puberty

Kallmann syndrome / CHH is a rare hormonal condition that affects puberty. Patients do not start or fully complete puberty.

There are a number of other physical symptoms that are associated with the condition, most notably perhaps, a lack of sense of smell (anosmia) which is the defining symptom of Kallmann syndrome but not found in CHH.

Aside from the physical problems that may arise from having hypogonadism it is the psychological problems that patients face which are often overlooked.

Not having a normal puberty and adolesence, especially in those patients who are diagnosed late can lead to problems in forming emotional and physical relationships. It can be an embarrassing condition to talk about which does not help in social confidence.

Most patients are able to overcome the shyness or lack of confidence but it can take time. Being infertile is also a major problem for some. Even though fertility treatments are available they are not always easy to obtain.

#puberty #KallmannSyndrome #Infertility #Anosmia #latebloomer #psychology

Kallmann syndrome (KS) is a form of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (HH). It affects puberty and fertility.

People with KS / HH do not undergo normal puberty and will normally be infertile.

Hormone replacement therapy can help with some of the physical symptoms and there is even specialist treatments available to help induce spells of fertility.

It is the pyschological aspects of the condition that concern me more at the moment. I talk to and meet many fellow patients and it is the perhaps the pyschological aspects that cause the most problems to fellow patients regardless of their age of diagnosis or treatment.

As with most rare disorders it is difficult to discribe to others what it is like to have the condition. Puberty and adolescence are such cornerstones in the development of the individual to miss out on them must leave lasting effects I think.

Having late puberty, being a "late bloomer" can be bad enough. However to be left behind totally is even worse. To be told to wait and see when you are a teenager as your friends develop physically and emotionally around you is not easy.

In my own situation I had a normal enough childhood, nothing seemed amiss, apart from my poor hearing and lack of sense of smell. At the time nobody linked this to my lack of puberty. If they had, I may have been diagnosed earlier than 23 years of age.

Socially i think I was a normal enough child but as a teenager I became more and more socially isolated. Through my own fault, I see now. I was invited to events with my teenage friends but as I grew older I felt more and more distanced from them. I began to turn down invitations because I felt so out of place. Eventually the invitations stopped totally.

Since I did not go through puberty, I felt physcially out of place as well as socially out of place. The doctors just said "wait and see", so I did. This was just before the internet age. I knew I was missing out on relationships and indeed even sexual relationships while a teenager or later at University. I just assumed it would all catch up eventually.

I concentrated on other things, I was not un happy as a young adult but perhaps I modified my personality and behaviour to make up for feeeling out of step of my age group. I did not learn the social skills or notice the signs of potential relationships. I developed my own traits to appear normal enough to function, trying to forget other things in life.

I was not diagnosed until I was 23 and it was not until I was about 25 that my hormone levels (testosterone) reached that of a normal male. What happened next is another story that i would be happy to share another time.

#kallmann #puberty #hypogonadism #BodyImage #Infertility #Sex

A common theme with rare disorders is the delay of diagnosis.

I was seen as being a "late bloomer" when I had not started puberty by the age of 16. Even though I had two of the extra symptoms, lack of sense of smell and poor hearing, I had to wait until I was 23 before I got the correct diagnosis and was put on testosterone treatment.

Late diagnosis and treatment can make such a different to fellow patients.

Even with treatment patients do not experience normal puberty and would require extra treatment if fertility is desired.

One issue patients can experience is that we are mixed up with "late puberty" patients. Some people assume that after treatment all is normal.

Delayed puberty patients can experience normal puberty after a short course of treatment and will experience normal puberty and be fertile. Patients with Kallmann syndrome (male and female) do not experience normal puberty, will need life long hormone treatment and require specialist hormone treatment if they wish to be fertile.

#testosterone #kallmann #puberty #Infertility #latebloomer

My daughter live with her mom and stepdad full time. We have joint custody, but I'll spare you the whole story and summarize by saying the divorce was amicable and we agreed at the time that she'd stay with her mom. So my daughter is with me roughly every other weekend.

But lately she has started to have a real nasty attitude. Much of the nastiness is directed at her stepsister. My wife has a daughter from a previous relationship as well. They are nearly the same age. My daughter can be very rude and insulting at times. Very condescending. Unpleasant. Saying things like "choke and die" or "I'm smarter than you cuz I know my multiplication tables".

My stepdaughter usually just brushes it off but I'm also sure it is having an impact on her at some level.

I've brought it up with her when picking her up and taking her home trying to figure out why, and I don't get anything out of her. I've brought it up with her mom and that just seems to not go anywhere.

I know she's dealing with some things (her grandma is dying of cancer and lives with them and of course her mom and I getting a divorce about 5 years ago and then me getting remarried and bringing a stepsister into the mix), so I'm sure those things are contributing factors. Plus puberty.

We're firm about not being like that at our house, but It still happens sometimes. It causes issues between my wife and I as well cuz she doesn't seem to think I'm doing enough to stop it and I am literally doing everything I can and also trying to get to the root causes of it so I can actually maybe help my daughter come to grips with whatever it is that may ultimately be bothering her.

I'm mostly just venting... But any advice or thoughts are welcome too... Ugh... #puberty #Parenting #stepdad #exhausted

One of my pet hates is the the internet meme "Do not confuse my medical degree with your Google / Internet search."

Thankfully I have never physically met a doctor who has tried this on me but I have heard stories from fellow patients where similar thoughts have been expressed.

Patient advocates can help fellow patients with internet searching to allow patients to ask their doctors informed and relevant questions at appointments.

With any rare condition it should be a two way process when doctor and patient can learn about the condition together.

The idea that "doctor knows best" is not always true.

#RareDisease #puberty #PatientAdvocates
#KallmannSyndrome  #testosterone

#puberty #KallmannSyndrome #TestosteroneDeficiency

I have Kallmann syndrome which meant I never went through puberty. Outwardly it does not appear I have a medical condition. I used to look very young for my age before diagnosis but with testosterone driven hair loss that has changed a bit.

One annoying thing about the condition is that it is difficult for others, apart from fellow patients to understand it. Even when you do explain it a lot of people think I was just a late starter and all is normal now, somehow overlooking the fact I have to take life long testosterone therapy and am infertile.

I have Kallmann syndrome, a form of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism which causes puberty to fail, which in turn mean patients are normally infertile.

It is not a well-known condition and I was dismissed as a "late bloomer" or "late developer" even at the age of 23 after I had left university.

It is not an easy condition to talk to anybody about, the lack of physical development makes people feel shy and isolated and can have difficulty forming emotional and physical relationships. Even with treatment we still do not go through normal puberty and remain infertile unless we have expensive, difficult to obtain specialist hormone replacement therapy.

Even when diagnosed it is not an easy condition to talk about amongst friends or family due to the very private nature of the condition. The fact that the condition also causes infertility can increase the need to keep the condition private in some family situations.

All this makes raising awareness of the condition more difficult. As a patient with the condition, I can see why my fellow patients do not wish to talk about their condition to others and I totally agree with them.

However, I do like talking about my condition and I refuse to be embarrassed just because I have this condition. I am happy to talk about my condition with anybody to help raise awareness. Early diagnosis and early treatment can be very beneficial.

#kallmann  
#puberty  
#Rare  
#testosterone