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Carla Abellana opens up on weight gain struggles due to hypothyroidism
Carla Abellana took to social media to open up about her struggles with being diagnosed with hypothyroidism.
On Instagram, the "Widows' War" actress said hypothyroidism "has been the bane of the past five years of my life."
Hypothyroidism or an underactive thyroid is a condition in which the thyroid gland doesn't make enough hormones to address your body's needs.
Symptoms include weight gain, infertility, fatigue, trouble tolerating the cold, and joint and muscle pain, among others.
Despite her best efforts, including fasting and regular workout sessions, Carla said she's still constantly gaining weight.
"My hormones were nowhere within normal range, cortisol level was extremely high for so long, I was practically perimenopausal at 37 years of age," she said.
"5 years. 5 Doctors. Numerous tests over the years. Countless medications in all sorts of combinations. Hundreds of thousands of pesos. Nothing seemed to really work long-term," she added.
Carla also said people without hypothyroidism wouldn't know what "struggle, frustration, embarrassment, worry, and desperation are like."
"Most especially if weight and appearance are key factors in your line of work," she said.
In October last year, Carla said she shifted doctors and went through a diet plan to manage her weight. Five months into the plan, she started seeing weight loss results.
"I've lost around 18lbs in the past couple of months, and at one point, I had already reached my target weight," she said.
Carla ended her post by saying that there is no shortcut when it comes to losing weight.
"I also wish weight loss would work like magic, but NO. It really doesn't," she said. "There really is no shortcut."
"Having hypothyroidism is a pain in the butt because there is no cure for it, but there is a way," she added.
Earlier this month, Carla was admitted to the hospital due to complications with kidney stones and a urinary tract infection.
Among the possible causes of kidney stones are obesity, not drinking enough water, and eating too much salty or sweet food, while UTI is an infection in any part of the urinary tract caused by a microbe such as E. coli.
Carla currently stars in the murder-mystery series "Widows' War" with Bea Alonzo, Tonton Gutierrez, Jean Garcia, Rita Daniela, Jeric Gonzales, Benjamin Alves, Juancho Triviño, Jackie Lou Blanco, James Graham, and more.
"Widows' War" is directed by award-winning filmmaker Zig Dulay and airs weekdays at 8:50 p.m. on GMA Prime.
— Hermes Joy Tunac/CDC, GMA Integrated News
