I am 23. I had a partial thyroidectomy at 17 as a last-resort treatment for severe hyperthyroidism. Now, my eyes look terrible! They poke out from my face, and one looks bigger than the other. Ironically, I get a lot of compliments from men and women on my "big pretty eyes," and my fiance thinks I'm sexy, but I think my eyes look disgusting. I also have a big ugly scar across my neck. I am ashamed to get pictures taken because I look so ugly. Now I have hypothyroidism and a pulse rate of less than 50. I am taking Synthroid. I want to have surgery to make my eyes right again and cover my ugly scar. I will do and pay ANYTHING to feel beautiful again. Is there any hope for me?

-- Kia

As someone who has a "big ugly scar" on her stomach, I understand how your scar affects your self-image. Granted, I can choose not to display my stomach, and it is more difficult to hide a scar on your neck. But I eventually was able to wear two-piece bathing suits again -- I finally decided my scar gave me character. For a scar like yours, certainly a consultation with a plastic surgeon would be in order. It may be possible to revise the scar or do some laser resurfacing to make it less noticeable.

Bulging of the eyes, called exophthalmos, most often reflects an inappropriate level of thyroid hormone. Your thyroid levels should be checked; if they are out of the normal range, your Synthroid dose will be adjusted and the bulging may improve. If thyroid disease was present for quite a while, it may take a long time for the eyes to go back to normal, and occasionally some degree of bulging persists. Simple measures that may help include elevating your head at night, sleeping on your back, and using a mild diuretic to decrease the swelling in the eye socket.

Because there are some other conditions that can produce exophthalmos, I suggest you see your internist and an ophthalmologist (eye doctor). If the bulging does not respond to the simple remedies I mentioned, you may need to use steroid medications or explore surgical options with the ophthalmologist.