Mike here. My last post was in march 2011. I gave a little history of 13 ish years of GD. Well this is year 14.. Ish.

Weight loss and control has been my main effort. A few years ago I was seen increasing BP and fasting blood sugar and elevated chloestorol levels. The usual middle aged stuff. Dr…( I basically us an internist ) said I was heading to
Late middle aged heart attack. So I was have problems with weight loss and exercise. By calorie count and exercise I should have been losing weight. Not.

After examination of diet I found I was in. The typical 65 to 70 percent carb diet with the rest balanced by fat and protein. This was following the usual advice of low fat diet. After now two years on a balanced diet of about 30 percent carbs, 40 protein and 30 fat I am down 40 lbs.

Blood chemistry is now …90 fasting sugars…150 total chlorestorol. Bp back to normal.

Been able to work up to 50 to 60 mile bike rides on the weekends and a few twenty mile rides in the week.

Some folks have put them selves on a low gluten diet ..this usually drops carbs by a lot and may help. I do not know. I only say what is working here to share.

The graves disease is still in the background and raises it head as a complete hatred of hot weather as I cannot deal with it for beans. I feel like I am having a hot flash all over again. Might just be part of the no functioning thyroid in a bottle lifestyle. Bad part is I used to live in Scottsdale and for seven years in the SO cal inland valleys..which get nearly as hot as the desert proper. And I used to lead the Boy Scouts in desert camps in very hot weather..too bad. However……cold is not much of a bother..when I used to bear cold weather like a Hawaiian….which means not well.

Cold suck as I can't take any OTC stuff. I would up with nearly going into a thyroid storm from NyQuil. Boy did the nurse give me what for….

Anyhow 14 years now and 53 years old. If I finish the retake job on my road bicycle I am going on a few hour ride in the am.

Good luck all. In time the BS of Graves calms down ..but I went through a pretty rotten time for five years then a few more as the RAI took effect and my thyroid meds were stabilized.

Take care.

How nice to hear from you! I think it means so much to hear from someone who has been through all the crap and BS, and is on the “other side,” and actually having a life! Thank you, thank you and thank you again for writing.
Someone on the forum now will read your post, and have hope where there was not hope when we begin this Graves' battle. It is very, very difficult.

Wow, you are really riding that bike! I am older than you, and decided the higher up I am from the ground, the farther I have to fall. This epiphany happened when I hit one tiny pebble on a bike trail and went sailing over a bank of blackberry bushes. Now I walk and take enhanced fitness classes, which I really recommend. Keeps me honest, and I really notice when I am out of town for a couple of weeks, and return to the class. Reassuring to know what a positive difference it makes.

I have modified my diet a bit for a variety of reasons, I guess primarily because I feel that good cardiac health has a better chance with less meat, less dairy and less fat, sugar and carbs, especially carbs that are white (flour, potatoes etc.) And more whole grains, green vegetables, quinoa, kale and chard (never had as a child)
Thank you for checking in, do it again sometime! I am sure happy for you. You have definitely been there, and done that, with Graves'.
Shirley

Thanks for sharing Mike as it is great to hear someone share who is now doing well after time.

I am the same age and having struggles as I had RAI in May 2012, still hyperthyroid, yet gained weight with 20 months on ATDs and never lost even with good diet and exercise and believe it or not at 2 months post RAI still hyperthyroid and I ask then why can I not lose weight and then they say don't exercise yet except walking is good so I do a lot of that.

It is great advice about the diet as I know I need to alter some things as I never had a problem yet since being treated for Graves things really seemed to change with my metabolism.

I was a very active person for years until back a little over two years ago when I developed Graves (and again told not to exercise), probably in the best shape of my life. Now I feel like a marshmellow at times with my cholesterol rising and thank goodness my bp is still good yet lots of middle weight gain and that is also getting older too yet I think this thyroid business just messed my metabolism up and I need some kind of a jump start.
Too early to tell as I kind of look forward to going hypothyroid post RAI now and on some thyroid hormone and get on some normal routine again where I can do more exercise than just walking.

Cannot tolerate heat either and for a while when I was drug induced hypothyroid on Methimazole back when, only time the heat did not affect me. It gets irritating at times, hopefully it will get better.

Seems some people have better luck than others. I have not as of yet and still hoping for that light at the end of the tunnel here yet you give me lots of hope! Thanks….beach

Mike, 50-60 mile bike rides, WOW! I would love to be in that good of shape one day….thanks for the inspiration!

Beach, good to hear from you I was wondering how you were. Sorry to hear you are still hyper, but hopefully as the months go by the RAI will finish its work and you'll get to a good spot. I'm with you about the heat intolerance, above 70 degrees and I start sweating - it is soooo frustrating.

Thanks for the update! I agree with catstuart7 that 50-60 mile bike rides is super impressive! I can't recall if I gave you this link previously, but you might be interested in this coast-to-coast bike ride which is raising funds and awareness for Graves' disease. The riders left Boston, MA on May 26th and they are a little over 2 weeks away from the finish line in San Francisco!

(Note on links: if you click directly on the following link, you will need to use your browser's “back” button to return to the boards after viewing, or you will have to log back in to the forum. As an alternative, you can right-click the link and open it in a new tab or new window).

http://greaterthangraves.com/ [greaterthangraves.com]

Take care!

Catstuart,
Thanks as I was quiet because I just do not know where I'm headed right now yet I feel okay yet tired all the time and I'm still heavier from when I was on Methimazole 20 months (never lost the weight) so I don't know how I'm still hyperthyroid. Doctors don't have answers about the weight thing either; maybe it's my age too; anyway, I am hoping for better reports this time around blood work this week at 11 weeks post RAI. I hope you are doing well. I know anything about 70 degrees I feel miserable and I live in the south! Every middle night even with the air conditioning on I'm hot as anything and I know with this heat intolerance thing I am not alone! I'll probably report more when I see things hopefully improving soon!…beach

Beach, the south has been so hot this summer. You must be glued to the A/C! Good luck on your labs - I hope they reveal some good news. I asked my endo how long it took to get normal after RAI and she started at two months but it could take longer.

Kimberly, coast-to-coast, wow again! I think if I could ride anywhere, at all, I'd be amazed.

Thanks catstuart. Oh I go to the beach even too for relief in the water which is like bath water anyway, yet the rest of the time yes I am glued to the AC. Plus upstairs in a condo where that heat beats down on the roof and AC is going most of the year even moreso than the heat. Big difference to when I lived north. Well like your endo, my current one said about 3 months there should be significant changes post RAI and another endo I consulted with said if not going toward hypo in 3 months post RAI, it may look like I need another dosage and that the 15 millicuries I had was not enough as the objective is to get it done quick and get the patient on Synthroid as ASAP. Well they all seem to do things differently at least by me and my current endo said we will wait 6 months to see if things get better. I am thinking maybe this time around I will see some significant changes, yet I'm not holding my breath. Throughout this journey which started more than two years ago now, I have not been the norm! I have hope though! Stay cool!…beach