[mamabear November 26, 2008 at 10:57 am Post count: 484]

#1075191

I have to run ds5 up to school bus but will reply as soon as I get back. Warning though, I write long posts !! ” title=”Wink” /> ” title=”Wink” /> ” title=”Wink” />

[mamabear November 26, 2008 at 11:56 am Post count: 484]

#1075192

I am writing in bold black print so you can see my answers within your post.
I wrote a post called Tips on hair and skin during thyroid issues <

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put cursor over that highlighted area and click on it, another page will come up. It’s on the NGDF.org board as well but just so I knew you could find it I put the link for you.

THat can help you with your hair and skin. Of course you being someone who takes care of hair would know some tricks already but when we are in our "crazies" is what I call them all of your training is out the window and nothing works right. So pretend you know nothing about hair and just read it and try to pamper yourself. Those tips are ones that I found to work for me and a few others I have come to know. Skin, well I have eczema so that on top of graves, i had to figure out something. lol

I have many of the symptoms, hair loss (which is hard for a hair stylist), body aches, anxiety, slight tremors, what I like to call thyroid brain,I call that the "crazies", it was just a fun name so the kids wouldn’t freak out. muscle aches and weakness, dark circles (I don’t think there is enough make-up in the cosmetic department for this),Getting sleep is crucial , you have two active boys what are their ages, do they need mommy at night? If so are you waking up at night for them? If not then get to bed early LIKE 8-9pm. Sounds funny but when we get older we STILL need about 10 hours of sleep when we have graves disease. Your body heals itself when sleeping so the dark circles might be better if you have a better sleep. Stop trying to clean because you were too tired during the day to clean and you are trying to do it at night. It wont help you, I swear it wont. If you start going to bed at 8pm and your ready to lay down at 9pm even if you wake up due to your graves several times at night you are still getting more sleep then you would if you are going to bed at like 11 or 12am. tired most of the time, and heat and cold intolerance. I am always like this regardless of having graves disease. I hate being cold but my feet can not be hot at all or my entire is hot.In the winter I wear wool socks, I even wear a hat on my head in the house at times because when my head and feet are warm my hands tend to be as well. It took me 15 years to figure that out lol. That’s all I can think of right now but I’m finding more out each day ” title=”Smile” />. When we(dh and I) first found out I had this we wrote down all of the symptoms and as I got them i checked them off and had to laugh about it. I called it the crazies to give it a funny name for our child’s sake at the time I had only one child… but I wanted a cute name for it as well because I couldn’t kicks it’s butt if I didn’t know what I was dealing with and finding out what it was was great so I gave it a name and as my symptoms got better I put a little ha ha ha next to the checkmark I had orignally put there. Basically saying ha ha I got better so tough neener neener neener!! LOL yep I was a child about it. lol but it helped. Not saying I wasn’t upset and depressed over it but I was considered mild and since it was found fairly early although I had always felt I was hyperT, doing the PTU (medicine of choice at time) helped me and I am currently in remission (no medicine at all and within normal range for over a year).
Staying healthy and eating right is always going to be key. Just doing simple stretching exercises will help you to feel that you have accomplished something. Get a morning/afternoon and evening routine going. Write it up and post it where you look the most. Give chores to your kids and husband and anyone else living with you that is human ” title=”Wink” /> Delegate!!

I guess what I’m looking for right now is maybe some direction from those that have had this for awhile as to what direction I need to go in, what things I need to look out for, things that I need to avoid. Avoid getting sick virus’ can trigger this and I am happy to say that my Endocrinologist agrees with me!!!!! She is the only Dr. that has acknowledged this and is teaching other dr.s about this and I have to send out kudos to her for realizing that a cold/flu can trigger Graves disease to show it’s ugly self.I know probably very little in comparison to all of you but I’ m learning! Any information that you can give me, any tips would be greatly appreciated. Maybe even what would help to tell my family of what they can do to help or look out for. This link called Suggestions on how to help kids understand GravesMight help you. I talk about the crazies in there too LOL LOL LOL, I am not sure of your kids ages but I spoke to a women on that thread about her kids to help her kids understand. I also have a 13 1/2 yr old son that has lived through this as well. I don’t like to be a complainer but some days I feel like a Mac Truck ran me over and I have all I can do to function, but like most I have a busy life. I work two jobs, (one of which is my own business, small salon in my home), have two active boys, a husband, a dog that just had four puppies, and an extended family that needs some help with health issues that they have going on. I can’t stress this enough……. So i will be blunt… SAY no when you have to. You are only human and you are a human with an illness, you will have good and bad days and hopefully remission some day. Life is to short enjoy your kids and husband but if someone else has a problem that THEY need to handle let THEM deal with it. If there are medical issues that you have to tend to with someone in the family then do so but if it gets to hard you must delegate that responsibility to someone else. STress is bad for Graves Disease. Dont make it worse by taking on too much, as it is you have a house full that is plenty for you period. Don’t be superwoman..she was only a character in a movie there is no such real person, and even if there is seh can keep that job, we dont want it ” title=”Wink” />

As far as your dog and her babies make sure she has seen a vet and her babies get weighed in and checked on when they are able to get to vet. Any sign of not eating/discharge in eyes/green coming from milk glands/anything out of the ordinary please get vet on phone and get advice as to what to do. Please also know that your female dog since she has just had babies will be very very sensitive to YOU. You are alpha female and since you are ill she might feel she needs to knock you down the totem poll and take care of you. This is not good for her as a dog in a pack. She needs to tend to her babies, so make sure that you treat her as though she is still the dog and she gets fed after the family gets fed, she goes out the door last when taking her for a walk. Unless she is a well trained good headed dog she might get confused if she thinks you are not able to do your job as alpha female. If she is her old self and nothing is wrong then leave it be. If she is fussing over you or growling at you then ask for help by your vet or trainer, you can ask me if you need help asap(i am always willing to help with that and love doing it.I just want to feel as "normal" as possible again and have my life be as "normal" as it can be. I’m realistic that life is not perfect and there are always bumps along the way but this is hard for me because I’m a very active person and to go from that to feeling like I need a nap or two everyday is a hard adjustment for me. I believe that we are not given more than we can handle, some days we may question things, but everything happens for a reason and what doesn’t kill me will make me stronger!!! I feel the same, He wont give us more than we can handle but some days feels like he gave too much. It’s ok to feel that way. One day at a time. One symptoms at a time, remember symptoms wont go away quickly so it will take some time for your body to heal.(Ski is better at this part then I am, i am sure she will share good info for the symptoms and such)

Thank you in advance for any help that you can give me and my family. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoys their time with family and friends!

You enjoy your Thanksgiving as well. Remember to delegate and look at that link I sent about helping kids understand, I have some suggestions for routines up there that might help. Good luck to you. If your dh is having a hard time understanding this please tell him to join here and feel free to vent/ask questions/research/learn, he is more than welcome. Graves can lead to bad things in a marriage so learning together helps one and other get through this.

I told ya it would be long lol

[Diane94 November 26, 2008 at 3:22 pm Post count: 13]

#1019947

Hi everyone!
I’ve just been diagnosed with Graves, so new in fact that I’m not on any medication yet. I’m scheduled to have another uptake and scan done next week to get more answers on things going on. The endo said that he thinks I may have a few things going on but for sure have Graves. This has been a big whirlwind for me the past month, I just found out on October 22nd that I even had an enlarged thyroid and it’s gone from there. I was at my gyno for an exam do to some problems and he found the thyroid and it’s all gone downhill from there.

I have many of the symptoms, hair loss (which is hard for a hair stylist), body aches, anxiety, slight tremors, what I like to call thyroid brain, muscle aches and weakness, dark circles (I don’t think there is enough make-up in the cosmetic department for this), tired most of the time, and heat and cold intolerance. That’s all I can think of right now but I’m finding more out each day ” title=”Smile” />.

I guess what I’m looking for right now is maybe some direction from those that have had this for awhile as to what direction I need to go in, what things I need to look out for, things that I need to avoid. I know probably very little in comparison to all of you but I’ m learning! Any information that you can give me, any tips would be greatly appreciated. Maybe even what would help to tell my family of what they can do to help or look out for. I don’t like to be a complainer but some days I feel like a Mac Truck ran me over and I have all I can do to function, but like most I have a busy life. I work two jobs, (one of which is my own business, small salon in my home), have two active boys, a husband, a dog that just had four puppies, and an extended family that needs some help with health issues that they have going on. I just want to feel as "normal" as possible again and have my life be as "normal" as it can be. I’m realistic that life is not perfect and there are always bumps along the way but this is hard for me because I’m a very active person and to go from that to feeling like I need a nap or two everyday is a hard adjustment for me. I believe that we are not given more than we can handle, some days we may question things, but everything happens for a reason and what doesn’t kill me will make me stronger!!!

Thank you in advance for any help that you can give me and my family. I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoys their time with family and friends!

[Diane94 November 26, 2008 at 10:24 pm Post count: 13]

#1075193

Thank you for all of the information that you gave. It does feel a little overwhelming at times I must say. My children are 10 and 13 so unless they are sick they don’t need me in the night but I am the only set of ears at night because my husband works 3rd shift. We’re all starting to learn about Graves because as I said before it’s very new but it will be a change for all of us. My husband and kids are great about helping but there are times I feel like I’m alone in this and I get a little down and frustrated at not feeling good.

You talked about stress being bad for you and I REALLY wish that I could have a life that had less stress in it. We have made some changes with things in the last year trying to eliminate some of that stress but some things can’t be avoided. I have a 16 year old step-daughter that started giving us A LOT of trouble in the last 1 1/2 years (stealing, drugs, bad boyfriend, pregnant, miscarriage, etc.)and basically didn’t want to follow our rules so she quit coming over. We were not willing to let her do as she wanted not only for her sake but also because we have two younger boys that she would be setting an example for so she quit coming. At first this was really hard for us, VERY HARD but then we reached the point where we can’t make her be someone that she doesn’t want to be. It was easier for her to be at her mom’s and do as she wanted than come to our house and follow rules. She told us that we were being too hard on her that we should try and be her friend. She has friends, it’s our job to be the parents. There was a lot of stress, a lot of tears, and a lot of sleepless nights but we had to decide what was in the best interest of our family. We still love her but all we can do at this point is hope that someday she realizes her mistakes and does it before she hurts someone or herself. That was kind of the start of our bad year. We then had a grandparent die, an Aunt die, and a cousin die all within 6 months of each other. My brother-in-law was diagnosed with a disease that’s rare that we take on a day to day basis with him because eventually it will kill him. The doctors have said he is lucky to know because most don’t know until and autopsy. Then my mom is going in for a second CAT scan on December 18th because they have found some spots on her lungs and are checking to see if it’s lung cancer. We just had to put one of our dogs down last week that we had for 13 years and now throw in Graves. That’s my life in a nut shell and for those that know us it’s kind of a joke that our lives should be a soap opera because of everything going on, unfortunately it’s not a made up show. So stress for me is going to be a hard one to avoid. I’m just trying to cope with everything and try and accept the things that are out of my control and make the best of the time I have and make sure that my boys are growing up healthy, happy and turning into loving, respectable grown men. Someday their wives will thank me

I think for most people, my family included, it’s hard to understand because on the outside for the most part I look normal and like I always have. That and the fact that I’ve worked with the public my whole life so I’ve learned how to be "on" no matter how I was feeling. I don’t know what I can do to make my family understand how some days I really feel like crap and don’t feel like doing anything but sitting and usually sleeping. They, like me, are not use to me not going and doing.

One thing that I struggle with as well is the fact that I’m putting on weight, people think I weigh less than I do because I’m tall, but I’m heavier than I have ever been, too tired to work out and I’m afraid that when they put me on meds that I’ll gain even more. This really makes me feel stress out and I can see where I will get depressed if I get heavy. Any suggestions on this one.

I really appreciate you taking the time to answer all of my questions, I’m sure there will be more as things progress for me. The tips are helpful, especially about the cold/flu thing because those already kick my butt because I have asthma and anytime I get something like that it kicks it in and it takes me longer to get over those.

Thanks again for all your help

[Ski November 26, 2008 at 10:43 pm Post count: 1569]

#1075194

Hi Diane,

I will respond more fully later, but I’m getting very little "solid" time with our home network right now, and I want to make sure I get at least one comment in to you. ” title=”Very Happy” />

As far as your weight, that is a challenge, but it does not have to be as bad as you think. If you take precautions, eat right, do what you can to exercise, you can keep yourself as fit as possible for the time when real, strenuous exercise will be an option. For right now, you need to NOT work your body too hard. It’s harmful in many ways, and can actually contribute to making it harder to lose weight later.

I know it’s hard to contemplate gaining weight. I’ve had weight issues all my life, I thought I’d finally figured it all out, then Graves’ hit. I’m finally able to work out and lose some of the weight, and in retrospect, I really didn’t gain all that much. I have to factor in ten years’ worth of aging as well, so all in all I’m not doing so badly. Just take care of your body and you’ll have an easier time.

More later! Take heart! We’ve all been there. It’s NOT easy. Forgive yourself for anything you may do that seems out of character. Just learn all you can and focus on getting well.

[mamabear November 26, 2008 at 11:17 pm Post count: 484]

#1075195

Have you mourned your;
Grandparent,
Aunt,
Cousin?

Has your Husband made peace with everything he needs to with his brother? Has he done the things that are real and meaningful like take a fishing pole and get the boys and go fishing even if it’s in a pond somewhere because brother in law can’t walk far?
Have they sat around early in the morning one day and just watched the sunrise…if not get er done!!
If your brother in law can not move or has difficulty then there are other things that can be done but spending as much time as you can with him is key, for your husbands sake, for your sake and for your sons sake.

May God watch over your mother while she goes through this ordeal and if she does have cancer or something wrong then be with her as much as possible and help her get through it.

Dealing with the loss of a pet is hard enough but having to put that dog down is even harder. Remember we were given dominion over animals and animals entrust us to do the right thing. Don’t doubt yourself about your dog. I am sure the he/she lived well in your home.

Remember that you have to come first in order for you to put your boys and husband first. If you are not well you can not take care of them so if that means that keeping stepdaughter away then so be it for now. You have tried and she is not responding, the only thing that you can do is hope that she figures it out.

Depression during weight gain is not uncommon but remember that healing takes time. Watch what you eat and make sure you speak with dr. about your weight and your concerns. Don’t let them blow you off about the weight gain either, make sure they give you answers.

Please make sure that you keep your rescue inhaler with you at all times. One in the car/one in the purse/one in the house….
Is your asthma allergy induced?

I instilled when I first got sick after finding out I had Graves was that anyone coming into the house had to wash their hands. Kids/adults. If it was a parent picking up a kid I didn’t fuss over it because they dont touch things. But kids no matter who they are MUST when they walk in my door.
Cleaning the light switches and doorknobs frequently it helps a lot!!!

Have a wonderful holiday. Remember take it easy when you can.

[Diane94 November 27, 2008 at 10:15 pm Post count: 13]

#1075196

I think that we’ve mourned our family that we’ve lost. We can talk about them now without crying and can remember the good times. I know this is a part of life but it’s still hard when it happens and especially when there are so many in a short amount of time.

This might sound like a stupid question but is Graves that big of a deal or as scary as it sounds or am I reading more into this? I even had someone tell me that they looked it up and that it wasn’t that big of a deal so not to worry about it. If it is a bigger deal how do you respond to people that think it’s not?

Like I said before it’s all been a whirlwind for me. I was suppose to have surgery on November 11, was at the hospital, IV in the arm, OR ready when the anastegeologist (sp) called it off after having my uptake and scan and blood work faxed there. He said that there was a real possiblity that I could have a heart attack, stroke, or die because of a thyroid storm if we did surgery that day because I’m not on any meds yet. I wasn’t scared to have surgery before that, I actually wanted it to get rid of the pain (I have a cyst the size of an orange on my ovary so they were going to remove that, do a D & C, and biopsies) but now I’m afraid to ever have surgery again. They said that I can’t have it until my endo gives me clearance but even then I’m scared. So on top of all the symptoms of Graves I’m in pretty much constant pain from the cyst. AAAGGHHH!!!! I’m ready for a vacation

I said in the beginning that I was probably going to have a lot of questions, I didn’t lie ” title=”Smile” /> I really appreciate you taking the time to answer them for me though.

[Bobbi November 28, 2008 at 8:01 am Post count: 1324]

#1075197

Hi, Diane94,

I can only imagine how overwhelming everything is for you right now. Even just dealing with hyperthyroidism all by itself can be enough to swamp us.

It is monumentally important that you get the hyperthyroidism treated asap — by whatever method you and your doctors agree upon. That is the absolute first priority. The other problems might still be there, but the treatment can address your condition of bad — and continuously deteriorating – health. None of the treatments work overnight to make us feel well again, but your body cannot even begin to heal until your thyroid levels are stabilized in the "normal" zone.

Weight issues may seem important, too, but they will take care of themselves over time. We typically lose weight when hyperthyroid, due to the fact that excessive levels of thyroid hormone cause us to lose muscle throughout the body. This is especially true of the large motor muscles of the arms, legs and also chest muscle. But heart is muscle too, and the muscle loss can affect the heart as well. Obviously, with less muscle, we are weaker, and have less energy and stamina. The presence of muscle, however, raises metabolism, allowing us to eat more. Some folks do gain weight while hyperthyroid. Precisely why is not completely known. Once we regain normal levels of thyroid hormone, the lost muscle tends to slowly come back. This can appear to some as weight gain because muscle weighs more than other body tissues. It is, however, good weight gain, because it raises our metabolism back to normal.

I was absolutely convinced that would gain weight after RAI — I had only lost five to eight pounds while other people had reported much larger weight loss, etc. — so I ate very wisely after RAI. I ate good food, nutritionally; I allowed myself small snacks of fruit or nuts, or cheese and crackers, midway through morning or afternoon, but I ruthlessly eliminated empty calories of desserts and sweets. And I lost 18 more pounds. I regained 10 or 12 of them as the muscle slowly came back. And, unfortunately, I regained more when I went back to eating empty calories. So, I can offer you some encouragement about how effective a reasonable diet can be at regulating unwanted weight gain.

But as I said, weight gain or no, your health has to be the primary goal here. Being hyperthyroid is a grave threat to your long-term health.

Bobbi – Online Facilitator

[mamabear November 28, 2008 at 11:45 pm Post count: 484]

#1075198

a warm compress on your ovary can help for the time being. Did your Obgyn test your estrodial(estrogen),LH,FSH,prgesterone levels to see what level they are at and if they are at the right levels during specific times of your menstrual cycle?
Did they try you on BC pills to shrink the sink and surgery is a last resort? Please forgive me if your religion forbids bc pills, I am only referring the use of the pills for shrinking a cyst. (I am Catholic and had to try it a long time ago and yes it helped with what I needed it for).

I agree that you need to keep up with the dr. and get on meds asap. Please keep us informed and get appt asap with dr. and make sure your ObGyn knows what is going on as well.

[Diane94 November 30, 2008 at 10:21 pm Post count: 13]

#1075199

I’m not able to take BC pills anymore, I’ve tried every one and they give me migranes so that option is out. I’ve been doing hot compresses and between those and motrin they seem to help some. He was going to remove the cyst, do a D&C(the lining is 2 – 3times thicker than it should be) and biopsies checking for endometreosis(sp). My mom had to have a hysterectomy at 29 due to endometreosis and fibroids. I’m trying to avoid that as long as I can. I have not had my levels checked. It’s a complitcated story but I had to find a new gyno because the one that I had been going to for almost 15 years got into trouble and is going to jail and can no longer practice. It was a HUGE shock so on top of having problems I had to find a new doctor. It turned our town upsidedown to say the least.

I have another uptake and scan done on Wednesday and Thursday but what is different than the last time is this one is going to include a scan of my pelvis because the endo said that in rare cases the cyst can produce hormone as well and contribute to my counts not being exactly as what they had expected. I see the endo then on Friday and hopefully I’ll know more then as to what direction I need to go in. I know that I’m ready for some direction that’s for sure because this waiting is driving me nuts!! I know the endo has been sending stuff to my PCP but I’ll have to check if he’s sending it to my gyno as well.

Thank you for all your help and pointers. It’s nice to have someone out there to talk to that knows what your going through I’ll keep you posted ” title=”Very Happy” />

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