I posted in here a while ago because I was experiencing some strange symptoms but I removed the post because I thought that I'd figured out what the problem could have been and for some reason I felt embarrassed to have posted over here. But I was wrong and now I find myself right back where I started. I thought it was a thyroid problem at first and I found myself over at the thyroid disorders board. I want to copy and paste an excerpt of the posts from over there so you all have an idea of what is going on:

"Hi. I had been on dexedrine (dextroamphetamine- a "speed" prescribed for adhd) for several years until I decided to stop taking it a few months back. I didn't seem to notice any rapid weight gain over the months that I didn't take it until recently. I suffer from alcoholism that I'd had treated until I slipped a couple of months ago. I was drinking heavily for a couple of months until I just decided to stop. I noticed that after I stopped I started displaying symptoms of hypothyroidism, (SEVERE fatigue, hair thinning and falling out(including some pubic hair), rapid weight gain(about 15 pounds in about a month), thinning of the eyebrows, constipation, dry skin, and hypohidrosis)."

There was one thing I noticed after I'd stopped drinking that I didn't mention and that is an increase of hair before it all started to fall out. I'd always been a little more on the hairy side so I'd always had a bit of a mustache at least. Well, when I quit drinking I noticed that the mustache was even thicker and I even had a hair or two on one of my cheeks. It wasn't until after about 1 or 2 weeks after I'd quit drinking that I noticed a reduction. Only now I'm left with less hair than I had before I'd even started the binge. It's been a little over 3 months and things haven't changed.

My hair is still falling out, I'm having difficulty losing weight, and I just feel awful all over. I'd been taking dexedrine ever since I was 11 or 12 (I'm 20 now) and I've also found that I can't tolerate it now. Anyway, here's a list of all of my symptoms so you can get a better idea of what I'm dealing with:

-Weight gain (about 10 pounds), can't lose.

-Constipation

-Gas

-Dry skin (fluctuates)

-Dry eyes

-Seem to retain fluid easier

-Heart seems to skip beats/sudden rapid beating/sometimes heart rate drops significantly.

-Dizzy upon standing.

-Slow healing

-Slow hair growth on legs

-Cold hands and feet (feet especially)

-Ear aches or feeling of fullness in the ears.

-Forgetfulness/feel slower mentally/sometimes dizzy

-Mood swings, depression, stressed easily/react poorly to stress, irritable

-Thinning of eyebrows, pubic hair, eyelashes, and hair on the head.

-Pubic hair seems to be changing color (getting lighter) and coming out coarser

-Hair on head is growing out thin and dull/color changing

-Sore throat

-Reoccurring (twice) ulcer in the throat

-Somewhat patchy, dry, red skin on face (I used to have very oily skin)

-Tired/fatigued

-Sore and achy (mostly in the shoulders, neck, back and sometimes legs)

-Change in nails (growing slower and with vertical lines. Not as thick/strong yet not brittle either)

-Decreased perspiration (used to have hyperhidrosis, now I only sweat a little when I'm exercising or when I'm stressed)

-Decreased sex drive

-Dry mouth/mild sore, swollen feeling in tongue

-Decreased vaginal secretions

-No appetite yet intense food cravings

-Feel better at night

-Muscle twitching

-Symptoms flare up AFTER a stressful event. I actually seem to feel a little bit better in the middle of stress.

-Feel normal while on Dexedrine-accept it causes muscle soreness- ( I can actually have bowel movements-sometimes diarrhea-mild perspiration, have more energy, may actually have an appetite, oil production, hair shedding appears to decrease)

-When the Dexedrine leaves my system I completely crash. (Get achy all over, swell up, face turns red, hair seems to start shedding again, dizziness, stop sweating and producing oil, and sometimes feel severely depressed to the point of tears. My head feels like its swelling and my ears feel extremely full. Lips also turn dark red and joint pain increases.)

I want to know what everyone thinks. Aside from the intense alcohol binge and the stressful detox I've been going through the worst and most stressful two years of my life. (precancerous condition, EXTREMELY painful break-up with the person I considered to be the love of my life, death of a friend, severe family issues, had to run away from home.) And now this.

And not only is depression one of the symptoms but the other symptoms and fear of not ever being able to find out what's causing this is making the depression worse. I've already had my thyroid (runs in my family) checked and I've been checked for autoimmune disorders (also runs in my family) and those came back normal. I've also had vitamin tests run and those came back fine... I just can't imagine going the rest of my life living like this and not knowing what's wrong. I look and feel awful. I feel worthless because I haven't been able to look for a job. I'll be 21 in September and then I'll be off of my parent's insurance. So if I don't find out what's wrong with me before then I likely never will. I just keep thinking about what a beautiful, happy, and energetic young woman I used to be and that was only a few months ago. Now I feel like a fat 80 year old. [ REMOVED ]

Any insight would be appreciated. I'm particularly interested in what you have to say about my response to the Dexedrine. In all of my stressful years of taking it I've never had a reaction like that to it. Thanks.

What were your thyroid levels? Just b/c they say its normal it may very well not be... Hopefully they checked more than just the TSH for this is a poor indicator of thyroid function.. You need t4 free - t3free- tpo
Hope you get to feeling better soon...

I've had my TSH and T4 tested. TSH done 3 times and I know that one of those times it came back as 0.35. Not sure about the others.

I've had my TSH and T4 tested. TSH done 3 times and I know that one of those times it came back as 0.35. Not sure about the others.
Do you remember what your t4 looked like?
When I 1st started to become hypo with hashis..my tsh was normal ".55" ..So i was neglected treatment now im paying the price 6 yrs later so to speak..
If you can try to get the above test ran to see the whole picture..You sound hypo to me , but other things could be the reason.. Take Care

A few things can be explained. As far as water retention, that is b/c you are not drinking Alcohol any long. It's a stimulant so it makes you go to the restroom more often. And if you are not drinking enough water and can cause constipation. Along with dry skin & Muscle twitching. Drink water regaurdless if you have Addison or not. Your body needs to!!! Skip the Soda! For every 12oz can you drink, you loss 14 oz of fluid! (My prof told me that!)

I alway feel better at night, I am not really sure why that is??? Hummmmm

As far as being "Dizzy upon standing," I had problems with that also. If might mean that your PB is low. (thats what they told me)

I might be wrong, but the weight gain might has some thing to do with replacing on vice for any other(might be in this case). I am had my fair share of problems with addiction in the past and I know that you just need something to do with your time. With my illness I loved doing drugs that mad me happy. I had really bad depression for about 13 years from my undiagnosed Adison's. (BTW, it has taken most of us YEARS to figure out what is wrong with us. Don't expect it to happen over night! ) Most ppl are just self-medicating, trying to treat themselfs b/c they don't know what is wrong with them. And my not have the means or know how to fix it. You have to understand that you are going through a physical lifestyle-change, and I wish you the best of luck. It is a long,rough, & tough road. Kiesha

P.s. How long did you drink for? If you said already, I am sorry, I must have missed it!


P.s. II: I am not a doctor : )

Hi, Kiesha. This time around I had been drinking for only 2 months. The last time I was drinking before I tried to get sober I had been drinking for almost a year and this stuff never happened to me. As far as the weight gain is concerned, I've been cutting back on what I eat and I still can't lose weight. I also drink nothing but water. I drink milk occasionally, but I never drink soda anymore. Not even diet. I know how much sodium is in one of those things. A lot! I also try to exercise by walking on the treadmill and I just can't go longer than 20 minutes without getting tired. I used to walk for an hour. It makes me feel so bad to exercise that I'm terrified of it now.

I know how much sodium is in one of those things. A lot!

You have a lot of Addison' symptoms, one of which is usually salt cravings. You need the salt to compensate for salt loss due to low cortisol. So I don't think avoiding sodium is a good idea, if you actually have adrenal insufficiency.

At any rate it is easy to verify, get an ATCH stimulation tests and you will know withing hours.

Hey Ebon Aurora, Have you had you T3 levels checked? Most docs say that T3 has no impact on anything, but it really does. When I was 12, ( I'm a 22 year old guy) I was horribly sick, My TSH was a little high, and my T4 was borderline low, I was diagnosed hypo Thyroid but I was really very Hyper thyroid! My T3 levels were triple the high limit of what it should have been and gave me the symptoms of a underactive thyroid. I was extremely sick from that, i was overweight, brain was fried, and I was practically incoherrent with fatigue. You may also just need some time to get back to normal after quitting the meds, or that could be part of it. And I know from experience that when you get to the point where you are racking your brain trying to figure out what is wrong, and just basically miserable about how you life is going, Just the stress and mental torment from that will amplify every symptom you have and make it 10 times worse

I just got the results from my second thyroid test and my results were

TSH: 0.6

and T4: 0.99

Ebon, i have found that diet is crucial where adrenals are concerned. Try to eat good proteins at each meal and avoid sugar, simple carbs and caffeine. The difference is remarkable for me when i go off my diet and eat chips or chocolate or white bread. Keep up the exercise and just do as much as you can, but don't overdo it as it can be just as harmful to your adrenals.

I just got the results from my second thyroid test and my results were

TSH: 0.6

and T4: 0.99

Hi, could you please say whether this was a Total T4 or a Free T4. If it isn't a Free T4, the results are no good. Can't really tell where you are in the range. Also, please list the reference ranges as labs differ from area to area.
However, though your TSH is good, it's not a good indicator of the status of your thyroid. It's a pituitary gland test.
Judy

Research the raw foods diet. Get off all milk products. I believe this stuff can help you. Good luck!

hi ive had addictions also, and ive got thyrouid , hashis actually but my cortisone was weird when they tested me, no more testing though im from england and its a different service!! i have that dizzy thing standing and i wondered what are the symptoms of addisons i have low iron and very heavy periods!! please help at my wits end love from katxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx :rolleyes: xxxx :wave:

Bless your heart!

You need to have an 8:00 am blood draw to check for free cortisol levels as well as a 24 hr urine collection. I'm certain the combination of the medicine and the alcohol have given you "induced" cushings vs. caused by a hormone tumor.

It needs to be treated. You really need to find a doctor who is experienced with cushings as the tappering off of necessary steroids can be not only dangerous....adrenal crisis.....and a living hell.

Let us know how you're doing!