I too have had problems with the medical profession here in South Australia, because I dared to talk with some authority, with the help of medical papers & dared to ask for treatment that was not the norm or thought of by my GP or Endo. I had a cortisol saliva test of which was done by a laboratory which was not used by the Endo, or my GP, so I was in the poo straight away because of that and found that my cortisol was low. They both had problems with the test.

I demanded to have cortisol and my GP reluctantly prescribed it to me. Not the dose that I am on now but only 5mgs of Cortisone Acetate (another derivative of cortisol and less potent than hysone). This hardly did anything for me so I politely demanded that I have hysone and he did so reluctantly.

Last month I went to an Endocrinologist, a Professor David Torpy and told him that I was on 12mgs of hysone (HC) and he said that he was not happy with that dose and that it was tooo high! He said I should have a blood test because he was sure that my adrenals were suppressed, taking that much. I had the blood test and I saw him last Thursday, 15th Feb, 2007 and he said that my cortisol blood test was normal. He then proceeded to say that he was happy with the treatment I was on including the Armour thyroid I told you about earlier.

But that was not the end of the story. He said, “Darryl you know we are all going to die & I think you should have another interest outside your research into cortisol, thyroid therapy and “cfs.” Do you have any interests or hobbies Darryl? I think that you should go & find a job in retail & do 1-2 hrs a day” (and more or less go away). I could not believe it.

A couple of years ago I saw a paper written by Torpy talking about low cortisol in “cfs” and treatment with low cortisol therapy was mentioned in his paper. I also looked into my own medical history and looked at the medications I have been prescribed and I have had nasal sprays like rhinocort and beconase AQ of which both have corticosteroids. In 1985 I had had 6 surgeries in 6 years because of a bicycle accident & after the 4th surgery, I started using the nasal sprays because of chronic sinusitis and found out that you can acquire adrenal suppression using these medications. I found out as well you can acquire the adrenal suppression when undergoing general anesthesia.

And I talked to both my GP and Torpy about this being the cause of my so called “cfs” and the endocrinologist, Professor Torpy said that I was on the right track but it is very political. At the end of a commentary by Torpy, he talks about how low dose cortisol treatment for people with “cfs” was used in a study overseas and that this therapy helped these people. But in the next sentence he says that if you use high doses of cortisol you can suppress the adrenals. Thank you and goodnight.

Not bad. Cheers. Darryl Turner p.s. You can find Professor David Torpy’s PDF article on “Familial Corticosteroid-Binding Globulin Deficiency Due to a Novel Null Mutation Associated with Fatigue and Relative Hypotension” The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism

Fortunately, about 6 years later I found an endocrinologist who was sharp and receptive enough to new ideas and added the much needed T3 to my treatment. What a miracle…life began to fill up my body and soul. If only I had started the T3 treatment years earlier. My endo also found that I was vitamin d deficient. My dermatologist found that I was low in ferritin so have had to add iron to my diet. I have done pretty well since then…however…I’m struggling somewhat again with fatigue more than pain and lots of hair loss which is frightening. I finally found a doctor who understands the significance of saliva testing. He ran the tests on my hormones and found that every single test taken was low. My adrenals were nearly shut down, low testosterone, low estrogen and low progesterone. Since then, his bio-identical hormone treatment has helped to get my readings nearly back to normal. My ferritin is still low so I will up my iron intake and hope that this will help my fatigue. It is my understanding that low ferritin can cause fatigue. My initial ferritin years ago was @ 17 and lately it is 22…far from what the ideal reading should be. My dermatologist told me to try to get it to @ 70 and keep it there…so I have a long way to go.

Lastly, I am trying Armour for the 3rd time. The first 2 times were unsuccessful. I ended up experiencing more pain than before however it is my understanding now that the adrenal fatigue is most likely the reason that I was unsucessful taking Armour. Apparently, the adrenals have to be healthier in order to handle the potency of Armour. My adrenals are healthier now and I am taking more B5 to try to keep them healthier. I have been on Armour for nearly a week now. No magic yet but no pain yet…as before. I am hoping that Armour can be more successful than the Synthroid (T4) and Cytomel (T3) combination. It is my understanding that our bodies usually respond better to the natural hormones versus the synthetics. So bottom line…yes…yes…yes!

I now consider the diagnoses of Epstein-Barr, Chronic Fatigue and Fibromyalgia nothing more than doctor’s ignoriance. If they would educate themselves and quit fighting the evidence…especially that of real patients who have lost years of their life to fatigue and pain and eventually got their lives back again with combinations of T4 and T3, they would do right by millions of hurting and tired people. It is so unfortunate that egos get in their way. There is no excuse for this malpractice to be allowed to continue.

A family member gave me some Armour thyroid and after 10 days I felt re-newed, alive, full of positive outlooks and thinkings. My whole internal system is working properly and my skin is clearer. Needless to say I am very angry at my doctor and would like to find a GP that understands the T3 and T4 connection without making it a middle aged female complaint.

My story by Liza Last of Canada

I can’t help but feel that there are many untreated or undertreated thyroid patients out there suffering from “CFS”.

Ellie