"Bill and his wife Yumi couldn't make it today, but they sent this." Among other things were a stack of old photos. I noticed one that only I would know the full significance of. It had been taken in Wahiawa, a few days after my mother passed away, and my face was swollen from not yet fully responding to treatments for my thyroid condition diagnosed earlier that year. I recognized it right away.
Here is an account of it--you can skip down to * if you want.
I couldn't understand why I had to stay ill with a borderline hypothyroid condition on Okinawa, why it was taking so long to get better. I had had to leave college in the U.S. because of my health situation. At that time, the hospital in Okinawa was not equipped to test my blood for the condition, so my blood had to be drawn and mailed to mainland Japan to be tested, results mailed back, and the right medication was searched for in the same way. Needless to say, the entire procedure took a long, long time. For a young person who wanted to train to return to the field as a missionary, this delay seemed to make no sense, and I challenged the wisdom of God. But the scriptural admonition was clear: "lean not to your own understanding." (Prov 3:5)
Imagine how I marveled at God's lovingkindness when I later learned that my mother had had stage four cancer, and passed away several months later. God had known I--the most fragile runt of the litter--had needed to be with her during her last year and a half on this earth. He had touched my body, picked me up from university studies, and plopped me down on the island then kept away all the medical technology that would allow me to leave the place any sooner than I needed. And he had allowed me to rant and rave, not realizing what was going on inside her body. Since then--1981--I know I have often found myself begging God not to listen to me. And I know He won't...any more than what's good for me.
*When the Lord first touched my thyroid with illness, I couldn't think or talk straight and once fell into a mannikin in the store when trying to stand up from crouching on the floor. I remember it took 45 mins. to read one paragraph. But after my condition was accurately diagnosed and treated with Synthroid, I felt SO much better. Bonnie, the cousin who met us in Kauai this trip, also takes Synthroid, so she understands fully.
What she couldn't understand--and what came as a shock to me--was that in Japan, Borderline hypothyroid patients are refused use of medicine. Thus, in 1990, I was no longer given the Synthroid I had been taking for 9 years. It was stopped Cold Turkey. My epilepsy medication Dilantin, was continued; just no more Synthroid.
For 20 years, it felt like I was dragging through mud, but there was nothing I could do. Until the earthquake of 2011, when my doctor down in Iwatsuki, where we moved, heard my story and decided to chance putting me back on Synthroid. My doctor is a nonconformist with some rough edges, but in this case it worked for my good.
On this trip, I thought future use of Synthroid should be supported in writing by a medical professional and had my sister get an appointment with an endocrinologist. Although it is difficult to see a medical specialist, I not only got in to see the doctor, but he also ordered an ultrasound taken just minutes later as well as prescribed 2 weeks' worth of sample thyroid medicine after hearing my story.
This endocrinologist wanted my clinic in Japan to send him results for bloodwork on my thyroid. He would return his recommended treatment--including use of medicine. I would then have written validation by a medical professional for use of thyroid medicine!
When we were going home after seeing the physician, I realized how relaxed I now felt...which only meant I had been worried before!
