I married in May. Mr. Maven added me onto his health insurance, and I was glad of it - I didn’t like the HMO that I was with. First thing I did with my PPO insurance card was to pick a doctor and have a complete physical. Yeah!
The doctor took some blood samples as part of the exam. It was difficult, I have the viens from hell, but on the four try the nurse struck corpisiculs and my rudy essence was wisked off to a lab.
Fast forward to today: The nurse called with my results. All in all, I’m healthy. Cholesterol was good, insulin levels were normal, etc. The the nurse said,“You do have hypothyriodism. The doctor want to see you again soon, but right now, is there a pharmacy we can call in a prescription for you?”
Right now, I’m stunned and pissed. For months I have felt tired and depressed. For a while, I thought it was the stress of going to school part-time and holding down a full-time job. Then I blamed it on all the insanity of planning a wedding. When I saw my HMO doctor, he thought that maybe I had developed a tolerance to the antidepressent I was taking and prescribed another one. After a couple of months, I went back and said that I still felt awful, and he prescribed yet another varity of antidepressent. A blood test may have saved us both a lot of trouble.
Will this thyroid medication make me feel better? I really hope so. Right now, I’m willing to try anything that will make me feel better.
sigh Sorry folks, I had a lot of sugar and caffine and it’s showing.
I originally had the opposite problem – extreme hyperthyroidism (Graves Disease). After medication/radiation treatment, I swung over to the hypo side for while, and I had to take Synthroid to keep things in check. It worked fine, and eventually my body evened itself out. I still have to have my T3/T4 levels checked semi-annually, but things have been clear for a couple of years now.
Hope things things even out for you as well. Feel free to ask anything you like about this.
Right now, I don’t know. I’ll pick up the medication tonight.
I’m worried about what will happen when Mr. Maven and I try to have little mice. I’m wondering if my history of depression has a lot to do with this, and if what caused this is autoimmune related or not.
How did things work out for you? I hope you’re doing better.
My sister has it. I don’t know what medication she takes. She didn’t feel particularly bad before treatment, nor after. She talks about stopping the meds, because she can’t feel any benefit.
If my experience is any guide, yes, it will definitely make you feel better. Your skin and hair might benefit, too. I’ve been on a low dose for years and the only time I missed taking it for more than a day, I noticed a definite dragginess creeping back. You’ll have to take it every day, but it’s not very expensive and I haven’t noticed any side effects.
My wife had (has) hypothyroidism for maybe half her teenage years, before it was diagnosed.
The first year on Synthroid* was one of the most energetic years of her life. Then we got married, got full-time jobs, got a mortgage, etc. But, in her case, the diagnosis and subsequent medication did wonderful things for her. Tyroid is one of those hormone things that your body absolutely needs, so running low ain’t good.
I do remember that they misjudged her dose at first - it was too low. I don’t know what the problems would be if it was too high - you might grow an extra foot, I don’t know. This is a medicine you’ll likely be taking for the rest of your life, so make it very clear to your doctor that you don’t want any mistakes.
I’m embarrassed to admit that I don’t remember the actual brand she’s taking. It’s probably the generic.
I have a friend who takes Synthroid and it causes him no problems at all, except when he has to stop taking it. Then he drags around, gains weight and is extremely cranky!
You might also feel warmer in situations where you used to feel cold, particularly if they were situations where other people did not understand why you felt cold. “Cold intolerance” is one of the classic signs of hypothyroidism.
Of course, man in bed alone or not = warm, woman alone in bed = cold, regardless of state of health.
I have this too; it’s usually Hashimoto’s syndrome and yes, that’s autoimmune related (something makes the immune system attack thyroid cells). The thyroid regulates your body metabolism; having too little, your body slows down - too much, it revs up.
I was diagnosed in October 2004; the doctor started me on 100 micro. of synthroid. I’m up to 125 now. It is something you’ll have to take for the rest of your life. Also, you need to take it first thing in the morning, an hour before or two hours after you eat (empty stomach in other words!). If you take vitamins, take them 3-4 hours after; they can interfer with the thyroid med otherwise.
You might want to see an endocrinologist to make sure that you’re getting the right dosage. I’m in an HMO, and I’m getting ready to ask for a referral to an endo. I don’t think my dosage is right yet. Also, apparently the generic meds vary enough to make a difference - a friend was on generic at 125 and it wasn’t working for her, but when switched to the brand name, her t3 and t4 levels are good now. It’s not supposed to be like that, but apparently with thyroid meds, it is. Naturally, the HMO fills it for me with the generic!
I’ve been taking it for 25 years with no prolems. My best friend also takes it and she had three kids while on it so no problem with pregnancy. It’s much more common than you think.
I’ve been borderline hypothyroid since I was three. I started Synthroid (now the generic) 8 years ago. The change is so dramatic.
Little things you thought were “oh, I’m getting older” or “oh, I hurt that knee a few years ago, now it aches” will disappear when you get the right dosage. My dosage is very low (50 micrograms), and I can tell when I miss a day. My hair went from super curly to straight. My acne cleared up. My hand tremors stopped.
When my dose was too high, I felt like my blood sugar was low (dizziness, anxiety, shakiness).
Not to step in to scare you, but I used to work with someone who was on antidepressants for depression, but then found out she was really suffering from thyroid cancer. She had her thyroid removed and is now on synthetic thyroid hormone and off antidepressants. Please follow up with the doctor to make sure it isn’t something serious that synthetic thyroid will mask, but not cure.
Huh. That’s why my friend is on synthroid. At age 30, he was shaving and noticed a lump. He was going to ignore it, of course (he is all boy), but for whatever reason decided to show it to his wife, an RN. She took one look/feel, called a sitter and took him to the ER.
It was cancer and they removed the thyroid two days later. He has been on synthroid for almost 10 years now with no problems.
She saved his life, no doubt about it. She has always said that her training serves to make her just paranoid enough!
But, in her case, the diagnosis and subsequent medication did wonderful things for her. Tyroid is one of those hormone things that your body absolutely needs, so running low ain’t good.
Also, apparently the generic meds vary enough to make a difference - a friend was on generic at 125 and it wasn’t working for her, but when switched to the brand name, her t3 and t4 levels are good now. It’s not supposed to be like that, but apparently with thyroid meds, it is. Naturally, the HMO fills it for me with the generic!