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It sounds like you have so much going on with your husband's health and your own. When you were at the ER, did you receive a referral for an endocrinologist? With any thyroid disease it is so important to see and endocrinologist. This doctor will test your thyroid levels and monitor the medication you need as treatment. It may take a while to get into an endocrinologist so you may have to start with your GP to be monitored until your endo appointment. Graves' disease (hyperthyroidism) can be serious so I hope you can be under the care of a doctor really soon. 50% of people with Graves' disease develop thyroid eye disease (TED). This causes inflammation in the eyes along with many symptoms like swelling and eyelid retraction and bulging eyes and double vision. Because I want you to understand the seriousness of what your condition could be, I am attaching some articles. https://thyroideyedisease.net/healthcare-team . I truly wish you and your husband all the best and message us with any questions you have. We as a community are here for you. Roxann K. Team Member

Hi, I wanted to chime in, as well. I’m sorry to hear that you ended up in the ER. I’m also sorry to hear about your husband. I hope he’s doing okay and was able to get the help he needed. May I ask why he’s hesitant for you to see a doctor? I’m glad that you’re following your instincts and are planning to seek out help. Both Graves’ disease and thyroid eye disease are serious medical conditions and can have life altering complications if left untreated. I saw specialists for both conditions - an endocrinologist for Graves’, and that doctor recommended an ophthalmologist who specializes in TED. If you have questions please feel free to reach out either in this thread or through DM if that would make you more comfortable.
Wishing you and your family all the best,
Jessica H (thyroideyedisease.net, team member)

I had Graves disease. One of my eyes was pushed forward, but it's not too noticeable. I was lucky, as my Graves went into remission. I wanted to relate my experience with the Oncologist.

The Oncologist did diagnose me with Graves after receiving my lab results. He could not tell me what caused the Graves, but he did tell me that they do know that the trigger for the majority of people experience a major emotional trauma of some kind in the recent past. He was spot on in my case. I wanted to address his suggestion regarding treatment, and my concerns regarding one of the options.

On my first visit to the Oncologist, he explained that I had Graves and asked if I wanted to take a radioactive pill which would essentially "nuke" my thyroid, at which point, I would be on a prescription for the rest of my life to compensate for not having an active thyroid. I asked if there were any alternatives. He responded that yes, I could be on a medication that would slow my thyroid down. Once he figured out the correct dosage, which would be determined by the feedback from multiple lab reports to "zero in" on the correct dosage. I would be on this medication for 1 1/2 years, at which point the medication would be stopped "cold turkey", and we would see if my thyroid would "reset" and return to normal. This was the treatment I chose.

Unless there is a valid medical reason to radiate your thyroid right off the bat in treatment, I ADVISE EVERYONE NOT TO RADIATE THEIR THYROID RIGHT AWAY, like I was offered. After several lab reports, he determined that my dosage would be 5 pills per day. For a year and a half, I had lab work done so he could monitor my condition. I felt MUCH better on the medication. After a year and a half, the medication was halted, my thyroid worked normally again, and I was in remission.

I commented to the doctor, that I did not think that offering to radiate my thyroid should be presented to ANYONE until AFTER they have been explained about the procedure, to attempt to reset their thyroid. I told him that the thyroid functions are not all fully understood by the medical community at this point in time. Because of that, telling patients that they can take medication for the rest of their lives to replace the thyroid function(s), is only partially true. I told him that doctors still do not know everything the thyroid does, and he admitted that was true. Because of that, there are likely thyroid functions that ARE not performed by the medication. There is a 30% or so probability that the thyroid will return to normal. I told him that armed with the truth, I would guess that a very high percentage of patients would try the reset procedure. I told him that presenting the option of radiating the thyroid, the patient needs to be told that they will take medication for the rest of their lives to HELP compensate for not having an active thyroid gland, but since we don't know for sure if there are other functions of the thyroid, the medication will compensate for the missing thyroid functions THAT WE UNDERSTAND. I told him that presented with the facts, the truth is, that the medication will help with MOST of the functions of the thyroid. I told him he needs to tell patients the whole truth, and from a personal standpoint, I would have been EXTREMELY upset if I had destroyed my thyroid and eliminated the 30% chance to be rid of Grave's disease. He didn't like what I said. I could tell that, and told him the patient making an informed decision is far more important than anything else related to their condition no matter what feelings or egos are involved.

So my left eye protrudes a little bit. I used to be symmetrical, I'm not complaining though. I was very fortunate to have that, and light sensitivity for the rest of my life. People in remission from Graves very rarely have it come back. One important lesson I learned was that handling issues like somebody in a tough man contest, can and WILL eventually manifest themselves physically. I was easily able to let go of the issue that triggered the Graves, as I decided my health was much more important than my anger and worrying. Of course I did not want to trigger something else. It is also possible that calming down and letting go was a positive effect on the remission. I don't get worked up about much these days. I may be a little slow, but I did learn my lesson

Yes, it's important to see a specialist for hyperthyroidism and potential Graves' disease, especially if you're experiencing eye pain. Prioritize your health, even with your husband's stroke.