Graves - Hyperthyroidism & Me :-)

[Granitecitygirl]

So at the end of 2011 my regular aches and pains worsened and my clothes starting to shrink. I was fit & healthy(ish), walked to and from work (min 4 miles daily), played Rollerderby for that year. Why was I putting on weight & retaining water? I went to the first GP "Thin people don't retain water. Stop eating" Left in tears. Cut out potatoes, rice, pasta. Weight still creeping up. Went to second GP "Try eating your 5 a day, maybe you need more balance". OK, veggie overdose. Weight still creeping up. Third doctor "Does your family have any thyroid history? Lets test yours" Oh! Speak to mum. Pituitary tumour on one side, hypothyroid on the other. Bloods come back hypERthyroid. Mind. Blown. I haven't had sleeping problems since my teens, I sleep like the dead. I've gone from a curvy 12 to a curvier 16 and I'm only 5ft tall, I don't look hypER thyroid. I've got worse stretch marks than someone who has given birth to triplets! Big triplets! The endo calls my case "unusual". Story of my life! BUT, 9 months on carbimazole and it has brought me back in to "normal" range, whatever that is (weight still creeping up though). I should be off the pills in August (endo says I'll feel more normal when off the pills). I know that I will more than likely have this disorder for the rest of my life and need to keep an eye out for flare-ups. Doesn't help that we're moving in to our new house in September, then will be planning our wedding THEN we have babies to look forward to. Yeah, no pressure

Thank you for reading. Hopefully I am not the only one who has an "unusual" case. I don't like being pigeonholed, but I don't being labelled a freak either

[efilwol]

I also confounded the scientific community by managing to GAIN 2 kilos since being diagnosed with Grave's.

AFAIC, it messes up your metabolism, so anything can happen. I have had zero symptoms except for cardiac ones, which is what took me to GP.

[elayneg]

Hi

I always know when I have gone hyper I pile on weight although I don't eat a lot. I have had the you are eating too much lecture, I kept a diary which showed I was sticking to a thousand calories a day. I was told I was an unusual case. 4 years later and they cannot get my thyroid levels down and I am piling on weight again. Your weight should go back to normal when your levels do although what normal is I don't know.

Just do loads of research and listen to your body is the only advice I can give oh yes and don't accept everything the medical profession tell you. Its your body and you know when something is not right.

Good luck with the move, wedding and the babies

[hotfeet]

hi i was diagnosed with graves in feb 2012 and initially lost 9 lb fabulous

if i could ignore the shaking hands the weak legs and breathlessness this was a winner!

started on carb but it reduced my white cell count too much and it was stopped and i was put on ptu

i gained all the 9lb i d lost plus another 5lb making me the heaviest id ever been even when full term pregnant! my endo did nt think this was a problem and was more concerned when i lost 5lb through dieting and told me to increase my meds! i d also seen him 2 days after xmas so i expected to be heavier and after 3 months at my next visit to be lighter after all its not xmas every day!

i ve tried the commando diet mainly protein no carbs and the 5 2 diet and eventually i m down from 9 13 at xmas to 9 9 3 months later to 9 5 today

its hard work and a long process i can manage at most a 1lb a week and if i have 1 night out with booze its back on plus more and i start all over again

hyper thyroid in my case does not make me a thin woman!

i shall continue trying to lose weight and hope that eventually my body gets the message and my thyroid sorts itself out!

good luck

hotfeet

[greenginger]

Hi

It is not uncommon for weight gain with Graves even though medical people always say it is.

Some put on weight when untreated and some when on meds. I have been on meds for 2 years and have put on 2 stone ish. I find it hard to shift and I do eat well. Exercis is also hard now due to muscle weakness and joint and back pain (for which I had to have physio). Plus even on meds my heart rate gets too high during exercise and I get totally wet through with sweat.

I do hope you manage with this new you and try no to get too down about it. Good luck.

[Granitecitygirl]

Thank you all for sharing

I'll need to get my test results from the Docs as it's not something I've ever requested before. I've been rather naive and just popping the pills as told to do. As I come to near the end of the course of meds, I am acutely aware that I could have this disease for the rest of my life and have to be a bit more educated about my options for the future.

Whilst my weight gain has been the most obvious symptom (3 STONE before diagnosis), I'm worried about the more hidden, psychological issues. It may be nothing to do with thyroid, might be just me, but I don't half get strange notions and urges. I've wanted to punch people that have not, at that time, deserved it! Outrageous things like that. Thankfully I haven't acted on anything as yet