Brenda, my grandson Matthew lives with me – he has had Graves for over 2
years now. He just turned 7 in October. He wasn’t diagnosed until last
Feb. I found an excellent specialist who I trust with this child’s life.
It is extremely difficult on a small child. He grew a foot and a half
between his 5th birthday and his 6th. He has been on several different
medications – some worked better than others. He has adjusted to having
this disease and hopes someday he won’t have to get “needles”. He thinks
he is going to turn into a vampire. We try to make jokes about it to
lighten his emotional load. Let’s face it, as long as there is life, there
is hope. Tell your friend that she must TRUST the child’s doctor, and
make sure she asks lots of questions. I sometimes just stop the doc in
the middle of his answers and say: “That was very interesting, now can
you tell me in words I can understand?” He does just that. I too don’t
know anyone else with a small child with this disease so there is no one I
can talk to about it. Also, I have just recently learned that children with
Graves qualify for SSI – social security disability income. It helps
greatly to offset the medical and pharmaceutical costs. Tell her to call
the local social security office for the information.
