Medical Info

Since I have blogged so much about it lately. I figured I better clear things up. I have Graves Disease. Now my thyroid WAS overactive, in 1992 when I was diagnosed I had a goiter which is an enlarged part/all of the thyroid. I also had a spot that was abnormal which they feared was cancerous. So as a result of that and the fact my thyroid was waaaay over active they decided to remove instead of using radiation to shrink it. So they remove 80% of one side and 60% of the other(Spot was pre-cancer but not cancer yet). That made me hypothyroid (low thyroid) and dependant on Thyroid replace hormone for the rest of my life. MAking a long story short: I didn't have insurance and couldn't afford the bloodtests, dr visits etc so I stopped taking my pills. Which needless to say dropped my thyroid level down. A bit over two years since I lost insurance coverage. Symptoms of Hypothyroidism: Early symptoms: weakness fatigue cold intolerance constipation weight gain (unintentional) depression joint or muscle pain thin, brittle fingernails thin and brittle hair paleness Late symptoms: slow speech dry flaky skin thickening of the skin puffy face, hands and feet decreased taste and smell thinning of eyebrows hoarseness abnormal menstrual periods Additional symptoms that may be associated with this disease: overall swelling muscle spasms (cramps) muscle pain muscle atrophy uncoordinated movement absent menstruation joint stiffness dry hair hair loss facial swelling drowsiness appetite loss ankle, feet, and leg swelling I am pretty much on the late stages of the list. BUT, I am on the road to feeling better. More info on Graves Disease