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Sore Throat when taking synthroid

I was diagnosed with Hashimotos Thyroiditis. I was placed on synthroid. My thyroid gland swelled up and I would get a sore throat as if muscles were squeezing around my throat. The doctors reduced my dose but the symptoms remained until I totally stopped taking it. If always felt like a muscle was squeezing around my wind pipe. It really hurt. After I have been off of the synthroid and another symptom appeared and lingers.  Sometimes when I am sleepling my throat collapses and I wake up choking and gasping for air. If I immediately drink a glass of water, it helps subside the symptom. Also, there are times I feel a slight bulge on the left side of throat between my wind pipe and my neck muscle. It hurts when it pops out and remains sore when I press on it to push it back in. I also have flicking sensation when I swallow. Despite being diagnosed with hypothyroidism could I be having a problem with a nodule on my super thyroid? If not what can it be?
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7228949 tn?1389368685
They just upped my Levothyroxine from .75 to 100. the day after i took the first pill the left side of my throat started hurting. Not a scratchy feeling but a tender feeling. its hard to swallow because it hurts i can't get comfortable sleeping cause it hurts.
Helpful - 1
Avatar universal
Iv had the same issues for 10 years.... Any answers
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Please let me know if the natural thyroid medicine works for you .. because I know I need a pill for hypothyroidism, but I always stop taking my Synthroid because it feels like it makes my throat swell up after taking a very low dose for a week or so.  Thank you!
Please email to ***@**** .. as I will probably forget how I got here and not see your reply any other way.   :)   Have a great day!!
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
I tried both the generic synthroid and the pig or natural one called armour and I get the same swelling in my throat. Please someone help if you've had this problem. My email is w.***@****
Avatar universal
natural thyroid is dessicated thyroid (made from pig or cow thyroid tissue) sound icky but we've also been using premarin for years which is made from pregnant mare's urine... lovely   anyway, I've taken synthetic thyroid replacement for 30 years, maintained on 150 mcg and up to as high as 400 mcg when my thyroid would "flare" and I'd go super duper low  for months for no apparent reason.  I ran out of pills recently, my doc is away, back tomorrow, plus I had to wait two weeks to see him to talk about changing to Armor thyroid and guess what, allllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll of my weird symptoms, aches pains, joint swellng, CHRONIC HIVES AND ITCHING for 8 years, brain fog, etc etc etc are GONE.  I knew I was overreplaced on the latest tests as of last appoitnment 4 months ago, and was on synthroid 150 but I never in 30 years would have guessed my little thyroid pill was causing me chronic problems.  When I developed hives and itching 8 years ago, daily, the allergist called it autoimmune thyroid disorder, but that means nothing really except it's related to the thyroid.  I think more accurately it is RELATED TO SYNTHETIC THYROID REPLACEMENT pills.  Seriously... I'm kind of angry that so many years I have felt horrible and symptoms piling up to the point my vision is blurring off and on, I have inflammation all through my body, but no diagnosis, so then he calls it "mild depression" to which I said NO WAY it's not depression it's aches and pains allll over, I hurt everywhere.  So tomorrow, I'm getting on Armor thyroid and if he says no, I'm going elsewhere.  Apparently the difference is like night and day.  Synthetic thyroid molecules can't fit into our own, it's like putting a right hand into a left glove so one chemist online said... so go figure.  if you have any problems or are getting more weird symptoms, still feeling fatigue, or brain foggy or irritable or palpitations or anything, go see about natural thyroid.  I'm so excited to be starting it... come H**L or High water... if I remember I"ll post the changes.  Right now I feel a bit fatigued, from not havng any thyroid replacement for four weeks, BUT my aches are gone.  I had a knee so sore I could hardly walk, x4 years, it's absolutely pristine and it is amazing... i have 0 pain or tightness or feeling like it was going to snap if I turned sideways quickly on it.  That's just 1 of about 30 things I could probably put down to it... the hives and pain and inflammation gone are teh BIGGEST improvement, and so now if I add Armor in, I should be like a new girl again!  
Helpful - 0
649848 tn?1534633700
COMMUNITY LEADER
You've attached to a very old thread and most of the previous posters are currently inactive on the forum, so it's unlikely that you will get a response.

To insure that you get the best attention to your particular issue, you should start a new thread of your own, listing your symptoms, lab results with reference ranges, meds/dosages, etc.  

You can start a new thread by clicking on the orange "Post a Question" button at the top of this page, type your comments, then click the green "Post a Comment" button just below your comments.  

You can also access the home page of the forum via the following link and post a question following the instructions above.

http://www.medhelp.org/forums/Thyroid-Disorders/show/73
Helpful - 0
272856 tn?1253445577
HI EVERYONE...
I wanted to share this info with all of u, which is info I got from an assistant to a thyroid surgeon in Texas. (Dr. Rosenthal. His website is:www.ThyroidCancer.com" VERY INFORMATIVE).
Read the following from this website...this is exactly what all of us are experiencing, when we experience the tightness around the thyroid region/throat Read the last paragragh about "compression symptoms". I believe this is what is happening to all of us..and I would love to just get my thyroid removed, to stop all of these crazy symptoms, once and for all. Remember, having Hashi's is different from just having low thyroid. Hashi's is an auto-immune disease and with Hashi's, our thyroid is seen as an invader to our body, and our body is trying to get rid of our thyroid...it's nuts!

Hashimotos Thyroiditus:
Chronic thyroiditis takes on importance in several ways. First, years of inflammation can lead to destruction of normal thyroid tissue, which in time can result in low thyroid hormone levels in the blood, or a disorder known as “hypothyroidism”. This will require treatment with lifelong thyroid medication to insure that the patient always has normal levels of thyroid hormone in the blood stream.

Second, extended periods of inflammation can lead to scarring and fibrosis and sometimes the formation of a round, hard nodule that is very difficult to distinguish from a thyroid tumor or even a thyroid cancer. These patients will sometimes have to undergo a thyroidectomy for this reason.

Third, all scar tissue wants to get smaller. This is called the process of “contracture”. For example, if you get a 6-inch cut on your leg today, a scar will form. If you measure that scar next year, lets say, it may only be 5 ½ inches long. Well, scar tissue in the thyroid gland also wants to get smaller, but the thyroid gland sort of wraps around the windpipe and the esophagus to some degree. When this scar tissue undergoes contracture it can put pressure on those structures and produce what are called “compression symptoms”, that is, difficulty in breathing or swallowing. Some patients have actually choked on their food and have required the Heimlich maneuver because of the tightness that has been created. Others say that they have difficulty in breathing, especially when they lie down. These patients may require thyroidectomy for relief of these symptoms.

Helpful - 0
798555 tn?1292787551
I had the swelled thyroid sensation, just getting over it, was very uncomfortable. And this was on Armour, not Synthriod.

Here is one more thing to look for. A lot of hypothyroid people have acid reflux at night, then termed silent reflux or LPRD, which is a little different than major heartburn and they dont know what is happening to them. The difference is you may not feel the burn down low near the LES but you can wake up gagging if the acid makes it way to the voice box area past the Upper Esophageal Sphincter. The throat gets soar in the morning and muscles contract in 'defense mode' termed 'globus sensation' in the medical community. Very similar feeling at times to a swollen thyroid; same area too, so its really hard to tell! I had both.

You can raise the head of your bed 6-8 inches with wood blocks for a few weeks, as it will help in the healing of a 'burned throat', if that is the case. Easy first step to try.
Helpful - 0
782988 tn?1242685985
I was glad when mine went away. I think I just needed to get used to it. I have slight dizzy spells. Don't know why. It's not severe.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
my symptoms vary from day to day, some days the throat is more swollen that other days, its an awful feelin, and the more i exercise the larger it seemingly gets, any suggestions, i know i havent taken synthroid for awhile, and im open for suggestions of something else to try, id i can get my endo,  to actually take an interest in my case, thats the problem with modern medicine,
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Personally I dont think in this case that it is the meds...I am leaning more towards the thyroid causing the problems.
The 'choking' sensation and 'gasping for air' sensation is the thyroid usually.
An allergic reaction would cause the lips and tongue to swell too.
Do you have those symptoms?

Helpful - 0
782988 tn?1242685985
If you think you have allergies to a certain thyroid medication these two are said to be free from acacia and lactose-Levoxyl, Levothroid. Ask the doctor to write on the script. Do not use generic!
Helpful - 0
782988 tn?1242685985
I am on a thyroid med and i have a flare up of allergy. I am hoping it is not the med. There is an ingredient in some of them called acacia from trees and people with seasonal allergies can react to it. Both sides of my neck are sore. I will wait and see if this thing clears up and if not ask for a med that does not contain acacia. There are two that I found that do not contain it. You must ask they do not give generic but the real thing.
Helpful - 0
1 Comments
Dear Shannon which two medicines are the ones that you mention? The ones without the acacia?
Avatar universal
what is natural thyroid, you mean like herbs, or armour, let me know what you mean. i took synthroid, and levothyroxine, same outcome, felt like ****, and had night sweats bad, like i was going through menopause again
Helpful - 0
231441 tn?1333892766
Hi,

What you describe could be a reaction to some of the ingredients in the synthroid. Some people have allergies to somme of it's components. Have you tried switching to a different brand?  Or have you tried natural thyroid.  I'm presuming you have hypothyroid and should be treated.

best regards
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
i have the same exact thing, plus synthroid makes me deftly ill, i wiss some one would know, i mean i dont wanna die, but takin thyroid meds, i feel like im dying, my thyroid grew while i took it, and now that i dont, it seems like its not growing, but my tsh is bad now
Helpful - 0
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