Grave's Disease ( Thyroid) And An Ed Posted: 10-24-04 14:09pm
Hi. I am a 27 year old former gymnast who
was diagnosed with grave's deisease at age
19. I underwent rai therapy and was told
that it would be hard to keep my weight
off for the rest of my life. Prior to
coming down ith grave's I was a
competitive gymnast at the collegiate
level, standing 5' tall and weighing in at
110 lbs. We found out I had graves with a
routind bloodwork panel done the summer
after my freshman year at college, because
I was experiencing symptoms of letahrgy,
weight gain ( I went from 110-140 in 6
months) among other things.
My ed did not begin however, until well
after college, when my marriage ended due
to my husbands affair. I felt that he
left me for a more attractive fun woman
with less baggage ( graves disease tends
to make you an emotional roller coaster as
your levels of thyroid go up and down (
even with meds). After he left, I move
to another state and I began by throwing
up because the thought of him leaving made
me sick to my stomach. Lost about 15 lbs
this way and felt better about my
appearance. I began to date guys who I
always considered beyond my league in
looks. The throwing up subsided as I was
not so heartbroken anymore--but I ended up
over exercising..Up to 2 hours of cardio
per day to combat weight gain. This too=
unhealthy. One day I decided to "try"
vomiting after a rather large meal. And
lo and behold I could "do it".
Disgustingly enough, I was proud of
myself..And bulimia became my new
friend.
Although I purged, it wasn't following
binges..I actually restricted my calories
to 800 a day and purged after every meal.
I worked out every day, doing cardio for
"only" 40 minutes a day..Figuring that
eating less was beter than working out too
much! As you can see my head was not on
straight (:
my lowest point I had dropped below 100
lbs and my mother intervened. I was
irritable and sickly. I admitted to my
problem and we went from there. I have
been through counseling and brought my
weight to a relatively stable number
now...Which I have maintained through
exercise and 1,000 cal a day for over 2
years now.
To friends family and co workers, I am the
picture of health. Lean,
muscular..Happily dating a wonderful
man..But am i? My secret is that I still
purge on an almost daily basis. I blame
my thyroid disease for a below normal
metabolism and try to justify my low
calorie intake to that. If I eat beyond
my comfort zone, I excuse myself to the
restroom and rid myself of those
calories.I blame a lot of my weight ups
and downs on my thyroid, when in
actuality, I still have a full blown ed.
I am hoping to find someone who has been
dealing with thyroid problems and weight
just as I have. Just a friend to talk and
listen would be great! Thanks so much for
hearing me out.