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Thyroid Removal Question
Okay, i was only diagnoised with Hashi's just under a year ago, but i have continully gotten worse by the month, i've have over 15 infections in the past year and a half. Would it be stupid of me to get my thyroid removed? I just am tired of being sick, and if my body is attacking my thyroid, wont it stop if it's not there? I just need to feel better!!!!!!!!! any suggestions?
The doctor is located on the expert side, we are just members.
It sounds your situation is much different than this one. You had nodule growth and that was your reason for surgery.
I don't think gender plays a roll at all. I had 2 females doctors before I was treated correctly and one of them said I didn't have any thyroid issues. When in reality I had Graves disease.
Also my endo experiences in general were very poor. The most valueable information on endos to give would be to make sure these doctors are thyroid specialists not just in the field of endocronology and basically only knowing about diabeties.
That is key.
Your TSH is not always suppressed on Armour. Right now my TSH is at 1.74 with a high level of FREE T3 and a lower Free T4. and it rose up due to the elimination of Xanax.
TSH will change due to certain medications
Free T3 is and should be the center of labs looked at when on Armour - not TSH. TSH is only an assistance.
It's all about dosing correctly to eliminate symptoms.
Why do you have to explain to your PCP every year that statement you made above about TSH and Armour?
Doesn't your female endo prescribe Armour to you for your thyroid?
It sounds your situation is much different than this one. You had nodule growth and that was your reason for surgery.
I don't think gender plays a roll at all. I had 2 females doctors before I was treated correctly and one of them said I didn't have any thyroid issues. When in reality I had Graves disease.
Also my endo experiences in general were very poor. The most valueable information on endos to give would be to make sure these doctors are thyroid specialists not just in the field of endocronology and basically only knowing about diabeties.
That is key.
Your TSH is not always suppressed on Armour. Right now my TSH is at 1.74 with a high level of FREE T3 and a lower Free T4. and it rose up due to the elimination of Xanax.
TSH will change due to certain medications
Free T3 is and should be the center of labs looked at when on Armour - not TSH. TSH is only an assistance.
It's all about dosing correctly to eliminate symptoms.
Why do you have to explain to your PCP every year that statement you made above about TSH and Armour?
Doesn't your female endo prescribe Armour to you for your thyroid?
1st of all, I am not a doctor, and it doesn't sound like anyone else on this sting is either. In my thyroid experience, I went through several endo's before I found a FEMALE who understood me and my hormones. I would suggest finding a FEMALE endo before you do anything else. Next, I have had a complete thyroidectomy because of nodules the size of golf balls that were resistant to suppression therapy. I have never felt better. As for the other meds that you take, I happen to know a lot about depression and anxiety and treatment with SSRI's. Celexa will not affect your thryoid levels, but your brain fog and depression and anxiety can certainly be caused by the fact that your thyroid levels are off. Finally, the best advice I can give you about thyroid levels is to go by the way you feel. Doctors don't know which of those numbers in the normal range apply to each individual. I have been on Armour for 3 years and have to explain to my PCP every year that because Armour has both T3 and T4, my TSH will always be supressed. Most PCP's don't know this and aren't sure how to move forward. Good luck.
The predisone I mentioned IS a steriod - I don't see why you would be treated with that per your doctor due to hashi's
Most treat hashi's with thyroid medication ( depending on TSH) and with anti inflammatory meds. like Motrin.
Most treat hashi's with thyroid medication ( depending on TSH) and with anti inflammatory meds. like Motrin.
Since there is doubt - it may be best then for you to google serotonin and thyroid issues. Also a google search on estrogen birth control and Hashimoto disease.
Trazadone and Ambien are exactly those types of drugs
The Ortho is a forced estrogen product that also shifts thyroid levels- best to research that - there are hundreds of those sites available.
I am also on Armour 120 - I recently have been through a battery of female hormone tests - so I advise you to look very deep into your meds.
I am also Hashi - hypothyroid - BUT I am twice your age at 43. And never felt better in years since my thyroid nightmares.
I've been through the whole BC meds -15 yrs of them which after going through a personal he// with my thyroid disease - I believe BC hurt me more than you can imagine.
I suffered the depression and anxiety and was on nearly 15 meds 6 yrs ago and still felt aweful. This also was after my DX of hypothyroidism - after radio active iodine to ablate my gland from working due to Graves disease.
I'm telling you - the more you get to know how everything is connected the better you will feel and be able to get off those meds.
Don't doubt it - read about it.
If you recently had antiboitic treatments on any of the infections you mention - then that also could be making problems for you.
.
Trazadone and Ambien are exactly those types of drugs
The Ortho is a forced estrogen product that also shifts thyroid levels- best to research that - there are hundreds of those sites available.
I am also on Armour 120 - I recently have been through a battery of female hormone tests - so I advise you to look very deep into your meds.
I am also Hashi - hypothyroid - BUT I am twice your age at 43. And never felt better in years since my thyroid nightmares.
I've been through the whole BC meds -15 yrs of them which after going through a personal he// with my thyroid disease - I believe BC hurt me more than you can imagine.
I suffered the depression and anxiety and was on nearly 15 meds 6 yrs ago and still felt aweful. This also was after my DX of hypothyroidism - after radio active iodine to ablate my gland from working due to Graves disease.
I'm telling you - the more you get to know how everything is connected the better you will feel and be able to get off those meds.
Don't doubt it - read about it.
If you recently had antiboitic treatments on any of the infections you mention - then that also could be making problems for you.
.
i wasn't on any of these meds until after i was dx with hashi's. The only thing i was on was birth control. So i doubt any of my meds are causing my hypothyroidism due to the fact that i have hashimoto's disease. but here is a list of my meds
Armour Thyroid 120mg
Celexa 10mg
Trazadone 75mg
Ortho-Cyclyn 28 day
Ambien 5mg
I haven't been on prednisone, im not quite sure what that is. But most of my infections have been viral so i would just have to deal with them, but the last infection i had they gave me difuclan
Armour Thyroid 120mg
Celexa 10mg
Trazadone 75mg
Ortho-Cyclyn 28 day
Ambien 5mg
I haven't been on prednisone, im not quite sure what that is. But most of my infections have been viral so i would just have to deal with them, but the last infection i had they gave me difuclan
Being on anti depressants - brain receptor sleep medicines and I would assume quite a long list of predisone and antibiotics due to the length of time with all the infections - you could be having a problem with your thyroid.
As AR said you are hypothyroid - but it could be induced by some of these meds you are on. Are you on birth control too?
Do you have the availability to list your meds?
As AR said you are hypothyroid - but it could be induced by some of these meds you are on. Are you on birth control too?
Do you have the availability to list your meds?
no im not taking lithuim and ive never had a thyroid ultrasound although my pcp thought it was weird when i told her that. thank you for your help! i have started eating better over the summer. its harder when im at school due to eating in the cafe. even if i try to eat healthy its only so healthy since i have very little control on what they serve, and as for rest, i suffer from insomnia, i am currently on ambien and trazadone, and the dr is trying to get me off of it. it's getting better overtime, so with my medicine i have been getting 6-8 hours of sleep a nite.
Most of your symptoms sound like hypothyroid symptoms, although they can be caused by other conditions.
You are hypothyroid. Your Endo should be trying to get your TSH closer to 1.0, and should have already run all sorts of antibody tests and probably a thyroid ultrasound.
It sounds like you need a new Endo, or your GP may be smart enough to treat you.
Forget about steroids.
You're not taking Lithium, are you?
All these infections you are having. Has your GP looked at them as "a package", to see if there is a common thread? That's a lot of incidents. Is your lifestyle contributing to poor health in general? Do you eat well and get enough rest?
I sure didn't at your age.
The recurring infections are bothersome.
Maybe your immune system is weakened.
Just pulling thoughts out of the hat right now.
Go over all of this with your GP and see if he/she is willing to adjust your thyroid medication and monitor you. Discuss the other issues and see if something clicks with the GP. If your GP is not comfortable adjusting your medication, ask for help finding a better Endo.
As far as getting rid of your thyroid, that is a very hard question. As Utah said, it should be the last option. If it can't be controlled, then it should be irradicated. Normally it can be controlled.
You are hypothyroid. Your Endo should be trying to get your TSH closer to 1.0, and should have already run all sorts of antibody tests and probably a thyroid ultrasound.
It sounds like you need a new Endo, or your GP may be smart enough to treat you.
Forget about steroids.
You're not taking Lithium, are you?
All these infections you are having. Has your GP looked at them as "a package", to see if there is a common thread? That's a lot of incidents. Is your lifestyle contributing to poor health in general? Do you eat well and get enough rest?
I sure didn't at your age.
The recurring infections are bothersome.
Maybe your immune system is weakened.
Just pulling thoughts out of the hat right now.
Go over all of this with your GP and see if he/she is willing to adjust your thyroid medication and monitor you. Discuss the other issues and see if something clicks with the GP. If your GP is not comfortable adjusting your medication, ask for help finding a better Endo.
As far as getting rid of your thyroid, that is a very hard question. As Utah said, it should be the last option. If it can't be controlled, then it should be irradicated. Normally it can be controlled.
okay, im gonna try to answer all these questons, so if i miss one u might have to ask it again..i have major depression and thats why i am on antidepressents. ive had a liver infection, several yeast infections, ear infections, unirary tract infections,several viruses. i did for a while go up and down, but recently i've only been slowly going up. i was last checked in october i think. but im not due for testing again until april, but that is with my endo, i have an appointment with my pcp in 2 weeks to talk to her about taking over my case or sending me to another endo. im not happy with my current one. i'm 21. the t3 and t4 are free t3 and free t4, sorry i didnt mention that. i take a multi-vitamin/mineral and i take maletonin for sleep and magnessium for muscle strength. my doctor has not mentioned any kind of treatments, my psycologist has said something about steriods to help my hashis but i dont kno. he also wants me to get tested for Mythias Gravis (not so sure on the spelling) beause he thinks i have most of the symptoms. but when i feel sick my eyelids are heavy, my body aches, my vision is blurry and i get small dizzy spells. my worst complaint is it feels like someone took out my brain and replaced it with something that is really heavy and causes me to feel foggy (if that makes any sense) i hope i answered all your questions and thanks for the help!
Oh my
One more............
You say you are tired of feeling sick?
Can you explain how you feel and what's going on?
One more............
You say you are tired of feeling sick?
Can you explain how you feel and what's going on?
Yes AR is right
We do like questions :)
What is your age? Had they at all ran any Free Testing like FT3 or FT4 on you?
What supplements are you taking since the DX? Have you discussed any other treatments with your doctor?
Do you feel you doc is understanding and knows about this disease?
We do like questions :)
What is your age? Had they at all ran any Free Testing like FT3 or FT4 on you?
What supplements are you taking since the DX? Have you discussed any other treatments with your doctor?
Do you feel you doc is understanding and knows about this disease?
Utah is right about your TSH. The closer you get to 1.0 the better you will feel, generally speaking.
You said you have had 15 infections. Do you mean bouts of thyroiditis? Other problems? If your levels are going up and down it is very hard to control. How often are you getting tested?
Also, antidepressants do not help to get you stable. I understand if you need them, but they interfere with thyroid treatment.
We like to ask a lot of questions.
:o)
You said you have had 15 infections. Do you mean bouts of thyroiditis? Other problems? If your levels are going up and down it is very hard to control. How often are you getting tested?
Also, antidepressants do not help to get you stable. I understand if you need them, but they interfere with thyroid treatment.
We like to ask a lot of questions.
:o)
Your Hashi's is showing improved control with your decrease in TSH - however the closer you get to 1.0, the better you will feel. I'm going to ask AR-10 to chime in, he's much better at the labs than I. There are a lot of tests you could have for adrenals, other autoimmune disorders, etc. which should be run.
Thyroid removal for Hashi's should be a last choice. The affects of living without a thyroid are not fun at all and your symptoms (and treatment) may not change.
I'll hit AR-10 and get his input.
take care
Utah
Thyroid removal for Hashi's should be a last choice. The affects of living without a thyroid are not fun at all and your symptoms (and treatment) may not change.
I'll hit AR-10 and get his input.
take care
Utah
my tsh was 4.5 (.2-5) in July (down from 23) my TPO was 1,237, t3 was 5.5 (not sure of the range) and my t4 was 1.0 ( i know the low wange was .9) I am only on thryoid hormone replacement and antidepresents. My dr told me my hashi's was aggressive and that im going to be playing catchup my whole life and he is treating me as if my thyroid was dead. i have never been told of any other treatments nor have i had any other treatments. I'm gonna be asking to have other autoimmune tests run.
Give us more information.
What are your labs (with ranges)
What is the treatment you are on?
What other treatment have been tried?
Have you ever had B-12 injections or anything similar that would boost the immune system?
Having your thyroid removed is a serious, irreversible procedure that many of us only went through because of cancer or other life-threatening diseases. If we could have a *healthy* thyroid put into our unhealthy bodies I know many of us would do it in a heartbeat. Living without a thyroid isn't any fun. Having your thyroid removed isn't a "cure" and it won't take away your antibodies so give us some more information so we can see if there is something that you health care providers may have overlooked.
Take care
Utahmomma
papillary carcinoma
What are your labs (with ranges)
What is the treatment you are on?
What other treatment have been tried?
Have you ever had B-12 injections or anything similar that would boost the immune system?
Having your thyroid removed is a serious, irreversible procedure that many of us only went through because of cancer or other life-threatening diseases. If we could have a *healthy* thyroid put into our unhealthy bodies I know many of us would do it in a heartbeat. Living without a thyroid isn't any fun. Having your thyroid removed isn't a "cure" and it won't take away your antibodies so give us some more information so we can see if there is something that you health care providers may have overlooked.
Take care
Utahmomma
papillary carcinoma
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