<human>: Hi, for many month I have been telling my pcp that I do not feel well: specifically extreme tiredness, extreme constipation despite ever effort to correct, very dry skin, extreme sensitivity to cold and being cold all the time, severe leg cramps especially at night, the wrist clinical depression I have ever experienced in my life. Yes I have been under EXTREME stress since since 07-13-2013 when my beloved husband cast me out of our home that we build together over a 20 year period because I was too sick & sad & not getting better we were married fore 27 beautiful loving years, he demanded a divorce, sellin our house and sending me away on 07-13-2013 to from VT to Ny to be near my father but my father got sick that slept in 2013 & and later died of cancer on 0314-2024; I cared for him with hospice help as he died. I moved into a small house a few mikes a way from my father because him he would not allow me to live with him, which really hurt. Then my little kitty died 08-15-2014, she was only 3.5. I trigger with my health in general but the last year+ has been extreme stress and emotional agony over loss of spouse. I have chronic pain, from a spinal cord fusion back in July 2005 that went very bad, have had 14 kidney stones from 2008-20011 & a botched lithotripsy where they accident lot spot pulses through my body, verses target kidney stone in July 2011 cause many damages to layers & tissues & organs in body, along with an MRI a few weeks later with contrast dye that my body could not get rid off so I end up with severe galladium radiation poisoning at a level measured to be 100000 times max level ( I was so sick) then a few weeks later I provisioned with isovue ( radioactive iodine) during some kind of X-ray, this caused me to get bad neuropathy in fingers nd especially toes. I have a long standing thyroid condition, hypothyroid hosimoto thyroditis ( sp?), but it be well controlled, even thru fall of 2013. I write to you because I beg pcp to check me because I feel so bad, he say no until 11-04-2014, then agree to check a few labs. By now I am feeling so bad it is horrid. My tsh is 140, my t4 is 0.48, my GFR is 36, with very high cholesterol& triglycerides ( in upper 300 s both ) my BP is high 160/120, pulse 60, temp around 97.4, I have ever increasing esophagus spasms with worsening acid coming into mouth all the time since last fall. Dr said to increase my synthroid from 1/2 tab to whole tab which is 0.075 mg daily, which I did on 11-07-2014. I do not feel any better, I actually feel worse & start to have micro burst of very intense heat just lasting 10-20 seconds but very vey severe, immediate followed by bone chilly cold. I have moderate continual flank pain. My liver fund Cation values were not good either. I feel I am in trouble but pcp wants to wait 4-6 weeks to recheck va,use, I am not ok with this as I feel worse not better, ,I ve alone and do not know how much more I can handle. 1) What do you think might have caused tsh to get to be so, given I taken my synthroid faithfully same way for 15+ years? (Stress). 2). How do I recover ASAP from this as I live alone and can not endure much more, waiting weeks to see I I am headed in right direction seems wrong given I feel so bad. What is protocol for cases like mine that are a bit complicated. I take a large menu of meds to control ago keying spinal cord pain. Current pcp yanked me totally off all supplements last week, each one which had been carefully selected to help me for a specific reason, ie mg glycinate for leg cramps, iodine to help thyroid. Also my vit was very low but I was taking 5000 iu daily in a special blend with A. & K in it to help absorption., but I am not aborning much of anything well. Also because of spinal cord injury intestines do not peristalsis correctly, big issue. Any recommendation would be appreciated, as I am failing on all fronts. Respectfully, Brenda
<bot>: Dear brands, from the history of your events in life it appears that you are having defense stress in your life. The cause being multiple health related and stressed life events. As I figure our aim at this stage is to minimize the stress and develop coping abilities to deal with it. At present you are suffering from clinical depression secondary to various medical conditions. The cure of this depression is the cure of underlying disorders. However, a course of anti depressants will definitely help you along with sessions of stress reduction techniques. My advice is start a course of anti-depressant like SSRI for adequate duration of 6 months. And regular sessions of stress reduction activities. Thanks