[Anonymous]

#1149469

Dale,
Thanks for the reference. I got sort of confused at the med library because there is a Journal of Neuropsychiatry and then there is a Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences. The article is in the latter for anyone interested in looking it up. You say that you haven’t felt good since being diagnosed. I was diagnosed approx. two months ago with prominent mental symptoms (anxiety, panic attacks, a little bit of depression recently) and have been seeing a psychiatrist regularly for the mental aspects of this disease. He has been a tremendous help for the emotional aspects of the disease. He prescribed a benzodiazepine for the anxiety which is working pretty well. I’m also undergoing cognitive therapy to try to alter my thought patterns as they relate to anxiety and panic. Again, working well. If these didn’t work he says that there are other options. There are also some great anti-depressants these days for depression and panic. So I hope that you are seeking help for the emotional impact of Graves from professionals because I think many of them are treatable. Of course, I have bad days and everything is still settling down but I have improved considerably since the diagnosis and although becoming euthyroid has helped tremendously I never could feel this normal this fast without the help of a psychiatrist. I have also found that including and not alienating my friends and family into the emotional aspect has helped tremendously. I am very optimistic that at some point (maybe not tomorrow, or next week, or next month) that I will feel like myself again. I wouldn’t be able to get out of bed in the morning if I didn’t have that optimism.
All the best,
George.

[Anonymous]

#1050522

Thanks for the info on the article!

Hang in there, Dale. You are not being a hypochondriac for being so aware of your feelings. In fact, that’s what helps you deal with everything. Once I realized the early signs of an anxiety attack, I was able to take some action — breath deep, change my schedule some to lighten things up and if possible, cutting down on noise around me. That’s not enough a lot of times, but at least I give it a try. Sometimes it helps. Write in a journal. Learn some biofeedback. Or just close your eyes and think of good things, like people who support you or a good place.

This is a crazy disease, but you are not crazy.

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