Great to hear you are doing well now. I was the same! Could not fathom what had gone wrong with me. Felt absolutely out of my mind with a feeling of terror. Had to psyche myself up to set foot into the smallest of shops and then had to get in and out as fast as I could! Felt like the aisles were caving in on me! Couldn't concentrate or take time to look for things I couldn't find so half the time just grabbed anything! Was awful! Couldn't sleep, heart hammering away all night. Felt dizzy and unsteady, legs shaking and was constantly bringing conversations to an abrupt end to 'escape' because as I was standing, trying to listen, I felt I would collapse any second. Felt like I had to rush all the time, talking, walking etc. Ate constantly but lost weight. felt like I could not live if this was the way I was. But then...
Went to gp, blood test, referred to endocrinologist and started on anti thyroid meds and within a matter of weeks felt a billion times better! It was like night and day! I could have never imagined how dramatic and rapid the improvement was.
I have no idea why I did not seek help any sooner. I think partly I was so mentally unwell I could not make sensible decisions and partly I was scared that if I revealed all what I was feeling I would be admitted to a psychiatric hospital as an emergency. Even when I did go to my gp I was selective in what I told him in case this happened! Now I am in my right mind I can see how daft this was!
So to echo original post - for everyone else feeling like this, it does get better!
Glad you are on the mend. Graves has the most horrible effect on your body, my symptoms were very similar to yours, and when you said about like being in a car without brakes - it was an incident when driving one dark night when I nearly killed myself and my passenger that made me take action. Within two days I had been blood tested and was on carbimazole wth an appointment to see an endo and a date for my next blood test.
I had been feeling really unwell for a very long time but had been trying to pretend myself it wasn't really happening although I felt so ill I had gone to see a doctor a few months before I became unable to go on - only to be told 'Oh, you are just needing your holiday'. I was clearly needing a lot more than a holiday!
I left the surgery almost crying in frustration because the doctor I saw at that time had looked at me like I was absolutely nuts and in a way I probably was but not the way she thought.
Like you I also thought I was mentally ill - either that or had Alzheimer's and like you I had this feeling of talking a hundred miles an hour and being aware of the people I was talking to looking at me in a strange way.
Then I found this wonderful site and the amazing support and advice on offer. My first ever post was to ask 'will I ever feel normal again?' And the answer was 'yes' and I do. You have hit the nail on the head - to get through it you need to find out as much as you can about your condition, follow the advice given by people who have been through it and come out the other side, get as much rest as you possibly can and be kind - very kind - to yourself and be sure to do only things you want to do, not things you feel you ought to be doing.
You summed that up beautifully! Sometimes I wish I could tell people this as I think it is quite hard for people to understand how much it can change you. Good luck for the future . Nancy
I've been feeling great for a few days now that CARBIMAZOLE is doing its job .. but I can't believe my GP missed at least .... SIX BIG SYMPTOMS of GRAVES DISEASE
for heaven knows how long , as I've been feeling this way for years... I thought
I'd lost my mind ... I could write a book about it ! but won't bore you all. I've been through all the emotions and now it's anger !
I haven't said a word to my GP about how mad I am that he ignored my symptoms .... his defence at my diagnosis
" but I did your bloods two years ago and you were NORMAL " we all know what
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Please can someone help with my daughter's symptoms - doctors this afternoon.
Please can someone look at my latest blood test results. Thank you
Finally - Good News !!
Will you be my medical advisor?
