[LaurelM]

#1073583

Hi Amymarie84,

I started taking Methimazole 8 months postpartum and then switched to PTU when I became pregnant with my 2nd baby. I took PTU for 2 months total and was able to taper off. I have been off ATDs since about 2/06 and still in remission. I was very happy that my endo steered my the ATD route. I was very relieved to just have a diagnosis. In hindsight, I’d been sick for several months but had chalked it up to normal postpartum issues until it was impossible not to think something was truely wrong. I was also started on a betablocker which I was able to taper off of after only a few weeks. The betablocker really helped take the edge off the emotional symptoms within a few days. It took me about a year to feel totally normal but I was feeling much better after just a couple of months on the ATD.

I have had a return to health and I have two happy and healthy children. My two year old is fast. I am just happy I am able to keep up with her. With treatment, you will begin to feel better. You didn’t say if you were nursing. I remember being totally freaked out about nursing while on a medication. My endo was supportive of the nursing and we were given an OK by a pediatric endocrinologist who in an abundance of caution only recommended that my baby’s thyroid levels be checked every 8 weeks. Her levels were always fine.

I know it is scary right now but with treatment, it will get better. Not treating can be dangerous and you need to get yourself as healthy as possible to take care of that little one. It is also OK to make sure that your doctor has fully answered all your questions to your satisfaction. We have a few options with our treatment plan and you have the right to choose whatever feels best to you (assuming no medical contraints).

My other soap box is to ask for help right now so that you can rest and concentrate on getting better. It takes a full year for a body to fully recover after just a pregnancy and now you also have Grave’s to deal with. It is OK to ask friends & family for help with cooking, cleaning, shopping, and childcare (so that you can get a nap). Do NOT feel guilty about it.

Take Care,

Laurel

[amymarie84]

#1019710

Hi,
I am new here and just found out today that I have Graves’ Disease . My name is Amy and I am 25 yr.old mother of a 5 month old. I have been having lots of symptoms and I finally found out why I have them.. I’m not just crazy!! My doctor prescribed me Propylthiouracil or PTU but I have read a lot of scary things about it on the internet . I am so afraid of taking it and I am suppose to start tomorrow. Is anyone else taking this or have taken it that can tell me their experience with it ? I am really glad that I have an answer to all my symptoms but at the same time I am really feeling overwhelmed and afraid that I suddenly have this . Thanks so much!
Amy

[amymarie84]

#1073584

Thanks so much for your response. It is so nice to have people to talk to who know what it is like to feel this way. You said that you took PTU also, did it make you very sick or did you tolerate it alright?
Amy

[LaurelM]

#1073585

Hi Amy,

I tolerated both ATDs that I was on very well. I had some joint aches when I went breifly hypo early in my treatment with the methimazole but we lowered my dose and that went away within a weekish. I did develop hives at the same time as I conceived with our 2nd child. We don’t know if it was the methimazole or the pregnancy that triggered them but that was when I switched to PTU. I suspect it was really the pregnancy but we will probably never know. I had been on the methimazole for many months without issue. I was also fine with the PTU. I had normal 1st trimester issues (fatigue & morning sickness) but nothing out of the ordinary that would have made me concerned that I was having any issues with the PTU.

The vast majority of people who take the ATD’s do not have any problems with them. Usually, the people you see on this board who are the few that are having diffuculties. Most get better and get busy with their lives again and you don’t see posts from them. I myself hadn’t been back to the board for nearly 2 years and only posted as a New Year’s resolution to provide a postive update story.

Laurel

[amymarie84]

#1073586

Laurel,
It is so nice to hear a positive story. My husband told me last night that I needed to stop looking on the internet about the side effects from PTU . He said that people are much more likely to put up bad stories rather than a positive experience. So nice to hear your positive one …hopefully mine will be positive also! Thanks again so much!
Amy

[christa815]

#1073587

I found out I was hyperthyroid during the first trimester of my 2nd pregnancy and was put on PTU, which I didn’t have any problems with it, except the taste! It was awful!! My grandfather suggested that I press a small piece of bread around the pill and then swallow it and it really worked!!! Just my piece of advice!!

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