Medical update so exciting! :)

In an effort to keep track of all the medical stuff that has been going on in the last few years, I thought to do a re-cap of an appointment I had with a much respected pharmacist/RN that specializes in women and hormone imbalances. “don’t read if you don’t want to hear a LOT of my personal information etc “
I should preface this by saying that my mother and several of her friends have been seeing her as they have gone through menopause for hormone replacement treatment etc, and she does a lot to help people regulate their systems through extensive interviewing, lab work, testing etc to determine which supplements etc that can optimize your health and ease whatever issue you are facing. My mother has suggested that I see her over the last while, but since I was getting good results from my daily medication for my migraines I was hesitant to do anything different. However with our latest infertility issues( minor as they may be to others) I knew that something was amiss and when the doctor referred us to the infertility clinic I knew I was right. The first stage is for us to try Chlomid, and after explaining what it was going to do, my mother increased her belief that I should talk to this pharmacist first. Mom called and told Christine( the pharmacist) what I was doing and she said I should come talk with her right away.
It was going to be pricy, as nothing she does is covered by insurance, but I thought its worth a try. I would rather try something natural than do the drug route anyday.
Well the appointment was routine, I gave her all my medical history with migraines, what drugs ive tried and birth control options Ive used over the last 15 years, current lab results etc. I wont bore you with ALL the details but some of the key things that were mentioned:
People with a history of Chronic Migraines have a tendency to have lower levels of progestin that is naturally occurring. So they are more sensitive to triggers or issues surrounding hormonal triggers of headaches. So my birth control pill that I was on from 19-25 caused me to see a significant INCREASE in headaches as the levels of the progestin in my pill was not at the right levels. However because I was in my twenties, and having no real issues with age I got pregnant quickly. After I had Elijiah I went to a copper “T” iud for my birth control. I was regular and didn’t suffer any side effects and there was no hormones being pumped into me so when the time came to change my birth control and get pregnant with Tristan, I got pregnant right away. However after Tristan, my doctor in attempt to help me control my headaches said that I get them with my monthly cycle and if we could eliminate just ONE headache a month that would be great…the Mirena was another IUD that reduced and often stopped menstruation so I should see a reduction of my headaches during that time of the month.
I was told that the hormones in the Mirena were so SLIGHT that I shouldn’t have a problem in general. However-progestin levels since Im already are LOW were sent even lower and INCREASED my headaches( even though the doctor said that wasn’t the case). Jonathan had done extensive research on the Mirena and even though the medical studies on the mirena didn’t support the increase in headaches, there were forums of women stating all sort of issues with the IUD . Jonathan suggested that I remove the IUD but with countless conversations with my Dr, he felt it was unsupported and backed by clinical research, so whom am I to argue with that????

ANYWAY, basically Christine said that she sees countless women come in with problems resulting from the Mirena and issues after removal. She went on to say, that because the Mirena thins the uterine lining to stop periods, progestin hormone levels are at an all time LOW so when I had it removed, my age, combined with my body not being able to reproduce that hormone as quickly or easily as if I were younger, that could be why-- ONE my headaches became SO severe for the 2 years after I had Tristan and TWO why I cant get pregnant now( which supports the LH, and FH hormone levels being off the charts low in my blood work) SO whats next? I could try the Chlomid, and within a few months hope that it will work, or I can work with Christine to try and replace what my body is missing naturally.
While a bit pricy, Im leaning towards the natural hormone replacement and supplements. WHY? My faith in my OB has been a bit shaken; I spent 2 years being a lab rat to multiple medications with numerous side effects and suffering unbearable pain and depression while MD’s continued to “try” new drugs or experimental drugs to help. Im not saying that they did it on purpose- but I think they are trained to ONLY think about the one thing they specialize in rather than an holistic approach to the body and take in account EVERYTHING. NOT once did my ob and Neurologist consult one another, not once did either of them separately think I should undergo blood work and testing to see what could be underlying in my body that could be causing my issues, not one ER doctor did anything other than treat the pain and send me on my way….
I called my mother after my appointment and cried. Told her I wish I had gone several years ago to see Christine. I don’t believe that ANY one person has all the answers, but for the first time in 18 years, I felt that what she was saying was true. My gut, the same gut that wasn’t sitting right as I was getting steroid shots to the head, felt finally calm. That perhaps this woman will treat my body as a whole and try to make it function optimally. Then if everything is in harmony and balanced, perhaps THEN I will go to the medical community again for the next steps…..