Rabiegom:

I was diagnosed w Graves and TED about 1 1/2 years ago. I have been really struggling with my Endo and Primary for not helping me with "holistic treatment options" to supplement my MMl. Right now I am on the lowest doseage I can get in Michigan - 2.5 mg/day, 7 days a week. I have been at that dosage for about 6 months.

I was not able to find a holistic thyroid practitioner in my area of western Michigan (there is Dr. Brownstein in Ann Arbor area that I like). I was so sick of my Drs. saying "your labs look great" but I still felt horrible. I have had splitting headaches that lasts for 3-4 days. At other points I just can't stay awake - I could sleep 15 hours/day. I have always been very active but these issues were making it impossible for me to function. I know that some of these issues are certainly "Graves attributable", but my Drs. are right - my labs do look pretty good.

What really provided the most incentive for me to "get healthy" was 2 fold - 1. I have been diagnosed as pre-diabetic and 2. have developed Rheumatoid Arthritis.

I knew that I needed to address the route causes of my auto-immune issues and not just treat my thyroid sysmptoms.

I started reading Dr. Osansky's information to see if I could "manage" his protocol. I knew it would be a challenge (and I am a pretty healthy eater already).

I dramatically changed my diet to see if I could help myself feel better and have more control over my body. For 3 weeks I essentially didn't have gluten, dairy, alcohol or refined sugars (and next to no fruit). I had protein with each meal and of course ate mostly organic vegtables. I felt great but . . . I went on vacation and my stringency fell apart - but my body did like the Vitamin D!!! So I am trying to get myself back into this "lifestyle change" philosophy.

I know that I need some holistic help and I have not been willing to take supplements and specific vitamins without some medical oversight. I have my first consultation w Dr. Osansky this week, so I will let you know how it goes (and how I feel). I feel like I have nothing to loose!!

Kim

Hi Kim,
Yes let me know what he has to say!
I also have developed Arthritis in my wrists. It Got even worse when my endo increased my dose of MMI instead of decreasing (as I figured out later) in Nov 2012. I was on the wrong dose for 3 months going further into hypo hell. Now With the help of this site I am decreasing the dose according to the Free T4 begging my endo for labs every 4 weeks.. Currently am on 5mg MMI. Yes I hate it when the nurse calls and says your labs are normal, stay on the dose you are on. Argh. I tell them I want to be on the high end not the low end of "normal". I asked my Dr what I should do for diet, she said "nothing, eat and drink what you like."

I like what this Dr says about treating the autoimmune disease and not the symptoms of GD. I would be very happy to have this go away forever!
There is a chiropractic Dr here but I don't really want to spend out of pocket money. My endo is covered 95%.
I need to decide soon.

Rabiegom:

Let me tell you that was a refreshing conversation with Dr. Eric! Even though we talked on the phone I felt like he totally understood my symptoms and concerns. He explained things in a way that I could understand - including his expectations.

I am feeling a bit overwhelmed with all the information he gave me (in a summary email just hours after we got off the phone). Boy do I appreciate timely follow up!

So I am planning on following most of his recommendations - but still not sure about the detoxification. So I am going to start with the additional tests he recommended for me (adrenal stress index testing and hair mineral analysis) and the supplements.

I have to journal my diet for 1 week and send it to him. Of course I have to continue to be vigilant about more vegetables and protein - no refined sugars, no alcohol, no gluten and no dairy. Once we get the test results back, we can figure out my unique situation and what my "personal triggers" are.

We did talk about stress - but that isn't a huge issue for me; I manage pretty well.

We also talked about environmental toxins (make up, cleaning products, air fresheneers, pets, etc).

I am already feeling like the expense is well worth my while. Since I am down to a small dose of MMl, I am hoping that I might be able to go off the medication soon and let me body heal with this holistic treatment protocol.

So let me know what questions you have!!

Kim

This doctor used to be on another thyroid forum which I moderate at. He left after awhile because of having 'ticked' off a few of the people there for saying that taking natural Iodine is what everyone with Graves' Disease needed to take to help lower down the Free T3 and the Free T4.

The fact is not everyone with Graves' Disease is able to take Iodine. In fact, for many, the excess Iodine was a problem in causing thyroid levels to rise.

There are more than one way of getting Graves' Disease. It would be a great idea to find out which way caused the problems to help reduce GD.

Please be careful. Not all info out on the Internet is good.

{{{gentle hugs}}}

P.S. My first doctor, an ND, thought the same thing about me that I needed more Iodine to help lower down my thyroid levels. I ended up hospitalized with a suspected thyroid storm.

Once I stopped taking the Iodine and began reducing my Iodine intake, my thyroid and metabolism did much better.

I do not see the ND any more and see a different holistic MD/NMD who sees that with different ways of getting Graves' Disease and how one has to treat it.

{{{hugs again}}}

mmztcass:

Thanks so much for the information!! AND . . . I really appreciate the hint of caution. I generally won't make clinical decisions without some "data" to back up my decisions. I have taken risks in the past with my health and after a thyroid storm, I won't do that again!!

We actually did talk about iodine and we discussed that it would be important to do some diagnostic work to determine if there would be any benefit.

For me, my throid issues are being managed pretty well with MMI and my lifestyle changes. As I continue to get my body back to a heathier place, it would be ideal if I didn't need the medication anymore. It is the inflammation and the arthritis from my autoimmune issues that I am focusing on at this point.

So thanks again for the words of caution! I am hoping in the next few months, that I will continue to learn more about my own body, I will keep reading all of these discussions, listen to everyone's advice and figure out how to get my body healthy again.

I just love this forum and how it has empowered me to gain more information and take responsibility for my health!

Kim

It's mainly my husband who insists on traditional medical treatment, but the more I read the more I tend to agree with him. Still, I know it makes a lot of difference which doctor you see.

My second endo is much better than my first, but both of them are primarily concerned with diabetes, not the thyroid. For this reason I am planning on going to Endo #3 as soon as she has a chance to look over my records.

She is in Denver, and I live just north of Salt Lake City, but I expect it will be worth the travel to go to a true specialist, not only in the thyroid, but also in pituitary issues and other endocrine glands--without seeing any diabetes patients.

The same thing might be true of Rheumatologists. They specialize in RA, but don't have much to add about GD or Hashi's, and just let the Endos handle those diseases.

I was once thought to have Lupus, without knowing just what my system was attacking, and my MD at the time said Rheumatology was a thankless field to go into because there was no cure for Autoimmune diseases, just relief of symptoms.

I have recently read about something about a new health study of a promising cure. I am sorry I don't remember where it was and I either failed to bookmark it, or have bookmarked too many things, and I can't find it now.

It doesn't help that I am in hypo hell after coming off MMI in December and my current endo will not supplement my consistently borderline low FT3. I presume it is because my TSH is also low enough in the normal range.

Sounds like phishing for business, if you ask me. Get the free booklet & see if the info is really there, or if it's just the hook. My Graves Ophthomologist told me about something he'd heard at a convention and that you can look up the research on the net. No medicine, but sodium selenite drops. Seems very promising in some cases. It may have helped me, unless my body just healed itself. i continue taking it though!

Yes I definitely have that feeling that he is fishing for business with not going into detail about which natural remedies he used.
But I did find the info useful if you are new to Graves disease.

I like the idea of treating the whole body and finding the cause if we can for the Graves. Is it environmental?, what we eat?, hereditary? Adrenal? Lack of estrogen? It sure would be easier to treat if you knew the cause. And maybe it can be cured?

I will look into sodium selenite drops. And Fern I look forward to hearing how your meeting goes with the new Endo. It does sound promising.
I will keep at my MMI and reducing my dose with labs every 4 weeks. I am getting labs next week and hope to decrease more. My arthritis is a tiny bit better I think. I worry that once the damage s done, it won't get better. I am 52 and can't hold a cup of coffee with one hand due to arthritis in my wrists.

Thank you all for the discussion, always informative.

Thank you, Rabiegom, I will probably post something regarding my experience in Denver unless I go completely brain dead or something. :)

I really hope it reveals some expanded understanding of the thyroid.

Hi , Rabiegom and Kim,

I was diagnosed with GD and hyperthyroidism almost three months ago. I just consulted with Dr. Eric Osansky last week. Prior to this, I was already on high dose iodine prescribed by my primary doctor who practices Integrative Medicine. I truly believe the iodine helped me manage the symptoms and feel comfortable enough to commute 70 minutes each way to work every weekday! Dr. Osansky did recommend that I test for iodine deficiency.

The next day, I emailed Dr. Osansky with several questions that I forgot to ask him. He replied the same day and answered all my questions. I learned more from him than my two primary doctors (one is an osteopath), my acupuncturist, endo (he has a Phd), and naturopath combined! I sure hope Dr. Osansky will be able to help us.

Take Care,
Elissa

Elissa:

I am so glad that you had a great experience too! I totally understand others cocerns that health care providers are fishing for business BUT . . . I did get so much informaiton from his book and the supporting documents I have referenced from other providers (Elaine Moore and Dr. Brownstein included).

If I value anything above all else, it is the holistic and systematic approach that Dr. Eric has taken to address the complexity of our lives (health, diet, environmental issues, stress, biology, etc).

I am having a mixed experience with my diet compliance but at least I feel like I have more power over a situation that felt powless a few months back!

I am learning to love veggie smoothies but I am really craving gluten! If that doesn't change soon, I am going to ask Dr. Eric for some advice.

Kim

Kim

Hi, Kim,

I hope you're feeling great today! I mentioned to Dr. E that you and I "met" on a support forum, and he was like "that's neat!" I like the way he responds to my emails in just a few hours. He always addresses all my concerns. For example, when he asked how I'm sleeping, I told him I'm a very vivid dreamer which sends my heart rate up to kingdome come. In his email, I was so surprised to see a recommendation to help with the dreams! I had forgotten I even brought it up with him.

I received the kit for the hair analysis. When I told my friends about it, they want to try it too! haha. I'm sure my Endo will think I'm crazy. He doesn't believe in "very dangerous" alternative treatments and vitamins, and he wants to test only for TSH and FT4. I'm so glad I have Dr. E to give me a second opinion and guide me on this quest to get my health back!

Just curious, why didn't you see Dr. Brownstein? I was seriously considering on seeing him, but it would be a four or five hour drive to his office from my state of IL. So I bought his books and went with my instincts and consulted with Dr. E..

I hope you have a wonderful weekend :-)

Elissa

Elissa:

When I met with my Graves Opthamologist this past week, he was thrilled that I was seeking to heal my immune system instead of just taking my meds and waiting to see what would happen.

The TED is really one piece that is driving me crazy but . . . my double vision has corrected in just 6 months and the inflammation has gone down. I am hoping in the next 6 months, I will see even more progress (literally and figuratively huh)! And now the decompression surgery issue is off the table - I don't need it at this point!

I just started taking all of my supplements and will do my Adrenal Stress Index (saliva kit) tomorrow. I have the Hair Mineral Analysis to do once I have 6 weeks hair color free :)

Re: Dr. Brownstein, I chose not to go with him because I did feel like he is a bit "iodine happy". That might be an unfair assessment, but I think that Dr. Eric's approach is even more holistic and comprehensive. I like the materials available on the website. I like the "module" system he uses. I like that I can email him at any point. I feel that my "stupid" questions, aren't that stupid to him. I also like Cindy! No minuses yet!!

Thanks for touching base!!! I am curious how you are feeling and what your expectations are from all of this?

Oh and yes, enjoy this sun that we finally have in the midwest since it is only supposed to last for 2 days and then more rain!

Kim

Hi ladies, How do you go about contacting Dr O? Did you make a phone appt? I Live in Wis. I am very frustrated with my endo. She doesn't know how to treat Graves and always makes me feel guilty for asking for a reduction in meds. She thinks that since I am in the "normal" range I should stick with the dose I am on. She said "against my judgement and it can be dangerous, I will allow you to reduce your dose". My Free T4 is in the low end and did not come up with the last reduction I begged for. Is it very costly to go with Dr. O? I assume my insurance will not cover him. How does he bill you?
Thank you!