RAI - Are you preparing for it?

[ChitChatNine]

Is RAI coming up for you?  If so, how are you doing with the limited diet, hypothyroid symptoms, etc?

[hope4thegoodstuff]

Supposed to be on a lower iodine diet, but Dr did not really go into it.  She just advised to not eat any fish (my sister caught me loading my plate with shrimp at a Chinese restaurant....duh....she got the shrimp)  Lay off any vegetables like cauliflower and cabbage (who knew?).  I printed off some info from thyca.org and I'm kind of attempting to deal on my own.  She did not tell me to lay off of the dairy and that will be the hard thing for me.  I eat cereal in the a.m. and I have a dairy probiotics product and it is Easter and I am not eating any hard boiled eggs.  Oh well, there is always next year.  My sister even left the yolks out of her world's best potatoe salad.  I should get my first post op blood results on Monday.  I hope this doesn't take long.  I am more nervous about the RAI than the surgery I think.  I keep picturing a cartoon character with a mushroom cloud over it.  : )

[Smilerdeb]

I had RAI and was so panicky and worried about it , thinking I would 'glow in the dark' or green things come out my ears lol.
RAI IS A BREEZE......as long as you 'flush' drink water regulary and suck on lemon drops or lemons the first 48 hours.
I couldnt suck on lemon drops as felt I was going to choke with the thyroid so enlarged so lemons did the trick for me.
I even sliced the lemons up and drank and ate the water/lemon concoction.
You will be fine with RAI and afterwards wonder why you was so scared.
I had mine done on June 27th 2008 and doing great!
Message me if you need support through this :)

[hope4thegoodstuff]

Thanks, I will.  
My co-workers have threatened to put haz mat placards on my office door.  They want to come in and turn my light off to see if I'll glow in the dark.... : )  Everyone's a comedian.  : )

[iris986]

I'll be going in for RAI on May 5th and the only thing that freaks me out is whether I'll get sick or not. The isolation at the hospital won't be bad,but I'm a type a person that likes to move around. I have 2 inside dogs and my husband will be home during that time. I've told my kids not to come over as i don't want them exposed. I've been on the low iodine diet since friday,its not bad I don't eat salt or do caffeine any way due to BPV and Meneire's and I don't eat too many milk products so no sacrifice there. And I'm allergic to iodine,so no seafood. Did you have any side effects like joint pain,teeth pain,dizziness,etc?

[nissah46]

Sometimes your tastebuds will be affected for a few weeks.  I had problems with my saliva glands, they were blocked and would swell when I ate.  I was told to suck on sour candy, but have since read that it is better not to. Because of the saliva problems I go to the dentist every 4 months to make sure my teeth are not affected. Do you know what your dose of RAI will be?

Good luck.
Trish

[iris986]

I won't know what my RAI dose will be until after May 5th, I have been told it could be 50-100 depends on uptake scan. Does it hurt when your saliva glands swell? Were you in isolation in a hospital at first?If so what was it like?

[nissah46]

Yes it was a little sore when my saliva glands were blocked.  At first my GP thought I had the mumps because this started 6 months after RAI. We soon figured it out.  It was sometimes on one side, then the other, or both.  The swelling would start at mealtime and take a couple of hours to go down.  It helps to massage the gland and apply warm compress.  Sometimes when the blockage releases there is a strong salty or metallic taste in your mouth. I was kept in an isolation room at the hospital for 2 days. There was a small tv, books and magazines, and a telephone.  I had a window that I could open. I was told that anything I brought into the room, had to stay, except my eyeglasses.  I brought old clothes that they threw away afterwords. The nurses didn't come into my room, just checked on me at the door.  I felt fine after the RAI and my dose was 200mci.  After 2 days they use a "geiger counter" to test my radio activity, to see if I could go home.  
Trish