Doctor's Appointment

We met with Jessica's doctor over the phone tonight. I'll try to give the shortened version.

Regarding her B-12 shots, Jessica said she didn't think they were helping, so he said she didn't have to get the shot, but to find another form of B-12. There is a non-prescription B-12 patch or a form that dissolves under your tongue.

We went over her labwork that was done a few weeks ago:

• She’s not anemic. Her kidney function is normal. Salts, proteins, and liver are all normal.
• Her Pregnenolone was up and was good.
• It looks like her thyroid is on the right track now.
• Her CBC white count was still a little low but better.
• Her Cortisol was low, and something he wanted to work on, so he's increasing her Cortisol to 3 a day instead of 2 a day. Cortisol helps stress management, the immune system, allergies, pain & stiffness, and helps stabilize blood sugars. Blood sugar is still low and Cortisol levels are still low. Increasing her Cortisol should help the blood sugar issue, as well as the appetite.
• Her cholesterol is still low, which most people would think is good, but it can be too low. Things to consider - Are you absorbing your food or are you eating enough? If you don’t eat enough then you don’t get enough nutrition. Jessica says she’s not eating much because she gets full too early. The doctor encouraged her to eat more. She may not be getting enough nutrients to make all the chemicals her body needs to run on. All your hormones are made from cholesterol, so if you have low cholesterol then you may not have enough to make your hormones with. The body can get in trouble if it doesn’t have enough stuff to run on.
• Her DHEA was a little on the low side but at her age, he doesn't want to mess with it. It's raised since the June labwork, so we are making progress.
• Aldosterone (re: OI) was just a tiny bit better, but her dizziness is better, so he's leaving that alone.

He said we could back down on her anti-viral dosage, which I'm taking as a good sign!

Regarding her headaches on the right side of her head, he is going to send a prescription for something to take for the pain. He mentioned that headaches can be caused by a hormone fluctuation. If the headaches end up being a long-term problem, then we can look at a preventative.

He also said it appears that we're doing the right things. Depending on how she’s doing, the next appointment will be in 2-3 months.

So, we keep on keeping on, and keep hoping for further improvement.