Grappling with Graves’ #4: So Many Doctors!
In my last post, I mentioned that I dismissed my own Graves’ related symptoms by blaming them on other things. It’s a trap you can fall into for sure, especially when you’ve had a history of other issues. And the more problems you have, the more doctors you have to see. At 61 years old, I have 12 different doctors in my contact list. It seems like I have a different specialist for each body part!
In an article in the New York Times, Dr. Lawrence K. Altman, MD wrote that “Physicians may overlook hyperthyroidism as the cause of tremors, nervousness and weakness because such problems are common in the elderly. Also, behavioral changes may be attributed to psychiatric problems. Weight loss and bowel irregularities may trick doctors into suspecting cancer or something else.” The article was published over thirty years ago, but the information within still rings true. It is one of the challenges I have faced in my journey. Even though they know I have Graves’, most of my doctors, and even my endocrinologist, often assume there are other conditions causing my problems. The only way for a Graves’ patient to know for certain if a symptom is Graves’ related is to seek out specialist support (see a dermatologist for skin problems, check with an orthopedic doctor for muscle pain, etc.) and sometimes it’s a process of ruling out other things first. In most cases, however, you end up treating the symptom instead of addressing the root cause or you get frustrated and try to ignore the symptoms. But ignoring the symptoms for too long can lead to more serious problems! A friend recently shared with me that after suffering with hyperthyroidism for a long period of time, she ended up needing a pacemaker… a pacemaker!
While I typically don’t recommend “Googling” your symptoms, there have been times during my journey that Google has been my salvation! I hope that at some point, Google will direct some folks to this blog series and they’ll learn from my experiences as they grapple with Graves’ themselves. Figures crossed, prayer said!
