[jrs1218]

in reply to: I can’t stop yelling…rant. Sorry. #1171032

So, now it’s a couple days past my complete mental breakdown. I feel better. My husband read this post thread and offered to take down the wind chimes. I explained to my son that repetative noises really tweak me out. I asked him to limit his repeats to only a couple. But seriously, we had a really good talk. I am now able to say that I am trying to control myself, please stop so that I can get myself together. He’s trying.

I need to go get my levels checked. I keep putting other things first. I know I need to put myself first, but that’s not who I have been my whole life and I want a little normalcy. I am promising myself I will go tomorrow after work, my back therapy, and my son’s ortho, etc. I found a new lab that is closer to my house. The last guy who drew my blood was horrible. He was shaking like he drank a 40 of mountain dew after his morning coffee pot. I have donated a couple gallons of blood and never met someone that bad at drawing blood.

Thank you for all of the encouragement. It came when I really needed it. I’m glad I found this page. It feels nice to know that others are dealing with the same things you are. (I would rather none of us had to deal with it though.) thanks again!!
Jenn

[jrs1218]

in reply to: New here, question about possibly growing thyroid #1171038

My throid was swollen too. I had to keep looking up because that was the only thing that straightened my neck enough that I didn’t feel like gagging. It also made me feel like I had way too much pressure in my head. I personally discovered that when I ate very little iodine I felt a ton better. The swelling was still there, but it didn’t gag me unless I ate iodine. I did the very low iodine diet for like 5 weeks before I had RAI. (I want to clarify that when I say low iodine, I made my own bread and didn’t eat anything processed.) The time that I was off my meds and just on low iodine was the best I had felt in almost a year. (The doctor told me to nix the meds. I didn’t do it on my own. Prior to that I was on 2.5 mg every other day.) I can only speak for myself. No one else has ever mentioned low iodine to help treat symptoms. Even the people that I have talked to that have Graves have never heard of it. The doctor was like, ok…whatever. My experience is that they don’t really understand what they are doctoring about. The swelling of my thyroid went down after the RAI. I am 5 weeks post treatment and that’s the only thing that I am 100% thrilled with. I’m still doing the hormonal freaking out that seems to come with frying your thyroid, so until a bit later in the process, I don’t really have any opinions there.

I hope you get the answers that you are looking for and that you stop choking. It’s frustrating to feel so badly and still look like you are fine from the outside. I think that illness tweaks your body too and stress makes the Graves worse. Perhaps your colds are just mixing things up a bit for you. Make sure you write down all of your questions. I know my Graves mind forgets what to say when I need to remember the most.

[jrs1218]

in reply to: I can’t stop yelling…rant. Sorry. #1171028

Today is much better. Thank you for all of your encouragement. This has been a long process. It sucks when you know what is wrong, but feel helpless to change how you are feeling.

I haven’t yelled today. To put it in a better perspective, I probably only yelled 3 times in the last 10 years until this last year. If I make it through one day without yelling now it’s a miracle.

I am unhappy with myself because I keep gaining weight. (I didn’t even lose any when I was fully hyper. I was starving and ate and ate and ate.) I feel like I need to exercise, but haven’t done it in soooooo long. Hopefully I will be talking to my endo soon. I need to find out what i can do. Since my heart rate is down I should be allowed to do most things. I was almost at the point where I was going to start exercising when my heart started going all funky. I totally know I’m a couch potato, I just haven’t dealt with that part of me yet. I feel like one thing at a time. I get too overwhelmed. I wasn’t fat enough to do anything about it, but this morning, my scale told me I am, so I NEED to do something.

I went to the doctor today. My L3 and L4 vertebrae are both rotated. He prescribed massage therapy and I am going to take it! It hurts a heck of a lot. The lump I can feel is a fluid filled sac from the injury. He said it’s just like when you sprain your ankle and it gets all gooey swollen. My back did the same thing on the inside.

I have repeatedly talked to my son about how I don’t mean to yell. He kindof understands. He is a lot older than his years intelligence wise, but not emotionally. His not listening is the problem. It’s the same problem in different circumstances. For example: We went to the pool this week, he hung on me and hung on me and hung on me. I told him over and over and over again to stop and he just wouldn’t. I finally told him I was going to dunk him every time. That slowed it down a bit. He repeats himself 40 times in a row. I ask him to stop after the 5th time and am ready to choke him by the 40th. When I walk next to him he runs into me repeatedly. His impulse control is horrible. I’m trying to just tell him to go into timeout after the first warning. I need to stop worrying about how he feels and punish him in public too. If he’s embarrassed, maybe he will stop. I may have to adopt, “I LOVE YOU!!, NOW STOP!” Maybe he will get that.

After sitting at the desk for this long, I wish I had asked for a muscle relaxer. Ouch. I have to get up!

I appreciate your assistance very much. I feel like an uncontrolled animal sometimes. It helps to sob and type what I’m feeling and I get the added bonus of help from people who have been there. Thanks again guys!!
Jenn

[jrs1218]

in reply to: I can’t stop yelling…rant. Sorry. #1171026

I have to head to work, but just read your post. Thank you very much! i will respond tonight.

[jrs1218]

in reply to: Just diagnosed w/ Graves – need some reassurance #1170522

Hi Nancy! I am 100% hyper now. I kindof love this feeling. If it wasn’t for my blood pressure being high, I would want to stay like this. I only need like 4 hours sleep and wake up at a bug’s footsteps. I am also looking forward to this stopping though. I get a bit grouchy and I’m tired. Ready for a full night’s sleep. Love the energy though.

Glad to hear you are doing well. I should probably get my appointment set up too. Right now I am listening to my body. The doc said 4-6 weeks before I need to see her. Almost to week 3. I keep hoping that we will be in the 20% and have our thyroid function normal after the RAI. Here’s hoping!! (**Insert toasting glass here**)
Jenn

[jrs1218]

in reply to: Just diagnosed w/ Graves – need some reassurance #1170520

Hey Nancy! I wanted to check on you. We are just about 2 weeks post ablation. How are you feeling? I’ve been feeling pretty good. The shakes have started a bit and my heart pounds at night, but overall I am good. I accidentally throat punched myself a couple times. I don’t recommend that. I’ve been very tired the last 2 days. Not sure if that’s lack of sleep or lack of thyroid. Anyway, just wanted to see how you were doing. Talk to you soon! Best wishes!
Jenn

[jrs1218]

in reply to: Just diagnosed w/ Graves – need some reassurance #1170518

Thanks Bobbi! I’m not worried about work, just my son. I am following the strict guidelines that are suggested by the ATA just for my son and the 10 or so neighborhood kids that I love very much. I actually wish I did glow so that I could tell what needed cleaned and when I wasn’t dangerous to them anymore. Maybe they can work something into the treatment. I think it would be appreciated by many. My dose was 20 mCi so they say he shouldn’t sleep with me for 20 days. I’ll stick to that. It said 8 days for my hubbie. That isn’t too long to be inconvenienced if it keeps them safe.
I’m still feeling pretty darn good over all. I accidentally hit myself in the neck and I feel a little sore all over now. i don’t know if I knocked something loose or what, but I don’t recommend doing it and will attempt to not repeat that.
I’m going back to work in 9 hours. I’m not concerned about that.
The reason I asked what Nancy was told is that I just wanted to hear what someone else was told. There is a lot of bad information out there. My administering doctor actually had the gall to say, “Take the pill then I will tell you the bad news.” He was a horses ass. So full of himself. The bad news was that I couldn’t eat for 3 more hours. I should have kicked him. Had he done that when I was first diagnosed, I was pretty explosive and may have done just that.
So far my experiences with endos and hospial imaging doctors have been pretty bad. I like the girl (young doctor) I am seeing now, but her office is so screwed up they don’t know which end is up and they waste a lot of time and energy. (For example, I filled out my patient card and they entered my information into their system incorrectly, and when I asked them to change it, they entered it in wrong again only it was a different wrong way. I have been seeing them since September and they still don’t have it right.) My other favorite is the first time I went to have labs done and I asked the front desk what I needed to do and they said, “I don’t know.” Really?!? How can you not know? I have turned into a bit of a bitch through all of this. I 100% do not have patience for alot of things I used to be fine with.
I will be looking for my 3rd endo very shortly. I will probably start calling around tomorrow.
Once again, I will reiterate, I feel good. That’s the goal, right? Nancy, I hope you continue to feel well. Bobbi, I appreciate your insite. My RAI doctor did warn me to fill my beta blocker prescription, just in case. The bummer with me being hyper is that I don’t lose weight. I get so hungry that I gain weight! Drats! I’m glad this should only be a few days. I’m up 10 pounds or so and don’t want to add to that. I really like the freshness of cooking for the LID diet. I might stick to that only with iodine. i like making my own breads and not using boxes and cans to cook. Portion control for me is key. I need my stomach to shrink to half the size. So I can lose about 30 pounds.
I need to go to sleep. Best wishes to you both!!

[jrs1218]

in reply to: Just diagnosed w/ Graves – need some reassurance #1170512

Hi Nancy!
I’m feeling really good too. I decided to stay at a hotel because I have dogs and a son. My son would stay away, but my little dog would not. I’m heading home tomorrow night although I am still going to do my best not to stand too close to my son for a few more days. I’m curious though, what did they tell you to do? They are so vague with information that it’s really frustrating.

In fact, this whole Graves thing has been really vague. The only time I have gotten good information is when I dug for it myself. (I was diagnosed in May/June and decided to try the Methimazole.) It wasn’t for me. I went hypo for 6 months and then finally took the smallest dose, cut it in half and took a half pill every other day (2.5mg every other day) and I still didn’t feel right. I am hoping that this RAI works better.

Glad you are feeling well. I’m tired too, but I have almost watched all of Grimm season 1. Work on Monday. No rest for the weary. I can’t imagine how you went from diagnosis on Tuesday to RAI on Friday, I would have freaked. (Especially with the mental state I was in at diagnosis.) I wish I had your courage to begin with. It would have taken me less time overall to recover.

Best wishes!
Jenn

[jrs1218]

in reply to: Just diagnosed w/ Graves – need some reassurance #1170513

I am so curious how you are doing. I just had the RAI done on 2/24 also. I hope you are doing well!
Jenn

[jrs1218]

in reply to: Low Iodine Diet – I now feel better!! #1170279

It’s kindof funny. I had so many ups and downs, but on the LID diet, I felt good most of the time. I think I must have eaten too much iodine on the bad days. It has a tendancy to sneak into your diet in everything.

I am on day one of thyroid therapy. I took the pill at 3pm. It’s 12:15am, just a few short hours later, but besides my neck being warm and my back hurting (from having to pee), I feel pretty good. I’ve never peed so much in my life. It’s about every half hour. It’s a good thing though, I don’t want to radiate my bladder.

Thanks for your kind words Bobbi. I appreciate them. I am hoping that the pounding heart will go away, but the radiation doctor said that with Graves you can fix part of the heart problems, but not all of them. That’s a pretty hopeless comment. I haven’t lost that much hope yet.

I misunderstood what Kimberly said earlier on in this conversation. I don’t think I was going into remission while being off the iodine, but I think it helped a lot. My dose of Methimazole was so low I was practically taking nothing and my labs were really good.

I was off the Methimazole for 6 weekds before the RAI and only had a couple bad feeling days.

Thanks everyone! This has been a real help. Even if it’s just getting my feelings down. It has helped.
Jenn

[jrs1218]

in reply to: Low Iodine Diet – I now feel better!! #1170277

It was a fluke. I thought I was better without the iodine, but really it was just the methimazole leaving my body. I must have needed a lower dose, but now I am stuck. I can’t take the meds because I am having another uptake and scan and getting the rai done, and the symptoms of Graves are starting to come back. I have extreme muscle weakness and feel soooo tired. My heart is pounding when I exert myself in the slightest. At least I’ve been through this before so I know what to expect.

[jrs1218]

in reply to: Low Iodine Diet – I now feel better!! #1170276

I can’t explain it. I’ve been on Methimazole and propranolol since June. I went Hypo and they wiened me off the meds slowly. I was finally “normal” on 2.5mg every other day, but I had a pounding in my ears. My dr. said that my thyroid was swelling and blocking my vein, so the blood wasn’t coming out of my head very well. He also told me to have the RAI done ASAP.

For the last two weeks I have been on the LID. (waiting for my uptake and scan) I am on almost no iodine. No dairy, canned food, no iodized salt or processed foods. I really feel pretty darn wonderful. I almost wondering if I wasn’t misdiagnosed. Like maybe I have an iodine allergy or something instead of Graves. Obviously I will pass that thought by my endo. I am sure I am wrong.

My thyroid is still swollen though and I started feeling like I was choking when I acidentally ate the spinach which has iodine in it. That and the pounding in my ears are the doses of reality I have. I feel pretty darn good.

[jrs1218]

in reply to: Sucralose #1169794

Thank you for all of your input. I really appreciate it. I have been doing my labs every 6 or so weeks since June. I finally skipped one because I am broke and tired of feeling like I am getting the run around (and no solid info) from the doctors. I did switch doctors once. I think I am going to look for one in a bigger city. I have not stopped, nor will I stop, taking my meds. I would turn into a raging lunatic again! ” title=”Wink” />

I don’t think that my thyroid is hyper right now. I just have some of the symptoms. (I have heard of people having symptoms without being hyper.) The Methimazole made me hypo quickly and then, with monthly decreases, has taken all these months to get me feeling somewhat normal again. My first test put my TSH at 7.5, the second was 15.8 (after reducing the meds), the third was back to 7.5 with T-4 and T-3(?) back in the normal range, I will be having the next test soon. I think I need a little more time that 4-6 weeks between tests because my body reacts quickly to the meds and than takes time to balance out to what the "normal" reaction is going to be.

My thyroid is still swollen, but I am down to 2.5 mg of Methimazole daily. Does the swelling go away at some point? Is there a "normal" for that?

I feel like I am just going blah blah blah, but I hope you can follow what I am saying. I also wish I knew all the lingo. It makes it really hard to understand what other people are saying when you don’t know the acronyms. ” title=”Smile” />

Two of the websites I looked at about the Sucralose are below:

http://www.redicecreations.com/specialr … alose.html
http://www.edinformatics.com/math_scien … ralose.htm

[jrs1218]

in reply to: Just diagnosed! #1169125

I was wondering how you are feeling. I was crazy too. (I yelled at my husband for having a beer with the neighbor and asked him if he wanted a divorce…slight overkill.) It gets better. Promise!

I was diagnosed in June and am feeling a ton better now. I am still not quite there. My concentration stinks, but I am a TON better. Propranolol has been my godsend. I was taking 80 mg a day with 20 mg of methimazole. I am now down to 2.5 mg methimazole and take 10 mg of propranolol, but not every day. Just when my anxiety gets my blood pressure up.

How are things for you?
Jennifer

[jrs1218]

in reply to: So Many Questions! #1169089

Hi Mammaof2,

I was diagnosed with Graves at the beginning of June. I chose to take anti-thyroid meds to get my thyroid under control. One thing that I have learned through this process, is that nothing is "normal". We all react differently.

I went to the doctor because I was having panic attacks and completely losing my mind. My uncle went for a normal physical and had almost no symptoms. He had lost weight, but he had also began exercising and eating right, so he thought it was all that.

Make sure you write down your questions. If you are foggy, you won’t remember them at your appointment. (I forget stuff all the time.)

These are my best answers to your questions from my experience:
1. I would guess that having trouble singing has something to do with your thyroid because it feels like someone is choking your windpipe. I didn’t have trouble swallowing, but felt like someone was grabbing my neck and my voice was rough. It’s keeps getting better and better the closer to "normal" my thyroid gets.
2. I have a lot of sore throats that last a long time too. It may be from the thyroid. I have no proof though.
3. Your thyroid will shrink eventually. Mine is usually smaller in the morning and gets more swollen as the day progresses. But it is getting smaller as I get my numbers into the normal range.
4. I was very thirsty. I think because I was so warm all the time. I am not as much anymore.
5. Some people gain weight, some don’t. You are unique. I didn’t lose weight, but I gained as I went hypo. I didn’t lose my hair when I was hyper, but am now that I am hypo. I really think it will depend on how your body deals with it. I was super, super weak before treatment. I feel tons better now. Not as strong, but 85-90%.
6. I’m still in a fog. Very forgetful. It’s been three months. I don’t know if it’s a side effect of the medication, the hypothyroidism or what.
7. I haven’t had any eye issues. You might not either. I get pressure in my head, but my eyes aren’t effected.

Good luck with your appointment. It takes time, but it does get better.
Jennifer

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