My last post on this was in fact titled, still feeling lousy most days. Well, I’ve definitely turned a corner. I am now having more good days than bad. The overwhelming fatigue is down to a manageable level. No, I’m not bounding with energy just yet, but the improvement is huge. I began taking care of my adrenals on January 13 (vitamins/rest), I started dessicated thyroid on January 20 and progesterone cream on February 9th. I’m only doing the cream during certain days of my cycle.

I’m currently in my third cycle since the discovery of these issues and I’m still temping. I saw an overall average temp increase of 0.47 degrees between cycle 1 and cycle 2. Cycle 3 has begun a bit odd, but that could be because I increased my thyroid dose. This morning I had my highest “pre-ovulation” temp since I began this journey. If it maintains this pattern it will be in the low end of “normal range” for pre-ovulation. Hooray!

Since I am also logging my sleep hours/times, I have noticed that if I get fewer than 7 hours of sleep, it is likely my temp will be affected negatively. If I do not have restful sleep (frequently waking, tossing), it probably won’t matter how many hours I get – my temp will reflect negatively. Also, being in bed by a certain hour seems to make it more likely that my temps will remain stable even if I am just under 7 hours. I set my alarm for the same time every morning whether I have to rise early or not. This way the temp is taken at the same time and I take my thyroid pills at the same time.

I was having frequent headaches, but those seem to have subsided for the most part since the addition of progesterone. I was concerned that they would come back during the days I’m off the cream, but other than a mild headache for two days during my period, I have had no other incident of headaches.

I haven’t exercised of late. I think I’ve felt rebellious about physical activity because it seems to trigger “diet mentality” for me still. I hope to try again this week since I’m feeling better. I need to associate physical activity with feeling good, and not with weight loss. Speaking of weight, I think my jeans may feel a little looser today. I’m choosing to believe that stopping my dieting ways is going to lead to healing in this area as well.

So, that’s the update so far. I’m going to wait to see what my post ovulation temps look like before I make any decisions about thyroid dose changes. For now, I’m feeling much more stable than before.