[MathTeach1]

in reply to: walking while hyper #1070608

Michelle, all I can tell you is I could not have physically handled walking 30 minutes a day when I was hyper. I couldn’t handle a short walk through the grocery store when I was hyper.

Once I finally got in to see the endocrinologist, she wouldn’t allow me to do simple tasks like running the vacuum, carrying a basket of laundry, or loading/unloading the dishwasher, because my heart rate and BP were so out of whack. (My husband found me on the floor a couple of times while cleaning up after dinner, because the contant up and down motion of loading the diswasher made me pass out.) As you can imagine, I had a hard time with teaching in a 3 story building until my numbers were under control.

I would ask your doctor and get his/her advice. You don’t want to aggravate your condition.

Charisse

[MathTeach1]

in reply to: Weight Gain after RAI?? #1072315

I can honestly say I saw no difference in the first two or three weeks after my RAI (Nov of 2008), other than I felt a little shaky without my ATDs. It was the end of a school semester and the Advent/Christmas season – I’m both a teacher and the spouse of a Lutheran pastor – so it’s a stressful time of the year anyway.

I have gained some weight, but as Ski said, I think it’s at least partially due to lack of exercise and eating habits. I’d gotten used to eating whatever I wanted, and while I’ve cut back, I’m not as disciplined as I could be. I’ve tried some very basic exercising, but my heart beat started fluttering, so I’m waiting a while longer. (I’m still on the beta blocker.)

My thyroid numbers are slowly moving in the correct direction, but I’m not on thyroid replacement as of yet.

Charisse

[MathTeach1]

in reply to: RAI Ablation #1072716

April, my endo had me off all meds for 10 days before my uptake scans, so I do think this is normal.

Charisse

[MathTeach1]

in reply to: Should I stop this never-ending cycle with ATDs and do RAI? #1072986

I can’t speak to the never-ending cycle with ATDs, because I chose RAI after just six months or so with a diagnosis of Graves. (I think I’ve lived with the disease longer than that.)

I’m now nearly four months post RAI, and while I still don’t feel like I did before last spring, I feel infinitely better than I did last summer. At the end of May, 2008, I had a resting heart rate of ~ 120, my blood pressure (despite medication) was 165 over something, and I was tripping and falling right and left. Talk about brain fog – I couldn’t remember my address when ordering a pizza, and we’ve lived in this particular house for six years. Our countertop was littered with post-it notes, as that was the only way I could keep track of anything. I couldn’t trust myself to pick up a pot of spaghetti from the stove and walk four feet to the sink to drain it. I would walk up the stairs to put our daughter to bed, and I was so out of breath that I couldn’t read to her. We had a new miniature schnauzer pup, and while I tried to work with her in a puppy class, I just didn’t have the strength or energy – I literally could not get up off of the floor by myself when we were doing exercises together. I got dizzy trying to unload the dishwasher from the up and down motion.

The beginning of this school year was horrible, and I’m very thankful that I have an understanding administration. I could barely make it through the day and ended up sitting next to my overhead most class periods. I fell on the stairs – hard – three times in the first two weeks. I fell asleep at my desk during the announcement period, because I was so physically exhausted. I thought I was going to have to quit after having taught for 24 years.

The RAI procedure itself was very easy, and my husband and daughter (age 10) survived just fine for the five days of isolation. My students managed to muddle through with a sub. I’m still waiting for the dust to settle, and I’m still taking my beta blocker, but life is better. I didn’t make the decision lightly. Graves had taken over my life, and I wanted my life back.

Take your time, see how you react to the medication, then see how your life is impacted by the disease. You may be able to live your life fully with the meds, as a friend of mine has, or you may decide to go another route. There is no "best" answer, as each of us has to decide what works for us.

Charisse

[Author]

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