My docs told me 14days and had to drink lots of fluids and sour candies to keep your glands working. No close contact at all I even had to board my cat out for one week. Not all docs think about pets. You will get a lot of instructions.. thycancer.com is a really good site for more information. They have a great no cost cook book on line for the low iodine diet. You will probably be told you can go on normal food the next day after the scan. I had my entire thy and 6 nodules that were cancerous removed last Sept 2010. I had my first RAi Experience beginning of Nov. I Had to get and extra dose.of rai and a second scan. I recently had another test and a second dose because they found more cancer. I am 60 years old and don't know if it's my age I am having a hard time getting my strength back this time. I pray for you to have a healthy recovery.
Sincerely,
Pat

Hi. Isolation time all depends on your dose of RAI. I got a scary amount (239 mci) and had to be totally isolated for 7 days. 1 month isolation from pregnant women and children under 2yo. Just ask your doctor or nuclear specialist and you'll get the answer.

I work/worked with children under 18 with developmental disabilites, the dr kept me off work 14 days and away from them for 2 weeks. So, about a 4 weeks away from them but he said I could go back to work after the 14 days, just stay away from little people (children), small pets, pregnant women and if I mantained the distance of a full reach from others, I was good to go.
Definitely read as much as you can about the isolation aspect of RAI, it has detrimental effects on others if you are around them too soon.

If you have a baby or infant you need to stay away from them longer. I have an almost 2 year old and i cant see him for 7 days. This will be the longest week of my life. My husband I can see though after 3 days. I have not spent thing long of time away from my son, which is upsetting it's not by choose.

Hi Pedsnurse!

I just took 155mcg of RAI on Thursday. I've been consistently nauseous ever since, though it's not overwhelming, just kinda a nagging unpleasantness. Ginger has been a help to my stomach. I was only out of work for the first 2 days. You need to avoid pregnant women and infants for at least 2 weeks. You need to avoid people within 10 feet for the first 2 days, then 7 feet for up to an hour at a time, then after 4-5 days, people can be within 3 feet of you for up to an hour. After 10 days, you can pretty much resume normal activity. HOWEVER, these are just blanket guidelines. It will vary based on how much RAI dosage you're given. I'm really surprised at Mousse -- my nuclear medicine doc said that 155 was the highest they'd give a person! We have a lifetime tolerance for radiation, and our limit is about 600. After that, your risk for leukemia and other cancers goes up. As far as the low iodine diet, they said I could stop it after 5 days of receiving RAI, and that's also when I could start taking the synthroid. :)