[Anonymous]

#1094685

Hi debbee:

I would definately get a second opinion just for peace of minds sake. After all you have to live in your body and you know when something doesn’t feel right. I’ll fill you in on my symptoms and you see if it sounds familiar.

I was diagnosed with Grave’s about 12 years ago. After being on the pills to control heart rate etc. I opted for RAI.

Like you, I became hyperthyroid after the birth of my second child. I was extremely hot all the time. I was losing weight at a phenominal pace and eating like a pig. Hungry all the time. My heart was racing out of control. Panic attacks. Bulging eyes and goiter. My hands had tremors and I was tired all the time no matter how much sleep I got.

After the RAI just the opposite occured. As my thyroid was sloly being killed by the RAI my thyroid levels began to drop and when they got within normal range I felt wonderful. After about 2 weeks of wonderful my levels started going south and I became severely hypothyroid.

I gained weight at a phenominal pace, I was puffy and cold and couldn’t get warm. Even worse panic attacks. Severe depression. Felt so tired I couldn’t get out of bed. I was in thyroid hell.

It turns out that my body wasn’t absorbing the thyroid replacement hormone and I ended up in the hospital on non-stop steroids to jump start my system. It worked and I did start to absorb the hormones but it was a slow recovery.

My lingering effects have been easy weight gain, swelling and I had to go on anti-depressants. I am functional though. I still have the panic attacks but they may be from life stressors. I ended up with type II diabedes I assume because of my weight gain of around 60 pounds.

You may or may not have these problems. Ask alot of questions and if you do go through with the RAI, just know that I’ll be there for you if you need to talk.

Your thyroiditis my very well have become Grave’s and it isn’t curable only treatable. RAI does seem to be the treatment of choice. Just keep close tabs on your body. If you see any changes at all in the way you feel it is not in your mind it is in your hormone levels. Contact your doctor immediately and avoid hormone hell. Take care and God Bless. Keep in touch.

[Anonymous]

#1026583

Hi Im a newbie,

I’d like to share with you guys my story and see what you think. Any comments are welcomed! I have always been a normal medium frame all my life, after i had my daughter I had hyperthyroid, which at the time was misdiagnosed, they put me on zoloft and buspar, which didnt help much, i lost tons of weight, was a nervous wreck and after about a year I became normal again. That was 10 years ago.

Since then I was functioning normally keeping my weight at a great range. Including wearing mid-drift shirt! We moved to Italy and after one year I gained 50 pounds, became extremely tired and fatigued and could not lose weight. We moved back to the states in Sept. my son was in a horrible car accident, i had to teach him how to walk and it was very stressful, i was trying to be strong. I also was a radio dj which Ive been for years, you have to keep up a happy spirit.

I was taking some vitamins and herbs that were suppose to help you lose weight. One night I had horriable palpatations, lost vision in one eye, felt faint, panicked, got dizzy, had tremors. It was horrible and did not go away for months. I would feel nauseated, tremor, get hot, lost 15 pounds in a week, couldnt eat, I was a mess. I couldnt drive because I felt so dizzy and would get very strong heart palpatations. It freaked me out. The doctors just said it was stress and gave me zoloft and buspar, it barely helped. Five months later i went to an endo and he said I had a goiter. He did tests and my Tsh at the time was 1.16 then three weeks later it went down to 0.022. I had an uptake done that showed a toxic nodule with cysts on one lobe and a cold nodule on the other. He did an FNA but wasnt sure if he got the nodule, he only did the cold one.

He moved and i went to another doc. On the report he said I had Graves, yet he told me it was thyroiditits. The other doctor said it was graves and even though im feeling much better ( 9months after it happened!) My thyroid is still very large and painful. SHe wants to give me RAI, but Im affraid! They havent tried any other treatments. Should I get a second opinon? Im not really sure exactly whats going on with me, but i can feel my thyroid get really large sometimes and feel like bubbles inside it, its really werid. Im I crazy or has anyone else experienced this?

Thanks!
Debbee

[Anonymous]

#1094686

Thanks so much for some input! I really appreciate it!
DEb

[Anonymous]

#1094687

hello i just wanted to say i have a similar story they kept telling me that i was depressed because of all my symptoms and then i ended up going to a endo and they told me that i had graves disease after all the tests. i also had the rai done and it didnt really help they are doing a total thyroidectomy on the 22nd of july. so i would say that you should get a second opinion.

[Anonymous]

#1094688

Hi everyone,
I am new to the board and glad I found you guys! I have a question for anyone who can help. Back in Nov 02 I started having heart palpatations,tremors, crying spells..you name it. At the time my tsh level was 1.28 so my docs ignored the symptoms and said i was depressed gave me zoloft and sent me on my way. The symptoms got so bad they thought i had MS, I got all these crazy tests but they found nothing.

In April of 03 I went to a endo, at the time my tsh had fallen to 0.066 they thought it was thyroiditis, said wait it out. They did a uptake and it was very low. another buy buy have a nice day. At this point I had quit my job and thought i was going nuts.

I went back to the endo and said my thyroid was very painful, it hurt and he said sorry just wait it out.

I went to another endo who said my tsh is now ,<0.001 and my free t3 is borderline high, he thinks i am getting graves although my symptoms arent as bad as they were back in Nov. He wants me to do the RAI treatment next week and Im scared! I hear so many bad things about RAI on line and I have no idea what I will feel like. I dont know why no one has put me on anti thyroid drugs! Have any of you done RAI treatment? and if so, are you glad? Please any help would be great. I just want to get back to my fun lovely self which seems to have gotten lost with this disease!
Thanks,
MeMe

[Anonymous]

#1094689

I had RAI done on July 30, I have had the same symptoms that i had before, but the crying at a drop of a hat has gotten worse. But you know my husband never tells me NO!! I am going to Thailand for 10 days in Sept.and the dr. told me that that was fine. I was prepared for the worst but so far so good, I will have my first blood test on the 29 of this month and we will see what happens then.

I wish you the very best and you will get better. Keep thinking possitive, It help.

MJ

[Anonymous]

#1094690

Thank-you you have been so helpful to me through this and I do tend to overthink things so just the feed back I get here really helps. I will do as the doctor says and focus on getting better.

Thank-you again

[Author]

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