Anonymous
Hi there PM Duckie. I had RAI the beginning of February and chose to do the first 48 hours in isolation just like you did. I was lucky my in-laws had an apartment not very far from the medical center (my home is 3 and 1/2 hours away from the medical center). Anyway, I got through the 48 hours by keeping focused on a list of tasks that I had decided that I wanted to get through. I am a very “task oriented” person so that gave me something to think about instead of feeling alone and sorry for myself. The aloneness is a huge issue. I have three children (age 8, 6, and 3) along with a hubby (married for 12 years) so the concept of being by myself for 48 hours was honestly daunting to me. I concentrated on three different things: reading a couple of books that I wanted to read, working on an editorial article that I had started but not completed, and watching Natural Horsemanship Videos. Outside of my family, horses are my passion. No one at my house likes to watch the Parelli videos with me, so I took alot of them along and spent many hours watching them and mentally improving my horsemanship skills even though I couldn’t be with my horses (who were 3 1/2 hours away with my family). I also took short walks, but February in Nebraska is very cold so I couldn’t ever walk very far b/c of the ice and the weather.
My main advice is to make a list of several things that you want to do and then move from one activity to another so that you don’t get feeling bored. Also, make sure that you follow your doctors instructions regarding eating/drinking/sucking on lemon drops ect. very carefully. Doing that helped me to maximize the radiation that went to my thyroid gland and minimize the radiation that went other places in my body.
I also had a sore throat, although mine did not start until a couple of days after the procedure. Swelling began the 2nd day. In the next few days/week watch yourself carefully to be able to manage any “leak” of hormone or increase in hyper symptoms as best you can. If you were told to take beta-blockers if your heart rate quickens, then do it. It is better to stay on top of that and not let your heartrate get out of control.
It will be hard if you are returning home to small children to maintain the “bubble”, but just be consistent and follow the doctors instructions. I had a big dose of RAI so I had 16 days before I could have close contact with my 3 year old. I knew that it was impossible to treat my three kids differently (single out the 3 year old) so I just told all of my kids that we couldn’t have close contact (cuddling) for 16 days. You can eat dinner in the same room–just across the room and still feel a part of everything. I had to sleep alone for 7 days and couldn’t be in the car with my kids for 7 days.
Remember that you did the procedure to fix a problem that needed fixed. Nothing is perfect, and you will have some tough days ahead; but your ultimate goal should be good health. And, you can’t achieve that without dealing with your Graves Disease. It may take a while, but everything will be ok. Don’t be afraid to contact your doctor if things do not progress the way that you think they should. This is not the time to be shy. If something doesn’t feel right, then call and ask about it. I had a strange reaction to the RAI that required additional medical attention. Although it is very unlikely that this will happen to you, you need to stay in control and not be afraid to call the doctor if you have questions.
Good luck to you. I will be thinking of you.
Anne