What is a parathyroid again?

Posted on October 7, 2014

Well, I have blood tests done. 2 in one week. Which for someone like me who is terrified of needles it a bit too much.

First i went to get my thyroid checked and annual check up. I haven't had thyroid issues before but I have a lot of symptoms lately that make me think that I have. So I asked to be checked for it. Well, my thyroid is fine at least i the normal range.

But got a call to tell me my calcium is high. I am like what! I am probably the worst example of getting my daily requirement in calclium. So it seemed strange to me. The doc wanted to another test to be more thorough.

Well, it still came up high and she told me that I have hyperparathyroidism. Yes, a mouthful. But what the heck is the parathyroid.

Turns out that the parathyroid releases a hormone that regulates the calcium absorbed in the body. There are 4 of them behind the thyroid and they are the size of a grain of rice. such tiny things can cause so much trouble.

I found that this is causing my fatigue, stomach aches ( I get nauseous every time I eat) , joint pains, brain fogs, etc. Well, the same symptoms I have everytime I eat gluten. Except they have been lately more so constant despite what I eat.

From what I understand though, there is no real treatment except to remove them. But we are doing additional tests before getting ready for that.

Oh bummer.

I cried a little when i found out not because of having surgery, but mostly for the sake of vanity. Yep, i said vanity. The scar on my neck. Such a visible scar, but I am not sure what kind of scar people have now.

I have been dealing with the idea by repainting furniture. And it has been helping. I wonder how long the recovery will be and I will be back at running? Hmm.

Next week is my next test. oh joy(can't you just hear the sarcasm in my words)

Comment Now!

Julie Lama

10/08/2014 8:11PM

Good luck. Be fearless. You will get through.

Biking Syl

10/08/2014 4:57PM

Don't worry too much. I have a similar scar on my neck, but it is actually pretty big because a few years ago, I was on a breathing tube in the hospital for a few weeks. And even that one is starting to fade. Yours won't be as big as mine, because they will close the skin immediately.

You can always wear a scarf, if you have a bad day and feel self conscious. But you can teach yourself to look at it differently. Every time I notice my scar in the mirror, I think about how happy I am to be alive and that I made it through all the procedures. I celebrate the success. And I noticed that people really don't pay attention to it that often. They have lots going on in their own life, so scanning for scars is not necessarily on the top of their list. As an experiment, try wearing 2 different socks for a day and check how many people will actually notice. :-)

Biking Syl

10/08/2014 4:52PM

Congrats on finding out what you are up against! Now they can get to work and start getting you better! Thanks for sharing the info. I had never heard about it. I looked it up and found a great article on WebMD about the procedure:

Parathyroidectomy http://www.medicinenet.com/parathyroidectomy/article.htm

I also checked about the scars. It looks like they will actually put the scar in one of the creases going around your neck, so it won't be very visible after it has healed.
http://www.shifrinmd.com/scar-after-parathyroid-surgery.html

Julie Lama likes this comment.

Dave M.

10/08/2014 11:10AM

Glad that you've at least got a sense of what's causing your ongoing discomfort! Best of luck in finding resolution.

Sarah

10/08/2014 8:32AM

Surgery doesn't sound fun, but knowing what the problem is and how to treat it sounds positive as opposed to having problems and not knowing what's going on. I'm stumbling over words this morning, but what I want to say is hang in there!

Janelle

10/07/2014 9:39PM

Sounds like a tough week, but I'm glad you're getting some answers. Best of luck for the test next week!