And It's About Time There Was Some Support For Cushing's!
I am a busy wife, mother,and family physician who developed diabetes several years ago. I also developed a painful neuropathy in my hands and feet from the diabetes. My diabetes was very difficult to control. I was incredibly carbohydrate-sensitive and had to be on a very low carb diet under a dietician's guidance to get any sort of control of my blood glucose. I was already overweight but had a sudden increse about three years ago. I developed edema and "moon face". I attributed my red face to a skin condition called rosacea and my weight gain and increasing fatigue to the diabetes and stress.
The women in my family have a history of hair loss. When I began to lose hair on my scalp and gain it on my face (I HATE that!), I thought it was my genetics and the onset of menopause. I had a long history of mild depression that was well-controlled with medication and counselling. As my menopausal symptoms worsened, I attributed the mood changes, fatigue and loss of libido as a worsening of the depression triggered by the hormonal changes and general "stress".
However, it was embarassing to be an overweight, exhausted, moon-faced physician with diabetic complications....I should know better, right? It was really hard to go to my colleagues for help. I judged myself harshly and felt that they would do the same - even though they had really been very helpful. I reluctantly went to a well-known endocrinlogist locally because he does a lot of research on neuropathy. I was hoping to qualify for some of his clinical trials.
At my first visit, he noted all my symptoms of Cushing's. I had attributed them all to other medical conditions that I have. However, it really "clicked" when he started talking about it. I had quite a series of tests and finally an MRI of my pituitary on 8/11 - my fiftieth birthday. It looks like they found the adenoma, so I'm on to finding out more about treatment options.
I'm also interested in finding out more about other people's experience during surgical treatment and the recovery afterwards. I'm so glad that I found this site!
