[dcollmar]

#1058639

Hi everyone! I have recently been diagnosed with GD. I have been taking tapazole for a few months. At first my endo wanted to do RAI and chose not to go that route at the time. When I first started the meds after a few weeks I was feeling better and have recently began feeling bad again and in some ways a little worse as far as confusion, poor concentration, irritability, my hands don’t function as I would like them to, I drop stuff all the time, and they have a numb feeling most of the time. My legs bother me at night when I am trying to goto sleep which I might add I just started being able to sleep about 4 weeks ago.
I goto the dr next week and am very nervous. I am hyper now, if I choose to do the RAI I will then be hypo from my understanding. I know I will more than likely have to take meds for the rest of my life and iI am fine with that, provided I feel good and feel like myself again(I seem to have lost myslef somewhere along the way). I guess I am wondering is it better to be hyper or hypo, the way I see it I will be one or the other. Is one worse than the other, especially if I have to put radioactive iodine into my body(which to me is a scary thought). I am looking for other people input, thoughts and experiences. Thanks

[Kimberly]

#1169132

Hello and welcome!

The goal with any of the treatment options is to avoid being either hypER or hypO; after RAI treatment or surgery, your doctor will start you on replacement hormone and tinker with the dose until you are "euthyroid" — neither hyper or hypo.

All three treatment options (Anti-Thyroid Drugs, RAI, Surgery) are valid choices. If you would prefer to stay on the Tapazole, it might be as simple as adjusting your dose to get your levels back in the "normal" range. I take methimazole (generic Tapazole) and I find that when I get really stressed out, this sends me hypER again…which requires a dose adjustment to get things levelled out again.

If you are interested in exploring other options, you can use the search function on this site to read experiences from other patients. Try combinations like "RAI", "Radioiodine", "Surgery", or "Thyroidectomy."

Please check back and let us know how you are doing!

[miltomal]

#1169133

i have been thru the ride of a lifetime with Graves disease. the ultimate goal is to be balanced in body, mind and spirit for myself, and that is not accomplishable either Hyper or Hypo. With being Hyper, my body and heart were wasting away, along with my mind and my spirituality, i also lost myself along the way. it is amazing how much you can lose when you are not paying attention,and i mean that these changes in the body, mind, and spirit occur slowly, so they can be hard to be aware of.
i went through the RAI on may 6th of this year, which was a very hard decision for myself to make, and as of last Monday, i am officially Hypo!! and looking to up my dose of Armour to balance out those hormones within the body. My body has calmed down from being so hyper, my mind has calmed down, and i am living in the present and looking to the future again.

if you had to choose, i would choose Hypo over being Hyper, but neither of these will really let you live your life fully.

best of luck

[Bobbi]

#1169134

One comment to dcollmar — when we have RAI or surgery, we do lose our natural thyroid function. But we are not "hypo" if we are on an appropriate dose of replacement hormone. Replacement hormone IS thyroid hormone. It is a product that is precisely the same as our body’s own T4 (in most cases) and it is utilized in precisely the same way as our own T4.

The key issue about whether or not to stay on the antithyroid meds, or to remove the thyroid must be made on whether or not your levels of hormone are adequately controlled by the meds without adverse side effects. If the meds keep your thyroid level in the normal zone, without side effects, fine. If they do not removing the thyroid can help you to regain your health.

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