LONG LONG POST HERE - In Oprah's words on her hypothyroid condition.

[stella5349]

OK I am very upset after reading this and no wonder why a "real " thyroid patient has no backing from her.   If anyone is interested in this article I copied - great! -

I particulary love the part where she states she retreated back to her Hawaii palace and rested - dined and walked her dog to relieve her thyroid stress.

Now I know why so many found this thyroid patient off a bit.  Here is the article from O magizine.

What I Know for Sure

My body was turning on me. First hyperthyroidism, which sped up my metabolism and left me unable to sleep for days. (Most people lose weight. I didn't.) Then hypothyroidism, which slowed down my metabolism and made me want to sleep all the time. (Most people gain weight. I did! Twenty pounds!)

The thyroid, one of many body parts I'd never given a thought to, is a small, butterfly-shaped gland located at the base of your neck, just below your Adam's apple. It influences everything from digestion to metabolism to reproduction. When the thyroid is out of balance, so are you.

I craved balance. I was desperate to be somewhere in the middle of hyper and hypo—where, obviously, I'd been my whole life, taking it for granted because I didn't know any better. We often need a malfunction to appreciate all the things that function.

I decided to give myself July. Yes, the whole month—dedicated to myself, for myself. To regroup. Rejuvenate. Restore my soul.

By the end of my show season, in May, I was so exhausted, I was numb. But I still had commitments I needed and wanted to fulfill, like being in South Africa to take my girls to see their first stage play, The Lion King. That was a treat worth traveling for. One of the girls—Thando, whom you may remember if you watched our special—wants to be an actress. After seeing The Lion King, she told me, "It was so spectacular, my eyes didn't know where to land."

So I spent June with my 150 daughters, who are happy and thriving. But in July, I actively worked at doing nothing. I had no schedule. I told my office, "Call me only if someone or something is dying or burning."

I flew from Africa to Hawaii, which involves a 12-hour time difference that takes some adjustment even when you're well-rested. I made the transition by sleeping and waking when my body wanted to and not a moment before. It took a week for my internal clock to reset itself. I took vitamins. Drank soy milk. Munched on golden flaxseed. I ate only fresh foods: grilled fish, corn, tomatoes, spinach, artichokes, broccoli from the farmers' market, mangoes from my neighbor's tree. I hiked with my dogs (who daily rolled in cow poop along the grassy trails), then came home and bathed them. I actually read the stack of books I'd chosen to read by summer's end. I dozed. And drifted into the afternoons waiting for the sun to set. I watched 28 consecutive sunsets. Took pictures and marveled at how each one was so different.

After 14 days, I started to feel my self returning. Not fully—just an awareness that I wasn't as tired and rote as I had been. By the end of the month I'd given myself, I was better in myriad ways. Not only was my physical health improved but I'd also become mentally stronger.

I won't tell you how many people challenged my decision to give time to myself. I have never gotten more requests to do something or be somewhere than I did the moment I declared that I was going out of circulation. And these were from people I normally would have said yes to. But I was steadfast in my commitment to finding balance and reordering my life's priorities. So I said, "No, I can't come to Italy." And, "No, I can't be in Boston no matter how important you think it is." And, "No, I won't have you fly to Hawaii for a meeting here."

I may have lost a few friends, but I know for sure I saved myself. And learned that making the decision to look after yourself is the ultimate in healthcare.

As I write this, I'm wrapped in a blanket on the back of a friend's boat off Vancouver Island sipping a glass of nice red wine…watching the whales swim by. The earth has rotated to yet another sunset, and my balancing act continues.

Cheers!


Ok - what do you all think - Maybe my trip to Hawaii in Jan 09 will cure me!  LOL

[MKlacza]

GARBAGE!!!!!!!! Thats all I have to say about THAT and HER!!!!!!!!!!!! If we had millions, almost billions in her case... Hawaii, the boat off of Vancouver and whale watching might heal me slightly too!!! What a joke and not even a comparison to what REAL people with this disorder are going through!! So that it huh?? What... she had JULY and now she is healed and cured?? I dont think so Oprah!!

MK

[stella5349]

Now the doctor she had on her show in Oct 07 brought up some very valuable things we all should read

If you google Oprah's Thyroid Club you will be brought to the actual show she had with this doctor. I read some last night - Alot to read but it does give key points in how to balance normal women's lives and help heal us.

Give that a look.

[kipland]

Wow.  Yes, Liz DID make a good point!  I didn't realize until after I read it, that I too had a "retreat".  Instead of being off work for the typical two weeks after surgery, I got to bask in the summer sun for two MORE weeks, while I prayed that my vocal cords would move again.  While on this retreat, I frequently lost my voice, couldn't swallow liquids without choking and had a hard time breathing.  It was great.  Got lots of beautiful pics.  Ever seen your vocal cords on a TV screen??  That was one of the perks from the "resort" I stayed at.

All this while the sick time, that I had build up to almost 300 hours, was draining away.  And so was my energy, because I hadn't been put on meds yet.  They wanted me good and hypo for the RAI.

I went back to work for a week (God only knows how I did it...I was SO hypo!), then got yet another "vacation", by traveling 2 hours away and having a week-long thyroid party (aka: RAI treatment).  My TSH was 145 the day they started the RAI.  Real fun.

Then back to work for me, because my "vacation" was over and I needed to start building up my sick time again.  Because you know.....I get a guaranteed week long "vacation" every year now!!  It's called RAI, and it's at this wonderful University Hospital 2 hours away.  Beautiful location, nice view, meet lots of new people.

Oprah doesn't have a clue.  I'm quite sure she wasn't worried about depleting her sick time and wondering what she was going to do if she couldn't work!  Must be nice.  We all chose the wrong profession, I guess.  

Thanks for sharing that, Stella.  Boy......that sure stirred up a hornet's nest, didn't it?  Grrrrrrr..........

[Christy1950]

There's Oprah and then there is us...absolute no comparison therefor no use her writing about thryriod sufferers I am sure everyone one would feel a wee bit better with 1 billion dollars of resources behind us....

[utahmomma]

Liz has such a good point.

Between my "retreats" (i.e., stays in the hospital for both surgeries), steam room treatments (hot flashes), "spa treatments" (radiation treatment/scans), "vacations" hypohell, "diet counselors" (LID for RAI), all of the blood tests (guess that could be considered a form of weight loss), not to mention all of the new people I've been able to meet (nuclear medicine department, surgical staff, nursing staff, imaging specialists, pharmacists, rheumatologist, endocrinologists, genetic researchers, and other thyroid patients) - I should feel like a pampered, multimillionaire media-mogul too.

Silly me - why should I complain?


Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

I'm going to lay down - I'm feeling like cr@p today thanks to my GI pain- oops, I should say "abdominal workout"     Double-grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

[Liz94]

I had my 6 week "vacation" in hypohe//!  I read (when I could focus), slept (when I didn't hurt so much), relaxed (in the form of being sprawled on my bed whining), and basically got the rest I needed to continue on with this battle that will seemingly go on for the rest of my life. Stupid Oprah.