#hyperthyroid

Now for some details (get on with it, Tasha!)

What I have: Hyperthyroidism

How it affected me: in every facet of my life, it became a mental disability as much as a physical disability

Symptoms: so many. Too many, and from what medical professionals told me, it can affect everyone differently. So here’s what I experienced:

Severe anxiety (this manifested as imposter syndrome as I started a new job. Fun.)

Panic attacks (at one point I would have anywhere from 2-4, maybe more, per day)

Increased heart rate (resting and during light exertion)

Increased metabolism (was eating 4000 calories a day just so I could feel not hungry for 15 minutes, note how I did not say feel full. Weight loss is common for people but I am not sure if I did experience this.)

Muscle weakness (went from being able to squat 80lbs to barely being able to get up off the floor if I kneeled down)

Dry skin/scalp (idek with this one, it just happened)

Slightly itchy eyes

Hand tremors (especially if experiencing intense emotions)

Sensitivity to heat, sweating more easily (I am normally often cold and barely sweat even when working out)

Sleep problems/insomnia (worse than my usual coupled with ADHD. There were at least 2-3 nights I didn't sleep at all)

Light menstrual cycle (alarmingly light for me)

Thyroid gland swelling

My doctor detected it a year and a half ago, and sent me for a referral. I was pre-symptomatic at the time (besides the anxiety, that started around the same time). The specialist dismissed me fully from her clinic because I had zero symptoms.

Then last year I tested even higher (during the period where my anxiety became regular panic attacks). My doctor (bless her, she's the best) sent me for an EKG because I was worried about my heart rate. Fortunately that came back with no anomalies. But my thyroid levels (two of them, I think T3 and T4 but I may be misremembering) were 7x and 10x higher than they should've been, which explained all the symptoms.

Had to wait a month to get in with the specialist, but once I did I got medication and within a week I was already feeling better. It's been a few weeks now and I'm nearly 100%, at least in what I've seen so far. I'm working out again (though natural muscle atrophy has deteriorated some of my strength over 4 months), my heart rate is almost back to my normal resting rate, and most other symptoms are resolving. Based on the specialist's advice, the pharmacist, and a little looking online, the medication is supposed to start working after weeks or months. So I'm lucky. Even moreso that I didn't have even the basic and expected side effects (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, itching/rash (although I did have two weird nights where I couldn't sleep because I was constantly itchy, but it didn't last)).

Who else has a thyroid condition? Would you buy this?

Hello! c:  Hyperthyroidism is VERY common in cats, especially senior kitties, which is why senior bloodwork is important.  Thankfully, it’s easy to manage with medication (unless your kitty is allergic to that particular medication, but we’ll get into that later).

Weight loss - these kitties lose weight FAST!  The hormone that they’re overproducing eats up a LOT of energy, so they lose a lot of weight quickly.

Increased appetite - they want to eat.  Like a LOT.  But no matter how much they eat, they still lose weight.

Increased thirst - Likewise, they need to drink more.

Increased urination - what goes in, must come out. 

Sunken eyes - this leads to a very distinctive Sunken Eyes look.  They look somehow hollow.

Here’s an old picture of Oliver, back before he started his radioactive iodine treatment.  See how sunken his eyes look?  His coat is also pretty patchy from overgrooming, which is partially related to his (then) hyperthyroidism. 

Poor grooming - they don’t feel well.  They don’t WANT to groom.  You can see that in Oliver above, but you can also see it in Patrick (the orange and white boy)

Weird stance -  You can see it in both Oliver AND Patrick, to different degrees.  Oliver is almost standing with his feet flat against the surface, while Patrick is almost knock-kneed. 

Increased vocalization - this one is more subjective.  Having a thyroid condition SUCKS.  And cats that are raised by humans tend to be more vocal than ferals.  They know that, if something is wrong, they Gotta Talk It Out with their humans.  So a cat experiencing discomfort, may be more talkative.

Increased aggression - again, this is connected to how the cat feels.  You know how, if something is wrong with your health, little things that usually don’t bother you might make you snap?  It’s the same with cats.  They seem grumpier for seemingly ‘no reason’. 

Vomiting - yep, that’s another one.  It’s more minor than the others in my experience, but still worth mentioning.

The good news is that hyperthyroidism CAN be managed.  It can either be managed with medication (commonly methimazole or felimazole) or radioactive iodine treatment.  Most people prefer the methimazole, because it’s much cheaper.  It’s available in pills or a transdermal form that you can just rub in their ears.  The pills are more effective, but some cats just Won’t Accept Pills.  So you work with what you can.

Now Oliver is particularly interesting because he’s allergic to methimazole.  It caused him to break out in hives, his appetite dropped, and he was just doing poorly.  So the next idea was to irradiate his thyroid.  This is done with a radioactive form of iodine.  Since the thyroid is the ONLY part of the body that utilizes iodine, it’s very controlled.  This essentially destroys part of his thyroid so it’s no longer overproducing the hormone in question. This means he doesn’t need methimazole ever again.

January is Thyroid awareness month so I thought I’d share one of many diseases that effect the immune system. Two years ago I was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism and prescribed a starting dosage of Levothyroxine. Then the dosage increased inline with the blood test results. However, the chest pain heart racing palpitations and the trembling/shaking along with other symptoms which plagued me…

  -This is Nugget.   -She was born August 31 2009  in my bedroom closet (shes 11 yrs old)   -after getting a work bonus we took her to the vet for an upper respiratory infection.   -while there she got a prescription for antibiotics.   -unfortunately most of our money went towards our other cat that we thought had the same infection. After testing we had to have that cat euthanized.    -unfortunately this means we still have many other tests to do for Nugget because the vet believes that she has hyperthyroid (requires bloodwork) maybe a tumor or fluid in the lungs (need an x-ray), or maybe asthma (x-ray and/or bronchoscope)   -if it is hyperthyroid (which i think is very likely considering how the symptoms match up with her behavior in recent years)  then we need to examine how much damage it has caused to her other organs. (heart, kidneys and liver seems to be the most likely to be damaged)    -where we are at now we cant quite afford to take her to the vet to get initial tests, much less what is more than likely going to be further testing and treatment.      My husband and I as well as Nugget herself are heavily grieving from the loss of our other baby. i am terrified that i might have to rehome or even euthanize Nugget because i cant afford to get her to the vet or continue treatment. Rehoming in my area, especially with her age and condition is unlikely to be successful I implore you for your help, i can't lose another one of my babies so soon after my first, but i don't want her to suffer either. please help

i have a gofundme but if you would rather make donations through paypal dm me and i we can set it up. thank you for taking the time to read post.

There is more information and i will be updating my gofundme page as we go, for now, here are some more pictures of Nugget, from 5 weeks old till this month

She wishes all the best for you and hopes for the best for you and your loved ones

I would like to thank Nicole for coming forward and sharing her ongoing struggles with auto-immune disease. I too have been going through this for several years now. It was back in December of 2012 when I was diagnosed with Graves disease and let me tell you it wasn’t fun. The symptoms I had could’ve been anything. And with all of the chronic illnesses there are, it’s easy for a doctor to be dismissive and suggest that it’s all in your head. Especially if you’re a woman. Especially if you’re a black woman such as myself. But that being said, let me just say that I felt like shit and let me also tell you that I honestly and truly believe that the symptoms I had back in 2001 were just the beginning. The first being an anxiety attack. Never in my life had I ever had one of those That was scary. Your heart starts racing, and you feel as if you’re going to pass out. And each time It happened, I went to the doctor and was told I was fine. Maybe It was all in my head. I remember my mother saying to me; “If you keep going to the doctor and they keep telling you that you’re fine. “Then they're going to start thinking that something else is wrong”.

 I knew what she meant, but I also knew how I felt. And I didn’t feel right. I’m not going to lie I was a worrier, something many frown people upon, but let me tell you that it can be a godsend. Years later a curve to the column of my neck. I thought nothing of it. Thin eyebrows. But my eyebrows were never thick. Weight loss. Well, that was an easy answer. I had changed my diet. Cut out the carbs and increased my greens. Scratchy eyes. I attributed that to allergies. But then other issues started to happen. Insomnia, Irritability. confusion, weakness in the legs.  Extreme sweat and heat. 

                                                     2012

   You Now Have Congestive Heart failure Due to Thyroid Toxicosis, And You’ll Probably Have It for The Rest Of Your Life 

 It was December 12, 2012, that I almost lost my life.