My Background With Graves Disease

In September of 2008, I was diagnosed with Graves Disease, an autoimmune disease where the body's own immune system attacks the thyroid gland.

I was a junior in college-- always a good student, actively involved with numerous things on campus-- when I literally woke up one morning feeling achey and fatigued throughout my body. I used to say I "felt old" even though I was only 21. In addition, my attention span and focus were terrible, and my grades plummeted.

My personality changed and my characteristic poise suddenly morphed into anxiety about EVERYTHING! Even the slightest noise made me jump through the roof, and even the slightest chore seemed overwhelmingly taxing.

Several months later my symptoms (previously mostly mental in nature) worsened, and the textbook symptoms of Graves Disease emerged: tremors in my hands, fluttering heart (I even fainted once after doing a heavy workout!), constantly feeling hot, and gastrointestinal problems. See A List of Symptoms of Graves Disease.

Finally, after confusion about why I felt so ill, my primary care physician checked my TSH, and it registered at .02 (regular according to this lab was between .5-5). She promptly set me up with an endocrinologist and also ordered a thyroid uptake scan. The thyroid uptake scan showed a diffuse goiter (a thyroid gland enlarged all over, not just in one lobe), about 3 times larger than its typical size.


I met with my endocrinologist who almost immediately diagnosed my Graves Disease after examining me and the results from the thyroid uptake scan. We had a disconcertingly short talk about the treatment options, and I chose to undergo radioiodine therapy.

At this point I had no visible signs of thyroid eye disease.

Welcome!

If you're like me, you might find the lack of online information about this disease unbelievably frustrating, particularly regarding treatment options. Numerous online searches yielded nothing for me but journal articles, often only available with a paid subscriptions. Even when I could view the articles, they were confusing or just...sterile. Impersonal and unspecific. I hope that by documenting my journey I will help others looking for answers!