I’m a real MTHFR. And I have proof. How about you?

In my constant quest for wellness and being able to leave the house, I started seeing a new doctor a few weeks ago.

Up until the last few weeks, it had been a tough few months (as I’d mentioned here). And while I was definitely making progress on the whole, some things were just SO intense again I felt like I was basically back at square one, before I even started AIP and went gluten-free.

I seemed to be so sensitive to everything. Food. Lights. Motion. Anxiety through the roof to point where I could barely sit still. Insomnia. All systems were basically going haywire. Again. Even watching TV was becoming problematic.

Again, the question was WHY?

After sobbing through the first 15 minutes of my appointment, while Fred Baby sweetly explained my symptoms, the doctor said she suspected I had something called MTHFR.

While it stands for methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene, they refer to it as it sounds because it’s a really mother f*cker to treat.

I had to laugh.

At first, hearing you likely have a genetic mutation is a little frightening. But at the same time I was so happy that I could officially blame my parents.

I’m kidding. The doctor said up to 40% of the population likely has this mutation, but while some people have no problems, often when people like me come in and have what seems like so many things going haywire, they often have MTHFR. Which would be the real root cause and help explain why the Hashimoto’s and Celiac to begin with or at least why they are even more challenging to get under control.

You can do a simple blood test (mine was through LabCorp) and saliva test (through 23andme) to see if you have the mutation. I’m still waiting on my 23andme results, but my blood test came back confirming that I indeed am a real MTHFR.

PHOTOS by FRED MOSER

Clearly I am getting a kick out of saying I’m a real MTHFR. #silverlinings

I’m just now learning more about it (explanation here + here), and have an appointment scheduled to see what treatment options are, but thought I’d share in case it could be helpful to any of you. From what I gather, you can either have a heterozygous mutation (which is one mutation) or a homozgyous mutation (which is two mutations).

I have the single mutation (A1298C to be exact), which sadly means I can only blame one of my parents. Hmmm… Which one do you think I should blame? My mom? No… My dad? For sure. Unless my parents take the test, we’ll have to keep the mystery alive…

The best thing that came out of the appointment so far was that my thyroid levels were high. So we dialed back by Armour thyroid meds. And guess what? I feel like a completely normal person again! The doctor had said in our appointment “Sometimes you get so close to a problem, you basically can’t see the forest for the trees.” And to that, I have to say she was right.

It’s a good reminder for anyone who has Hashimoto’s that while the conventional thinking is that it means you have hypothyroidism (i.e. too low), the reality is that with Hashimoto’s you swing between too low and too high (hyperthyroidism). I was definitely in a hyper phase, as I felt like I was vibrating at an insanely high frequency. I was hungry all the time probably because my metabolism was through the roof.

Oh, and for my friends out there struggling with fertility, MTHFR seems to be a big component, so just wanted to put that out there in case it could help.

Have you ever heard of MTHFR? Do you have it? Any advice from one MTHFR to another?

p.s. More of my health journey: Hashimoto’s, AIP, and Hormones.

I’m Wearing:

Top: MLM Label

Sunglasses: similar Karen Walker

Ring: Gorjana c/o

Jeans:  similar (old Parker Smith c/o )

Shoes: similar Kate Spade

Earrings: similar (vintage)

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