Living

I have my first migraine in the summer of 2018. On a random day in June, my head starts to hurt. It’s on the right side of my forehead and...

Thyroid eye disease (TED) is an autoimmune disease. In TED, the immune system mistakenly attacks tissues near the eye. This results in inflammation and damage to the muscles, tissues, and...

It was a scary moment when I first realized that my eyes were changing. I had been practicing makeup techniques for my wedding later that year, and something was off...

Prior to being diagnosed with Graves’ Disease and thyroid eye disease (TED), I feel like my perspective was completely different. I did not think about the fact that many people...

When I was diagnosed with thyroid eye disease (TED), I had really bad double vision. My reality was flipped upside down within a matter of weeks and it was all...

People with chronic health conditions, like thyroid eye disease (TED), often face complex treatment plans and multiple doctor visits. Brain fog, fatigue, and problems concentrating can be frequent side effects...

When I was diagnosed with TED in the fall of 2018, the treatment I was offered by my thyroid eye doctor was steroids. Steroids would decrease the swelling around my...

My initial article on this topic led to several in-depth discussions with individuals in the chronic illness community. The general consensus - it is very difficult to know what the...

I have received a lot of messages from individuals with Graves’ disease and thyroid eye disease (TED) over the years. One question that often comes up in conversation is “What...

When you are diagnosed with a rare disease, you might feel overwhelmed about what to expect. Because few people have thyroid eye disease (TED), there may be a lack of...

Here is what no one warned me about when I was diagnosed with thyroid eye disease - when my eyes get irritated, it is the worst feeling ever and there...

The Media Habits Survey is now closed. Thank you for your interest! Managing a chronic condition is not easy and can be physically and mentally exhausting. What types of media...

Sometimes I think about how much easier my life would be without thyroid eye disease. My eyes would often wake me up in the middle of the night. The eyelid...

More than 80 different varieties of autoimmune diseases affect more than 23 million people in the United States. Somewhere along the way, the body’s immune system makes a mistake and...

The morning started out great. I had noticed a significant change in my left upper eyelid. My right upper eyelid had dropped down some time ago, and my left had...

Once I was diagnosed with Graves’ Disease, I had to find an endocrinologist. I feel like for me personally, my symptoms kind of came out of nowhere, but maybe that’s...

Navigating life with a chronic condition like thyroid eye disease (TED) can be challenging. Adding children and parenting stress into the mix can make it feel like an impossible task...

Welcome back to the discussion of my experience recovering from orbital decompression surgery. (Please see part one to read about pain, bruising, swelling, and irritations.) I had two separate surgeries...

Good for the future, annoying for the present. This is the motto I have been repeating in my head as I go through another bout of terrible eye irritation. The...

When I first started seeing my endocrinologist, she put me on tapaszole for my hyperthyroidism. I was on that for a while. I was also put on a beta-blocker because...