Re: Newly Diagnosed with questions

March 14, 2002

>

> I'm not schedule for my RAI until 4/15. My doctor is allowing me

to

> be on Cytomel until 3/25 - then full hypo until the 15th. Here's

my

> question. Should I try to work during full-blown hypo?

it really depends... I work but I do scientific programming and am

better at it hypo than not (i find i'm more focused on the task at

hand and less distracted so in many ways it improves my programming

as i don't get sidetracked)(i also don't have to deal with other

people, be nice, sound smart to them, its just me and the computer)

(in the rest of my life i'm forbidden from making any decisions when

hypo as i tend to hate most stuff and would sell my truck, get rid of

my house and quit all my volunteer activities when hypo) MOST folks

find that its hard to be at the top of their game with being hypo.

driving the last week or so can be downright dangerous.. for me its

the focus that makes it dangerous, i become so focused on the road

ahead that i'm not using my mirrors, looking around, or paying

attention to the 100s of things one should watch when driving..

I'm a

> consulant and spend about 30% - 40% percent of my day in the car

> going from client to client.

--- probably a bad idea....

When I'm with clients I have to be very

> focused and at the top of my game since I often interact with CEOs

> and top level executive. My concern is that if I try to work a)It

> might not be safe to drive that much and b)I'll not be able to

> interact with clients the way I need to and thereby harm my

> professional reputation - and my company's reputation.

>

> I'm typically someone who tries to " push " my way through things,

but

> I'm wondering if I should just take off the 3 weeks and not risk

> it. Any thoughts or experiences on this?

if i were you (i've done this hypo thing 3 times now) i'd take off

the last 2 weeks before RAI and the week after - planning to do what

you can from home but not much more than that. driving can be a real

hazard, and the tired, dragging, dopey, hypo way most of us get just

isn't going to set the right sort of tone with CEO type clients.

barb

March 14, 2002

Caryn -

Welcome to the group.

The answer to your question about working throughout your hypo time depends on

several things. The first, of course, is unknowable - we all respond

differently, not only from each other, but from

one hypo experience to another. Some people have no problem working up until

their scan, while others can't find their socks after a few weeks off meds.

You will probably be able to work until the last 2 weeks, when you quit the

Cytomel. Dr. Ain adamantly recommends not driving for those 2 weeks, and I

would add the first week afterwards.

Since you say you felt awful during the week before Cytomel, and that you need

to be very focused for your job, my recommendation would be to take at least

three weeks off - two before and one

after your scan. Many people report feeling more hypo after their RAI ablation

than they did before.

One additional factor - assuming you will be getting more than 30 mCi RAI for

your ablation, you will need to avoid close contact for people for a week

afterwards. If your doctor recommends 30mCi

(a " walking dose " ), you might want to question it, since increasing protocol

indicates it's just not enough.

I hope this helps -

-

NYC

(TT 2/99 dx pap/foll; RAI 100 mCi 3/99 & 4/00; clean scan 3/02; back on T4,

STILL crawling my way out of hypodom)

carynavante wrote:

> Hi All:

>

> I was diagnosed with follicular thyroid cancer about a month ago. I

> had a partial thyroidectomy on 2/11. All looked good until a week

> later when the biopsy came back as malignant, so I went back in on

> 2/22 to take out the remainder of the thyroid. Needless to say, its

> been a roller coaster month!

>

> I'm not schedule for my RAI until 4/15. My doctor is allowing me to

> be on Cytomel until 3/25 - then full hypo until the 15th. Here's my

> question. Should I try to work during full-blown hypo? From what

> I've heard and read, hypo is going to be really tough. (I already

> experienced about a week of it prior to going on Cytomel, and

> although I still had some T cells in me, it still felt awful). I'm a

> consulant and spend about 30% - 40% percent of my day in the car

> going from client to client. When I'm with clients I have to be very

> focused and at the top of my game since I often interact with CEOs

> and top level executive. My concern is that if I try to work a)It

> might not be safe to drive that much and b)I'll not be able to

> interact with clients the way I need to and thereby harm my

> professional reputation - and my company's reputation.

>

> I'm typically someone who tries to " push " my way through things, but

> I'm wondering if I should just take off the 3 weeks and not risk

> it. Any thoughts or experiences on this?

>

> Thanks!

>

> Caryn

>

> Cleveland, Ohio

> carynavante@...

March 14, 2002

carynavante says:

> Should I try to work during full-blown hypo? From what

> I've heard and read, hypo is going to be really tough.

It's tougher for some people than for others. There's really no

way to predict how you'll feel until you get there.

> I'm a consulant and spend about 30% - 40% percent of my day in the

> car going from client to client. When I'm with clients I have to be

> very focused and at the top of my game since I often interact with

> CEOs and top level executive.

Driving while off meds is definitely a bad idea. You may feel up

to working, but your reflexes and response time will be drastically

affected... and you might not even notice it. You're also unlikely

to be " very focused " -- and you will definitely not be at the top

of your game! -- when you are hypothyroid.

Your best plan is probably to take a vacation while you're off meds

and for one week after you start them again (assuming that your doctor

will prescribe both T4 and Cytomel for the first week or two after

your treatment). At the very least, make some other arrangement to

get where you need to go. Don't drive!

ellen

--

mailto:ellen@...

March 14, 2002

Thanks all for the responses to my question. It validates what I've

already been thinking. One more question. Since I shouldn't drive

the last 2 weeks, I will need to have someone drive me to get my RAI

treatment. My doc has already said I'll need to be isolated at home

for 3-4 days. Will it be safe to have someone drive me back from

the hospital to my house after the treatment? I know this might be

a silly question, but I don't want to put anyone in danger, yet I

won't be able to drive either. Some info on this would be

appreciated. Thanks!

Caryn

>

> > Hi All:

> >

> > I was diagnosed with follicular thyroid cancer about a month

ago. I

> > had a partial thyroidectomy on 2/11. All looked good until a

week

> > later when the biopsy came back as malignant, so I went back in

on

> > 2/22 to take out the remainder of the thyroid. Needless to say,

its

> > been a roller coaster month!

> >

> > I'm not schedule for my RAI until 4/15. My doctor is allowing

me to

> > be on Cytomel until 3/25 - then full hypo until the 15th.

Here's my

> > question. Should I try to work during full-blown hypo? From what

> > I've heard and read, hypo is going to be really tough. (I

already

> > experienced about a week of it prior to going on Cytomel, and

> > although I still had some T cells in me, it still felt awful).

I'm a

> > consulant and spend about 30% - 40% percent of my day in the car

> > going from client to client. When I'm with clients I have to be

very

> > focused and at the top of my game since I often interact with

CEOs

> > and top level executive. My concern is that if I try to work a)

It

> > might not be safe to drive that much and b)I'll not be able to

> > interact with clients the way I need to and thereby harm my

> > professional reputation - and my company's reputation.

> >

> > I'm typically someone who tries to " push " my way through things,

but

> > I'm wondering if I should just take off the 3 weeks and not risk

> > it. Any thoughts or experiences on this?

> >

> > Thanks!

> >

> > Caryn

> >

> > Cleveland, Ohio

> > carynavante@l...

March 14, 2002

Caryn,

The best thing to do may just be to wait it out and

guage how you feel - then you can make a decision on

how much or little you want to work. Some people do

have miserable hypo experiences, and some may not have

it so bad. I did not have a terrible hypo experience

when I prepared for my RAI treatment. I felt a little

sleepy in the afternoon, but it never impaired my

ability to function for the rest of the day. I did,

however, experience greater hypo symptoms when I

acutally had hypothyroidism a year ago before my thyca

diagnosis. Before I was diagnosed with hypothy and

regulated on meds, I practically fell asleep on the

road on several occasions and it was very scarey.

I think that the most logical thing to do is to just

wait and see how you feel. Then you will be able to

make a validated decision about work.

Pattie

=====

Dx Familial Pap Thyca, Hashimoto's Thyroiditis - 11/01

TT - 12/20/01

RAI 150 mCi - 2/12/02

__________________________________________________

March 14, 2002

This is a tough question with no great solution.

The best one we've come up with is to have someone pick you up in as large a

vehicle as possible, and you sit in the back and to the right, giving you as

much distance as possible from the driver

(assuming you're not in the UK, in which case, you'll sit on the left :-)

If you have a thyroidless friend, that's probably the best choice of chauffeur;

a pregnant or hoping to be pregnant woman is about the worst choice.

-

carynavante wrote:

> Thanks all for the responses to my question. It validates what I've

> already been thinking. One more question. Since I shouldn't drive

> the last 2 weeks, I will need to have someone drive me to get my RAI

> treatment. My doc has already said I'll need to be isolated at home

> for 3-4 days. Will it be safe to have someone drive me back from

> the hospital to my house after the treatment? I know this might be

> a silly question, but I don't want to put anyone in danger, yet I

> won't be able to drive either. Some info on this would be

> appreciated. Thanks!

>

> Caryn

March 15, 2002

When I was hypo I felt fine Doc. kept asking if I felt tired but I felt no

different very strange!!! When I was nuked I was kept isolated in hospital for 1

week was not allowed contact with anyone had to leave personal possessions

behind, had high dose ablation just to be sure. Has anyone experienced lump in

throat having to keep swallowing, I'm not sure if it is anxiety - this group has

really helped me to understand the feelings that I was experiencing I though I

was a hypochondriac very conforting to know others experience some problems, but

on the whole I sailed through and hopefully everything will be alright, its just

the unknown that is so worrying.

UK