Trouble breathing and swallowing

[hound101]

Hi.  I was involved in a car accident 8 years ago.  Our car got rear ended and i suffered a minor neck injury (whiplash).  I also suffered a concussion as a result according to my doctor.  Although my neck didn't bother me right away, the pain has gradually gotten worse.  Right after the accident i started having severe back pain which would radiate from my shoulder blade to my chest.   Thankfully, my back has gotten better now but my neck continues to bother me.  I was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism a few months after the accident.  I suffered from light-headedness, excessive sweating, constantly feeling hot, trouble sleeping, irregular/rapid heartbeats, panic attacks, racing mind and a few other ailments.  The doctor prescribed beta blockers for me to control the symptoms.  I took those for about a year and a half.  After about 2 years, my specialist told me that my thyroid level was normal but there was a chance that i would become hypothyroid.  A few months later i started feeling extremely tired both mentally and physically.  I went back to my family doctor who did a few blood tests.  When the results came back i saw him again.  He told me that my t4 level was normal but my tsh was over 9.  He put me on synthroid (75 mcg).  I felt a little bit better but i still wasn't my old self.  It was around this time that i developed breathing and swallowing problems.  My throat would feel tight and heavy and i would feel dizzy.  My doctor did an ultrasound but the results came back normal.  A few months later he sent me to an ENT.  The ENT had me swallow a pill and did a few x-rays.  The results came back normal.  My doctor later reduced my synthroid dose to 50 mcg which i'm still on.  That didn't help much.  About a 2 months ago i started getting panic attacks.  The first time i got one was a really frightening experience.  I actually thought i was dying.  My heart literally felt like it was about to explode.  I had a pins and needles feeling on the right side of my face.  It was extremely difficult to breathe because my throat felt like it had closed shut.  This lasted for about 30 minutes, but i felt like **** for the next few hours.  I've had 5 or 6 of these attacks, although not as severe, during the past 2 months.  I've made 3 visits to the emergency room, each time thinking that i was having either a stroke or a heart attack.  The last time i went, i felt nauseous, had vertigo, had the pins and needles sensation again, had extreme brain fog, trouble breathing and weakness.  I also felt a lot of pressure in my neck/spine.  The doctor took 3 vials of blood, did an x-ray of my neck and a ct scan of my head.  The results were all normal.  For the past 2 weeks i'm feeling extremely weak, i'm suffering from brain fog/memory loss, i'm still feeling dizzy, still having trouble breathing and swallowing.  I also have one new symptom.  My veins are throbbing all over my body even in my neck which is really annoying.  Also, i've lost over 10 pounds in the last month.  I'd really appreciate any input.  
Thanks

[skymax2000]

Do you have a copy of your 'normal' test results? Could the synthroid be making you hyper again? FYI, my doc has said my tests were normal when they were not, just close enough. I always keep copies and look myself.

Sorry you are going thru all this. I'm hyperthyroid and the symptoms suck.

[stella5349]

There are many articles on the stress of trama to both neck and mind that can bring on thyroid problems. Recently I have done alot of reading on this and find that thyroid suffers are more common to have had a tramatic episode happen that escalated their disease.  

I feel you are not in balance yet with your meds. I also feel that you have been in this condition for all long time - so other hormone controlled functions are probably depleted as weel and won't allow your meds to work properly for you to get relief.

I think doing a total blood work up of TSH Free T3 Free T4 and cortisol would be important. I think your system is borrowing other hormones to support the thyroid not functioning well and your whole system is a little out of whack.

What sort of supplements are you taking? I'm sorry if you posted this - but when was the last work up of blood? and numbers?

[hound101]

Thanks for your responses.  I have an appointment with my family doctor this Monday.  The last blood test i did was at a hospital but they did not check my thyroid levels.  The last time i got my thyroid levels checked was about 3 months ago.  I didn't see the results but he did tell me that my levels were normal.  
I asked him if my thyroid medication was the cause of some of my symptoms.  He said it wasn't but that i could stop taking synthroid for a month to see if i felt better, after which i would come back and check my thyroid levels.  I felt better for the 1st week but everything went downhill afterwards. I had most of the well-known hypothyroid symptoms.  I went back to see him almost 3 weeks later and he put me eltroxin .05mg.  I was on that for 3 weeks but i wasn't feeling any better.  He then put me on synthroid .05mg which i'm taking to this day.  
Maybe i should ask to be referred to a thyroid specialist because he clearly doesn't seem to know what he's doing.  He takes him time with me and listens to me but doesn't seem very knowledgeable.  I'm thinking of asking him to refer me to a neurologist.  
Also, am i allowed to ask for my test results.  Do i have to pay a fee so i can take them home?  I live in Canada, we don't pay for blood test, it's all covered by OHIP.
I also forget to mention that i'm 23 years old.  
Thanks

[skymax2000]

Don't know about Canada but it doesn't hurt to ask them.

[hound101]

You said that you're hyperthyroid.  What are some of the symptoms you have?

[skymax2000]

Omg. I'll give you my list before I was pregnant as to not confuse being hyperthyroid and pregnant.

--super tired, unrefreshed sleep, could sleep all day
--super depressed about being so exhausted
--hair falling out, dry, brittle, I could not grow long hair b/c it was so thin and dry
--heart palpitations
--thick dry patches of skin
--anxiety, irritability, anger management issues, felt in constant crisis -- so I was super tired or super anxious -- My husband thought I was bipolar
--No one else has mentioned acne but I'm 31 and still have it
--carpel tunnel - haven't had this since I've been on PTU
--sharp eye pain
--I can breathe but sometimes feel like there's not enough air
--muscle weakness
--feel dirty - I use to shower 2-3 times a day
--heat exhaustion - overheat when everyone else is fine
--or freezing inappropriately
--lose and gain weight fast, but mostly lost
--hungry all the time, being hungry and without food put me in crisis mode, couldn't think about anything else
--felt like I had a parasite in my chest sucking up all my energy

[hound101]

i have a lot of those symptoms as well.  Do you still have most of them or did they disappear after taking medication?  And what do you take for your hyperthyroidism?
Thanks