[belldandy112]

in reply to: Weigh-in (just for fun) #1068744

I just went for my check-up with my endo. We had the "changes in eating habits" talk …

I didn’t do RAI, but opted for anti-thyroid medication instead. My levels have been steadily within the range of normal for years now, and the endo said that he doesn’t anticipate that I’ll have any more problems with hyperthyroidism — which is both good and bad. Good, because I feel fine. Bad, because some of my eating habits are still the same as when my Graves was active.

I’m trying to change this, but it’s really hard to tell myself that I can’t have the donut or the fried foods anymore. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop — you know, the other shoe being weight gain?

[belldandy112]

in reply to: graves is a psychosomatic disease #1072112

hyperm wrote:Its true what Dianne is saying as my endo has really helped my hubby through the whole "emotional roller coaster" and highlighted that the divorce rate for people with GD is relatively high.

I would concur with that in many ways, friend. I opt not to go into details, because my marital situation during the time I had uncontrollable GD was not very pretty. However, rather than permitting me to get out when I should have gotten out, GD made me too scared to make a move, because I was afraid of living alone and having to rely on one income. If I got sick again — then what? Once I got it under control, firmly, that’s when I could make the right decision for myself. Fear was a huge motivating factor in my decision to stay in a situation that was quite untenable, and that I probably would have exited under normal circumstances.

It’s tough to make big decisions when you have this disease and it’s active. Really, really tough. A lot of people did not understand this, even those who were closest to me.

[belldandy112]

in reply to: Susceptible to other things?? #1072070

Dianne,

I’d be interested in how various climates affect GD and if really cold-weather states are worse for people with auto-immune illnesses. I’m quite curious to find out if living in the arctic made me go out of remission, as to avoid this situation in the future.

[belldandy112]

in reply to: Autoimmune Disorders #1073364

I have Graves. I also have extremely bad allergies that have been very difficult to control. But at least I outgrew the asthma …

[belldandy112]

in reply to: Susceptible to other things?? #1072068

Interesting question …

Aside from allergy-related stuff (sinus infections, ear aches, etc.) that are pesky but nonthreatening, I don’t "catch" anything. Never had the ‘flu, don’t even get colds or chest infections in the winter. I live in the Southwest, where the weather is warm and we have mostly sunny days, even in the bleakest of months.

However, I did live in Anchorage for a year. Which is basically the arctic. I was sick … All. The. Time. One thing after another. Mainly bad chest infections that never seemed to go away. If someone in the office had it, I caught it! I also had what could have been food poisoning or the stomach virus — several times. Nightmare. My GD shot right out of remission, and my endo told me that it was directly related to living in this kind of climate, where it’s just very hard to keep warm and dry.

Once I moved back, I stopped getting sick …

I think that chances are, I would have had the same problems living in Anchorage even without GD, because everyone there seemed to be fighting off ailments, so … while I think that getting sick all the time triggered my GD out of remission, I think that I would have suffered the same fate, regardless.

Melissa
Austin, TX, where it’s sunny and warm out right now! ” title=”Very Happy” />

[belldandy112]

in reply to: RAI #1072245

James wrote:ATD’s DO do their job in virtually all patients (that is blocking thyroid production) there are very rare exceptions where this isn’t the case and equally rare cases where liver damage may occur. As far as wasting time and money is concerned, I’m going to take the liberty by making a subjective statement by saying is time and money well spent; although I thought the drug was very inexpensive.

With RAI, there is a guarantee that you’ll always be taking Synthroid — which is much more expensive than Methimazole, and a lot of insurance plans don’t cover this therapy. I have a friend who spent hundreds of dollars a month on this stuff only to find that it doesn’t do a thing for her. She can’t claim disability, but neither could she ever work a full-time job.

I was told that my kidneys would fail if I kept taking my temporal focal epilepsy medication … that I needed brain surgery. More than 30 years later, and I have zero problems. I finally found a doctor who explained that the risk was so negligible, it was barely worth mentioning. Of course, the neurologist who wanted to cut was after the big $$$. After seeing how badly a lot of epilepsy patients turned out post-surgery, I’m glad that I made the responsible choice.

Keep in mind: It’s always most profitable for doctors to recommend the most expensive/radical treatment. I have a doctor friend (thoracic surgeon) who confirmed that the general practice is to seek the most expensive procedure. Even if the risk to the patient is higher than keeping them on medication! Perhaps this makes me a conspiracy theorist, but after an attempted "con" with the whole brain surgery thing — and yes, at the time, it made perfect "sense" — I’m very wary of procedures like RAI.

[belldandy112]

in reply to: how bad is bad- eyes? #1072157

I just have puffiness around my eyes, nothing serious. But it really causes me to have eye strain, because I have to work at times to get my eyelids to stay up — that’s how filled with … whatever it is … that they are/were. I’m on Prednisone, which has a whole hosts of unpleasant side-effects. My eyes look and feel better, but the trade-off is that my skin is pimply/oily, like that of an adolescent. Real nice.

This would not bother me so much if I didn’t already suffer from allergic conjunctivitis to begin with — in the eye region. So on top of severe allergies that cause my eyes to get puffy, water, and burn, I have this added to it! ” title=”Sad” />

[belldandy112]

in reply to: ok what size did you enter your prof pic as???? #1072188

This is Lennox the cat!

>”<

I couldn’t get his picture any bigger, otherwise the file was too large.

[belldandy112]

in reply to: Do you/did you tell employers about your GD? #1072292

I live in total fear of people in my workplace finding out. Namely, because the entire economic climate has changed dramatically. People who do employ want those who will stick around for a long time, not get sick, not pose any problems to them, etc. Anecdotal evidence from friends and acquaintances with health conditions are telling me that it’s tough to get a job now with a pre-existing condition; if you have bad credit, any kind of criminal history, forget about it. Situations are just insane in my city. We’re getting clobbered by the unemployment rate. One really has to take that into consideration, too.

The sad truth is that people are scared stiff when you say "auto-immune" disease — the most obvious association is M.S., of course. I cannot say for a fact that I’ve had employers treat me differently — as though I can’t do my job, but I can say that I strongly suspect that at least one of my bosses was always waiting for me to "screw up" because of GD. Again, there is no proof, but just the feeling I got from some of the personal remarks that she made. It turned into a horrible situation, and I ended up leaving. I really love the place I work for now, and the people.

So yes … I’m really afraid to say anything and probably will not unless a time comes when it’s absolutely necessary. I’m very fortunate in that I didn’t have any extreme emotional reactions and no forgetfulness. I went through a week where I thought, "Wow, bummer," but once I started to feel better — poof! Total attitude change. It’s a lot easier to control one’s reactions when you know exactly what is or could be going on.

M.

[belldandy112]

in reply to: Swelling #1072197

I had a little edema in one foot the first go-round. I was told that’s common and that the Atenonol (sp?) would take care of the water retention. It did, within a week. I still swell like gangbusters during that time of the month … and I never had problems with water retention before. Now, it’s quite obvious for a couple of days "before."

[belldandy112]

in reply to: ok what size did you enter your prof pic as???? #1072186

Hmm … photobucket, eh? I tried to upload an image of my kitty to use as my avatar (I’m sort of shy about people seeing me), but the file was way too big. I’ll work on that.

Everyone looks so pretty and healthy (and handsome, as that applies, too!). ” title=”Wink” />

Melissa
Austin, TX

[belldandy112]

in reply to: POLL: what positive things have come about in your life… #1072385

I forgot the most positive thing post-GD — my "therapy" animal. He’s a red Somali cat named Lennox Lewis (after the fighter). I think that he and my other Somali (my ex got custody of her when we divorced) were responsible for lowering my blood pressure and getting me to sleep at night. There’s something soothing about being flanked by purring bodies.

I’d sworn off pets after my first kitty died … but the "puffs" gave something to get up for in the morning (especially when they were little). AND … they don’t care how I feel, what I look like, or what my labs results look like. Unconditional love helps when you’re feeling down.

>”<

Melissa
Austin, TX

[belldandy112]

in reply to: RAI #1072233

Hi. I didn’t have RAI for the reasons you fear, and because I’ve seen it firsthand. And the potential side-effects from RAI are far worse than Graves.

I have a friend for whom Synthroid does not work at all …

If you’re feeling leary about this, at all uncomfortable, do more research. Take more time. Don’t let yourself be railroaded into a pricey process, because remember, doctors make more money on expensive procedures than they do by medicating you. My endo tried to get me to do RAI right away, and I said NO. Now that I’ve thought about it, not only is it a NO, it’s a NEVER.

I go into remission for years-long stretches; I’ve only taken Methimazole twice, the second time for a very short course. I’ve only had "bad" Graves syndromes once; the second time, I just lost a lot of weight, didn’t feel that bad at all. Now that I see what works for me and what makes me feel good — being in long remissions is just like being normal, no meds at all! — I’m extremely glad that I listened to my intuition. ” title=”Smile” />

Melissa
Austin, TX

[belldandy112]

in reply to: Okay, I’m ready to go off Prednisone now, please … #1072258

Heh. I’m going to go for a run … a very LONG run, during which time I can jot by the drugstore. I’ve been doubling my distance this week. Working this stuff out of my system seems to be the only way to get my mind to shut off.

I’m typically not a "bad" eater … I let myself have a few desserts during the week, and then there’s "chocolate croissant" morning on Fridays (a treat to myself for getting through the week). Eating well has been a major challenge for me after GD. Because I’m a weight loser rather than a weight gainer, it’s tempting to shovel anything I want into my mouth and not worry. BUT … eventually, I’m going to go hypo, and I need to be prepared for that. Getting into the habit of eating cupcakes, cookies, etc. at will is not a good idea for any of us, all weight issues aside.

But … I still want a chocolate chip cookie right now. Three would be even better.

M.

[belldandy112]

in reply to: nightmares? #1072262

I was asked/told about vivid dreams/nightmares but never had any myself when I was out of remission. I did have them when I took Melatonin (when living in Alaska) to get to sleep and during times of personal stress. Otherwise, if I dream, I don’t remember it.

I suspect that the quality of one’s dreams probably depends on what’s floating around in your subconscious. I don’t claim to understand dreams that much. I do know that when my best friend and father died, I had vivid dreams for about a year, some good, some bad, some very tender and sad. So I’ve no doubt that the worries in one’s daily life finagle a way out if they aren’t dealt with. But how many of us are that proficient in that we are able to do so? I know that I’m not.

((Hugs))

Melissa
Austin, TX

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