Viewing 12 posts - 1 through 12 (of 12 total)
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  • Anonymous
    Participant
    October 20, 2003 at 7:54 pm
    Post count: 93172
    #1091459

    Hello Becky,

    Welcome to our board and the NGDF. Being pregnant with Graves’ disease does call for close watching and if your levels can be maintained in the normal ranges your pregnancy should be no different than any other woman. Where pregnancy and Graves’ becomes an issue is if the mother runs hyper or hypothyroid.

    There are NO holistic or dietary treatments for Graves’ disease. The three treatments that have been proven to work are antithyroid drugs (ATDs), RAI or thyroidectomy. ATDs can be prescribed during pregnancy and close monitoring is needed. If you go too hyper you run the risk of miscarriage and if you run too hypo you run the risk of a child with reduced IQ. RAI is not done on pregnant women at any time. Thyroidectomy can be done later in the pregnancy with minor risk.

    So you do have some options. We have an excellent chapter on Graves’ and pregnancy in our book “Graves’ Disease In Our Own words”. We are only a click away. By the way I saw you posted lab values. Only your doctor should interpret your labs for you since they know your whole medical history. Anyone else who interprets your labs is actually practicing medicine without a license.

    Jake
    On-line Facilitator
    Co-Author “Graves’ Disease In Our Own Words”

    Anonymous
    Participant
    October 20, 2003 at 9:52 pm
    Post count: 93172
    #1025450

    I am very scared. I want this pregnancy to last but the Emergency Care provider said that Graves pg’s don’t always last. I have 2 children already and never experienced Graves until August (I will be 34 on Sunday). I am still nursing my 11 mos dau and didn’t know if this has an impact. I have lost 64 lbs since Nov 02 and have a resting hr of up to 120 for no apparent reason but it is sporadic and usually at night or associated with adrenalin. Dr said my eyes were “wide” and I shake really bad sometimes. Anyone with suggestions. Got labs back today the pg results looked good the HCG for pg was around 9,000 and the blood for the T/3 and T/4 were lost on me she said something about either .0128 or .128 for one and the other was 5.??? so she said the last one was nearly 2.5x higher than normal. Any help or advice is welcome. Thank you. Any ideas for homeopathic or dietary suggestions?

    ~Becky

    Anonymous
    Participant
    October 21, 2003 at 10:53 am
    Post count: 93172
    #1091460

    I also have Graves Disease, i was diagnosed almost two years ago. I gave birth in march to a beautiful healthy baby girl. I took PTU my entire pregnancy, i was only on 200 mg. a day which is very safe, i believe any more than 300 could be slightly dangerous. As long as you are monitored and continue to have your levels checked you will be fine. Dont read about the horror stories of having graves and being pregnant, just take care of yourself and see your dr. Everything will be fine. Are you taking any medicine now for the graves? ALL THE BEST TO YOU and hope i could be of some help.

    DONNA

    Anonymous
    Participant
    October 22, 2003 at 2:09 pm
    Post count: 93172
    #1091461

    I too am pregnant (12 weeks) and was diagnosed with graves recently. Our circumstances seem so similar it is unreal. I was still nursing our second baby, found out I was hyper and then a week later found out about baby #3!
    My OB doctor has said there is an increased risk of miscarriage in the first trimester when you have thyroid problems. But once you get to 12 weeks your risks are just the same as a normal pregnancy. I’ve already had 3 ultrasounds and the baby is doing great. I was put on a betablocker and PTU to control the symptoms and the thyroid. Both are completely safe during pregnancy. My best advice is to get good doctors who know what they are dealing with. I see my OB and endocrinologist once a month for the second trimester. They are keeping a close monitor on my T4 and antibodies. My OB said the third trimester will bring weekly doctor visits to monitor the baby closely for any signs of distress and a level 2 ultrasound to check baby’s thyroid.
    I’m just going to attempt to relax and enjoy this trimester looking forward to feeling baby move, finding out if it’s a boy or girl, and enjoy not feeling so tired (if that’s possible with 3 and 1 year old boys!). I hope I’ve helped in some way ease your concerns. If I can be any help or you have any questions please let me know. It’s nice to find someone in the same situation.
    Michelle

    Anonymous
    Participant
    October 22, 2003 at 3:07 pm
    Post count: 93172
    #1091462

    Thank you so much Michelle. It is amazing how similar our situations are. Lilly is 11 mos and only nursing 2 or 3 times a day (those nap and bedtime nursings are the hardest to cut out). I was just thrilled to see that healhty little one in there yesterday. I’ll keep you posted as to what the Endo says tomorrow. Good luck with your pregnancy too! OH and how old is your first child? Mine is 9 1/2 years old.

    ~Becy

    Anonymous
    Participant
    October 22, 2003 at 8:03 pm
    Post count: 93172
    #1091463

    Becky,
    My oldest is three and the youngest will be 13 months on Oct. 26. So they keep me busy, which is good it keeps my mind off all the other stuff that I could be worrying about! I did get Isaac weaned about 3 weeks ago. We just had the nap and bedtime nursings for awhile but I just couldn’t keep it up, I was too tired.

    I will pray your appointment goes well tomorrow.
    Michelle

    Anonymous
    Participant
    January 7, 2004 at 7:55 pm
    Post count: 93172
    #1091464

    Hi. I am 13 weeks pregnant and was diagnosed with Grave’s Disease about 2 weeks ago. My heart was pounding, when I went to the OB it was 138. I then saw a cardiologist and he tested me. My tsh was .013. I am on 300 mg of PTU and Toprol xl for the fast heart rate. I am very scared. Do you know how long it takes PTU to start working? Thanks.

    Lisa L.

    Anonymous
    Participant
    January 8, 2004 at 8:31 am
    Post count: 93172
    #1091465

    Hi, Lisa, and welcome to our board.

    I would suggest that you get a book titled YOUR THYROID: A Home Reference, which is recommended on our main NGDF website. It is written by three doctors, in layman’s language, and contains information that can be extremely helpful to you. It is also one of the few books on that list that discusses pregnancy issues directly.

    Graves’ disease is a very treatable problem, and we have seen (throughout the years of this bulletin board) reports from women like you about their pregnancies and their babies. So, please, do not panic. Your doctors are apparently alert and efficient, and that is a very good sign.

    As to your question: PTU starts working immediately. Its purpose is to interfere with the chemical reaction that takes place inside thyroid cells during the manufacture of thyroid hormone. So, essentially, PTU is a chemical block to the production of new hormone. The thyroid, however, also stores hormone for future needs. Until the stored hormone is used up, you will not necessarily feel the effects of the PTU. How long that takes is anybody’s guess, but it is usually not horridly long.

    I hope you are feeling much better, soon.
    Bobbi — NGDF Online Facilitator

    Anonymous
    Participant
    January 8, 2004 at 11:09 am
    Post count: 93172
    #1091466

    I was diagnosed with graves before pregnancy. I started on 400 mg of ptu. but when got pregnant.. was dropped to 200 mg..which is totally safe…. and 200 worked well and still am on 200 mg a day and i gave birth 9 months ago to a beautifuly healty baby girl. As long as you are carefully monitored and have blood work done.. then you will be fine. It is scary but we need the medicine to helpo us and the little one you are carrying. I dont know much about the other medicine you are on… just let your ob gyn know what is going on with your thyroid so they are kept closely informed as well.. Good luck to you. Feel fee to write if i can be of any help to you..

    bigbrowniis768@aol.com
    Donna

    Anonymous
    Participant
    January 10, 2004 at 5:55 pm
    Post count: 93172
    #1091467

    When I started PTU I noticed a big difference within 3 weeks. So it didn’t take very long for me at all. My TSH was .02 so not that far off from yours.

    Anonymous
    Participant
    January 15, 2004 at 7:06 pm
    Post count: 93172
    #1091468

    thanks to everyone for the advice. I have been on Ptu and beta blocker for 2 weeks. I am feeling a little better. Hopefully in the next few weeks I’ll notice a big difference. Thanks for the support, it has really helped me!
    Lisa L.

    Anonymous
    Participant
    January 28, 2004 at 9:28 am
    Post count: 93172
    #1091469

    Hi Becky :)))

    I was diagnosed with graves about 3 months ago and am now doing great. My symptoms were racing heart, insomnia, itching and can’t remember what else. I was on beta blockers and anti-thyroid and Ambien. I am happy to say my thyroid labs are now normal and have been normal since 6 weeks after starting drugs. I am now only on 10 mg. Methamazole per day. Also, I have a 2 year- old- daughter and the endo dr. says I’ve probably had Graves for several years, meaning I delivered a healthy baby proceeding a healthy pregnancy while having undiagnosed/untreated graves.

    Good luck.

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