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hi there I've had a overactive thyroid for over 2 years. My symptoms were hot flushes, shakes, weightless and general hyperactivity. Since being treated for this I feel that I've never actually had that moment we're I thought I feel better. It's been a constant battle with the meds, I've never really been stable. However over the last couple of months I feel that my symptoms have completely changed I'm cold all the time I'm gaining weight and the tie redness I feel on a daily basis is unbareable. I recently had my bloods done and I'm overactive at the moment, the doctor has advised me to take the same dosage and exercise for fatigue! I really feel as if no one understands I'm 26 I'm a full time mum studying and I can't cope with these urges to constantly sleep anymore it's making me depressed. Does anyone else feel like this or have some advice for me please because right now I'm desperate.
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Sick_is_no_fun jessica18040
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fern12 jessica18040
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Do you get copies of your blood reports? Try to do it if you don't already, then you can share where you're at better.
Another thing that may help, and probably won't hurt, is Acetyl-L-Carnitine. Just be sure to take only a moderate amount, probably 500 mg 2X daily.
Screwball21 jessica18040
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jessica18040
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linda187 jessica18040
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T3T4TSH-chaos jessica18040
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My biggest mistake was to believe doctors too readily. I had an excellent GP since 1983, but surprisingly he had never had a patient with a thyroid problem. He was largely flying blind, too, and the endocrinologist I was referred to went by the book, so I tended to get the party line on managing a Graves' disease patient conservatively. I should have been more assertive about some simple things such as feeling terrible when the lab results suggested I should be feeling great. How you feel with GD often actually has a cause other than too much or too little sleep or food or exercise - I was getting plenty of all those btw, and some of the advice I was given was just a bit too glib.Should have challenged it.
The other thing I should have dug my heels in over was monitoring after treatment with radioiodine 131. My reaction was slow but it did eventually work. Because I was only having monthly follow-up tests, my reaction was not noticed in time, and I became seriously hypothyroid because the replacement thyroxine was started late. It has left me with a big weight problem that seems almost impossible to budge. Whatever treatment you have, make sure you get plenty of follow up to monitor its effectiveness. I eventually bullied my GP into weekly tests after starting the replacement therapy, and we were both surprised by how unpredictable my response to the therapy was; fast one week, slow the next. I graphed the results and it looks like the edge of a saw.
I also asked about family experience too late. Once I started making inquiries, I discovered a remarkably strong family tendency to develop Graves' disease. My grandmother had it and died from a 'thyroid storm' in the 1950's. My mother and all her sisters had it and all had their thyroids removed over the years; the youngest at 13 for her op. We don't know if her brothers were affected because two of them died in WW2, but the surviving one seemed likely to have been, and many of the mysteries about his poor health, and solitary and unhappy life seem to fall into place when you include GD in the mix. My family's experience proved to be a valuable resource - but I still got into trouble.
Find a doctor experienced with thyroid patients and who is ready to talk realistically about his/her experience and results. Interview them. It's probably the most important decision you are going to make this year. I reluctantly recently changed my GP to one who really understands thyroid patients, and she is starting to make a difference to my experience and has made some quite small changes that have had big effects. Because she embraces alternative therapies and takes a holistic view of my health, not just my zapped thyroid, she has tweaked a few things unrelated to the thyroid, and when I saw her today, I realised that I am actually feeling better. Instead of sleeping through my vacation that starts next week, as I did in 2011, 2012 etc, etc, I am planning some activities. Nice change for me and my family.
Take it easy and be kind to yourself. WIth two children, you have big responsibilities and stresses. If you are not feeling well, that is important data that ranks up there with your lab results. Don't be fobbed off. Feeling terrible because of the hot flushes, palpitations, sweating, irritability, and all the rest, does take a toll and make it difficult to cope with even small things. Your doctor, family and friends need to know this. My family tended to fob me off by saying that I was 'in a bad mood', and that I would snap out of it. My mother understood more about my predicament from the basis of her own experience (I don't know how she coped with 5 kids and an alcoholic husband!) and quietly said to me "you're not well, are you?" and took the whole discussion away from accusations of moodiness and grumpiness. After that, talk about mood was outlawed. People around you need to know that all the love, empathy, concern, engagement and rationality are inside there still, but there is a real physical problem that's short-circuiting some interactions, and that might be misunderstood. People really need to know that you are carrying a burden. After I was diagnosed, my friends said that they knew something was wrong because I had changed from having a short-fuse to having no fuse at all.
I was diagnosed in 1999, used carbimazole along the way to deal with flare ups, and was finally treated with radioiodine in 2011. The journey has been quite long and painful because I didn't know the terrain, and my doctor didn't either. I lost 3 jobs and my family life disintegrated. SInce referring to the sources of information that were all around me all along, and trusting my ability to interpret the data along with the doctors, things have started to turn around. I am hopeful. I would do a lot differently but I hope never to have to have the opportunity! I would never willingly relive the last 16 years.
Most importantly, I think you should be absolutely sure that any therapy your doctor recommends is absolutely the best option for you, and that you completely trust his/her advice. There is no going back with surgery or radioiodine treatment. After treatment, be sure you get LOTS of monitoring to be sure that the therapy is working, and be sure to have a strategy that allows you ample recovery time. The recovery time seems quite long, and it is deceptive to people who are not in the picture. I was treated on a Thursday, had one day off (Friday) to recover from it and was back at work on the Monday. My boss was astonished when I told him that I was unwell as a result of the treatment some weeks after, and said that he thought it was all done and dusted after the single treatment. I think you may be surprised how long it will take you to feel well after treatment. You need to plan for that. How you feel is the most important data, and I found it useful for a while to keep a diary of how I felt (well, call it mood if you must) in terms of energy, libido, etc etc. and so I could talk specifics with the doctors.
I contacted this website because I was down for a while, and I feel that I still have a way to go. Coincidentally, I am starting to feel better now, and I am optimistic that I can get my old life back and be healthy again - eventually. My new partner and I are looking forward to that.
Take care, and remember that you are not alone. The people in this discussion understand your challenges.
Mike
jessica18040
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fern12 jessica18040
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To me, it seems like the pituitary is slow to produce TSH when you are not feeling well and you are not feeling well because you are not getting enough T4 or T3, which is because you are not getting enough TSH; so it becomes a vicious cycle.
carol66175 jessica18040
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jessica18040
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fern12 jessica18040
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I can't really tell you to go against your Endocrinologist's orders, but that is what I did, by decreasing my own dosage, sometimes just by 5 mg per week and it worked for me. Actually, I was careful to keep my new dosage the same for at least 4 weeks prior to the next blood test. I felt much better the day after the smaller dose.
patricia36232 jessica18040
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carol66175 jessica18040
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linda187 carol66175
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jessica18040
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Sick_is_no_fun jessica18040
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fern12 jessica18040
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It was in 2010 that it came out that RAI would increase the likelihood of Thyroid Eye Disease. The main problem with destruction of the thyroid is that you can never change your mind and get it back. Doctors think it is easier to treat the resulting hypothyroidism, but they are quick to deny that it is due to the thyroid, or lack of it, if you have symptoms when your TSH is in the normal range.
linda187 Sick_is_no_fun
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