[barbra]

#1060557

Just wanted to pop in and say HI.

I have finally achieved lasting normal levels since March 2014. I feel fine, even with the other ailments, which popped up.
I was diagnosed in the spring of 2013, had RAI in July that year, switched from Levothyroxin to Synthroid in December and hit consistently normal levels in March. Doctors appointments, both endo and PCP are now 6 months apart.

Sounds so easy and not complicated at all, doesn’t it?

I did have a horribly itchy rash below one knee about two months ago and some slight hair loss but it resolved itself. I am not going to fiddle with my dosage of Synthroid. I take it at 7:30AM every day, come hell or high water.

I have re-read just some of my older posts and all I can say is WOW! What a miserable journey this was, even without the shingles and degenerative disc/joint disease. So many different symptoms and aches, no wonder we get all confused and discouraged.

Hopefully, this normalcy will continue and I wish that all of you fellow travelers get to your destination very soon.

I wrote this update because sometimes I still wonder what ever happened to Boomer. Remember him Sue, Shirley?

Hugs.
Barbra.

[SueAndHerZoo]

#1183312

Hi Barbra – so thrilled to hear that you’ve found some normalcy and relief from the hell known as Graves Disease! It’s kinda like childbirth, isn’t it? It’s absolutely hell when you’re going through it and you don’t think you’re going to be able to take much more, but once it’s over, you tend to forget how bad it was.

I think I’m at or close to my sweet spot. I have been at the same dose for almost 3 months and I think I like this dosage so I will have blood drawn in a week or two and see where my TSH is. It’s so nice to give our bodies some consistency and as a result our bodies stop beating on us as much.

Wow… Boomer. His disappearance is kind of scary / upsetting. I’m going to go back into my private messages and send him one to see if he replies. You’re right – he definitely gave us cause to wonder what happened to him. He was so actively here and then….. GONE.

Congrats on feeling good…… let’s hope more people can join that team.
Sue

[barbra]

#1183313

Hi Sue,

I am happy that you are closing in on you target. That would be great.

You are right, it is a bit like child birth, although a whole lot longer, but once you’re past it it tends to fade away some. Just one thing: I had three children but I indend to have only one “Graves”!

The reason Boomer crossed my mind once again was that he was funny, uplifting and only one week ahead of me on this journey and with the RAI. He was blazing the trail, so to speak.

Maybe you can get an answer to your message, maybe he’s all well and happy.

Take care, Sue. I wish you and everyone else here all the best. I’ll stay in touch because I care how you all are getting along.

Hugs.
Barbra.

[snelsen]

#1183314

Hi Barbra, Sue/zoo!

I also think about Boomer now and then! I think I’ll send PM to him, se how his world is. Also nice to hear from AZ Graves guy now and then!

Barbra, did you get an immunization for shingles? Just wondering. I think it is still recommended for us, even though you have had shingles.

IT is so nice to hear both of you are doing well! About darn time, huh?

I agree that reading older posts is really a GOOD idea! I have done the same thing with my own posts, and it helps me be grateful where what can do now, and that I am on the other end of this mess, even with the deficits I have with tapping my eye closed at night. I would prefer to take more Sythroid, I feel better with more, but now I have cardiac issues, and my goal is to stay in the normal range with thyroid labs.

Shirley

[Kimberly]

#1183315

Thanks, Barbra, for the update – so glad that you are feeling well!

A quick note about PMs – when you send a PM, the system will send an e-mail notification to the e-mail address that the person used to register here.

Sometimes folks use their main e-mail address, so they will see notifications quickly, but other times, people will use a custom e-mail from gmail, yahoo, etc. – specifically for this site. In that case, people might not check that address for e-mails as often. But if you do hear back, have Boomer stop in and say “hi”!

[barbra]

#1183316

Hi Shirley,

To answer your question: No, I haven’t gotten the immunization for Shingles yet.
Darn it, I still think I’d be better off and have more fun if I take the $120.00 to the Charlestown, WV casino and throw it into the slots. Maybe one can get Shingles only once???
Of course, now that I have put this and my wellness on paper it’ll all go south. That’s about the way my luck runs. In which case you will hear me whining and lamenting soon enough.
I just changed insurance plan and provider, maybe they’ll actually pay a decent amount towards the vaccine. I’ll check on that.

Take good care. Gotta go shovel some snow, pack it up and send it to Seattle.

Hugs to all of you.
Barbra.

[flora]

#1183317

Hi Barbra and Sue –
I’ve been hoping Boomer will come on by with his fantastic brand of humour and optimism, too – if you reach him, please add me to the list of those wanting him back to the form! Will be good to know how he’s doing,
flora

[joy123]

#1183318

Hi Barbra, Sue and everyone
Its great to hear you`re getting on well Barbra – and Sue I think I maybe near my sweet spot too. I`m glad to hear you`re the same.
I think my GP over medicated me around Christmas time and when I got to see my endo she dropped my levothyroxine to 125 mcg from the 150 my GP had prescribed.
I had all sorts of aches and pains- just about everywhere…(whinge, whinge)
But within a week most had gone
I`m left with knees and lower legs aching but hopefully (fingers crossed) they`ll disappear too soon. I`ve been on the lower dose 3 weeks so I `m hoping its still got time to work.

I`m due another blood test next week, but only TSH as over here they just will not test T4 or T3 unless the endo instructs it!!
Anyway I`m hoping that the results will show whether I need that tweak of levo to get me A1 again.
What a journey and yep a fabulous analogy `just like childbirth.`
Keep well
Joy x

[SueAndHerZoo]

#1183319

Darn, sorry I’m so late to replying – I apparently never subscribed to this thread so never saw that there were additional messages in it!

I tried contacting Boomer a few times through PM and am getting nothing back. Scares me, a lot.

I have been at the same dosage for 3 months and 1 week and I have no idea where my levels are because I keep postponing my endo appointment and stalling on getting my blood drawn. The truth is, I feel pretty darned good where I am now and really don’t WANT my doc to see my numbers because he’ll probably encourage me to tweak a little more. I just really want to enjoy being at a consistent dose for a while and not deal with the side affects of changing the dose, ya know? My curiosity will get to me soon, though, and I will have blood drawn, but nothing says that I will change my dose even if he tells me to. If my TSH is at least close to the minimum acceptable level I may stay right here for a while.

So nice that some of us old-timers keep checking back in…. we’re kinda like family with all we’ve been through.
Sue

[flora]

#1183320

Wow, Sue! So great to read about how well you’ve been feeling – and as Etta James sang it – AT LAST!! I’m still on the rollercoaster – not the Big Dipper kind anymore, thankfully, but still feeling those small changes in levels. (I’m thinking about changing my screen name to “sensitive hot house flower”, but with this crazy disease, it’s likely already been taken!). Wish we could make contact with Boomer, too – he has no idea how much he helped so many of us in the Class of 2013 …
Again, good for you, Sue – I’m getting closer, too!
flora

[SueAndHerZoo]

#1183321

OK, so you’re now on the kiddie roller coaster instead of the adult one – which means you’re on the home stretch to the merry-go-round!

I have no idea what my TSH is but I can stay awake all day and evening and have energy to do all the things I want to do, yet when I go up to bed I am able to fall asleep quickly. For me, that’s pretty close to perfect. (Amazing how little we ask when we’ve been through Graves hell!)

Of course now my colitis is acting up so, as has been said, “it’s always something!” But I still count my blessings every day that these are not life-threatening challenges I deal with and appreciate that I have a job, a roof over my head, and food on the table. There are lots who don’t have that so I am in no position to bitch (much). Luckily we have this forum where we CAN come and bitch, and know that others will understand.
Sue

[flora]

#1183322

There’s just no saying it any better than that, Graves Warriors! Thanks for perspective, Sue, and continued success along the journey!
flora

[Robboford]

#1183323

Hi Barbra, Sue, Flora and my fellow Warriors,
Great to hear that for some, “normal” is almost back in your lives and if not, that you are close to getting there. For me, my journey continues with still raging antibodies, muscle aches (a slight lessening of the severity and frequency of the cramps now that I have doubled my dose of my magnesium). After my latest blood test yesterday, hopefully my magnesium levels are back to normal or close to it. It is quite astounding to me that after 12 months of complaining and suggesting to my Endo that “Should I try Magnesium?” and him saying no harm in trying it and him being astounded that when I demanded my magnesium level be tested the results came back that I was clinically suffering from low magnesium levels. (He then told me to double the dose at my next visit). It has taken at least 3 months for the tablets to kick in though, and who knows whether it was the supplements or something else that caused an easing of my cramping. I almost wanted to have my leg amputated before Christmas after suffering from a calf cramp in my leg for 28 days solid. I am certainly an “interesting case study” according to my specialists and various medical professionals involved in my treatment. Wishing you all continued wellness and stable labs (lol).
Cheers
Deb
(A.K.A. Robboford)

[flora]

#1183324

Hi Ladies,
Bumping this up just to see if anyone has caught up with Boomer – some Boomer Humour would be great about now, as another snowstorm moves in on us! It would be good to hear from him, and hear how goes his Graves journey…
– flora

[Robboford]

#1183325

Flora: Boomer Humour – love it. You’re a poet and didn’t even know it – lol. I look forward to catching up with him also. To my fellow warriors, thanks for posting your updates, gives hope to the rest of us still on the Big Dipper.
Cheers
Deb
(A.K.A. Robboford)

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