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  • Anonymous
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    Post count: 93172

    Hi bmm,

    First, don’t feel as if you’re the one that’s nuts. Graves’ Disease symptoms can be very complex and can vary a lot from patient to patient, but some of what you discuss (anxiety, rage, depression, forgetfulness) are pretty common with GD patients. Some of the other symptoms, I’m not sure you can blame on GD, but as I said, it affects each of us differently, so maybe they are and maybe they aren’t from GD. The important thing is that it’s critical to have your endo as a TEAM MEMBER in your treatment, and yours is not acting like one.

    The anxiety meds we talk about here are not always prescribed by an endo, so you may be able to go to your primary care physician and ask to get those, or ask for a referral to a therapist that can prescribe such meds. Even though your emotional symptoms are chemically created, you can still derive benefit from talking with a therapist, and they can monitor anti-depressants or anxiety meds as well.

    It looks like it’s a good time for you to switch endos, at least, and look for a therapist as well. The frustration is SO difficult to manage, and it ends up affecting the rest of the symptoms as well when we feel as if we are not even being well cared for by our own medical professionals.

    I wish you luck! There’s a great section in “Graves’ Disease: In Our Own Words” on how to find a new doctor. I recommend it highly.

    ~Ski
    NGDF Assistant Online Facilitator

    Anonymous
    Participant
    Post count: 93172

    Your symptoms and feelings sound so very familiar to me…don’t feel as though you are crazy-because these issues are very real and will eventually effect most if not all aspects of your life.

    Don’t be afraid to change endos. Remember-you hire them-and you can fire them. You are lining thier pockets with every appointment you make, and you should be able to walk out of that office each time feeling as though you are taking a step in the right direction. I think sometimes the doctors can get too comfortable in thier practice, and tend to use a “take a number please” approach to thier patients. That’s not just endos either. Graves really changes our bodies and getting a 2nd, 3rd, 4th opinion is our choice and our right.

    Also…my experience with Tapazole was completely unacceptable. I ended up gaining about 10 pounds in 10 days! There was a slew of other reactions…and when I finally got the chance to tell my endo the “list of symptoms” since starting the Tapazole…he basically just shrugged his shoulders and said “That’s not Graves”. From that point on I decided to take charge of the care I was recieving and stop following the doctor “blindly” without explanations and answers. I never went back to him, and don’t regret it one bit.

    I switched to PTU, and although the weight didn’t come off….at least it didn’t keep going up. Maybe you can ask your current or new endo about switching meds.

    You have to be at peace with your choices and treatments. If not, you will second guess everything and always be wondering “what if”. If this is causing you so much turmoil, maybe it’s time to make some changes. The doctor is supposed to be helping you, not making matters worse.

    Hope you are in better spirits soon.

    Anonymous
    Participant
    Post count: 93172

    Hi Everyone!
    Just needing some support BAD. I went to my appointment with my endo yesterday and I told him all my symptoms, depression, anxiety, rage, numbness in hands and feet, weight gain (was extreme loss), headaches, forgetfullness, slurred speech, and just feelings of not being me. At my last appointment my free t4’s were extremely high. Well, I told him all this and he said that I probably have some carpal tunnel and didn’t even comment about my symptoms-he just said well, we see what’s going on when the blood work comes back. Now I don’t want a pity party or the Endo to sit and explain everything about Graves for 30 minutes, but I would like some professional responsiblity on his part to at least tell me that some of these are common symptoms of graves, etc. and brief me on an understanding of what is going on in my body. These symptoms are affecting me every day! They are changing my work, relationships, everything and he didn’t even comment on them when I told him. Now I feel like I am just crazy or a hypochondriac or something and maybe these symptoms are from something else! I put a lot of trust in Dr.’s and after he didn’t respond to any of my symptoms I just have no idea what to think. Almost everyone on this message board has went through these symptoms when there levels were off and he didn’t agree that any of them were normal symptoms. The nurse called to tell me my free t4’s were down but still high and to continue to take my current dose of tapazole. I asked her about the anxiety and how other people’s endo’s have given them anxiety medicine to relieve and help them. She said she knows that is common for Grave’s patients but my Endo just doesn’t give anxiety medicication prescriptions?! Anyone know how I am feeling? I just feel totally lost right now. I feel like I should go to another endo? Help!!!!!!

    Anonymous
    Participant
    Post count: 93172

    I have went through everything you listed and my general doctor was very understanding. He is the one that put me on something for anxiety and gave me something to help me sleep. Maybe you could try your general doctor. I am lucky that I have a great one.
    Good Luck

    Anonymous
    Participant
    Post count: 93172

    Help anyone!! I am having lots of anxiety after having my dosage changed from 100mcg to 75mcg 2 weeks ago. I tried Paxil for 1 dosage and thought it gave me more anxiety so my doc said to stop taking it. Right now, I’m trying to hold it all together and feel desperate as I’m feeling MUCH worse. My doc said today to maybe go back to 100mcg. Would you do this? I’m sitting here shivering and it’s over 30 degrees outside. There is air conditioning but I’m frozen. I’m worried this is all because I went hypo after that last dosage change. Is that possible on a small dose change? What would you do? Anyone!

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