I am starting this blog as a journal for myself. A journal to track my progress towards becoming a healthier version of myself (and my family). I hoping to make this site so that my husband could join in with his own entries if he ever wants. I want to do weekly weigh ins, share healthy recipes, exercise routines, and other tips that I hope to pick up and make habits along the way.
The story of me: I used to be fairly skinny growing up. I am quite tall (6'1") and I think this attributed to it as well as a high metabolism / thyroid problems. I weighed 145-150 lbs through high school without trying and having major bad eating habits (cookie dough, chips and just junk). When I was out of high school I went to a doctor in 2003 (I believe) to have tremors in my hands checked out. I weighed somewhere around 165 lbs at the time and was 23 years old. The doctor did some checks and it was determined I had Grave's Disease (hyper-thyroid). Grave's will definitely keep you skinny in a not so good for your body way. I decided to have RAI (radioactive iodine) treatment which radioactively removed or killed off my thyroid. Once my thyroid was gone I gained weight rapidly and became bloated because my doctor didn't put me on any thyroid medicine immediately. I came to his office 3 weeks to a month later having gained 30-35 lbs and just crossing the 200 lb threshold. HOLY COW!! I felt like crap too. I had no energy, my face and hands were puffy, friends commented on how I didn't look good and I generally just felt a malaise about everything. The doctor didn't believe that my thyroid could be "burnt out" so quickly and ran some blood work. I had no TSH/thyroid hormone circulating. That sucker (my thyroid) was toast! So on the thyroid replacement hormone pills I went and I started to feel better but weight was definitely more of an issue. I got back down to around 175 lbs for a few years and then my weight started creeping up again and settled around 185 lbs for a couple years. I married my sweetheart and of course gained some "happily married" weight and probably some depression weight (we found out I wouldn't be able to have kids the 'old fashioned' way just before getting married). And for the last 4 years I've settled in between 190-195 lbs...sometimes getting around 185 lbs when I focus my efforts but not much lower. We went through infertility treatments a little over 3 years into marriage and were blessed with beautiful twin girls. Luckily I didn't gain very much during treatment due to my case and I actually lost A LOT of weight just after the girls were born. I went down to 165-170 lbs again for a couple short months...I attribute this to my thyroid hormones and female hormones finally being somewhat normal and also to the fact I couldn't keep enough food down the last few weeks of my pregnancy.
But anyway that brings me to today. I weigh 196 lbs and I know that I am inching closer to that 200 lb mark. I'm not going to do it! I will be taking control of my diet and lifestyle. I don't have a bad self-image but I want to be happy with my body. Completely happy. Okay well completely might take a while but I want to get there. So that is my story and history in a nutshell.
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