# Acne & Brittle Nails & Losing Hair, OH MY!



## Dory (Jul 23, 2012)

I was just diagnsed with Graves about a week ago.

I am breaking out like a 13 year old girl. Some of my zits are normal ones, some are the really deep painful ones that never come to a head. I didn't suffer this badly with acne when I was a teen. I'm also breaking a lot right at my hair line. Every day I wake up to a new spot.

My finger & toe nails are soft & mushy. I can bend them like they are a wet noodle. They break constantly, and peel.

Every time I take a shower I feel like I lose a hand full of hair. If I don't use a deep conditioner, it gets really dry.

Is this normal? Is there anyting I can do? What have you found that works? Does it stop?


----------



## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

Dory,

Your DX was February of 2014?

If so, your body is in a complete recalibration - things will get better when you stabilize. I started on 20mg daily on Tapazole - it was not a good ride down. Be sure they re-test you within 4 weeks.

Can you share some recent labs with ranges?

When you have labs - you need to insist they run the Free T-4 and Free T-3 labs. TSH will not matter in dosing , but your doctor will likely insist they run anyway,


----------



## Dory (Jul 23, 2012)

Yes, Feburary 2014, exactly 9 days ago.

Here are my current labs (2/3/14): (only taking vitamin D pills weekly)

Thyroxine Free: Result 2.5 ng/dL (High) / Normal: 0.7 ng/dL - 1.8 ng/dL
Triiodothyronine: Result 271 ng/dL (High) / Normal: 60 ng/dL - 181 ng/dL
TSH: Result < 0.01 mcIU/mL (Low) / Normal: 0.55 mcIU/mL - 4.78 mcIU/mL
TSH Receptor Antibody: Result 5.12 IU/L (High) / Normal: <= 1.75 IU/L

RAIU : 60%

Ferritin: Result 28 ng/mL / No Range Given

Calcium: Result 8.8 mg/dL (Low) / Normal: 8.9 mg/dL - 10.3 mg/dL

Vitamin D: Result 25.2 ng/mL (Low) / Normal: 29.9 ng/mL - 74.0 ng/mL

B12: Result 221 pg/mL / Normal: 211 pg/mL - 911 pg/mL

I am on 75-100mg of metoprolol (beta blocker) after these labs Endo wants me to take 75 mg daily and if I have start to have sympyoms at night, the other 25mg. Endo added 20mg of metimazole once daily after getting the results of my RAIU and scan on 2/28 and had confirmation of Graves. Endo wants labs re-drawn at the 2 week mark (next friday). I have to say I still feel like shit. The heart papls & racing has gotten better, but the sweating hasn't. The skin has been bad for awhile now, but the hair and nials are new in the last month or so. I had lost a lot of hair about 2 years ago, but that stopped and my nails got better with extra vitamin D.

I know this takes time. And I know I was just diagnosed. I was just wondering how long I can expect to have these problems, and if there was anything anyone did other than taking the thyroid meds that helped.


----------



## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

Great! Two weeks is a better idea for a re-lab, if you get a sore throat go sooner and have labs drawn. My throat hurt in the beginning. You are pretty hyper -

Be prepared to ask questions if you feel they are not dosing you based on lab movement. My doctor brought me from full hyper to full hypo within 3 months - It took me awhile to understand lab's but once I did I began taking a lab tracking sheet into every appt. You are lucky to know about it in the beginning.

Because you are taking a beta blocker - your FT-3 will go down faster.


----------



## Dory (Jul 23, 2012)

Lovlkn, I see you had a TT in '04. My doctor has only put RAI on the table as far as treatment, and wants to talk about it once I'm stable. Would you suggest surgery if you were me?

So far, my eyes have just been dry & feel a little gritty. I can't wear my contacts without using drops several times a day, and lately they have gotten so uncomfortable that I just wear my glasses. If I have the RAI, would my eyes get better eventually, or would the anitbodies continue to attack my eyes forever? What are the chances of eye involvement with surgery?


----------

