[Anonymous]

#1077069

Hi Teresa,

I gained 50 pounds during the first few months while on Tapazole. I’ve been overweight before but never this shape. Below the breast and above the belt I have a big bulge. I requested a cholesterol, tryglycerides and blood sugar test two months ago and sure enough they were all in a dangerous zone. I’m now on medication for cholesterol.

On my first visit to the endocronologist I met a sixteen year old girl with Graves in the waiting room. She had been on anti-thyroid for six months and was on her way to get RAI. What I noticed most about this young girl was her normal size except for the odd shape of her mid-section. While at the Graves conference last year there were enough average shaped people for me to be convinced that the stomach bulge does not happen to everyone.

Linda775

[Anonymous]

#1020408

I was wondering if anyone else has experienced their weight gain primarily in their abdomen. I look like I’m pregnant! My TSH levels have not stabilized yet. I went from hyper to hypo and am now back hyper. The results of last weeks blood test were TSH .24 Free T4 1.56 and Calcium 10.7.

I’ve had a couple of days of feeling awake and like doing something. It has been very nice. It is great to feel like there is a chance I’ll feel good again.

Thanks for all the support.

–Teresa

[Anonymous]

#1077070

When my neomercazol (carbimazole) dosage was too high I put on a stone very quickly (3weeks) mostly around my middle and ankles – think it must have been mostly fluid as it disappeared as quickly as it came once the dosage was adjusted and settled down. Also used to get muscle spasms and aching bones (still have the aching bones!)

[Anonymous]

#1077071

I was recently (2 wks) given a diagnosis of GD based on blood work and signs and symptoms. A scan was scheduled, but not until 4 wks after diagnosis. Meantime, my symptoms are intensifying and I have new ones.

My whole body shakes…especially my hands and legs. I am hot and sweat all day….no energy…can barely function. I am having a hard time getting anyone to take my symptoms seriously….even my doctor…who just keeps telling me they are normal for GD and hold on for the scan.

Why does it take so long to get a scan….and how can I return to work feeling the way I do?

[Anonymous]

#1077072

Hi Mary3l5,

I’m sorry you’re feeling so awful! I’m not sure what the reason for the delay in your scan might be (I had to wait because my hospital had old equipment that broke down, and the new equipment was delayed, but that’s a fairly unique circumstance…), but your doctor could probably give you some kind of medication between now and the scan. ATDs might skew the results of the scan, but some patients are given beta blockers to alleviate some of the symptoms so they can function. I understand beta blockers can be very dangerous to asthma patients, so if that applies to you, it might be the reason you are being asked to “tough it out.”

STILL, if you are so terribly debilitated, you have a right to ask for time off from work, and your doctor should be willing to listen. People suffer in very different ways when they are hyperthyroid — it’s not as if the doctor can look at your test results and say “WOW, you feel awful!” Some people feel awful just a little bit out of range, for some it takes more, and there is always the component of how LONG you’ve been ill without diagnosis. Keep pushing at your doctor, if you feel you are incapable of performing on the job. You have a right to disability leave if that is your condition. There have been people here who tried to work and had difficulty — which can be worse than just admitting it up front. I had no trouble working, but I was not hyper for very long, and I was diagnosed relatively quickly (3 months after onset of symptoms), so I take all of that into account. I also had the option of coming home and completely resting to make it to the next day — which I needed, believe me.

I wish you luck. Know that you will be able to come out of this. It will take time, but you are on the road, and every step further is that much better than being in the dark!

I’m not sure what recourse you have to try and get the scan sooner, but anything you can do will be good for you — being hyperthyroid is truly miserable, and the sooner you can begin some form of treatment, the better.

We’re here for you.

~Ski
NGDF Assistant Online Facilitator

[Anonymous]

#1077073

Thank you so much for the encouragement….I live alone and have few people to help me through this….yesterday I had 2 episodes of double vision which was pretty scary…..I called my doctor’s office and her P.A. returned the call. He told me he would have her call me today, but here it is 4:31 and no call. Maybe it is time to change doctors! Oopps,there is that irritibility, another wonderful symptom!!!

Thank you again…..you helped me find a smidgen of humor….and that truly helps.

[Anonymous]

#1077074

Does anyone have aches or tightness in their finger knuckles? I have a hyperthyroid and when I almost miss a dose of my Methimizole by say eight at night I feel it in my knuckles and then I remember I did not take my medicine for the day. But most of the time when I wake up in the morning my knuckles are aching and tightness is felt in bending until I move them around some. Does anyone else have this symptom? When I first was diagnosed with Graves my numbers were high and my last two fingers on my right hand would lock up upon awakening and I had to use my left hand to straighten out my fingers and you would hear a dull crack sound when straightening. The medicine has stopped that from happening but I still get aches in the knuckles. My thyroid doctor said she has not heard of these symptoms and maybe it is some other illness she says but I did not get this until I had this disease and it acts up more when there is a delay in dose of medicine.

[Anonymous]

#1077075

My fingers have never locked up as you described, but my knuckles have been stiff and sometimes achy. It seems to come and go and I (just my personal opinion) do relate it to my thyroid. My hips, feet and joints in general are sometimes achy and stiff…especially after sitting for a period of time. I have been checked out by a rhumetologist and everything is ok. It has improved with time but still comes and goes.

[Anonymous]

#1077076

I think there may be symptoms that others don’t have that individuals may. I don’t think we can really look at a list and say that’s it. That’s my personal opinion. When I looked at the list that said I should have been losing weight, and my doctor kept telling me I should be losing weight, rather than gaining, I wondered how I could have Hyperthyroidism and Grave’s Disease. Jake explained it so well!

My eyes hurt, too (like someone else mentioned). It takes more time than normal for me to focus, but when I do, I see clearly. Once I look elsewhere, I have to go through the same thing. I’ve been told over and over that I have 20/20 vision… everything’s in my mind. I also have dry eyes. The doctor said it was because I wasn’t drinking enough water, but I drink a lot more than I used to. Dry eyes is listed as a symptom on a site I went to. No person is the same. Great to know I’m not alone!

[Anonymous]

#1077077

Hello! I know it is frustrating waiting for the scan. In the meantime, did the doctor put you on a beta blocker to help bring your heart rate down? It really helped me. Actually, before I knew I had a thyroid problem (now I know it is GD) I went to the cardiologist and had several tests run b/c they thought I had a heart problem. As my cardiologist said, we were just “fanning the smoke” and not taking care of the thyroid problem. But I started PTU a couple of weeks ago and am still on the beta blocker. But when my heart rate came down, I felt so much better. Hope you start feeling better soon!

[Author]

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