So what do I do now?

[FabIsGettingFit]

All my blood tests have come back fine. I was expecting it to show I had hypo-thyroidism and that would explain the constant tiredness that is unbearable in the afternoon, the cold feelings at times and the 2 stone weight gain even though I am exercising most days for at east an hour and not eating crap.

Hmm.

How long have you been feeling this way? What (if anything) does your doctor advise?

Any chance you're pre-menopausal?

Glandular fever?

It has been ages. The tiredness in the afternoon is awful as I can't keep my eyes open. It is worse than when I was up in the night feeding babies.

I don't think I am pre-menopausal. I am only 38 and my periods are just as they have been since I had dc3 who is now 5.

I think there would be more to it if I had glandular fever.

Thanks for answering though .

I don't have any ideas what it could be but I hope it gets better soon.

No advice here Fab but you have my sympathy.

I went to the docs about 2 months ago with the same symptoms, although I have also been having problems with my periods, one month no bleeding at all another month really heavy so on and so forth, hot flushes etc too.

My Gp said it couldn't be menopausal symptoms because I'm still on the pill, so gave me the work blood test-wise and they too all came back clear.

By 12 mid-day I have trouble keeping my eyes open, I've been exercising more and watching what I eat , but like you have lost no weight.

Doc was very surprised it wasn't my thyroid, she's given me a full mot and everythings come back fine, so both she and I are at a loss as to what it is.

After giving up the healthy eating and exercise I'm now surviving on Pepsi and Lucozade in the afternoons to keep me awake!

Hope you get more answers than I have

Could you be iron deficient?

Any chance you could be depressed?

Thanks OJ. Nice to see you .

I was tested for iron and that was fine.

Carbs? Don't know what they are other than bread??

I eat different things each day. Trying not to eat bread though some days that is all there is. I love cereal so if I could find one I could just eat all day that would give me what I needed but not put weight on and then I would have a proper dinner with DH at 7pm.

I'd go back to basics, starting with diet. By far the most common reason for weight-gain is 'eating more than you think you are' so keeping an accurate food diary is a good first step, recording quantities and calories. A very active 38 year-old woman (assuming you're an average height and weight) needs 2100-2400 calories a day and if you found you were eating significantly more than that you'd explain the gain.

Less common..... if you badly undereat or skip meals then you can, ironically, gain weight as well. If you were to find that you were only getting average 1200 cals a day, say, followed by occasional splurges of larger amounts you can experience a phenomena colloquially known as 'dieting yourself fat'. Given inadequate food, the body slows down the rate at which it uses energy... and then any subsequent increase is stored as fat rather than burned up. Also, if you were to find you were undereating the lack of energy (calories) and lack of nourishment would explain the fatigue and chills. You don't have to be so anaemic that it shows up on a test in order to have low iron stores.

So then you get to food choices. Important to have a good mix of different foods in order to have a balanced and nutritious diet split up into regular meals and a few snacks. Aim to get some protein at each meal...eggs, fish, pulses, meat, nuts, dairy. Aim for 5-a-day fruit and vegetables minimum (as many different types as you can). And aim for 2-a-day wholegrain/high-fibre foods e.g wholemeal bread, starchy vegetables, brown rice. Take a daily multivitamin with iron as a safety-net.

I don't always get breakfast which is my problem, that is why I need a cereal that will sustain me without me putting on more weight.

Carbs are cereals, bread, pasta, rice, and other grains like couscous and of course anything with sugars so careful with cereals that can have a phenomenal amount of sugar in ( even the muesli I had been buying) I was staggered how much sugar there was ( for example) in stir fry sauces.

careful of your portion sizes, for example a portion of pasta should be no bigger than your fist. I was staggered when I learned this.

Saying this I have been doing slimming world till fairly recently ( should start again really but don't have loads to lose) and it made a huge difference to how I felt. ( extra easy plan) probably due to the low refined carbs, (controlled amount of bread)the huge volume of fruit & veg and lack of processed food in general. Works well!

I have to say I've shed 2 stone this year and I feel A LOT more awake and generally more energetic.

Good luck! love 1foot x

"I don't always get breakfast which is my problem"

Skipping breakfast is often implicated in weight-gain. If you, as an active 38 year old, need 2000+ cals a day to get adequate energy and nutrition to function healthily then breakfast should be around 25% of that amount.....500 cals.

You need protein and complex carbohydate for a good breakfast rather than cereals alone. 500 calories could look like this....
2 large poached eggs (140 cals) on 2 slices of wholegrain toast (160 cals) with a low-fat fruit yoghurt (100 cals) and a small glass of OJ (100)

And because I know you're reading that thinking 'if I ate all that I'll get fat' I would then go on to reiterate the advice to keep an accurate food diary. My guess is that in an effort to keep your weight down you're skipping breakfast, not eating enough the rest of the day and that's what's affecting your health.

Thanks for that. I will have to make a note of what I should eat and the amounts as I have 2 stone to lose.

Did you actually get your test results?

There is some dispute over when thyroid (TSH) levels become abnormal, if your level was in any way borderline it might be worth pursuing. Different doctors will treat at different levels

I went and asked the receptionist and she said everything was fine and there was no note on them. Is it worth me ringing to ask for the levels?

I think it is worth asking just for peace of mind and also ask for the reference ranges too. If it is well below what is considered high then you can rule that out completely.

You should ask for TSH levels and T4

I have rung and my levels were 1.something. Normal was 0.3-5.5.

Did you have your b12 checked?

Is that iron? If so, yes.

Your TSH level is fine then, the disputed range is around 3 - 5.5

Did they not measure your actual hormone levels?

Normally TSH is an indicator of this, as it is Thyroid Stimulating Hormone so if your body is low on thyroid hormones you produce more to try and make your thyroid produce more actual hormone. But it is possible to have a normal TSH level and low thyroid hormone levels so you should really have been checked for both

B12 is not iron but is linked to anaemia, it helps with iron absorption so you can be anaemic because of a lack of B12 rather than a lack of iron. There are normally other things that would indicate this in your bloodwork

The lady suggested I make another appointment so I will have to do that when I have a spare five minutes.

I was not iron defivient but was b12 and having replacement shots has been a revelation.I was trying to explain teh the docs that I wasn't really tired but SLEEPY esp in teh afternoons.Had other symptoms too though

Could I just go to Boots and buy some iron?

B12 supplements are available. Have a look a this site which will explain what B12 is, what it does and what foods naturally contain it.

If you want to increase your iron intake, make sure you increase your vitamin C intake at the same time. Vitamin C helps your body absorb iron better. Caffeine, by contrast, limits absorption. So if you're drinking a lot of coffee in an effort to make it through the afternoon that could be something to think about.