The THYROID Thread

[luvmarypoppins]

omg my thyroid peeps google international thy conf at the swan, i might just corner one of these guys if i see them!!!

actually we saw a guy with his briefcase at rose and crown tonight

air supply was awesome

 

[luvmarypoppins]

singing mom - I hope your trip is gong better than mine
Lets see...
The wheel fell off the wheelchair and it took 2 1/2 hours and some lies for the guy to finally show up with a new chair which dh had to wait for at the front of epcot. Its a nice old vinyl chair with plastic handles, not fun in the fl heat

I called my aunt during wishes and sadly she told me my uncle passed away. It was expected.
I was up sick 2 nights from the food here. I know the gastro dr. is in my near future

Come back to the room today and its not even made up.
I will be glad when this vacation is over, sigh.

 

[squeegee]

singing mom - I hope your trip is gong better than mine
Lets see...
The wheel fell off the wheelchair and it took 2 1/2 hours and some lies for the guy to finally show up with a new chair which dh had to wait for at the front of epcot. Its a nice old vinyl chair with plastic handles, not fun in the fl heat

I called my aunt during wishes and sadly she told me my uncle passed away. It was expected.
I was up sick 2 nights from the food here. I know the gastro dr. is in my near future

Come back to the room today and its not even made up.
I will be glad when this vacation is over, sigh.

So sorry to hear things are not going well.

*hugs*

 

[SingingMom]

singing mom - I hope your trip is gong better than mine
Lets see...
The wheel fell off the wheelchair and it took 2 1/2 hours and some lies for the guy to finally show up with a new chair which dh had to wait for at the front of epcot. Its a nice old vinyl chair with plastic handles, not fun in the fl heat

I called my aunt during wishes and sadly she told me my uncle passed away. It was expected.
I was up sick 2 nights from the food here. I know the gastro dr. is in my near future

Come back to the room today and its not even made up.
I will be glad when this vacation is over, sigh.

So sorry!! I got home late yesterday. I had a wonderful visit with my girl! She had a few days off so we played in the parks most of the time! I met some of her coworkers and saw her roommates again. I took her on a few errands and we visited with two friends. Missed seeing a few other friends due to schedule conflicts and a few cousins. I'm sure we will see them the next few trips. I'm coming back for a quick three nights in two weeks, and DH & I are coming for Christmas. DD was invited to extend, so now her internship is completed in May 2016! Of course, she's hoping for a permanent position at that point!!

This was my first time at Food & Wine - I was under impressed. That was the only evening I didn't feel great - too many mixtures of different types of food. However, we did have some good meals at two new places for us Yak & Yeti and Sanaa. I would return to both.

Weather was gorgeous. I could have used a bit more time lounging at the pool, but DD wanted to enjoy the parks, so I let her make the agenda! It was so good to see how great she's doing down there!! Very proud of her!

Hope your next trip is more enjoyable!!

 

[Christine]

LMP--sorry to hear about your less-than-stellar trip. I've had a few rough nights at Disney with regard to food. All on me know. Just from overdoing it. One of the trips I went on back many years ago (my oldest had just graduated middle school) was a rough one for me. I had been to afternoon tea and then a late dinner at Artist Point. I spent a few hours just miserable in the bathroom. I think the strawberries and cream at tea did me in with the acid. Soon as I got back from Disney I went to my gastro and he put me on a "white diet" for a week just to get my stomach under control. Now, when I go, I take it REALLY easy. If I am having a big dinner, then I just eat lightly during the day. No more food marathons for me. But the last few times I've traveled there and did this, I have felt much better. The last trip, I ate very normally (didn't clear my plate) and I actually lost 5 lbs on the trip from so much activity and not gorging myself.

Singing Mom, we did Sanaa on our last trip and I agree that it's a great dining experience. I can't say Indian food is my favorite but I really enjoyed the meal and the restaurant was pretty peaceful.

 

[SingingMom]

LMP--sorry to hear about your less-than-stellar trip. I've had a few rough nights at Disney with regard to food. All on me know. Just from overdoing it. One of the trips I went on back many years ago (my oldest had just graduated middle school) was a rough one for me. I had been to afternoon tea and then a late dinner at Artist Point. I spent a few hours just miserable in the bathroom. I think the strawberries and cream at tea did me in with the acid. Soon as I got back from Disney I went to my gastro and he put me on a "white diet" for a week just to get my stomach under control. Now, when I go, I take it REALLY easy. If I am having a big dinner, then I just eat lightly during the day. No more food marathons for me. But the last few times I've traveled there and did this, I have felt much better. The last trip, I ate very normally (didn't clear my plate) and I actually lost 5 lbs on the trip from so much activity and not gorging myself.

Singing Mom, we did Sanaa on our last trip and I agree that it's a great dining experience. I can't say Indian food is my favorite but I really enjoyed the meal and the restaurant was pretty peaceful.

I don't care for Indian food at all, but I had the lamb chops, pork tenderloin, & sausage dish with mashed potatoes & vegetables. It was fabulous. Grilled meat - not spicy, thankfully! We loved the "bread service". I would return and order just that and a drink!

I also have stomach issues, so I was super careful and did well this trip. Except for the F & W evening! Lol I wasn't sick, but I definitely felt "off" after all the different combos.

 

[macraven]

i've tried to keep up and read here but have been sick since i returned from my trip.
hope to improve and can join back in here regularly.

hugs to all of you!

 

[mickeysgal]

mickeysgal: Sorry it took so long for someone to come back to this thread. Sometimes it's very active, and then other times we all get on with things and forget to check back!

To answer your questions:

1. If the thyroid is functioning normally, why would I need medication?
ANSWER: It's best if you start now collecting reports from your lab work. Thyroid issues are life long and if you change doctors or want to just have a reference for how you feel at a particular TSH/T4 level, then having copies of your thyroid lab work is good. I don't know who you get your bloodwork done with but most labs now have the ability for you to sign up through them and you can access all your results without having to bother your doctor's office. Anyway, you may be in the normal range; however, maybe you are closer to being subclinically hypo thyroid? A small dose would help with that. It could also be possible that treating you with synthetic thyroid hormone is a way to control the autoimmune aspect of it. I don't know any doctor that would give thyroid hormone to someone whose numbers look good because it can cause side effects if you become over medicated. 50mcgs could cause an issue if your numbers are good. Which is why I would try to see what your TSH is.

2. I take a lot of vitamin supplements...calcium (I'm over 50), multi vitamin, turmeric, fish oil, flax seed oil, vit d, biotin. Are any of these not a good mix with this medicine? I know I have to take the thyroid meds first thing in the morning, without any other supplements, but when I do take those supplements later in the day, are they ok to take in general, given I'm on thyroid medicine?

ANSWER: Remember that levothyroxine is not a 'medicine' per se, but a hormone. So it's not like an antibiotic, it's more like a birth control pill. The supplements you list are all OK with it but take any calcium 4 hours away. My endocrinologist did tell me that taking Vitamin D at the same time as the thyroid medication is okay. I have issues trying to remember everything to take. My top priority is the thyroid stuff so I get that in right away and generally forget everything else. I need to, myself, do better with that as I am over 50 too and Vitamin D deficient.

3. I'm a runner...I run half marathons and full 26.2 mile marathons. I have a 20 mile run scheduled for this weekend. I'm worried about starting this medicine and it making my heart rate increase/palpitations occur while I'm running. I talked to the doctor and they said it shouldn't cause an issue with this dosage. Does this sound right?

ANSWER: Well, I'm sure your run is now over. The thyroid meds could cause heart palps, but it might take a week at least before you notice that. Again, it all comes down to what your levels are pre-medication.

4. What kind of side effects can I expect once I start on this medicine?

ANSWER: If the dosage still keeps you in the normal range for thyroid levels, you might not notice a thing. If it pushes you closer to hyperthyroidism, you might notice being jittery, increased anxiety, more frequent stools, moodiness, etc. It's really individual. Some people can get VERY hyper and not have any change at all. Depends how sensitive you are.

Thank you Christine for responding.

My marathon is over...I didn't notice anything different in regards to heart rate, so that's a good thing.

Lately though, I been very tired in the afternoon, have to take a deep nap to continue on through the rest of the day. It seems like I've been a bit more tired than my usual if that makes sense. Back to more frequent hot flashes as well. Don't know if that's my general "going through Menopause" self or tied to this thyroid issue somehow.

Picked up a book on Amazon called Hasimoto's Thyroiditis: Lifestyle Interventions for Finding and Treating the Root Cause. Over 1000 positive reviews so hopefully I can learn something here.

Curious...the doctor did not mention any lifestyle or dietary changes. Shouldn't he have? Want to make sure I have a "good" doctor.

 

[Christine]

Thank you Christine for responding.

My marathon is over...I didn't notice anything different in regards to heart rate, so that's a good thing.

Lately though, I been very tired in the afternoon, have to take a deep nap to continue on through the rest of the day. It seems like I've been a bit more tired than my usual if that makes sense. Back to more frequent hot flashes as well. Don't know if that's my general "going through Menopause" self or tied to this thyroid issue somehow.

Picked up a book on Amazon called Hasimoto's Thyroiditis: Lifestyle Interventions for Finding and Treating the Root Cause. Over 1000 positive reviews so hopefully I can learn something here.

Curious...the doctor did not mention any lifestyle or dietary changes. Shouldn't he have? Want to make sure I have a "good" doctor.

I probably mentioned the hot flashes stuff somewhere upthread. I am 51 and going through menopause. Earlier this year, I was on a higher dose of thyroid medication than I am now. I have been on a very high dose of thyroid hormone for 20 years--suppressive doses are a treatment for thyroid cancer. Anyway, in this last year, these hot flashes have been UNREAL. So, my doctor did lower my dose and they have dropped significantly to what I would consider a more normal amount for menopause. So your more frequent hot flashes and late-day tiredness *could* be due to the addition of thyroid meds. After you've been on them for 8 weeks, have your blood work redone. Besides a TSH, ensure your doctor gets a Free T4 measurement. That level is the one that really tells your thyroid status.

I don't think diet or lifestyle changes will do anything; although, it could be said that a clean, healthy lifestyle will go a long way to reducing autoimmune disorders such as Hashimotos.

 

[luvmarypoppins]

Well I am back and trying to catch up

macraven - sorry you are sick. Hope you are feeling better. I am sure you have alot on you too with selling the house. Hope all is going well

mickeysgal - I hope you find a good endo who can help manage your care.

Christine - hope things are going well. My dh is coming to your neck of the woods soon and of course I cant discuss it but its a really important bldg. he is going to. Reading anything good? I just won another book on goodreads and one from an author, so I am always busy reading.

singingmom - did you see any of the drs. walking around with those convention bags?? We didnt even get to the pool. We did got to the Garden Grove on Sunday which we like and dh went to the Java Bar a couple times for breakfast stuff. Our room was an 8th floor corner view with fireworks viewing and the water too. Very nice view!!!

squeege- hope you are doing well and wondering if you are getting all that bad weather and flooding???

I feel like my head is spinning. All we did was come home, I emptied the suitcases, did the laundry and then we had to pack for the funeral. Went there. It was good to see my aunt and family. We got to meet my cousins dd's fiance. We are going to the wedding June 10th. He seems like a nice guy. My uncle was the captain and a 29 year member of the rescue squad so they had a little service and a honor guard always stood at his head and feet. Very touching.

Now we all seem to have some kind of cough/cold thing which we got from ds3. I am going to be doing a little dining report soon. Friday I go to the hematologist.They will see if the test is good so I can stay off the blood thinner and I asked them to check my B12 level, so we shall see.

Ds1 starts a part time job on Monday in his field finally. The guy at the plant said he can still work there part time and he does the basketball stuff part time too, so 3 part time jobs, oh well the economy here is not that great for sure. Hopefully one day this week we can celebrate ds3 b day or next week.

 

[squeegee]

Well I am back and trying to catch up

macraven - sorry you are sick. Hope you are feeling better. I am sure you have alot on you too with selling the house. Hope all is going well

mickeysgal - I hope you find a good endo who can help manage your care.

Christine - hope things are going well. My dh is coming to your neck of the woods soon and of course I cant discuss it but its a really important bldg. he is going to. Reading anything good? I just won another book on goodreads and one from an author, so I am always busy reading.

singingmom - did you see any of the drs. walking around with those convention bags?? We didnt even get to the pool. We did got to the Garden Grove on Sunday which we like and dh went to the Java Bar a couple times for breakfast stuff. Our room was an 8th floor corner view with fireworks viewing and the water too. Very nice view!!!

squeege- hope you are doing well and wondering if you are getting all that bad weather and flooding???

I feel like my head is spinning. All we did was come home, I emptied the suitcases, did the laundry and then we had to pack for the funeral. Went there. It was good to see my aunt and family. We got to meet my cousins dd's fiance. We are going to the wedding June 10th. He seems like a nice guy. My uncle was the captain and a 29 year member of the rescue squad so they had a little service and a honor guard always stood at his head and feet. Very touching.

Now we all seem to have some kind of cough/cold thing which we got from ds3. I am going to be doing a little dining report soon. Friday I go to the hematologist.They will see if the test is good so I can stay off the blood thinner and I asked them to check my B12 level, so we shall see.

Ds1 starts a part time job on Monday in his field finally. The guy at the plant said he can still work there part time and he does the basketball stuff part time too, so 3 part time jobs, oh well the economy here is not that great for sure. Hopefully one day this week we can celebrate ds3 b day or next week.

I'm lucky enough to live in a part of town that doesn't readily flood. It seems like there were several disasters in neighboring areas, though. We heard of three tornadoes in surrounding towns, but nothing like that in San Antonio proper, thank goodness.

It's the time of year for me that seems like never-ending doctor's visits. I'm seeing my endo in a couple of weeks, the surgeon next week, my vascular surgeon in a week and a half, my internist next weekend, and saw my obgyn last week.

That visit didn't go spectacularly - I get to have a mammogram in a couple weeks and go see her again for the results. There is a "nodularity" on the left, up near my armpit. The left is where all my thyroid cancer was, so I'm not feeling particularly optimistic about this. Will keep everyone posted once I get the results.

Otherwise, we had a good Halloween, a nice visit from my parents, and things are generally going well.

Here's little monster in her costume:



She was probably the happiest, most energetic little bat-girl I've ever seen. Lol.

We're 38 days out from our trip, and I'm getting more excited by the day!

 

[Christine]

Christine - hope things are going well. My dh is coming to your neck of the woods soon and of course I cant discuss it but its a really important bldg. he is going to. Reading anything good? I just won another book on goodreads and one from an author, so I am always busy reading.

Lots of important buildings so I won't even try to guess!!

I haven't read anything that stands out. They've been enjoyable enough, though. Don't think I'll meet my goal of 50 books by December. Not sure why my reading is so slow this year.

We didn't "do" Halloween this year! That's a luxury you get when your kids are old. My DS came home from school for the weekend so we went out to dinner on Halloween night. Next morning I went out to do my usual grocery shopping run and had the treat of a real dead body in a neighborhood about 5 miles from me. No idea what happened but it was a homicide. It appears the guy was trying to crawl up someone's front steps when he didn't make it. Cops had just arrived right before I drove by but I REALLY had to do a double-take as I *thought* it was a Halloween prop. Sorry if this freaks anyone out, I just had to "share" that because I can't quite believe it. Good Lord, the poor people in that neighborhood. I'm sure it was some sort of "gang" activity. The neighborhood isn't an overly bad one, but not great either so not too shocking.

Well, that's all MY excitement!!!

 

[luvmarypoppins]

squeegee - glad you were spared from the bad weather and your dd is adorable!

macraven - how are you feeling

Christine - that was scary about the dead body.

Well I am back from the hematologist. I was trying to comprehend but dh with his usual butting in big mouth distracted me as usual. As usual I only saw the np and not the actual hematologist. She said my b12 level is low. I think its 200 and they want it to be 400?? She said my ferritin store levels are low too, a 12. She said they want to give me IV iron. I said I am not too thrilled about that. So she said they would try a pill first and see how I tolerate it.

She said they may never know why I got the blood clot, sigh. She said with the aspirin as with the xarelto I may till have bruising. I showed her a recent one.

Here is the funny part - she grabs my arm and says - wait your skin looks so discolored here. Do you wear a watch? I said, um no its from a Disney Magic Band. She said, um ok. I said yes, it was the Food and Wine Festival. I guess she doesnt share the disney love, lol!!!

Dh is off to travel again for 2 trips next week. He leaves sunday.

So now I have to go back for another B12 shot next month. Somehow I dont see the end to visits there. They havent asked me for a copay and I dont know why. Sometimes if you get a shot with my ins. they bill it differently than a visit. I dont know. I am sure a big bill is in the future. But I dont want to keep going to this place forever.

She said the iron iv would be a two time deal. And that i justs great because as I said before our ins. is changing and who knows how difficult or easy the new plan will be. I feel it will be difficult for stuff. etc. I dont even know if they will take our ins. but considering they are the only place around here, I am thinking they will.

 

[macraven]

LMP, i was taking the vit b shots for almost a year.
hate to say it but it was a waste of my time.
the injections did not correct my situation.

how long have you been receiving them?
did you ask how long of a time frame they would be needed?

 

[Christine]

LMP--

I used to have very low ferritin also (I was having heavy periods AND I was taking a lot of ibuprofen). I tablets helped me greatly. I know a few people who had the IV iron and it can really make you feel bad for a few days. It depends what type they use. I'm surprised, though, that the doctor did not want to get to the bottom of why your ferritin/iron is as low as it is. Do you have any ideas why?

 

[SingingMom]

On my way to Disney again tomorrow morning.... My 13 year old niece passed away last week and DD came home for the funeral. Disney was wonderful about giving her time off to fly home. My niece was a healthy 2 year old when she contracted encephalitis, which left her with irreversible brain damage, seizures, and with a feeding tube. My sister has cared for her 24/7 for eleven years. Poor angel suffered, but now is at peace. It was a very difficult week. Yesterday DD was able to have a theatre outing with DH and tomorrow I'll fly back with her and stay three nights to see the Christmas lights and go to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. We need to smile a little after such a sad time.... then she's back to work!

 

[Christine]

On my way to Disney again tomorrow morning.... My 13 year old niece passed away last week and DD came home for the funeral. Disney was wonderful about giving her time off to fly home. My niece was a healthy 2 year old when she contracted encephalitis, which left her with irreversible brain damage, seizures, and with a feeding tube. My sister has cared for her 24/7 for eleven years. Poor angel suffered, but now is at peace. It was a very difficult week. Yesterday DD was able to have a theatre outing with DH and tomorrow I'll fly back with her and stay three nights to see the Christmas lights and go to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. We need to smile a little after such a sad time.... then she's back to work!

OMG how awful for your sister and niece. Poor baby.

Have a great time at Disney!

 

[macraven]

sad to hear of your loss of your niece.
hugs....

 

[luvmarypoppins]

singing mom - so sorry to hear about your niece. Praying for Gods peace and comfort for your family.

 

[4HOLIDAYS]

Hello All- I have been reading lots of this thread over the last couple weeks since finding a lump on my throat. I have to say it made me feel SO much better knowing I am not the only one going thru this.

I have had the ultrasound, uptake scan and test and biopsy and was told Benign. Yah! I still have the lump and am now waiting to see an endo. My regular dr handled everything for me within 2 weeks time but now I have to probably get meds? That was the comment from my dr.

I can not believe the times I have been given for seeing a dr. Everything from 3 weeks(to see a PA-as the dr only sees hospital follow up patients-I think he is going to retire soon-he's 71) or 2 months or 4 months. Seriously.

Any idea what I can expect to happen? Any thoughts on seeing a PA instead of an MD? I don't like he idea of waiting months. Has anyone had benign nodules (I think multigrandular goiter-agin heard that phrase used repeatedly) and had them go away, shrunk down, turn malignant, ...? Also, how soon do meds take effect? I don't want to be reacting to new meds thru the holidays.

Any thoughts anyone might want to share would be appreciated. Thanks again for the thread.