Hi everyone!

First, you people are great! I have been lurking since before Christmas
when I was first diagnosed with Graves' Disease and Thyroid Eye Disease.
I have learned alot just reading the past postings. (Have almost read
through all of them!) I had almost every symptom of hyperthyroidism but
the weightloss....in fact I am slowly gaining weight. (Could be that my
appetite is horrendous and I eat enough to gag a horse!) Tests taken at my
endo's office (Dr. Michael Carella in Lansing Mich) were as follows:
Free T     0.9  range: 0.7-1.9
TSH        0.2  range: 0.5-4.7
Anti-microsomal antibody  <10   range: 0-35
Anti-throglobulin antibody  <20  range: 0-40

On Jan. 17 I started on 5 mg. of Tapazole; 3 tablets taken two times
daily. Some of the symptoms have abated somewhat.  On Feb. 22 I ended up
at the Alma hospital emergency room bloated up like a blow fish; my legs
were so full of fluid I didn't have any ankles.  My eye lids had also
swelled in the morning but were down by the time I went in. It felt like
my chest was being squeezed and it was hard to catch my breath or to get a
full breath.  They took blood after the nurse listened to my heart and
took my vitals.
CBC  everthing within the normal range
Comp Metabolic Panel   all within the normal range

Then they sent me home.

Three days later at my endos office he couldn't beleive that they didn't
do an EKG.  Which he did; normal.  Now I have to have heart/lung x-rays,
angio gram and a stress test...he also reduced my Tapazole to 1 tablet a
day until they figure out was is going on.
I have been filling up on water and laying off the salt and the swelling
has just about disappeared.  Has anyone else had this problem?  Is there
something else I should be doing, or not doing? Dr. Carella said it
sounded as if I may be going hypo, but still have some hyper symptoms and
it shouldn't have happened in that amount of time.

So far the eye disease isn't too bad.  My eyes have started to bulge, but
not to where it is real noticeable. I do have needle like pain in my right
eye (actually to the side of it) an an achey pain in both eyes. I have
lost some of my peripheal vision and do have blurry vision and have
trouble focasing. I am supposed to decide whether or not I am going
through with the RAI or surgery.  Everything I have read on the RAI scares
the hell out of me and don't know what to do. I have hot nodules on my
thyroid (several in fact) and the thyroid is quite swollen.  It is worse
some days to where it is hard to swallow.  Anyone out there with a similar
story or some advice?
Thanks so much.  Even if I don't get any replys....you have all already
helped tremendously!
ANY suggestions, advice, or encouragement would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
Tammie Denman



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