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  • diane1
    Participant
    Post count: 3

    Hello. I was diagnosed 6 months ago with Grave’s Disease, extreme hyperthyroidism. Looking back, I realize I had symptoms over the past 2 yrs, but had attributed them to my highly stressful job. I had gone for my regular gyn visit and a routine blood test showed a thyroid value that needed to be further checked. When I consulted with an endocrinologist, I leaned of Grave’s Disease and was devastated to learn of this. What a name for a condition! My thyroid was 180% overactive! No wonder I was driving at high speeds, had wild mood swings, felt very edgy and ready to jump out of my skin every day! I was put on Tapazole 30mg and Inderal 10 mg 3x/day.
    As of today I’m on Tapazole 5mg daily and still having issues of good and bad days. Some days I have so much energy like an "energizer bunny" and other days I’m exhausted and just want to sleep. My eyes tend to get dry, blury, with dark circles that come and go. Tapazole made me gain weight and I can’t get motivated to exercise. Instead I want to sleep like today. I know when my thryroid is changing due to heartburn, vision changes, mood swings. I also have read that stress can effect my symptoms which I have a great deal of, but take one day at a time. By no means am I complaining since others are worse off then me. It’s just this is still new to me to deal with. I’ve always been a survivor in life and continue to be. In 2000 I had no signs nor symptoms when diagnosed with DCIS (ductal carcinoma in-situ) of my breast which is 0 stage of breast cancer yet can be aggressive if untreated. I’m a 10 yr breast cancer survivor having had a double mastectomy, reconstruction and radiation.
    So I guess we all take day by day.

    Kimberly
    Keymaster
    Post count: 4294

    Hello – I personally notice that stress has a *huge* impact on my symptoms.

    Many Graves’ patients are (or were before diagnosis) major "Type A" personalities who tried to be all things to all people. Now, it’s all about YOU and letting your body heal! <img decoding=” title=”Smile” /> See if there are tasks that are bogging you down that you could potentially “dump” or “delegate”. Also, building some “down time” into your day to focus on activities that bring you joy and give you energy is also helpful. Examples include meditation, gentle yoga, walking, reading, watching funny movies, or attending a live musical or theatrical performance.

    If you use the search function on this site (towards the top right-hand corner of the screen) and look for posts with "stress", "stress relief", etc., you will hopefully get some other good ideas.

    Lina1
    Participant
    Post count: 8

    Diane,

    I took a lot of comfort reading your post from the other day…funny as that may sound. I am a cancer survivor as well. I had Stage 1/II Hodgkins Lymphoma 4 years ago. A quick question for you…Did your radiation extend up into your neck? Mine did, and I had found one scientific paper/research written about a small number of patients that end up getting Graves Disease possibly as a long term side effect of that radiation. Keep hanging in there. I also have many of the same symptoms that you’re feeling and work a very demanding job. I’m starting to get used to saying the word "no" more at work, taking on less, and making time for myself and my recovery. We’ve both worked hard to get healthy once before, and can surely do it again. Stay strong and make time for yourself.

    Lina

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