You asked if Graves’ disease will go away or if you’ll have it forever, no matter what treatment you get.
Basically, you’ll have Graves’ Disease forever, but it is treatable. The thyroid and the eyes can be treated separately. The thyroid can be controlled, and the hyperthyroidism can be permanently treated by radioactive iodine or surgery if you destroy the thyroid and trade hyperthyroidism for hypothyroidism.
If you have the eye disease, it’s possible that some of the problems will improve on their own in time, but for some people they don’t improve very much. For most people the problems never go completely away. It depends on how severe they were to begin with, and it depends on the individual patient.
People who have severe cases of eye disease usually need or want surgery to correct the problems the disease caused, including proptosis (buggy eyes), lid retraction, fat in the skin around the eyes, and double vision. Dry eyes can be treated by blocking the puncta (holes through which excess tears drain out of the eyes) and by using artificial tears and ointments. Dry eyes are often a problem for people with Graves’ who have no other obvious signs of eye disease.
How long have you had Graves’ Disease? How have you treated your thyroid?
Dianne W
Online Facilitator