Over medicated

[trsh12321]

I was diagnosed with Thyroid Cancer 1.5yrs ago.  I went through 2 surgeries to get my thyroid removed and the abalation.  I had a 6month follow up test last August and now I do not see my endocrinologist until this coming Aug.  I don't even go for blood work anymore from him.  So I recently went to my family doctor because I am really exhausted lately.  More so than normal.  She said that my endocrinologist is overmedicating me for 5years to make sure the cancer does not come back.  I do not know if I can keep going for 4 more years.  Has anyone else had to go through this?  Oh It was hashimoto's thyroiditis before we knew it was cancer, if that makes a difference.  And I was wondering if anyone else has major muscle cramps in thier legs sometimes.  Especially when I am under medicated?  Is this a normal symptom??

[Barb135]

Some symptoms can "cross over" - meaning, they apply to both hyper and hypo.

When you find your actual blood test results, please post them with their reference ranges, which vary from lab to lab, so must come from your own report.  

Also specify whether or not the T3 and T4 are for FREE or if they are for total, which is not the same thing.  

[gimel]

In searching for info on your question, I found this.

The American Thyroid Association's Guidelines (2009) make several recommendations regarding TSH.

"For initial TSH suppression, for high-risk and intermediate-risk patients, the guidelines recommend initial TSH below 0.1 mU/L, and, for low-risk patients TSH at or slightly below the lower limit of normal (0.1–0.5 mU/L). (Recommendation 40)."

From that same link, I noticed this.

"However, about 85% of patients can be shown to be free of disease after initial tumor treatment by testing the patient' serum thyroglobulin levels and performing neck ultrasonography. When the patient is felt to be free of tumor on this basis, the ATA and ETA guidelines suggest maintaining the blood TSH in the low normal level, which is particularly important in children."

Your T4 dosage is pretty hefty and your TSH is suppressed to basically zero.  It also looks like there are tests that could help determine if you are free of disease, and the need for such a high dosage.  I think you should use the above info to at least question the need for the high dosage you are taking now, and ask your doctor about a slight reduction as necessary to relieve the hyper symptoms.  Seems like it might  be possible to accomplish both objectives.  

[trsh12321]

The last question about the muscle cramps is just when I have to go off all medications for my thyroid scans to make sure everything is all right.  At that point I'm off all med's for 1month.

[trsh12321]

My TSH is <0.01 Normal ranges are 0.6 - 5.5.  When I forget to take my pills for a couple of days I feel alot better.  I do have the hyperthyroid symptoms of increased pulse, I get heart flutters and sometimes feel like I am getting anxiety but I am not anxious.  I breath through these episodes.  I feel overly tired through out the day but I go to bed and lay there for hours.  I have had my T3 and T4 but I will have to search for the values of these as I wrote them in a different place but one of them was find and one was low.  
My doctors told me that they want me in Hyperthyroid for a total of 5 years so the cancer does not grow back but honestly I am getting the point that I am just exhausted.  I am currently on 175mcq of synthroid.  I am  thinking about skipping a dose twice wkly as I was feeling  great for a while when something is going on and I honestly forget to take my meds.  
Have you heard that doctors do that?  Keep you overmedicated to suppress regrowth of cancer?  

Thanks for your information

[gimel]

When you say overmedicating, I wondered by what measure are you overmedicated?  Is it based on TSH testing only?

I ask this because that is frequently how doctors decide you are overmedicated, by a suppressed TSH level.  Yet, your symptom of exhaustion sounds more like undermedicated.  Hypo patients often find that when taking thyroid meds their TSH becomes suppressed.  This does not automatically mean that you are hyper, unless you do have hyper symptoms, due to excessive levels of Free T3 and Free T4, which are the biologically active thyroid hormones.

You can clear up these questions if you will please post your thyroid test results and their reference ranges shown on the lab report.  Also, if you look at these two links on symptoms, which category would you say fit best, hypo or hyper?

http://endocrine-system.emedtv.com/hypothyroidism/hypothyroidism-symptoms-and-signs.html

http://endocrine-system.emedtv.com/hypothyroidism/hypothyroidism-symptoms-and-signs.html