total thyroidectomy scheduled for Jan. but still have questions

[pplilaccavy]

I am scheduled for a Total Thyroidectomy the first part of Jan. due to an enlarged thyroid. My throat is becoming more and more tender to touch. I am having difficultly with swallowing especially at night. I am not taking any thyroid medication at this time. I also am not feeling well, I am excessively fatigued but then can't sleep at night. I am very sensitive to temperture changes. I could be freezing one min and sweating the next. I am concerned about my tenderness in my throat and don't know if I should call my endo or surgeon. Any suggestions. Please

[utahmomma]

Do stick around!!!  We are here for support and now you have some great experience and insight that you can share (like you just did).  Welcome to the "double smile club", the "chicken neck club" and the "Pez dispenser club"  :-)

[mathriley]

Yours was the first posting that I read on this sight.  There weren't many answers then.  I had the guts to ask my question and felt encouraged to come back and look for answers based on those few results.  Thanks!

I had a TT on December 26 and everything seems to be going great.  (It's the 29th and I'm off pain meds.)  I don't know about the harmone replacement or any of that yet but I'm hopeful.  I hope your experience is a positive as mine.  No malignancy, only Hurtle cells.

I plan to stick around and beg for support when things aren't going so well.

[Nursey34]

I had a partial on 12/19 and now need to go back sometime in feb for a full due to them finding papillary-Suprise!  Anyway, these are my hints regarding surgery:
Comfy clothes
Ask for pain meds as needed-Mine was very painful the first 24 hours.  I then went to 800mg Motrin when I got home due to dizziness.
Heat pack for back of the neck-I had a terrible neck ache from surgery head positioning.
Cold pack for neck and chest-This helped a lot.
Sleep in a recliner at home first day-your swollen and it helps with this.
Ask for a private room-Luckily I'm a nurse at my hospital so I was able to get one.
Have someone stay with you overnight to help with eating/drinking and bathroom.
You may be very dizzy the first 24 hours.
Get some soup and soft stuff to eat for the first 2 days.
Good luck!  

[hockeymom1061]

Best of Luck.

[Liz94]

Well, I'm having surgery tomorrow so I'll give you all the wonderful details when they let me out They are saying Saturday but I'm totally going to whine until they can't stand me anymore. They just might let me leave from the recovery room!

[hockeymom1061]

I was just told yesterday that they want to remove my thyroid.  They have been watching it and preforming multiple tests since Fevruary (found during a regular physical exam - felt irregular).  I have multiple nodes and a 'cold' spot.  I have not had a single problem that I know of (I am a diabetic and associate most problems I have with unstable sugar levels).  I'm just not sure what to expect with the sugery and recovery.  If anyone can pass along their experience that would be great.

[debigolebiewski]

When my husband had his thyroidectomy, he had it done at 7AM and when he arrived in the hospital room after recovery room, he was ready to go home.  They made him stay until the following day, but he didn't have any problems with the surgery itself.  He had a 3cm tumor removed with the thyroid and a 5cm off his trachea and they did a dissection of the lymph nodes that they could reach.

[pplilaccavy]

Thank you all for your support and encouragement. I appreciate all the assistance with all my questions. It seems as if while i am talking with the dr. I can't seem to think of the right questions until i get home. My surgery is still scheduled for Jan. 8th and I am anxiously awaiting. I hear today that the surgeon has put a Thoracic surgeon on stand by as after reviewing my MRI films it appears that my thyroid is also substernal. I may have to have a sternotomy (opening my chest). I really would like to have some good news..
Has/does anyone have any suggestions, comments regarding a substernal thryoidectomy?

[crst]

I had a TT almost 11 weeks ago. I had very little tenderness in my throat prior, but a good deal after the surgery. It heals quickly and I was lucky and was able to go home the next day. I agree with making sure your calcium stays up. I did not realize it is normal for the parathyroids to shut down after thyroid surgery. I was not prepared for what happens when your calcium levels drop and 10 days after suregery my legs began twitching, my hands tingled, my vision was blurry, and my mouth/face was tingly. I immediately contacted my doctor who had me double up my Calcitrol and calcium and within 1 hour I was better. As for the soreness you are experiencing I would let my doctor know, but (I'm not a doctor or a nurse) what I have read often with a goiter it causes pain and that is usually what sends someone to the doctor. I had started gaining weight no matter what I did and I gained 10 pounds blinking after my surgery. I have the double wammy of PCOS which causes weight gain. As my doctors have told me I will probably never be "thin" again in my life, but I can be a healthy weight for my conditions and my body. I just can't use all of this to continue gaining weight, but expect your metabolism to just shut down until all of your numbers are level. Keep watching what you eat, exercising (on days when you have the energy), and thinking positive. Good luck.

[pplilaccavy]

Good Morning,
I wish i could lose weight. I have gained about 30lbs in the 8 months.I have never been this heavy even when i was pregnant i weigh less.  I feel terrible. I have not changed my eating habit or my exercise but continue to gain weight. It's almost a pound a week.

[Colleen454]

Have you lost any weight from this feeling?  I had my thyroidectomay along with some lymph nodes removed on 12-12, the surgeon also told me that it would require a couple of days stay.  On the second day I was more than ready to get out of the hospital.  My roommate had pneumonia and it is very noisy in the hospital, difficult to rest.  You heal so much better at home unless you have young children.  Post surgery, my calcium levels were on the borderline, they told me that if I feel tingling and numbness in my hands or lips to call the doctor immediately, that would indicate a drop in calcium.  Once home, if you take a multivitiam it will help prevent the drop in calcium.  Since my biopsy just over 4 weeks ago, I have lost 12 pounds from that feeling in the throat and difficulty swallowing.  I weighed 164 prior biopsy, now weigh 151.  I needed to lose weight but that was a strange way to do it.  I still have that tightness in the throat and sometimes swallowing is uncomfortable.  Before the surgery I went to the health food store and stocked up on fruit and powdered protein drinks, I knew I would at least be able to get my protein that way.  Since home from surgery, my husband and I have been making soups and they taste good and are easy to swallow.  Just after sugery broath was my favoite drink.  Good luck to you and don't worrry.  My family and I did a lot of worrying for what turns out to be nothing.  Last note, today I will be starting on synthroid (100), I am wondering what kind of effect that will have?

[pplilaccavy]

Well it feels like that now, i was really hoping for the lump and pressure to be gone. I have trouble swallowing for some time (3yrs) and at night I awaken choking on my own siliva. I sure hope that the dr was being overly cautious and I am out in 24 hrs. I am not a good patient.

[DarlaLOU]

4 days? Wow....  I was barely in 24 hours! I was told 1-2 days would be the max, and since I did well I went home the next day. I know they said minimum of 24 hrs to watch the calcium but I have not heard 4 days from anyone else. I hope they can get you something to help make you comfortable until the surgery and don't stress too much.... it is a lot easier than you think. My only think I'd tell you is to be prepared for the lump in your throat that will be there for a while. Mine is still slightly there, but at first really freaked me out. Sort of felt like a peice of food stuck going down?
Good luck.
Darla

[pplilaccavy]

Thank you. Right before I saw the surgeon my endo gave me an injection of Decadron, to help with any inflammation. I think I might need to do that again to hold me until my surgery in Jan. I am really worried about this surgery, but everyone seems to handle it ok. I have not been on any medications to suppress my thyroid, and now it is getting intolerable. The surgeon told me to expect a hospital stay of at least 4 days (until my calcium levels stablize) I am anxious to get this taken care of and get on the road to recovery as it has taken the dr. 4 yrs to finally decide to remove this goiter.

[utahmomma]

Sounds like your thyroid has grown so large that it is compressing nerves, your windpipe, and possibly vascular structures.  Can you talk to your endo now and ask him/her whether they can either bump your surgery up (unlikely due to the holidays) or give you something to help supress it a bit until your surgery?

[pplilaccavy]

thank you for the information. I am glad to hear you did not have cancer. I just can't figure out why my throat is so tender. I can not tolerate any palpation, touching of my throat. Even wearing a turtle neck sweater is bothering me now which is unusal as i have worn them for several year to cover this goiter.

[Colleen454]

I had a total thyroidectomy last week.  After my biopsy a few weeks ago, my throat also became sore and swallowing was difficult.  I was told by my surgeon that it is not uncommon following a biopsy for the symptoms to worsen.  The pathology report from my biopsy was suspecious for thyroid cancer, hense the total thyroidectomy.  The pathology report following the surgery revealed that it wasn't cancer, it was pre-cancer and suspecious for cancer with some giant cells and follicular cells. He said the destruction of the thyroid was caused by Lupus, which I knew I had.  Has anyone out there had a thyroidectomy caused by Lupus?  Thanks.