Shoes continued...

Lately I'm not sure what to share. Wedding planning isn't fun right now. My health is not cooperating. And I'm anxious again. Sob, sob, sob. haha. The reality is that life is just busy. I'm missing out on reading all of my favorite blogs, and my own blog is being sadly neglected.

It turns out my blood work shows that I'm quite hypothyroid right now. Who knew? I didn't, that's for sure. The only new symptoms I've had are crying (all the time, when I don't know why), and a little dizziness. I haven't noticed any increased tiredness, weight gain, or any of the other typical hypo symptoms I remember. So I was really surprised. I've been taking the generic of synthroid and my doctor reccomends the brand name drug. Does anyone know if that makes a difference? I've been buying the generic because it's less than 1/3 the cost of brand name, but the brand name might be worth the price if it works better.

I'm up to 150 mcg of Synthroid. I take it at 5 am, 45 minutes before my HC and on an empty stomach. The doctor said it seemed like I wasn't even taking it. Weird...

Hm, let's see what else is going on... I'm doing weight watchers again. I haven't gained or lost a pound in several months. I've started working out a little more. Not much, but a little.

In the world of weddings, I'm still looking for wedding shoes. I tried my dress on with my shoes and they're not right. I don't know how to explain it, but they don't feel right. Remember this?

Well I think I'm actually looking for something more like these:

from: http://www.buttershoes.com/

from Amazon.com

from Amazon.com Nina Culver

from Amazon.com Nina Brynn

I know, I know, they're all different and not all are blue... I'm just not sure what I want. And if there is one part of this wedding that seems important lately it's my shoes and jewelry. They are two aspects of this wedding that I can control, and can choose all on my own. I'm not feeling pressure to get them picked out immediately, but I do feel a bit anxious to decide for myself.

Looking for motivation

I'm so sad that season two of Downton Abbey is over. I'm sure someone who reads this understands my sadness, and I had to say it to someone who understands. (ha... I laugh at myself... so melodramatic)

So apparently 100 mcg of Synthroid wasn't enough. I'm taking 112 mcg now, and I'm wondering if I might need more. I've been tired still, and losing weight is not happening very quickly. I keep losing between 5 and 10 lbs and then gaining it back the next week.  I joined weight watchers online again. It's been helpful and motivating. Exercising is going ok, but not great. I need to get in at least 30 minutes of cardio everyday, but in the last two weeks I've only worked out 6 times. I hung up some pictures to motive me, want to see them?

Here I am years ago at 130lbs before I got too skinny from Addison's:

 

Then I lost a bunch of weight when I got sick in 2009. My skin is really brown from the hyper-pigmentation that comes with untreated Addison's. I thought the weight loss was just my new "normal."

Three months before I was diagnosed

The week I was diagnosed.,
taking an audio tour at the Hermitage.

only one month after Addison's, before Prednisone made my face swell.

 And here I am at Christmas 2011 (40 or 50 lbs heavier than is healthy...)

I love this picture because it is of us, but it's hard
to see myself look so different than before.

What I've been up to

Ahh, life... it catches up with you sometimes, doesn't it? I moved into a new apartment last weekend, and it seems like I was saving up so much to do and plan until "after the move." I still have a ton of organizing and re-arranging to do, and the new apartment came with a lot of maintenance issues (tub leaking, laundry room leak, no cable hook up, mail key didn't work....) All of that stuff takes a lot of time to get sorted out!

So besides moving, I've also been working on a wedding website

It's for the wedding party and our families to keep up to date on all of the plans we're making. I used Blogger and chose a simple template with pages for all of the different categories.

Then I started a blog redesign, but haven't finished it yet (as you can see, it's half new and half old...)

Anyone else really sad about Picnik closing? I'm going to have to go back to using Picasa and Aviary. hmm, or maybe something else.

oh and, Working, Working, Working.... as always, I have to pay the bills. :)

My health has been pretty good. Bl and I talk a lot about how we learn all the time how much extra Hydrocortisone I'll need for different things. Like the day I moved I took 15 mg extra throughout the day and while I was drooping with exhaustion by the end of the day, it seemed to ward off any Addison's symptoms.

Thyroid-wise, I seem to be doing ok on 100mcgs of Synthroid. I had a doctor's appointment this week, so we'll see if my levels prove I need more or not.

I was hoping the Synthroid would help spur on my metabolism and I would lose some weight, but not much change there. I counted calories for 3 weeks straight in January and lost 8 lbs. But then I had some stress and ate a bunch of fried food and gained it back. The root of this problem is my lack of discipline in sticking to a healthy diet... and my lack of exercise. Losing weight has to become a priority. If I use you guys for accountability on that, you won't mind, will ya? BL has been kicking up the exercise in his life, so that's good motivation. I just need to stop making excuses and work out.

On a final note, what would we do without Pinterest?? Before I was engaged I was pinning decorating images like crazy. Now that I'm stalking wedding websites, Pinterest is so wonderful for keeping track of inspiration. Here are some of my favorite pins from the week: (click on each caption to go to the source and to see the pictures in a larger size.)

Wedding Channel

BHG.com

Ana White

The Wedding Channel

PaperFashion.net

Style me pretty

Complex Cardigans

The post in which I give you a bullet list...

This is what last weekend looked like. Note- the remote is in a plastic bag... more on that later.

I keep thinking of things I want to blog about. Recipes, craft projects, things Brody has done... Then I get busy with work (very important, since it pays my rent) or I just continue to sit on the couch, crocheting and watching the Biggest Loser. But I can't help but feel like I'm behind- I want to record what's been going on- even though I feel less than motivated to blog. So here it is, a list.

• I had radioactive iodine therapy done on Friday, and spent Fri, Sat and Sun locked away in my apartment by myself.
• Brody spent the weekend with my sweet friend Kristina. I missed him a lot. 
• We have a new couch and I've been doing re-arranging and re-decorating in our living room. 
• I'm making baby gifts. I love doing it, and wish I could share what I'm making, but my friends might see and the surprises will be ruined.
• Weight Watchers was great for 3 months, but I didn't renew it and I've gained back the weight.
• My thyroid will soon be gone and my metabolism is probably going to tank too....
• I'm on a diet. but this time it just includes a few rules: eat fruits and veggies when I'm hungry between meals, only one treat each day, and eat less overall. In theory it sounds good.
• Exercising is on the top of my to do list, but I severely lack motivation. 
• It is dark at 5pm. This does not help me accomplish my #1 to do...
• Brody spent an hour last night chasing after, barking at, and tossing around an empty water bottle. Why in the world do I buy him squeaky stuffed dog toys??
• My little brother is going to Thailand in December with YWAM. I wish he was closer so that I could take him out to eat at my favorite Thai place before he goes.
• Being in isolation for three days gave me the chance to become obsessed with the Canadian show Heartland. Netflix only has season one and half of two, and now I'm dealing with Heartland withdrawal. Someone help me...
• It was so beautiful outside yesterday that I pulled my folding chair out of my trunk and sat next to my car in the parking lot on my lunch break. It felt like spring.
• I'm going to post about radioactive iodine, but it's still in the works.
• I'm busy making planner pages. I would like to share them as PDFs when I'm done. I just need to figure out how to upload PDFs to blogger. 
• Also, I ordered new glasses today.
• That is all. 

Just Smile

Via HoneyPieDesign

 After a crazy month, I'm starting to feel like life is settling down. I got sick the first week of July, and unfortunately Addison's makes being sick much more complicated and last much longer. This week is going to be better, I can tell already.

At first I wasn't sure what was wrong with me, but we've (the doctors, me and anyone else I complained to about being sick) decided that it was a "viral illness" of some kind. Fevers, aches, and in general not feeling too hot. Then from being sick my thyroid decided to join the party and went hyper again. So I'm on a new med nicknamed PTU. (It's full name starts with Propyl and has 10 more letters including T and U thus the abbreviation I guess.)

Some of what I've been up to... saw the fourth fireworks while sick in Louisville. They were fantastic. no sarcasm there, I promise.

My overactive thyroid has helped me lose 20 lbs! (hopefully staying on WW will help me lose the rest.)

Brody got fleas. gross...

Went to a baseball game, it was the perfect summer activity.  The fireworks after the game were also fantastic.

The fleas came back...  double gross...

Took the weekend off WW to enjoy hanging out with two sweet friends.

Plus lots and lots of relaxing, reading books and other low key stuff.

Missed you guys!

Counting Points

This is not me

It's been almost two years since my diagnosis with Addison's, and although I don't talk about it much here, one of the downfalls of being on so much medicine is decreased metabolism and weight gain. My activity level is still way lower than it should be and it's a constant struggle to find a balance between the right amount of hydrocortizone (HC) and the right amount of exercise. Too much HC makes me gain weight, too much exercise and not enough HC makes me sick. So with my sweet tooth and those factors, I've gained quite a bit of weight since October of 2009.

So I decided I needed a little help getting control, and I joined Weight Watchers online. It's been 6 days, and so far I like it. I tried counting calories in the past, but I never stuck to my goal. WW gives you a certain number of points you can eat each day, and it's been pretty easy to follow. I haven't been too hungry. Luckily fruits and vegetables are zero points. Edamame has been a good friend. I've also been eating lots of salads with low fat cheese and deli meat.

I don't know if I've lost any weight yet, my scale has been broken for a month or so (ironic, no?). I've also been trying to start exercising more consistently. Before now, the most exercise I got was walking Brody for 10 or 15 minutes after work. I want to do a lot more than that. Yoga, longer walks, going to the work out room, and lifting weights are all things I'd like to start doing each week.

Who knows how it will go, but I'm hopeful! I'll keep ya posted!