# Homeopathic tx for Graves



## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

Anyone here tried it? What do you think?


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## webster2 (May 19, 2011)

Is Tx an abbreviation for treatment?


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## laylabear (Nov 9, 2014)

Funny you mention this I actually have an appointmen with a naturopath on Monday
Want to see what she says in regards to natural remedies or the body healing Itself 
Mind you I still have my surgery for a thyroidextomy booked in 
What wee you thinking of trying ?


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

Sorry, tx is an abbreviation for treatment I use in patient charts.


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

@laylabear I have an appointment with an naturopath that is 6 hours away from where I live. I do not want to lose function of my thyroid at 27. What do I have left to lose at this point? If it doesn't work then it doesn't. I'm not sure what she is going to recommend yet.


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## laylabear (Nov 9, 2014)

AmndRDH let me know how you get on ... 
I'm in the exact same situation as you 
Im only 34 and don't want to lose my thyroid ... I've been investigating other options like naturopathy .. But I don't have a lot of time to experiment with things as we want to have another child .. So surgery seems like the quickest fix for me and becoming a hypo and being treated for that 
I must mention that I haven't had caffeine in a year but this morning I felt the urge to have a coffee as my little girl kept me up all night and I had a busy day ... It's really heightened my graves aymptoms and I felt very edgy and had heart palpitations 
I won't be doing that again ... 
I would love to be kept updated with your journey and what the naturopath says


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

Laylabear I will. I am in the same situation. My 2nd child is only 3 months old but we would like to have one more. I am going the week of thanksgiving so I will keep you updated. Are you on here a lot? I found a blog of a woman that cured her graves with homeopathic treatment. It was an interesting read!


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## webster2 (May 19, 2011)

I wish you the best. At some points during my time with active Graves, I could not function and did not see life worth living. However, I am living proof that a great life with conventional treatment.


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## laylabear (Nov 9, 2014)

Hey webater2 what treatment did you have ? 
It's a strange disease isn't it ? One day our good the next day not so much. A bit of a roller coaster 
@ AmndrDH .. Was that ladies name Rosanne by any chance ? 
I'm on here a bit .. If love to be kept updated witht your journey 
Dos our second pregnnacy trigger the graves ?


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## webster2 (May 19, 2011)

I went undiagnosed for over 20 years, had a thyroid storm and thought I was dying. I wanted the quickest route to feeling better. I chose surgery as I had already had half of my thyroid out. I lost the other half 3 years ago, had some medication changes and I feel fabulous. I do have some bone loss from being hyper for so long untreated. Whatever you choose, I wish you the best.


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

Yes, it was Roseanne! Did you read the same blog? Or is that who your appointment is with? It does seem like it was my second pregnancy that triggered Graves. I've seen online that it can also be triggered by a stressful event so it could have possibly been when my baby was In the hospital sick. Was it after your 2nd pregnancy also?


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

Thank everyone for the replies. I'm
New to the diagnosis and honestly still freaked out about it.


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## laylabear (Nov 9, 2014)

Here for you AMNDRDH 
I am newly diagnosed too two weeks in fact ! 
Took me a week of freaking out and panicking to get my head around it 
It was my first baby but defintely the pregnancy was what triggered it .. 
Well I read Rosanne sorry too and I contacted her ! I have a Skype meeting with her on Tuesday night. .she is in Florida I think and I live in Australia ! 
Ask me anything AMNDRDH and I'll do my best to answer .
You can even PM me 
I have given it 8 weeks ... If not im going in for surgery in jan and having my thryroid removed and have come to the conclusion that I'll just take the tablets for the rest of my life 
My mum has an underactive so does my nanna , my female cousins on mums side and aunties on mums side
This horrible thryroid problem has claimed us all!! I'm the only one with graves tho so I've had to do a lot of research 
The reason im having it removed is because the sooner we can have baby number 2 
Did they give you meds AMNDRDH?


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

@laylabear I actually emailed her, too, but I haven't heard back yet. That was only a day ago. How long did it take her to get back to ya? I'm excited to follow your journey. I was diagnosed on the 4th so almost two weeks ago. If I were in your position I would do the same. Give this a shot, if it doesn't work, have the surgery and have your baby! I'm glad you are getting it under control before your pregnancy. I had very high blood pressure during my pregnancy. We didn't know yet about the Graves so we didn't know what was causing it. I had some scary numbers, though. Once I took my BP after feeling dizzy and seeing floaters and it was 190/130. That was scary. What made you decide to opt for the surgery instead of the radioactive iodine? I will be having this discussion at my first endo appointment in December and I would like to have a plan in place if this homeopathic treatment doesn't work. I am leaning towards surgery too. I cannot imagine being away from my husband and babies for 2 weeks after taking the iodine. Please let me know how the skype appointment goes!!


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

I meant to add, I am currently on meds. 30 mg of propanolol and 30 mg of methimazole daily. I was diagnosed bc I went to the doctor over my high heart rate. They had me wear a monitor and my HR was going into the upper 140s and my BP was staying too high. Tested my thyroid and sure enough, there was the problem. Meds seem to have helped some.


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## laylabear (Nov 9, 2014)

Ooohh AMNDRDH .. I was diagnosed on the 5/11 so our journeys are so so similar !! I have read that a side effect of graves during pregnancy can be pre eclampsia / high blood pressure. I bet that's why your blood pressure was high. 
I had gestational diabetes in my pregnancy , despite having no family history of diabetes and only weighing around 105 pounds before getting pregnant. I controlled it with diet and only put on 12 kgs throughout my whole pregnancy . I had my thyroid tested when my baby was 3 months old and it came back perfectly normal. .then again just recently when she was 8 months old and it came back with graves. I had been short of breath and super tired an anxious all the time. .
I'm on 20mg of methimazole daily . Once the gyro is comes back into normal range , tht will operate 
Honestly , the reason I didn't opt for the RAI was because of several reasons 
Firstly the Endo told me it can take up to 6 months for thre thyroid to die and in that time you can fluctuate quiet a lot . It can go super hyper to hypo and back again before it dies and then you start thyroxine . Sometimes the dose isn't enough and you have to go through it all again .. That's anoher 6 months and RAI all over again . Also if some thyroid cells are still left from not enough RAI then the graves can come back and it starts all over again 
I don't have time on my side .. I want another baby soon and can't bear to think in the worst case scenario of going through 18 months of treatment with RAI. .that and I did feel uncomfortable about putting that stuff in my body .. Not to mention having to be away from my little family .. 
Surgery is an instant fix and the road to recovery starts immediately .. It may take some months to find the right dose of thyroxine .. But at least I know the graves cannot attack what isn't there anymore ! 
Research your options , ask lots and lots of questions and see what you feel comfortable with .. 
I'll let you know how I go with Rosanne ... But honesty my gut is telling me I'll end up in surgery either way 
Let's keep talking !


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

Plus, if you have any eye involvement at all, you really want to avoid RAI! I work with a lady who had her thyroid killed off by RAI over 10 years ago (she had rampant Graves, too) and she had minor eye issues (dry eyes and redness, mainly) that became worse and permanent after the radiation. She wishes now that she had pushed harder for surgery over RAI.


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

Yes, Laylabear I would like to keep In touch with you! They actually kept testing me for Pre-E and it came back negative. I think my body had just had enough! They never did the 24 hour urine test, though, so it's quite possible something was missed. So far I have not had any eye involvement but that is something that really worries me. I actually don't know anyone in my family with thyroid problems so I have no idea where mine came from.
My husbands aunt had nodules on hers that caused her to have hyperthryoidsm. She had the Iodine treatment and has really been pushing me in that direction but I am just not comfortable with that. I'm glad I have found this board and someone in the same journey as me (but I hate that we have been faced with this). Can we PM on here?


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

Jenny V, how would the surgery vs RAI cause differences in how her eyes were affected? Don't they reach the same goal? Just different methods? I'm new at this and still have a lot of research to do!


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

I think there are a lot more people on this board who are more knowledgeable than I am about this, but I've read that Graves patients with eye involvement should avoid RAI because there is a higher risk that the eye involvement can get worse. RAI somehow stirs up the Graves antibodies more than surgery does and those antibodies go after the eyes.


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## webster2 (May 19, 2011)

Yes, if the eyes are involved, RAI should be avoided. Hot nodules are not usually treated with RAI either.


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## laylabear (Nov 9, 2014)

AMNDRDH .. In not sure if we can pm on here but I'm happy to share my email address if that's allowed 
I think hyoerthroidism cauae by nodules is different to havjbg graves .. Although I'm not entirely sure and please anyone on her correct me if in wrong but with graves it's better to have the thyroid removed because of the graves antibodies attacking it .. I also think if RAI is used there is a atill a Chance the graves could attack cells that haven't been destroyed and you could have "flare ups " if your husband s aunts only had nodules and no graves I can probably understand why she went through the RAI 
It sucks to have this it really does .. But we will get through it .. 
When were you thinking to have it treated ? 
in regards to eyes , I'm not entirely sure what the symptoms are but as soon as my doctor diagnosed ME with grave two weeks ago she asked me if is had trouble with my eyes 
I had just got my first pair of glasses EVER for reading as my eyes had started playing up in the previous months 
It could be totally unrelated and just old age though !


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

I'm not in much of a hurry. My appointment with the naturopath is in less than two weeks and we have decided we are going to try the paleo diet along with whatever treatment they give me. We figure even if it doesn't help the Graves hopefully it will help get my body into a better state, overall. My endo appointment is Jan 12th. I'm willing to give the natuopath 6-8 months and then I will pursue other treatment. So I guess I'm looking at the end of next year for surgery. My symptoms are pretty well controlled with the meds I'm on now, which I plan on staying on, even with the homeopathic treatment. We would like to have one more child but my baby isn't even 3 months so we aren't in a rush there. Im thinking maybe January of 2016. I do know graves can affect menstrual cycles so that does concern me, being only 3 months post partum I'm not sure if it has affected mine.


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## laylabear (Nov 9, 2014)

Hi .. I just have an update and Id thought id share 
I went to the naturopath today and it was interrsting to say the least
I explained my situation and her feelings were that a thyroidectomy for my graves was drastic 
She then explained that graves is a systematic disease and needs to be triggered by something
Eg major life stress , allergies, virus 
She explained that the medication I was on would eventually have side effects. She did not mention to stop taking it but prescribed me two herbal medications that apparently calm the thyroid and try to reduce the antibodies and the other inhibits the production of t4 
She explained my whole system is out of balance and that its quite possible to rebalance it and I may not need medication at all .. In fact the disease goes into remission 
I am in two minds to take the meds .. 
I'm unsure if they will affect the carbmizole that I'm on
I'm asked her how many graves patients she has effectively helped reach remission and she in fact could not really answer that question 
My gut says to just stick with the surgery 
So I'm going to do that 
I mean if graves was this easy to heal wouldn't wveryone be taking the pills ? 
Either way I nentikned I wanted another child soon and she scared me saying that maybe if I had the thyroidectomy the thyroxine may not work for me and my body may not be able to balance t3 and t4 
Is that possible ? 
If so can it be rectified ? 
the herbs are not cheap $80 for a two week supply only 
I haven't booked another appointment but do have an appointment with my surgeon on Thursday
Can graves right itself out ?
AmndrDH I hope this has shed some light
I'm still a bit confused !


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

I would say trust your gut. I feel like if Graves was really easy to treat with herbs, we would have seen A LOT more information on that all over the place. Unfortunately, Graves is an autoimmune disease. Once you've got it, you've got it for life (like Hashi's).

And those are some expensive herbs!!


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## laylabear (Nov 9, 2014)

Your fed right Jennyv 
Left the herbs and booked the surgery instead for 9 th jan 
Be all over and done wih before I know it


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

Good luck laylabear! I definitely think you should go with what your most comfortable with! Did you skype with Roseanne? she messaged me to set up a day. Do you want to exchange emails so we can keep up with each other? I think we can PM them on here. My doctors office called and left me a voicemail yesterday. I had blood work last week so I'm sure it isn't good and they want to up my meds AGAIN. Sigh.


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## AmndRDH (Nov 6, 2014)

BTW have either of you, laylabear of Jenny V had a slight tremor of your hands? I remember reading that it can happen. I noticed it in mine a couple days ago. I'm a dental hygienist so that isn't okay! It seems to come and go but I hope I can get rid of it for good!


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

You can PM. Click on the poster's name and you will see PM.


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## laylabear (Nov 9, 2014)

Thanks Andros ! Would of taken me ages to work that out 
AMNDRDH I just pm you my email . 
In regards to Rosanne , no I didn't end up Skype her .after I went to the naturopath I figured I made up my mind to have the surgery 
I spoke to my cousin as well who has lived with hashimoto for 10 years 
They tested her thyroid and she has nil function and takes thyroxine .. She said she loves a totally normal life ,and her levels are good .. It took some months to get there but for the last 10 years she has had no problems 
I must mention she eats a gluten free diet and doesn't consume caffeine or refined sugars 
I've slowly introduced a healthy clean eating diet too and I'm noticing a difference in how I feel
In regards to tremors ... Yes my hands were shakey when my graves was undiagnosed but since the meds I've been good . 
I had some aymptoms yesterday but I think because I got very little sleep as the baby kept me up with her teething. 
See that's the thing with graves .. I think it's challenging to keep it under control and can have flare ups . 
Let me know how you go with the bloodwork AMNDRDH 
I've got my appointment with the surgeon tomorrow and my Endo in two weeks to check my bloods 
Inknownyou mentioned graves interfering with menstrual cycles .. I have no idea if it has with mine as in still breastfeeding so Im still waiting !!


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

I had serious hand tremors and also head tremors when I was hyper, so it seems to be a common side effect. My neck was always sore in the mornings because I would try to hold my head still in my sleep and everything would tense up. It did go away once my levels stabilized, but it took a while.


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