what happens with your weight after having your thyroid removed?

[sunshine106]

I am having my thyroid removed the 25th of this month and was wondering what i should expect weight wise.I have had issues with my weight since being diagnosed with a hypothyroid,It is extrememely difficult for me to lose weight.I have a multinodular thyroid and due to that,they are removing my thyroid after trying to biopsy it twice.Do you lose weight after having it out? what should I expect?

[TamraW]

If you have a good endo who is willing to treat your FreeT3/T4 levels until you feel strong again, then you definitely can lose weight. If your endo focuses mainly on your TSH and ignores you if you still feel tired, then you will have more difficulty losing weight.

Many endos treat patients with straight T4 drugs. Some don't test or treat FT3 levels. Ideally, we convert T4 into T3, so some docs think we don't need any T3 drugs. Ideally. Many of us are just not 'ideal' thyroid patients. We need the T3 drugs. If FT3 levels are low, despite the T4 drugs, then it's time to add the T3.

Some thyroid patients don't do well with either the synthetic T4 or T3 drugs, and their bodies respond better to natural drugs like Nature Throid.

As long as you have an endo who works with your levels and listens to your symptoms, you should lose the weight. Be an advocate for your health. Demand wellness!

I am on my fourth endo because the others ignored my frees and symptoms and only treated my TSH.

Best of luck with the surgery!
:) Tamra

[mrsomes]

I think the weight loss thing really has more to do with you as an individual rather than the meds that you are taking.   I have heard from people who take T3 drugs that swear it helped them lose weight; others say it makes no difference.  I would think that if you were hypo before your surgery that you'll be facing the same issues with weight after the surgery.   I don't think the surgery should make it worse.   I had lost a lot of weight right before my TT in June.   I was not hypo beforehand.  Have since put about 10 of the 20lbs lost back on but everything appears to now be stablizing and that's probably because all my levels are just about where they should be.    I have noticed, however, that I do have to pay a little more attention to what I eat and when.   I'm also trying to walk more.   Good luck with your surgery.

[redheadaussie]

Hi there. I had two surgeries 5 months apart. One to remove the left side the other to remove the right side. I was very overweight prior to surgery and undiagnosed with a thyroid disorder. It was only due to the fact it was choking me to death that it was removed. THEN they discovered I had Hashimoto's disease. Grrrrrr, made sense as to why I was overweight previously. BUT! Even though I was undiagnosed I still managed to lose a ton of weight by myself. I was scared of getting diabetes which runs in my family.
   After going on replacement thyroid medication after my 2nd surgery, my weight did slowly come down on its own. Mind you, I was still following a good eating and excersise plan as well, and I think that helped enormously.
  There is a lot of concern with many undergoing surgery that they will put on weight. It is often due to the fact they are put on a too low  a dose of replacement thyroid hormone medication, creating a hypo effect. It will take time for you to adjust to getting a dose that is right for you as an individual. You may find that the dose you take early on will need decreasing or increasing after 6 weeks or more. Only you will know if it is right for YOU, there is no magic number or milligrams that will give the results you require, it all takes personal experience.
  I hope the surgery goes well for you!
Cheers!

[Crochetya]

My Endo suggested that I have my thyroid removed and I am afraid of the weight also.
I am over weight. I have nodules, goiter, and hypothyroidism. I did have the large nodule biopsied and it was benign. I have small nodules that cannot be biopsied because of their size. I have been thinking about this. I am still undecided.