those years of inaccurate blood tests,
Not one white coat, gave this diagnosis.
So now on meds, the ‘natural kind’.
I feel my health approaching ‘fine’,
I can maintain a normal life,
Worker, mother and a wife!
So please, if these words strike a chord,
You’re feeling weak with energy floored,
Don’t let them say ‘it’s in your head’
Stand up and fight, not lay down dead!
Written by Z.M. Fillingham
READ NEXT: Hypothyroidism. An Open Letter To My Family.
