The Pituitary Red Herring & Renewed North Stars

The Abnormality of Hope

Less than a week after my surgery, I found myself back in the ER, this time because of a strange tingling sensation in my brain. But unlike before, I wasn’t alone. A friend had just flown in from Texas, and while I advocated for myself with a voice I had only recently found, she reviewed my MyChart. That’s when she noticed something: an abnormality on my pituitary gland.

There was no fear, instead, I felt relief, sharp, electric, undeniable. After years of hormonal fluctuations, unexplained fatigue, and the new trauma of a brain bleed and emergency surgery, I thought I had finally found the answer. In that quiet moment, I told myself, “This is it. This is why all of this happened.” Every sleepless night, every needle prick, all seemed to point here.

The Defeat of the “Normal” Lab

But the path of an informed advocate is rarely linear.

After meeting with the endocrinologist and undergoing extensive lab work, the verdict came back: the pituitary finding was another red herring. It wasn’t the master key I thought it was.

In that moment, “normal” was the most frustrating word in the English language. I felt temporarily defeated, standing once again in a familiar fog of uncertainty. But as I’ve learned on this journey, I am walking a path that has not been walked before. When you are trailblazing your own care, there are bound to be detours. A red herring isn’t a dead end; it’s just the system’s way of telling you to keep looking.

The Power of the Right Question

A week later, the fog began to lift. I met with my new OBGYN, and for the first time in a long time, the dynamic shifted. She didn’t just look at my charts; she listened to my narrative. She offered options, but more importantly, she asked the one question that stopped me in my tracks:

“Why don’t you have a neurologist?”

It was simple. Obvious, even. Yet somehow, it had been overlooked through months of appointments and referrals. That question revealed a gap I didn’t even realize existed.

Back on the Path

I left that appointment with something I hadn’t felt in weeks: clarity, and with it, renewed hope.

Now, I have a plan. I’ll follow up with my primary care physician to get a neurology referral, and I’m beginning a progesterone prescription to better understand how my body responds.

The hormonal shifts may still be unexplained. The pituitary finding may have been a distraction. But I’m moving forward again, this time with direction.

I’m no longer just a passenger in this process.

I’m the navigator.

Til next time…