Expert: Nafeesah - 1/1/2009

Question
Hi,
My history is a long one. I was a overweight child, started to diet by cutting out carbs and sugars and exercising when I was 14, lost fair bit of weight but then the obsession came. I started to fast, over exercise, purge, abuse laxatives. I got help and then slowly began to gain the weight, petrified I then started to binge and purge, and continued that until a year and a half ago. I still maintained an extremely healthy lifestyle, I exercise daily, committed to strength training and I eat beyond clean, knowing my caloric intake to ensure I am getting proper amounts of food. Since I have turned my lifestyle around, I have had nothing but health problems. I didn't have a period for 1.5 years, 6 months ago got it again- now its gone again! I have increased hair growth, can't digest food properly, crazy fatigue, deepened voice and to top it off I have an inability to loose weight- rather I gain weight through eating 1600 calories, 1 hr of intense cardio and weight training. My family has noticed that my moods are always low, and well I am depressed because who I see in the mirror isn't me, and I feel beyond trapped in my body, because whatever I do doesn't work.

I have got blood work done, doctors thought it was a hypothyroidism, but my T3 T4 came back normal. They also checked me for PCOS- incredibly my test and estrogen levels also came back normally.

So now after seeking medical help, I am still in the same place I began... Help!

Answer
Your hormones are off that's why your weight fluxuates and that's something you need to discuss with a endocrinologist to find out why your body's chemistry is thrown off. When you start binging and purging you can throw your body's chemistry off. I would ask your primary care doctor for a referral to an endocrinologist to get this checked out because I am sure this has affected your monthly period.