[elf]

#1067976

Hi Melanie,

While I can’t say about the effects of medications you are taking (incl. birth control), your eyes’ state jumped out at me. Sounds like Graves eye disease! At least what I had when my eyes were "acitve" (they do burn out eventually, that is, the development stops). I did have a feeling of grit/sand in my eyes, they were sensitive to light and wind, to cold air, to air conditioning, to fluorescent lights… I never needed glasses/lenses, but I heard not once how optometrists confuse TED with anything under the sun – "dry eyes", allergy, – and astigmatism in your case.

Your TSH is not yet in the basement, (mine was < 0.001), and it would be nice – for yourself – to see where your free Ts are. The labs provide ranges, so you will be able to see, for yourself, where you are at. (Ask to see the numbers, don’t just let the Dr say, "you are OK", or "low" or "high"). It would be helpful to be sitting there at the appointment with a pen and paper in plain view, so he/she will know you intend to jot it down (unless they offer a copy to you).

The hungry feeling and eating a lot without gaining any weight could be a sign of hyperthyroidism, too. Hair falling out is (usually) a hypo sign, but many signs for hypo and hyper overlap. To see where you are really at, you need to see your FT3, FT4, and antibodies (TSI, TPO). They do an uptake scan, with iodine, to determine Graves. That was the most definite diagnostic tool in my case.

Hyperthyroidism depletes muscle and bones, – so yes, osteoporosis could be a result of it. You are not too young to get a bone density scan, they usually say, after 40?

Your sister is a curious case? Perhaps, the thyroid she got left, was just enough to produce the adequate amount of hormone?

Shaky, sweaty, trembling hands – all sounds too familiar.

I think you need to start with an endocrinologist, and she/he, together with your Primary care Dr may help filter other medications’ side effects.

take care,

[npatterson]

#1067977

Melanie,

Elf gave you a really good response, which I will not duplicate if I can help it. These are some brief observations from me–going back and forth from your post to mine:

The medicines you mention are not causing your thyroid problems, but some of them may need to be re-visited in light of this new diagnosis.

You are not supposed to be the one that figures out all of this–give yourself a break.

The Strattera that you are taking at night may be the thing that is waking you up so often, but talk to your doctor before switching anything.

The hair falling our is Graves’, the changes in you hair are hypo. Great news, huh?

The night sweats and the heart is Graves’.

Bone density is a good idea.

Talk about all of this with the Endocrinologist. Copy and paste your post, and then "organize" it so that it doesn’t ramble. They need facts. All your doctors need to be in on this.

Are you on some sort of medicine in the meantime? The doctor that did that bloodwork can give you something.

Good luck, and take care,

[LaurelM]

#1067978

There are a small number of other things that could cause hyperthyoidism but Graves is the usual suspect. Your endo will likely do some further testing which could be an uptake scan or auto-antibodies in more bloodwork to get a definitive diagnosis but all you symptoms sure do sound like most of us. The good news is of course that if it is, you should have a choice in treatment and with treatment you will get better (in time).

Keep us posted.

[LRstudentRN]

#1018942

Hi everyone,

I’ve been reading your board for a couple of weeks and have finally decided to ask a few questions. I am 44 and recently had my annual pap with my gyn. I just *happened* to mention to her that I was having severe night sweats and my hair is falling out. She said since I’m on b/c pills that my hormone levels are constant it shouldn’t be related to menopause. She said it sounded like a thyroid issue and offered to take blood for testing. The nurse called a couple of weeks later and said my thyroid levels were off. She said a normal range for TSH is 0.450 – 4.500 and mine is 0.306. She did not give my T3 or T4 levels and I didn’t know at that point to ask. My husband’s company’s group health insurance was recently suspended due to a late payment. The ins. co. then wanted two months payment and he could not afford to reinstate for several weeks. Business is slow, slow to say the least. He had to lay me off (along with 4 others) in January. It is reinstated effective Monday and now it’s just a wait to see the endocrinologist at the end of Oct.

I know I am rambling, but I am just so scared. In researching and reading everything I can find on the internet, I can see that I have had many of these symptoms for quite a while. I am so frustrated that I didn’t put all of this together sooner…. but it is what it is. I am on Wellbutrin, Strattera (high dose), Adderall XR and Yasmin (generic Ocella) and I wonder if any of these medications could be causing my thyroid problems or exacerbating them?

I get overheated and sweat more than I used to. I was treated for migraines, but got tired of the Neurontin the neuro put me on. It made me swell. I find I only get bad headaches if I sleep in and dont’ get up at the same time every day or if I don’t eat regular, small meals like clockwork. If I am late eating, I am stuck with a headache and have to go to bed with an ice pack on my head and eyes and close the curtains and no noise. I am always hungry yet don’t gain weight. 5’3" and 110 lbs. As I get hungrier, I get shaky, sweaty, trembling hands, headache and very irritable. Does that sound like hypoglycemia?? My hair has been coming out in the shower. My bathroom sink was clogged due to all the hair from drying my hair there. My hair has changed in texture. It won’t hold a curl. I’m getting more and more gray and it is very coarse and sticks straight up and out from my head! My eyes have been giving me fits for a while now. I can’t seem to get contacts fitted that I can see with. My optom. attributed it to severe astigmatism and said it’s difficult to correct with soft contacts. My eyes are red, have a slight white discharge ALL the time in the corners of my eyes, are irritated, gritty and the right one has had a slight twitch for weeks. My eyes have also become sensitive to light. I have given up wearing my contacts and now wear my glasses. I am a nursing student and read a lot so I have to be able to see and function. If I try to wear my contacts, I get a headache from straining to see! My heart races and sometimes feels like it is jumping around in my chest. I thought this was from the Adderall. Of course, the night sweats have been occurring for maybe 5 years, but they were so infrequent that I didn’t remember to talk to my dr. about them. I have depression, nervousness, irritability and my libido has decreased to the point that I know my husband is very frustrated with me. I talked to my sister since I vaguely remembered she had some sort of thyroid surgery years ago. She said she had the left lobe removed due to it being enlarged and was put on Synthroid. It made her irritable and she discontinued it and hasn’t monitored her thyroid since (!). Also, since I started the Strattera in 2004 (which I take before bed) I feel great in the morning and can jump out of bed when the alarm rings, but during the night I am up one to two times to go to the bathroom. I don’t have the diarrhea that I’ve read about, but I do have frequent, frequent bowel movements. Sometimes my mind races when I go to bed, but usually I don’t have trouble going to sleep, just staying asleep. I used to sleep through the night and be a very sound sleeper. Never got up to go to the bathroom. One other thing, is osteoporosis a result of hyperthyroidism? I broke my foot two years ago from twisting my ankle. It seemed such a minor thing to end up with a broken bone. Is the endocrinologist the one to talk to about this? Am I too young to get a bone density scan?

I am so sorry to spill everything out here like this. I need some support though and I can tell from reading this board that this is a good place for that.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this.

Melanie

[Kimberly]

#1067979

Hello – Everyone’s advice here has been good…the eye issues and hyperthyroid symptoms would *seem* to point to Graves, but you will want to consult an endocrinologist to make sure.

If it does turn out to be Graves, you might also consider establishing a relationship with an opthalmologist who is familiar with Graves (instead of an optometrist) to help manage your eye issues.

Best of luck!

[mamabear]

#1067980

Out of the mouth of my eye dr. NO contacts with Graves disease. Period, no excuses it isn’t worth it. You will only hurt your eyes and might create a situation that will cause your eyes to react and that is not what we want. Buy glasses and lets hope your eyes will be fine. I have astigmatism too and when I finally wanted to start wearing contacts my eye dr. said yeah sorry no way kid. Man i was peeved. I had that gritty feeling as well and he said to use the thick eye drops at night and thinner eye drops during the day. he said moisturize moisturize moisture hmmmm did i say moisturize? LOL

[mamabear]

#1067981

Graves’ Disease – Tips & Tricks for hair/skin/mental health
Here is a link to help with your hair. Just some tips, hoping it will help you.

[LRstudentRN]

#1067982

Elf,

Hi and thank you for responding. Sorry just now getting back to you.

About my TSH : It was 0.306 and they gave me normal range as 0.450 – 4.500. I have since seen somewhere else that the normal range was lowered and starts at 0.03 or something. The nurse did say every lab has different ranges which makes it difficult to understand what is what. I called back and asked for my T3 and T4 levels and the nurse said T4 – 7.7, T3 – 23, T7 (is there a T7?) – 1.8.

As far as my sister goes, she said her dr. checks her thyroid levels every year and they are okay. Who knows what happened there!

Yes, I think you are right, I’ll wait to see the endocrinologist and see if he can come up with anything.

Thanks so much once again for taking the time to write back.

Melanie

[LRstudentRN]

#1067983

Hi Nancy,

Thank you for responding.

I have another question. When you said my hair falling out is Graves’ and the changes in my hair are hypo, what does that mean? Can someone be hyper and hypo at the same?

I’m going to ask the endocrinologist if he will do a full physical with bone density scan, et al. He is with a diagnostic clinic so I’m hoping they will check everything.

When you asked if I was on any type of medicine, do you mean a beta blocker? No, I don’t have any new medicines.

I appreciate your reminding me to take it easy on ME. Thank you for listening. : )

Melanie

[LRstudentRN]

#1067984

Hi LaurelM,

Thank you for responding and for the support. I will be glad to get to the endo and see what he says and thinks. I will keep in touch and let you know.

Thanks again and take care!

Melanie

[LRstudentRN]

#1067985

Hi Kimberly,

Thanks for responding. I think what you said about an ophthamologist was an excellent idea. I need to check into that. None of the optometrists I’ve gone to in the past couple of years have made a connection between dry eyes/blurry contacts/redness and irritation with anything other than, well, just dry eyes. I’ve never been prescribed any kind of drops or ointment either. If it is Graves, then definitely I need to go to someone who is knowledgeable in that area. I’ll keep you posted. Thanks again!

Take care,
Melanie

[LRstudentRN]

#1067986

Hi Mamabear,

I really appreciate your response. If there is something going on with my eyes, I wouldn’t want to make it worse! I haven’t been diagnosed with anything yet. Once I go to the endo and see what comes of that, I will attend to my eyes next and get an ophthamologist who is familiar with these situations. I’ll keep you posted!

Thank you also for the tips for helping with my hair issues. Is that a prescription shampoo? I know I’ve seen something at the drugstore called Nioxin, I think? Have you heard of that? It is distressing when my hair seems different in every way than it did before. I realize as we age some thinning occurs, but surely nothing like this?? Yikes. ” title=”Confused” />

Take care,

Melanie

[nestle]

#1067987

Melanie, I am in a very similar situation. Just went for my annual ob/gyn exam and she thought my thryoid felt enlarged. Ran the blood test and my tsh was .005. The t3 and t4 were very high. I also wear contacts and have been complaining that I can’t see out of them, but am do for my eye exam. I don’t think I’m getting the "bug eyes" and I really hope I don’t. I also am on yasmin (ocella), but nothing else. I did the rai uptake test and it showed graves disease. I just saw the endo today and we’re trying tapazole, as I didn’t want to jump right into rai…it seemed a bit extreme. I’m hoping it might go into remission, but it sounds like it will be a waiting game. My tsh was very low, so he’s not getting my hope up that it will go into remission, but I wanted to give it a try. I wish you luck and keep me posted what happens with you. Anyone else out there on tapazole? Has it shown improvement in your numbers? Did it help your mood and sleeplessness? Does it make you gain weight? Thanks, Mary

[LRstudentRN]

#1067988

Hi Mary,

It does sound similar. What symptoms were you having? I hope the tapazole will help you. The only thing I would add is you might consider going to an ophthamologist rather than an optometrist. That was a suggestion made to me and thought I would pass it along. It does make sense to see an eye dr. who is familiar with Graves. Keep us posted on how you’re doing.

Take care,
Melanie

[nestle]

#1067989

I called an opthamologist today. Hopefully I can get in soon. I haven’t worn my contacts for a few days as my one eye is red and also has a pink eye like discharge in the mornings. I also forgot to say that I’m 43. In retrospect, I was tired, irritable, anxious, not sleeping, hot when I’m usually cold and had hand tremors. I had a bigger appetite than usual and didn’t gain weight (maybe lost a few pounds). I’ll let you know how the tapazole works for me. Did you get to the endo yet? Thanks, Mary

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