Unsettling News...

Agh.
Just the title of this blog makes me a little squirmy. Well, I had a yearly a couple of weeks ago and got some scary news. My blood pressure was super high, 170/78. TWICE. I've never once in my life had an issue with blood pressure. Until now. My doctor was concerned. Of course he should be concerned. I left the dr.'s office and went to the station where Cody was working and asked him to take my blood pressure. And of course it was normal the two times he took it. So I was thinking maybe the one at the dr. office was BROKEN. My doctor wanted to set up an ultra sound to check my thyroid. What the heck is a thyroid?? I've heard the word a few times but never really knew what it was or the role it played in my everyday life. Ah, the power of GOOGLE. Google can sometimes be very helpful and sometimes be very SCARY at the same time! Went in for my ultra sound and of course, the nurse doing it couldn't give me any news or results. Once my doctor received it, his nurse called....................................................
I have a small cyst on my thyroid. CYST. What?! "Don't google, stay off google, STOP thinking about googling!" I kept telling myself. Thank goodness my appointment with him was just days after the ultra sound because I would have gone crazy!!
He said he was NOT even concerned with the cyst, (it's very small in size and is most likely just fluid) My levels of anti bodies were through the roof. He showed me my labs and that's when it all kinda went in one ear and out the other. All I heard him say was "Graves Disease" Disease?!?!?!?!? In my crazy panic of googling thyroid and high blood pressure, I remember reading something about Graves Disease. Scary, and of course thought, nah, not me. My gynocologist is by no means a speacialist in this area but I trust him and he knows what he's talking about. My next step is to meet with an Endocrinologist. A diabetes doctor? No, not just a diabetes doctor, they speacialize in glands as well. Who knew? And I work for the Diabetes Association.
He is 99% sure my thyroid will HAVE to be removed. REMOVED. How can I function with no thyroid? A major organ of the body that controls matabolism, controls how quickly my body uses protien, and regulates other hormones in my body. Medication, that's how. I'll be on meds the REST OF MY LIFE. What a committment...

There are two ways the thyroid can be removed. One, surgery. I'll have a pretty little scar at the base of my throat. BLAH
Or two, an iodine pill. RADIOACTIVE, iodine pill that attacks the thyroid and kills it. RADIOACTIVE. I can't be around my Huddy for at least 2 days..... and there is no garantee that the pill will do the job of killing the thyroid.
This all just sounds like a bad nightmare.
How crazy is all of this?!?!?!

If you have any information on Graves Disease or thyroid issue, please let me know!!!!!!!!!! I'd like some more research other than GOOGLE.
It's actually way more common than you'd think.