What was the original reason for the LAVH? Just wondering because mentrual irregularities can go with thyroid problems.
Do you have any of those "normal" thyroid test results? Any family history of thyroid disease? Sometimes more detailed testing than just a simple TSH and T4 is needed to uncover some thyroid problems.
I imagine four surgeries between October and December kept you from exercising much! Perhaps the weight gain is just from that?
One thing I would comment on - you've needed a lot of antidepressants in the past, with less than stellar results, correct? Some thoughts about that: - nutritional deficiencies due to malabsorption from the Crohn's dz - especially B vitamin deficiencies like folate and B12 are associated with depression. Might check a B12 level, and take a B50 supplement once a day along with a multi. Also check a ferritin level, iron deficiency can be associated with depression as well.
- some psychiatrists treat resistant depression with T3 (a form of thyroid hormone). It's not done a lot, and it's not entirely clear why it works, but it is considered mainstream. I'm reading some fascinating work by a guy who treats fibromyalgia patients with T3, and he has developed some pretty interesting theories as to why it works there even on people who have normal thyroid lab tests. If you really cannot get good control with your current antidepressants, it might be worthwhile discussing the possibility of adding T3 with your psychiatrist.
As for hormone replacement - I'll tell you right now, no one really knows what the best thing to do is for a young woman like yourself. Premarin was meant for postmenopausal women (and it turns out, may not really be that good for them either!) and although it is commonly used in situations like yours, I'm not sure it's really the best approach. Ideally one would like to replace the hormones you are missing as closely as possible to what is normal for a young woman. Although I'm not the biggest fan of bioidentical hormone replacement for post-menopausal women (because we don't have safety data on it) it seems intuitively that it might be a good thing to try for a young woman with surgical menopause. Certainly if your estrogen replacement isn't adequate it's only likely to make your depression worse.
As to whether bioidentical hormone replacement would have a good effect on your weight, I have no idea. You'll probably have to find someone who practices somewhat alternative medicine to get this prescribed for you.
BTW - soy is a goitrogen, so IF you turn out to have any thyroid issues, I would stop the soy (otherwise, it's probably fine to take.)
