Murphy’s Laws for Cushing’s Disease*

Posted on by attot

1.  If you have 28 new symptoms, 27 of them will be vague.

2.  If there are 18 diseases consistent with your vague symptoms, you will be tested for 17 of them.

3.  If you rule out the first 17 diseases, no one will test you for the 18th one (Cushing’s) as it is too rare.

4.  If you think you have Cushing’s and are overweight, you will be told you don’t have Cushing’s – you just need to eat better and exercise more.  If you think you have Cushing’s and are thin, you will be told you don’t have Cushing’s because Cushing’s patients are overweight.

5. If you do get tested for Cushing’s, the test will come back negative.  Twice.

6.  When your tests for Cushing’s finally come back positive, you will be told you don’t have Cushing’s but you are definitely stressed out.

7.  If you have a pituitary tumor and get an MRI, the MRI report will say you don’t have a tumor.  If you have a bilateral adrenalectomy to treat Cushing’s, the CT report will say both your adrenal glands look great.

8.  If you can’t get pregnant as a result of Cushing’s, the only thing you will fit into are maternity clothes.

9.  If you get Cushing’s you will stay thin from the kneecaps down, but you won’t know that because your belly will be blocking your view.

10.  The number of times you will be told to go out and get some fresh air is inversely related to the probability you can get out of bed.

11.   If you get Cushing’s, your rate of weight gain will be inversely proportional to the number of calories you consume.

*Special thanks to my friend Jessica for her contributions to this post.

8 thoughts on “Murphy’s Laws for Cushing’s Disease*”

  3. And, there’s my favorite that I’m just depressed and give me Xanax.

    Of course, I was depressed! None of these doctors would take the time to see what was really wrong.

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    1. WOW!!!! Every page I read I am even more shocked than the one before. I feel like I have written everyone of these, except the diagnosis. 4.5 years into this journey, ALL the crazy looks from doctors one of which asked me what of this was just my “new normal”, I am still fighting for testing and diagnosis.

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      1. I am sorry it has been such a slog for you. Unfortunately, it is often the case that there is a long lag between getting sick and getting diagnosed. There is nothing “normal” about the symptoms you experience with Cushing’s.

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  4. Sorry to hear that you have to deal with the same crap as my son. Sounds like my son who gets….”you look like you have Cushings and I’d swear you do but the tests come back within normal limits so you don’t have it”. I was just wondering if you have heard about a case like this with elevated prolactin as well Both my sister, aunt and cousin have prolactinomas and Cushings. 2 with Empty Sella and adrenals removed. One defied odds in 1961 and got pregnant and had my cousin who is dealing with throid cancer now. We recently went to see Dr Liu who said…maybe use catheters in adrenals to do hormone draws to figure this out? Have you run across anyone who has this type of issue or had this done? Dr’s in Bethesda say it’s rare to have 1 rare disease. You can’t possibly have 3😡

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    1. Oh it’s possible. Many pituitary tumors produce more than one hormone. You need to see a pituitary expert. If you send me a private message, I’ll send you the Wizard’s contact information. I don’t reveal any doctor names on the blog. But he is really the best and has seen it all. What Dr. Liu describes is also done to help sort things out with Cushing’s. Often the catheters are inserted by the pituitary (IPSS). But I have heard of the adrenal version as well.

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