Moms: Get Off the Couch! I Did. Here's How:

So, up till now I was, shall we say, a tad fatigued. Here's a multiple choice question for you:

Which memories of Mom will be cherished by my preschooler?
(a) tossing a baseball
(b) building a castle out of cereal boxes
(c) lying prostrate on the couch making weird nasal noises and drowning out the soundtrack on Dragon Tales

Well, I am happy to report that, after an unconscionably long period of wanting only to lie on the couch all day, of dragging my corpse out of bed each morning and scraping through the day doing the absolute minimum or rather less than that, I finally jettisoned my internist (who had insisted my thyroid levels were "good enough" and I was just depressed) and went to see an endocrinologist.

Endocrinologist started me on a tiny dose, just half a milligram, of synthetic thyroid hormone.
She said it would take 4 - 6 weeks to kick in.
It took 2 days.

I awoke on the 2nd day, saw the sun shining in the window and heard the birds chirping, and for the first time in longer than I can remember, I actually wanted to get out of bed. I was excited about the new day. This by itself is revolutionary. My husband commented on the lack of dark bags under my eyes.

I am now one whole week into taking Synthroid and am actually PEPPY. I have energy to do the things that need to be done in my life. I have recovered my former mental focus and physical stamina. It is just amazing, the transformation. People can tell the difference just talking to me on the telephone.

So the moral of the story is: if you are a woman over 40, with or without small kids at home, and you complain to the doc about fatigue and lack of energy, don't let your GP brush you off with a prescription for Prozac and the names of some good psychiatrists to treat your "depression". You may be depressed -- who wouldn't be, feeling this exhausted all the time? -- but it's also entirely possible that you have a borderline thyroid. Tons of women past a certain age have undiagnosed thyroid issues. Go see a board certified endocrinologist. Do it soon.