Finding Her Way Back

After retirement, Anna expected to spend her days traveling to softball games and riding horses through the mountains. When Graves’ disease and thyroid eye disease changed the picture, Anna found herself navigating a new path.

When Anna and her husband, Brian, relocated to Alabama in 2018, their plan was all figured out.

Anna was five years removed from her career as an Illinois State Trooper. Their only daughter, Renee, was starting her collegiate softball career at the University of Kentucky. The move south was intentional. Living in Alabama placed them squarely in the heart of SEC country, making it possible to spend weekends on the road following Renee’s team from stadium to stadium.

It was a life Anna earned after decades of public service. Retirement meant time outdoors, trail rides through the Cumberland Plateau, and the freedom to travel wherever softball schedules and adventures might lead.

Then her health began to change.

“I was losing weight rapidly. My heart raced. Digestive issues followed me everywhere. Every attempt to solve one problem seemed to reveal another.”

Some answers came through bloodwork that revealed she had an overactive thyroid, also known as hyperthyroidism. An endocrinologist later confirmed the diagnosis in 2022: Graves’ disease.

When the World Starts Looking Different

For several years, Anna focused on managing Graves’ disease and trying to regain a sense of normalcy. Then new symptoms emerged: pain behind her eyes, persistent redness, double vision that slowly worked its way into everyday life.

One of those moments happened on horseback.

A lifelong rider, Anna spends her time doing more of the things that matter most to her. She rides horses, runs, helps friends and neighbors, and enjoys the mountains she calls home. Renee traded in her softball jersey for a white coat and is beginning her career as a resident physician.

“To be fair to the horse, he also had vision challenges of his own,” Anna joked as she recounted the story with a laugh.

Like many people, though, she wondered whether some of what she was experiencing was simply part of getting older. When she sought help, the answers weren’t always reassuring; one suggestion was over-the-counter eye drops.

But Anna knew something was not right with her eyes. Eventually, an ophthalmologist diagnosed Thyroid Eye Disease (TED), a rare autoimmune condition often associated with Graves’ disease.

It wasn’t just showing up on horseback. Running became more difficult. Judging distances became less intuitive. Simple activities required new levels of concentration and adaptation. For someone who spent much of her life outdoors and in motion, those changes carried weight.

Looking For Answers with Amgen

Anna turned to the internet, spending hours researching symptoms, treatments, and patient experiences, trying to piece together a picture of what the future might be like.

What she was really searching for was perspective. She wanted to hear from people who had lived it. People who could tell her what happened after the diagnosis. How they navigated the uncertainty. What they wished they had known sooner.

That changed when she accepted an invitation to attend a dinner hosted by Amgen for people living with TED and Graves’ disease.

Anna wasn’t sure what to expect, but she had found something she had been missing in her few years of searching for information in isolation.

For the first time, I was sitting next to someone else with Graves’ disease,” she recalled. “Around the table were people who understood the frustration of symptoms that are difficult to describe. They understood the uncertainty that comes with navigating a rare condition. They understood what it felt like to be searching for answers while trying to continue living your life.”

Anna found herself exchanging stories, talking about experiences openly, asking questions, offering advice, and simply listening. That direct connection carried a different kind of credibility.

“The conversation didn't erase the challenges of living with Graves' disease or TED, but there was reassurance that we aren’t navigating those challenges alone anymore.”

Finding Her Way Forward

Today, life looks much different than it did during the four years since her initial diagnosis. A thyroidectomy in 2025 brought relief after years of struggling to manage her Graves’ disease.

Anna spends her time doing more of the things that matter most to her. She rides horses, runs, helps friends and neighbors, and enjoys the mountains she calls home. Renee traded in her softball jersey for a white coat and is beginning her career as a resident physician.

Anna’s journey with Graves’ disease and TED has changed her perspective in ways she never expected. There is still uncertainty and challenges, but there is also a deeper appreciation for connection and community.