Hyperthyroidism question... (any doctors out there to put my mind at rest or tell me to get help quick)?

Question

My mom's had this disease since she was pregnant with me (24 years ago). She had a thyroidectomy and didn't need medication after that. Recently, she's been advised that her thyroid has grown back and she may need surgery again. My question isn't about her though (that's just background...) I've been experiencing hyperthyroid-like symptoms recently and wonder if I'm being psycho-somatic or there's something to worry about. (There is a genetic link). I've had drenching night sweats four of the last five nights, cannot rest when I sleep, am fatigued with a diffuse all-over body ache, have a sudden dark pigmentation framing my eyes underneath (almost like a sunglasses tan, but it's most definitely not as I don't wear them), have had irregualr heart palpitations and for some reason have had really itchy extremities...
The reason I ask here and not at the local doctors' is that I'm in a foreign country and it is a huge expense to see the doctor here as a non-resident...

Answer 1

I had hyperthyroidism for a couple years myself. In a foreign country there is not a lot I would do health wise (personally) but I will tell you that I know at least one woman who was convinced that getting extra blood into that area would help to regulate it. She slept with a couple phone books under her mattress and 1 thin pillow and in a month was able to turn around her blood test results. Yoga shoulder stands are also recommended for thyroid issues. You can learn more about that at yogajournal.com if you want. The deep breathing will help you also.

I wonder about the fact that you are in a foreign country and possibly seperated from people you love. I found Louise Hay's books to be very helpful and she talks about the emotional and mental causes of illnesses. My condition came up after my twin sister moved across country and it was clear she was not coming back. It can't hurt to mention that she says hyperthyroid is caused by a rage at being left out and she encourages us to remember and repeat these words:

I am at the center of life and I approve of myself and all that I see.

The idea is that our own negative thoughts and emotions cause these things and our symptoms help us find the internal idea that needs to be changed for us to get back on track, healthwise. It's fascinating and empowering. Here's a link: http://www.amazon.com/You-Can-Heal-Your-Life/dp/1561706280/ref=pd_bbs_2/103-9453818-0843024?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1173840255&sr=8-2

Best of luck to you. I took medication for about 2 years and then the condition just disappeared. I had a prescribing MD, but I used my family doctor (a chiropractor) and herbs and Louise Hay's ideas to recover and it worked.

Peace!

Answer 2

Assuming that you are female, you are far too young for menopause!

Thyroid conditions ARE genetic. Both hyper AND hypo run in my family.

Do you have a fast metabolism and do you have a skinny body build? Do your eyes protrude a little? Thsoe are hallmarks of hyperthyroidism (or Graves' Disease).

Do you a sluggish digestive system and would you describe you body shape as "plump'? Do you feel the cold easily? Hypothyroidism presents like that. (In it's severest form, it is called Hashimoto's Disease.)

These are auto-immune (AI) disorders. AI diseases are hellish to diagnose. Lupus, for instance, seems to have North American doctors totally foxed. In Europe, it takes about an average of 6 months for a woman to be diagnosed and treated for Lupus. In Canada and the US it takes 7 years. (I got this from the Ontario Lupus site. I am not making this up!)

I have several AI conditions, besides hypothyroidism. Night sweats and non-restorative sleep is where I started. Then I developed this itching "sun burn" on my eyelids and the backs of my hands. Then a rash showed up. I could not sleep and I became soooo tired that I could barely climb the stairs.

I dragged myself into see a rheumatologist who wanted to put my in the hospital because I was so sick with a very rare AI conditon called Dermatomyositis (DM, for short). (The incidence is 5.5 in a million.) I promised to go for all the tests as long as I could sleep in my own bed! Also, I wanted to go home and Google "DM" for myself! It is a muscle wasting disease which also attacks the skin like Lupus can.

Here's the thing, there is NO cure for AI diseases. There are treatments to address the symptoms. These may slow down and may even reverse the progress of the disease, but so much remains unknown. Left untreated, the myositis diseases are usually fatal. I weighed the risks of each kind of treatment and three-and-a-half years on, I'm doing OK.

Yeah, I still sometimes break out in the rash because I am so photo-sensitive and I've been careless about the sun. I've no one to blame but myself when that happens.

Answer 3

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Hyperthyroidism question... (any doctors out there to put my mind at rest or tell me to get help quick)?
My mom's had this disease since she was pregnant with me (24 years ago). She had a thyroidectomy and didn't need medication after that. Recently, she's been advised that her thyroid has grown back and she may need surgery again. My question isn't about her though (that's just...

Answer 4

periods vary hunni so try not to stress out especially if u are pregnant have u done a test? if this is 2 months ago your prob around 7weeks preg but by docs calculation it would be 9 cos they add 2 weeks are your nipples stupidly tender? do u have lots of nausea at all times during the day? do u have more gas than normal? are you noticing smells more strongly? at 2 months pregnant a test should not say negative so def do a test hun i know it can be nervous and stressfull about the possibilities of am i am i not? but try not to stress if your still not finding the answer out and you are having changes your doc can do a blood test which will confirm the results if a urine test is not showing it good luck xxx

Answer 5

very serious condition called thyroid storm could result from an overactive thyroid.Thyroid storm is a sudden, life-threatening exacerbation of thyrotoxicosis. In its pure form the manifestations are due simply to the action of excess thyroid hormone. In recent years, thyroid storm, defined in this manner, has become rare, largely because of earlier recognition of the disease, better pre- and postoperative medical management, and possibly improved nutrition. Acute exacerbations of the symptoms of thyrotoxicosis induced by intercurrent illness, especially infection, are still seen occasionally. Whether or not these should be considered examples of thyroid storm is a question of semantics, but they are indeed life threatening, and constitute a major therapeutic challenge. Thyroid storm in the past most frequently followed surgery, but now it is usually a complication of the untreated. or poorly trea. disease, rather than a postoperative complication.

The classic findings in thyroid storm suggest a sudden and severe exacerbation of hyperthyroidism. There is fever, rapid tachycardia, tremor, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, and delirium or coma. Fever is perhaps the most characteristic feature; the temperature may rise above 105.8oF (41oC). Occasionally, patients have a true toxic psychosis or a marked deterioration in previously abnormal behavior. Sometimes thyroid crisis takes a strikingly different form, which has been called apathetic storm. This condition is characterized by extreme weakness, emotional apathy and sometimes confusion. The wild delirium and agitation of the classic victim of thyroid storm are missing, and fever, if present, does not rise so high.

Signs and symptoms of decompensation in various organ systems may be present. Delirium is one example. Congestive heart failure may occur, with edema, congestive hepatomegaly, and respiratory distress. Extreme tachycardia or atrial fibrillation is common. Liver damage and jaundice may occur from congestive heart failure or possibly from a direct action of thyroid hormone on the liver coupled with malnutrition (Chapter 10). Fever and vomiting may produce dehydration and prerenal azotemia. Abdominal pain may be a prominent feature. The temperature may rise alarmingly, perhaps because the usual thermal controls have broken down in a manner similar to that occurring in the heat stroke. Frequently the clinical picture is clouded by a secondary infection such as pneumonia, a viral infection, or infection of the upper respiratory tract. Death may be caused by cardiac arrhythmia, congestive heart failure, hyperthermia, or other unidentified factors.

Storm is typically associated. with Graves' disease, but it has also been repor. in patients with toxic nodular goiter. 1 In years past, death was the final outcome of storm with awesome regularity.2 In an unusually large series repor. in 1969, three-fourths of the patients with thyroid storm succumbed to their disease.3 These patients typically were nutritionally depleted., had severe thyrotoxicosis, and had coincident serious disease, such as cardiac decompensation. In later series the mortality has been 30-75%.1,4 At present, although still life-threatening, death from thyroid storm becomes rare provided that prompt recognition and aggressive treatment is initially in an intensive care unit.

SEE A DOCTOR PLEASE!!!!

Answer 6

This is not a condition to mess around with!! Seek medical treatment ASAP!!