Posted by IsoM on June 24, 2002, at 15:15:07
In reply to Feeling suicidal -- fearful of illness, posted by Bookgurl99 on June 24, 2002, at 14:35:21
Bookgurl, if it's any consolation, those are the symptoms I had when initially diagnosed. There were times when it was so bad, I felt like I was strangely caught between dimensions. I don't know how else to explain it. I knew I existed & was real but somehow nothing around me felt comletely real even though I was 'there'. I felt like I was someone who was both there & not there. I couldn't seem to hold on to any thought or idea to even explore it properly. Like I would be trying to figure out something simple & have it fade rapidly away like a dream does just as you wake up. The harder I tried to keep my thoughts rational, the more elusive they became.
I remember a few times (probably can remember them because it caused me such distress that it burned itself in my memory) where I was struggling to find a word & I'd start gesturing to imitate it (like a stabbing motion when I couldn't remember what a fork was called). In the middle of my gesturing, I'd forget what I was even trying to say any more. That was pathetic.
Hashimoto's encephalopathy also includes disorientation, psychosis, tremors, jerks in the muscles & lack of coordination, partial paralysis on the right side (don't know why the right side though), & speech problems. In young people & adolescents, there can even be seizures & hallucinations. If you have those symptoms (or some of them, it can seem like a stroke too) & your antibody levels are very high, then it's worth getting checked out. Proper treatment can reverse symptoms.
I don't mean to belittle your worries, but even you probably realise the likelihood of having it is slim. That's not to say, don't check it out but to reassure you & tell you not to worry too much. The fact that you could type out your post & others too is really a good sign that your mental powers & coordination are plenty good still & that you don't have it. Check out some more on this site on it. It's got quite a bit about it & links to PubMed & other sites:
http://www.thyroid-info.com/articles/hashimotos-encephalopathy.htm
poster:IsoM
thread:25644
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20020616/msgs/25650.html