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Abigail – You bring up some great points on healing. Thyroid does impact our mood. It is so hard, even for the most optimistic people, to stay positive when our levels are topsie-turvey. I has switched to a new PCP within a few months before my first symptoms. And I started with me endo afterwords. This year, I could see both of them working to decide if I had "major depression" or if it was thyroid. I wondered if I had major depression a few times, too
” title=”Wink” /> I remember this spring telling my endo that I thought my exercise level was in the top 10% for my age group nationally (we were talking about high cholesterol). I just remember his stopping in his tracks and looking at me and saying "top 10 percent – you see yourself in the top 10%?" I could see I had broken out of the "always depressed" mode in his mind. But before I stabilized, that is sure how I looked to folks! I am so glad you are doing better and have come to share your recovery. I think it is light at the end of the tunnel for many people. I think we can appreciate ourselves and our strengths more after all of this, for sure.
Hey MB – I might be able to help out. What sort of info are you looking for??? There is some info at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney diseases – perhaps you could google them and see if that is helpful.
I hope it is not you with that going on.
:” title=”Question” />Kim – metabolisms do spead up for about an hour after a meal normally. You are very observant and correct about digestion causing some changes.
I think letting your endo that it is getting up to 99 is a good idea – that may be a little faster than norm. Sounds like you are taking good care of yourself!!!
” title=”Very Happy” />Thank you, thank you. My bone scan is next month (I had osteo before Graves – in fact we found the Graves when I failed on the top-of-the-line bone building med). So, I had one year on the bone med after RAI – which means I may have made some progress. I can only be on the med for 2 years due to FDA restrictions. If I have made progress, then I will believe I am on the upswing from all of this. As a women’s health practitioner, I never dreamed menopause would hold these health surprizes. When I look at it, all are things that were "silent" diseases – osteoporosis, Grave’s (I had some symptoms but you guys all know how non-specific they can be) and high cholesterol. I just want to put the word out that I might still be unaware of one or all of them if I was not getting regular health screenings. Imagine having severe osteoporosis – not knowing – then getting Grave’s (that can also thin bones). It is important to take care of ourselves, especially during transitions like menopause. Every one of my silent diseases can be related to (not necessarly directly caused by) menopause. So – I will keep you posted on my scan. If it is improved, we can do an internet toast or something.
” title=”Very Happy” /> Seriously, I would probably sob with joy. What a journey these past 4 years!Rhonda – What an interesting experience. I sometimes think "only in the rural west" would things like this happen
” title=”Very Happy” /> Casper is beautiful – I love the wide open spaces of Wyoming. Colorado is getting too popular for me somedays.I am not that familiar with rheumatologists managing Graves. I think it is certianly your right to ask the new physician how many cases of Graves they handle per year. There is some research that says when a medical provider does less than 50 of something a year, they don’t have as good of outcomes as those who do 50 or more. I can remember a time when, as a nurse practitioner in the rural west, the OB and I split up the IUD and norplants so we would have 50 or each per year. I did norplants for everyone in town – he did IUDs. It kept us both competent to split it like that.
It certianly is true that once we are through RAI and on a pretty stable dose of replacement, it becomes easier for physicians to "manage" us. At one point, my endo talked about going to "problem visits only" with my PCP (an internist) doing primary management. But when my thyroid med needed some fine tuning – she was not sure what to do and sent me back to him. He fixed the problem and put me back on every 6 month visits with him. She is pretty new out of med school (3 years, I think) but I think a more seasoned internist may have known exactly what to do. So, I think a lot of it is the experience of the physician at managing Graves once we are stable. Let us know how it goes up there in windy Wyoming. My aunt use to write for a paper in Lander and I remember her quote about "Why does Wyoming want to be like the rest of the States when the rest of the States want to be like Wyoming." It is different up there!
