My boyfriend has been experiencing symptoms that are making him believe he is going to die. He believes he has been having minor symptoms from about age 10 he is now 26. His symptoms are now taking over his life. He says he feels like he is losing himself. He thinks he is going to die. We took him to an urgent care doctor with a list of what he has been experiencing. She did blood work and checked for HIV/Diabetes but didn't check his throat or reflexes, she barely examined him. She said his thyroid levels were a little low but not enough that he should be experiencing symptoms from it. She said if he doesn't stop smoking and start eating small meals more often he could develop a thyroid problem. She also said he is depressed and overreacting.

He does not have health insurance until Jan 1st due to losing a job and not being able to afford cobra. He has a new job but his insurance doesn't begin until the new year. Meanwhile he is becoming worse and I am worried he is going to hurt himself or someone else by passing out or similar. We believe he has something wrong with his thyroid, possibly graves disease because of his extreme fear he is going to die. I fear that if I take him to the emergency room they will treat him the same as the urgent care doctor and dismiss him as a drug addict. He is not depressed nor on drugs. The only reason she could have thought depression was he is terrified and extremely weak. Also I would like to say his symptoms come and go, recently it has been. Monday is bad, Tuesday is the worst, Wednesday he starts feeling better, Thursday he feels even better, Friday he is awesome and Saturday he could sleep all day, Sunday he is OK but feeling weird and by Monday he is terrible again. This has been the cycle for 4 weeks now. Before 4 weeks he had less severe symptoms for 16 years and always dismissed them as something else. Such as being 6'3 and no amount of food or protein shake ever helping him gain any weight. Having times where he was outrageously angry for no reason after feeling kind of weak for a few days. Etc.


All I want to know is what I should do. The 1st doctor appointment cost us over $1000 because of no insurance for her to tell him he is a depressed drug addict. I believe she didn't care to really check into things because he doesn't have insurance yet. I want a second opinion from a doctor who will listen but my doctor cannot see him for 6 more days. He delivered me and has been our family/friends doctor for 30 years. I know he will listen and take us seriously. I don't know what else to do. If he winds up in intensive care due to a thyroid storm, he will be working for the rest of his life to pay it off. I don't want to take him to the emergency room and have him dismissed as "overreacting"€

I am not a medical professional and when he becomes totally enraged, delirious, and seems to be exhibiting psychosis I am worried for anyone around him. I know it is not him just having a mental condition and he has too many physical symptoms I have noticed. Like the hair loss. I will have a strainer full of hair after he takes a shower. Never before had this ever happened. There was always just dirt from him being a welder.

Where do I take him that they will listen, what do we say? I have to speak for him sometimes because he keeps saying he feels
"dumb in the head" and he forgets so much stuff. This is a college educated man who has times where he can't spell simple words. What can we do to ensure he isn't dismissed as a druggie and that he really needs help? His symptoms are below.


Increased appetite
Lost 25lbs in 8 weeks 6'3 150lbs looks like he is wasting away especially at waist
Constipation for 6 days then 3-4 bowel movements a day


Heart beats fast and hard
Bounding pulse
Heart feels heavy

Weakness
Fatigue
Difficulty talking - sounds drunk on certain words
Can't walk straight, stumbling when other symptoms increase in severity (irritability, confusion, feeling faint)


Difficulty in concentrating
Excitability & nervousness
Forgetfulness (cant spell common words, forgets where he puts something down)
Tremors
Shaky hands
Clumsy
Emotionally unstable
Mood swings (seem to be increasing to a delusional point. Episodes of psychosis)
Extreme irritability, everything upsets him
Bizarre behavior


Neck "goes out" hurts really bad and is stiff once in awhile
Throat feels sore
Throat looks puffy
Voice becomes hoarse at times


Always feels warmer than I
Losing hair/itchy scalp
Toenail changes


No sex drive
Difficulty getting and maintaining erection
Wet the bed 3 times in last 6 months. No alcohol beforehand, no explanation.


Blank staring
Eyes are starting to look different

Believe he has had more than 1 thyroid storm
Started with nausea/vomiting feeling faint. Escalated to feeling extremely hot. Followed by delirium and extreme muscle weakness. Took a cold shower and slept for 12 hours, woke up feeling very shaky and weak. Thought it was food poisoning.

For now, without the insurance to see specialists, I think you've got the right idea of taking him to a doctor you already trust and have confidence in.

You can try a free or low cost clinic. Why did the doctor think he was a druggie? Was there a certain medication you wanted to receive? I don't think the black market is really hot for thyroid medicine, so I'm just being curious there. :)

If the test said his thyroid hormone is low, that means he does not have Graves. Graves is an overactive thyroid. There are a number of possible conditions that he could be experiencing. Even forms of IBD can explain a lot of the symptoms.

Also consider why the symptoms are cyclic. Why is he always better one day of the week than another? What happens on those days? Is there an environmental factor involved here?

Make sure you're not set on a diagnosis of Graves and making his symptoms meet those requirements. It's more important to find out what is really wrong than to get the diagnosis you want. It could be that how you presented your case to the doctor made her feel you were out for some drugs. Most people don't come with a list of 20 symptoms and a pre-diagnosis. That seems a bit fishy. I believe you are really concerned about him, but you can't overwhelm the doctor. What are the most important symptoms? We all get a headache every now and then (erm, traffic jam anyone?) but doesn't mean we necessarily have to report it when we go in to discuss our major complaint.

Well maybe him being 6'3 and 150lbs and a filthy welder has something to do with her assuming he is a druggie. No he was not requesting any sort of medication. He said here are my symptoms, I am scared, can you help. That was a walk in clinic.

We don't have low cost clinics for people who make more than $900 a month. We can pay the bill it isn't that. The second doc said he isn't depressed, ran more tests for viral and whatever and said he is fine needs a neurologist.

We never told the 1st doc we had a suspected diagnosis. Just gave her a list of symptoms because we know they don't have a lot of time. She dismissed him as a depressed. My doc said he doesn't know but it could be neurlogical. Appointment on Jan 4th.

If it isn't nuerological it could be mental illness. He will have health insurance by the time he needs all this specialized care so we will wait and see, I will update if we ever get anything figured out. Hopefully he doesn't die before then.

As far as the cyclic goes it seems to be a coincidence. All I know is he is getting worse and worse, eating more and more, and losing weight but it isn't anything to do with his thyroid.

guindle, please use the answer box to add details and follow up. The comment features aren't intended for responses and make it very hard to follow.

Your family doc can order the blood tests done to check your hormones. If his thyroid is producing too much or to little hormone it will show in the tests and they can confirm whether you have Graves. Also, keep in mind regular doctors will dismiss a lot of the symptoms. I have graves and it went unchecked for almost 20 years. Did a number on my health and I had no idea. Unless they do a blood tests specifically checking the thyroid hormone levels then they won't see it. An overactive thyroid affects every single cell in the body and can effect the brain as well. Unpredictable mood swings is one indicator alongside the physical symptoms. Ask his doc to order a blood test to specifically check for it.