Wow! These responses have really made me feel a lot better about it. It's great to see so many people have the same conditions I do. I just thought it was a weight loss thing, not something that specifically is for people with thyroid or metabolic issues. It feels so good to see many have gone through the same thing I have gone through. I'll definitely see about going through with this.

Brandeline - one thing that really got my attention was you said tingling hands and feet. My feet mainly do that A LOT! It will wake me up in the middle of the night, numb/dead and then tingly. This happens about 3-4 times a night. And then when I'm working out on ellipticals, climbing stairs or riding my bike, my feet will tingle and then go numb. My fingers don't do it as often as my feet, but they do it from time to time. I would LOVE for that to go away!! I really just thought this was for weightloss only, but it would be a miracle if I can feel better and normal!

I just really hope I can afford this! I'll call the doc on Monday and see about going forward with this. Thank you all for calming my fears....well except the giving myself injections. I'm still scared to death of that.

Welcome to the forums, Sharper. It's a great source of support and information and will really help you to get through the diet. But be forwarned- many people on here are doing versions of the diet modified by either themselves or by care providers trying to make it more pallatable for the dieter or to put their own spin on it. They will then come on here looking for justification. It works for some. Not so much for others. It's pretty much spelled out in black and white in the document your doctor gave you. When in doubt- RTFP (Read The Friggin' Protocol). If it's not there, it's not in the diet. Follow it to the letter and you should be good. FWIW it took me two years of comtemplation before I went for it. I've lost 37 lbs and I'm in Phase 4, waiting a couple of months to do another round for the final twenty pounds. My two cents... Good luck!

I have often struggled with (and think many others learning from this diet) the idea that I'm NOT like those lucky people that can eat what they want one day and make up for it pretty easily afterwards. Or those that gain a few lbs while away on vacation and don't fret cause they KNOW it'll come off soon.
Like lms1981; if I don't monitor my weight - it can change drastically and never for the better. While that is frustrating and frankly, gives me a bad attitude, at least I'm learning a method that CAN work for me and am finally happy with the way my body looks.

hamp-young - oh i know! I'm a complete slave to the scale. It's a love/hate relationship (mostly hate). I weigh every morning, as part of the Thyroid Diet that I've been on. The scale dictates how my day will be that day. If the weight went up, the rest of the day will be negative and grouchy. If it went down in the slightest, it will be a great day.

Jokamo- When I was in High School, my doctor at that time was very sure that I had Lupus but didn't have all the symptoms at once to really diagnose it. I do have Lupus in my family history. It seems like every time I have a health issue, it's related to Lupus, so it always creeps back up to see me again. When I was in High School, I had some crazy scary things happen and ended up 3 times in the ER because of it. My doctor says my immune system would immediately attack my lungs, air pipe and nasal cavity all at once in a full battle. Within 5 minutes I would be unable to breathe. My throat would swell shut and my nose would swell as big as my face. It was the weirdest, craziest thing. Luckily, that hasn't happened since those years (I'm 29 now) other than I still have sore joints (mostly my knees). Along with my diagnosis of adrenal fatigue a month ago, he also said I was insulin resistant, as well. It's crazy how when one thing goes wrong, the rest of the body starts to follow along.

ims1981 - I so feel you on this! My doc said to just know that it's not fair, admit to it and move on. So I try to do that. "This is not fair. Now what am I gonna do" But I can't get past that part. I've gone vegetarian, anorexic, a rainbow variation of diet pills and all of the big fad diets. I'm on the Thyroid Diet currently which is pretty strict but cuts all the bad carbs, sugar and alcohol out. There are even certain fruits and vegetables I can't have because they are high-glycemic. My obsession with working out is taking over my life!! I spend more time at the gym than at home. I don't know why I can spend 10-15 hours a week at the gym and have very little progress, if none at all. That shit just ain't fair. My boyfriend brags about the scale going down for him, while he can eat whatever he wants to and only spends less than an hour at the gym a day. This week has ended in a 2lb gain for me. WTF!

trevcda - Thanks for the tip! If I start to see the pounds come off right away, that's my motivation to keep following the diet strictly. Not only that, but if I'm spending a ton of money on this, I'd want to see it through all the way to get the most out of it. You lost 37 in one round?! Wow! That's great! I'm getting kind of excited about this. I want to make the most out of this summer, so I'm hoping i can get started very soon.