I was diagnosed with Graves in 2016. I have had limited symptoms up until recently. Currently I’m experiencing severe anxiety. I was previously in a deep depression and I haven’t felt like myself since. Though I am experiencing physical symptoms such a tremors, loss of appetite, weight loss and physical anxiety symptoms, the mental health aspect is taking a great toll on me. I have lost enjoyment and interest in the things I love. Will I ever feel like myself again? Some days are ok but it’s been such a rollercoaster. Has anyone experienced severe anxiety due to this disease? If so, how do cope?
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Sweetmango85
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Graves Disease is an auto immune disease and something has happened to " trigger " this immune system response which is to attack your thyroid.
The thyroid is a major gland and when it comes under attack the range of symptoms can be diverse, multiple, odd, " like " nothing but something and for some people the symptoms expressed can be life threatening if not under medical supervision and dosed with anti thyroid drugs to block your T3 and T4 levels rising any further.
The first phase of Graves can be relatively short and simple for some people, whilst other people find it takes months and or years for their immune sense response to calm down.
Once your antibodies calm down and fall lower back into range, this is when you may find remission. Some people spend the rest of their lives on low dose AT medication, some finding remission, then loosing remission and starting all over again, and made to feel like failure and being encouraged to have the gland treated with RAI or having a thyroidectomy, but these extremes measure may not be in the patients best interest.
Can you please give us more information ?
Do you have your very first blood test results at diagnosis and the medical evidence of positive and over range TSI (worded as a thyroid stimulating ) and or your TR ab ( worded as a thyroid receptor blocking ) which are the antibodies unique to Graves Disease.
What are your current T3 and T4 levels, which AT drug you are taking, and the dose and any other medications and your symptoms.
You can read around Graves Disease through the Thyroid uk website who are the charity behind this amazing forum and also you might like to dip into the Elaine Moore Graves Disease Foundation website which is where I started my journey, 12 years after having had RAI treatment for this poorly understood and badly treated auto immune disease.
You are not alone, there are quite a few of us here, so you're in the right place and we will try and help with any questions you may have.
Thank you for your reply. I don’t have any bloodwork information right. I didn’t realize how critical it is for me to understand all of that information because my endocrinologist monitored and kept my levels in check. Like I mentioned this is my first time experiencing severe symptoms. I’m on 5mg of propranolol and 20mg of Tapazol. I just started talking vitamin b12, C and D. I just want to feel like myself again. I go to bed nervous, restless and uncomfortable. If I get any sleep I wake up nervous hearing and feeling my heart beat loudly. This is all so strange and confusing.
It is not critical that you have knowledge of the blood tests and results but it helps to have little understanding of what it all means and what treatment plans options are available for you choose, once this initial phase has passed.
We can explain the blood tests and ranges to you, and to know how to better help you it helps us, help you, if we can see where your T3 and T4 levels were at diagnosis and which antibodies were found in your blood analysis.
Graves is said to be a stress and anxiety driven auto immune disease and when I don't know what's going on I know I get anxious and always feel better when things are explained in a simple, ordinary manner to me.
It is your legal right to have copies have all your blood test results - maybe you have " on line " access and can find everything that way, otherwise just ask the surgery for copies and if they can't post them out go and collect after a good few days when you know they are ready.
Graves symptoms can affect every aspect of the person and the mental aspect is well documented : however some of your symptoms maybe because your dipping into hypothyroidism and your T3 and T4 now too low in the ranges.
Hyperthyroidism and hypothyroidism are the opposite ends of the same T3 stick - too much T3 and you have symptoms of an overactive thyroid just as too low a level of T3 and you have symptoms of an underactive thyroid - nobody wants to be at either end, as both ends are debilitating, and in my opinion hypothyroidism the more challenging.
The Tapazole is an anti thyroid drug which is blocking your own thyroid production of T3 and T4 so they don't rise any higher, and they will slowly come back down once this phase is over : The Propranolol is a beta blocker and is prescribe to protest the heart, ease anxiety, and symptoms of hypertension and hyperthyroid.
Maybe you need a dose increase in the above medications as you are still with symptoms ?
So, if you manage to share with us some further information we can help you better, otherwise all we can do is guess, empathise and not offer anything more constructive.
Were you low in B12 and vitamin D and you knew you needed to supplement, do you also check out ferritin as this can also drop like a stone.
We ask this of everybody, and when I first came on here looking for help I too was ill prepared, but I found out what was needed and have learnt of my own situation through this safe place, with other forum members helping and guiding me.
Thank you for all of this information. Once I get my results I will post them. I was really looking for emotional support. It’s been very difficult not knowing anyone with this disease and know one really being able to understand what I’m going through.
Well we certainly know what you are going through - many of us have been there before you :
The more you post the more likely you are to find other people BUT can I suggest you post of the Thyroid UK hub as it sees many more people and posts than on this Graves forum :
Can I please suggest you start a new post with this information and just give brief details of what you have been diagnosed and post on the Thyroid uk forum as there are many more people over there and more minds makes for better, more informed replies from everybody, rather than just little ol' me.
If I look at my screen - to the left of the Health Unlocked logo I have 4 icons - and in the " My hub " - I find the Thyroid uk hub/forum :
Thank you - just found you have found the other forum :
There is an open forum much like here on the Elaine Moore Graves Disease Foundation website - it is Stateside so seeing as you are in Canada it will be a better timeline for you, and geographically, you may well find people closer to you.
You can access Elaine's forum easily and it has a worldwide following of Graves patients at various stages of diagnosis and treatment.
The forum is open to anybody and everybody, so family, friends and loved ones can also gain understanding on how Graves can effect the individual.
I’m so sorry that you are also going through this. It’s such a terrible, confusing and disorienting feeling. There are times when I say stop out loud like talking to my brain to change the thought pattern. I hope your endo can help when you see him or her. Hang in there.
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