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in reply to: Wish me luck-surgery Friday! #1179064

OF COURSE! Thinking of how you will soon have this chapter behind you!
I bet this time will be better and easier for you in every way than your previous experience. So much better to move forward, get this behind you.

AND-we are all behind you, and your new best friends! This website )and YOU!
rock!
I know many others will chime in, and we want to hear a lot from you.
love, Shirley

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in reply to: Enough is enough! #1179014

I have had tinnitus for several decades. I have learned to pretty much ignore it. Sometimes, the crickets sound nice, like my childhood in the Midwest. Seattle does not “do” crickets!
I so understand!

The best I can wish for all you on this thread is that you begin to feel ok again My labs are all whacky, my TSH is alway suppressed. Not sure why. When I reduce Synthroid, I get super hyPO. which is a different kind of hell.

I wish that you never, ever, get TED as I did, almost 4 decades I was hyper in my20’s. It is a different kind of hell Not sure which I would choose. Neither of them.

Happy Mother’s Day, if you are one. My family is so dysfunctional, that my DIL is threatened by my presence, so I did not get to see one of my sons, on this day which is also his birthday. Holy cow.

But all is well. I flew back from Calif from visiting my wonderful daughter and had six people over for picos and wonderful salmon grilled on cedar planks. It’s all good, if we try super very hard to make it that way. Hint. It does not always work!!!
shirley

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in reply to: Hair loss and muscle cramping/spasms #1178995

My experience:
I lost some hair when I was hyPO. But no issues with Synthroid and hair loss, ever, and i have been on it many years. My hair remained the same when I was hyper.
From a familial standpoint, and I do think that it is relevant, all members of my
family, parents, grandparents, had no hair loss in their 80’s ad 90’s. ‘
However, my son-in-law became completely bald in his early 40’s, and both his mom and dad had significant hair loss in their 50’s.

I sure hope things improve for both of you. Enough is enough!
Shirley

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in reply to: Vitamin D and remission rates #1178927

Forgot the second reference. I’m good at that!
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/vitamin-d/NS_patient-vitamind/DSECTION=dosing

Shirley

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in reply to: Vitamin D and remission rates #1178926

Hi vanillasky,

I think the first step is to have a Vitamin D level drawn, see if you are deficient. I know you already realize this.
I live in Seattle, where the sun is an infrequent visitor! I have a Vitamin D level drawn now and then, maybe every 2 years or so. It is always fine, around 50. Which is great.

The NIH reference also addresses sun screen and Vitamin D absorption.
The conclusion is that it does make a difference, but not a significant one, primarily because the sunscreen is usually not applied evenly and consistently for a long period of time.

I’d ask your doc, but my experience from others, is that they are told that Vit D is in all multivitamins. Generally, if the lab level is a little low, 1000 IU daily IF they are deficient. Most of us get adequate Vitamin D from sun and food.

Are you deficient?
Shirley

There is a nice table of appropriate needs for Vitamin D in this NIH report. Listed by age for different requirements. The reference for the whole article is:
http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-HealthProfessional/

Table 2: Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs) for Vitamin D [1]
Age Male Female Pregnancy Lactation
0–12 months* 400 IU
(10 mcg) 400 IU
(10 mcg)
1–13 years 600 IU
(15 mcg) 600 IU
(15 mcg)
14–18 years 600 IU
(15 mcg) 600 IU
(15 mcg) 600 IU
(15 mcg) 600 IU
(15 mcg)
19–50 years 600 IU
(15 mcg) 600 IU
(15 mcg) 600 IU
(15 mcg) 600 IU
(15 mcg)
51–70 years 600 IU
(15 mcg) 600 IU
(15 mcg)
>70 years 800 IU
(20 mcg) 800 IU
(20 mcg)
* Adequate Intake (AI)

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in reply to: Anti inflammatory diet #1178789

to vanillasky-Everytime I want a good giggle, I read your posts about your visit to the Cleveland Clinic! Thank you!
Shirley

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in reply to: How do you stay calm? #1178950

Hi vanillasky,
My best coping method is distraction, and taking action.

I think I told you in some post that I had post menopausal bleeding twice, the ultrasound showed a huge polyp the first time, had a polypectomy. Then bleeding again, but it stopped, so followed with serial ultrasounds, but it did not get larger.

I have had two aggressive breast cancers, different breasts and different years.
Regarding ovaries, I elected to have both ovaries removed (was 62 at the time_ because the risk of ovarian cancer is a bit higher with my history.

Here is a whacky thought that I have had over the years. I have always wished for a valid reason to get rid of my uterus. It’s job was done, and it was one more thing that could not get cancer, cause it wasn’t there!

When you hear from the surgeon, the questions raspberry mentioned are good for you to know. And as I mentioned, her coping mechanisms are mine. Plus maybe having some good cheese and a good glass of red wine, whether I am coping or not! (:

Do write again. Your friends and buddies are here for you.
Shirley

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in reply to: doctor finally called – mass below thyroid #1178962

Hi Talley,
Sending you my love and support, of course.
If I were in your shoes, based on the referrals you are getting, I agree with you that it is probably related to your thyroid. And I have lived 55 years without mine! THinking of you, keep us informed with whatever you need-any time of day or night
Shirley

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in reply to: smoking #1178939

Hi,
WEll, you know all the info about smoking.
I do not know if it exacerbates Graves’. But there are plenty of good data and studies now that say it exacerbates thyroid eye disease (TED.)
I imagine if you can begin to decrease smoking again, that is a very good thing. Kimberly may have further info on the Graves’/smoking relationship.
Shirley

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in reply to: abnormal CT scan – thyroid?? #1178889

HI from Shirley
Well, I think that it was the right thing to do, for the doc to call you on Friday. I realize others disagree. I’d want to “talk” about it too, but not to family and friends. There’s really nothing to say right now.

There is an area of concern, and to schedule things in a timely and expedient manner, and for you to be able to plan to be seen for labs and tests on Monday, that is what was needed to be done, the way I see it,

Radiologists see lots of stuff that we would never know about if we did not have these tests. And a lot of it is to use their phrase, and perhaps not so out of line to use it, is “unremarkable.”

From that way I see life, I sure as crap would not have liked to get that call on a Monday, with the possibility of scheduling, either from they side or yours, being more problematic. I think he was doing exactly the right thing, and the call was in the best interest of your health.

It’s true that you have certainly been thinking about it this weekend, but if it were me, that is exactly the way I’d want it to happen. The radiologist read it. He actually contacted your doc on a Friday afternoon. Your doc followed up with what he/she thought was the right thing for you.

I wish you the best, and I imagine there will be a bit of waiting at the beginning of the week for the labs and repeat CT.

You did the right thing! Hope you had a heck of a good time at cinco de mayo! Seems it is celebrated for days and days in some places. Fun.
Look forward to hearing from you soon.
Shirley

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in reply to: Can stress set you back? #1178899

Hi Flora, glad you found the forum. Nice to meet you. I’m one of your new friends!
I know that stress has been mentioned as a factor several times on the forum. But I am not sure how subjective that is. Graves’ itself is so stressful!

With all that is going on in your life, and your husband’s life, I can certainly understand why you feel discouraged on all fronts. That’s ’cause you are normal even with Graves’!

However, your muscle pains are definitely one of the lovely side effects from Tapazole.

This is a wonderful place to mention your own situation. Believe me, Graves’ is a serious illness, difficult to have. I see why you say you feel guilty about thinking of yourself, b/c of your husband’ recent diagnoses, but we women have to work hard an not feeling so darn guilty. We all do that, and hopefully, the generations to come will not be burdened with that particular non-gift and trait!

In closing, it seems reasonable that the added stress is another stressor to your plate full of stressors! ANd it does make a difference. I am not sure if anyone can state whether it slows down recovery.

I am SO SO happy that your husband’s surgery was successful with a clean bill health in that area. That is a sneaky cancer,and sometimes missed completely. Glad for the early diagnosis and treatment.

All for now, look forward to hearing from you many more times.
Shirley

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in reply to: Anti inflammatory diet #1178782

It sounds like a basic healthy diet to me, with no red meat. Pretty mucht he way I eat. Certainly reasonable, attainable and not radical. Sounds like a winner/
Shirley

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in reply to: Anti inflammatory diet #1178779

to vanilla sky-PERFECT!!!!

to Ellen-good comments.

to Stymie-I’ll look up an anti-inflammatory diet. Not familiar. Depends on what it is, if it will/won’t hurt you.

But for sure, I do not think it would be relevant to Graves’ relating to treatment or probably much of anything. Certainly not a substitute for the treatments we know about for Graves’. Might be a a good idea to try to find evidence based studies with a large population and sample, to see if anyone else has thought of this relationship.

Shirley

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in reply to: Cleveland Clinic’s Integrative Medicine (entertaining read) #1178768

Holy crap! Literally and figuratively, if you had mag citrate 3x a day!
One and 1/2 bottle was my prep for a colonoscopy!!!!!!~!
And it worked beautifully. I camped out near the bathroom door all night long.
I don’t THINK SO! Wonder what on earth they were thinking!

I love your delightful sense of humor! THank you for that!!!
Off to see the endo now. But he is a rational human being, thank goodness.
Shirley

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in reply to: Cleveland Clinic’s Integrative Medicine (entertaining read) #1178766

I think your visit is very concerning. It does not seem professional or even safe for you,for them to reach these conclusions. Not a bit. Just my reaction to your post. It is a world that is not familiar to me. The experience of my friends who have naturopathic docs, and do some alternative medicine, are a polar opposite to your experience.

And it does seem that Graves’ was not understood by anyone you spoke with.
Their comments about weight were judgmental, biased, and further say they they do not know hyperthyroidism. And, as Raspberry said, the diet is contrary to what a Graves’ person should eat.

I have not reviewed your other posts, but right now I think I recall that hot flashes were a problem for you, and that was your purpose in going? I am probably mistaken about that.

*If I were the Cleveland Clinic, I would want to know about this experience.
It would go to Risk Management. Some of those recommendations.

Of course you are angry and disappointed that your Graves’ diagnosis was missed for 15 years.

The sex question seems unrelated and off the wall.

I am not very familiar with integrative medicine.
This is the Merriman dictionary definition I found.
Definition of INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE

: medicine that integrates the therapies of alternative medicine with those practiced by mainstream medical practitioners

I think this field is evolving,and the NIH site says that it is difficult to define, that a good study needs to be designed to try to define and evaluate it.
I wonder if the people you saw, will send their dictated plan for you to your endo and primary physician. If you did not direct them to, perhaps that is a good idea. Or, at least for you to have your copy of all theses diagnose and recommendations. I do think you had a worrisome experience, because of the statements they made, the questions they asked, and the recommendations they made.

AND-it was definitely entertaining.
Shirley

Shirley

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