I’m going in tomorrow to get bloodwork done because my doctor thinks I may have problems with my thyroid. Looking into it, a lot of the symptoms of hypothyroidism are really familiar.
What brought me to the doctor was a combination of severe unexplained joint pain and frequent, recurring heart palpitations. However, I’ve struggled with fatigue and sleep problems for ages. While I haven’t gained a lot of weight, I have gained a couple of pounds recently and that’s not usual for me at all. I have an intense craving for sugar, caffeine, and carbs. Also, I’ve been dealing on and off with bouts of depression, fuzzy memory, and inability to focus.
I was referred to a cardiologist about the palpitations and I’m getting a 24 hour monitor soon, but he also told me to completely cut out all caffeine. I’m on day two of cold turkey and I’m going nuts (and still having palpitations)!
Until I find out for sure what’s going on, does anyone have any good resources to share that I could research? Any ideas on how to combat caffeine withdrawal without going crazy? Anything specific I should ask my doctor?
The heart palpitations actually sound more like hyperthyroidism to me. I went to the doctor because my heart skipped a beat a couple of times and it turned out I was severely, off-the-charts hyperthyroid. I had been experiencing fatigue/exhaustion, sleep problems, inability to focus, fuzzy thinking, constant headaches and other pains for some time, but it came on gradually, so I thought nothing of it until the heart thing sent me to the doctor. And I had gained a substantial amount of weight – 10 to 20 percent of people do when hyperthyroid.
Anyway, you’ll know soon enough. Good luck! There are always exceptions, but generally speaking, thyroid problems can be very well controlled without too much difficulty.
I take about 5 micrograms of synthroid a day. That’s all there is to it. If you get a prescription, you’ll probably notice a difference within a few weeks. It took about a year to completely get rid of my symptoms, though, which included fatigue, weight gain and hair loss. I get a blood test once a year as part of my regular checkup.
Yeah, reading the symptoms it sounds like it could be hyper- or hypo-, they both sound familiar. Hopefully I’ll know something by the end of next week.
I’ve been off caffeine now for three days and I’m still having palpitations, so I think I can rule that out. I’ve been having palpitations daily since about August. some days it’s just a couple instances of a skipped beat, and other days I’ve counted up to 20+. I feel it pause, and then catch up as though it ‘tripped’ or something. The next few beats are really hard and pounding, and I feel like my blood pressure is super high but it resolves in about a minute or so.
Hey what a coincidence!
I came to post a question today about this. My 19 year old daughter recently confessed to me that she hasn’t had a period in “a few years”. Yeah that’s a pretty big secret, but she’s painfully shy about her body (I do not know where she gets this but it ain’t from mama) and she’s terrified of getting a cervical exam. Her doctor told her at sixteen that he wouldn’t do one if she was still a virgin unless there were issues, so she just never said anything to lead us to believe she wasn’t having normal periods.
So two weeks ago I pressured her into going to her new doctor to get her thyroid checked. The doctor was sure she’d have some hormone issue because she has every symptom, including that heart palpitation issue you have. It usually happens after a high carb meal, which she craves. She has a problem with facial hair and the classic slumped posture.
Well we got the results back yesterday from the lab and they say she has “perfectly normal numbers”. I don’t get it. I can’t help thinking there MUST be a mistake. No period for at least two years? (she is not sexually active; she has no interest in it either which I think may be telling)
She was told her liver levels were elevated. I just now jumped on the computer to see what this means because I’m clueless.
I feel like maybe they’ve made a mistake, or they didn’t give her the right tests. I remember when I did Atkins years ago a lot of people with thyroid problems took years to get a diagnosis because they weren’t checking the right things. I just don’t remember what the right tests are. I really don’t know the first thing about hypothyroidism so I’m hoping someone can give me some ideas what I should be doing/asking her to talk to the doctor about. She has another appointment in two weeks to recheck her liver.
At 28, I sure hope not! I did just switch from hormonal birth control to an IUD about six months ago, so I’m wondering if that has anything to do with it.
Rushgeekgirl, can you take her to an endocrinologist? If she’s got facial hair, and no period, it might be a hormonal issue (endos also treat thyroid problems). Also, craving carbs might be an endocrine issue.
I have Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, which makes me hypothyroid. I also have an adrenal disorder, which causes excessive facial hair and menstrual problems, among other things. Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) can cause similar issues. An endo would be the best bet for all of those problems.
This is where I get confused. I have not taken her but I assumed she’d have been referred to one through her insurance…but then again I assumed she’d have positive tests after she had blood taken by her regular doctor and he was supposedly testing her for hormone issues at her last visit. That’s where she got the results being completely normal. I just can’t imagine it being completely normal with all those symptoms unless they messed up the test or they tested for the wrong things.
This is my first post, so please forgive me if I don’t get this posted correctly.
I’d like to second the suggestion of seeing an endocrinologist. My partner suffered a thyroid storm last year. It is a rare but potentially life threatening condition that, until recently, almost always resulted in death. He had many of the same symptoms you mention. Constant hunger, fatigue, brain fog, extreme weightloss despite eating constantly, nervousness, heart palpatations and a host of other problems. When he was admitted to the hospital his heart rate was 171 bpm, he was throwing up, short of breath, sweating profusely. In short, he was dieing.
We live in the middle of nowhere and our local hospital is not equipped to deal with anything beyond childbirth. After two days in the ICU he arrested and was life flighted to a major heart institute three hours away. He remained in the NICU for ten days followed by five weeks in medicine. When he left the hospital he weighed 157 pounds (he is six foot one), had lost at least half of his hair, could not stand from a seating position, and walking across the room was a challenge.
We are now one year out and he’s okay. He takes large doses of anti-thyroid hormones every day, but he was well enough to return to work (totally suprising just about everyone). Throughout this past year I have learned more about thyroid disorders than I ever cared to know.
There are three tests you should ask your doctor to perform: a TSH, a T3 Free and a Free T4. There are other tests, but those are the basic tests to determine thyroid function. I wish you well. The good news is that thyroid medication is relatively inexpensive and once on the meds, you really do feel better, it just takes awhile to get the dosage correct. Good luck!
I’d advise a person in your situation to not invest too deeply into the diagnosis of hypothyroidism until you actually have some concrete results of your testing back which confirms actual thyroid dysfunction.
Thyroid problems are common, but even more common are the symptoms you describe, which have many many possible causes.
Oh, I’m hardly “invested” in it. Just doing some research to pass the time until I hear back about my results. Worst case scenario I’m “perfectly normal” and still having problems, and a little more knowledgeable about the subject.
Could you at least give some hints as to what those other causes might be? Because I’m disappointed that the doctor hasn’t suggested looking deeper for a reason why a nineteen year old hasn’t had a period in over two years. Like the OP I’m not invested in the diagnosis, I am just curious. I was thinking maybe there’s a less-than-routine test that I might could write down for my daughter to ask about.
I wondered about that too - I take 200 micrograms a day.
The only thing I wanted to mention is that ‘normal’ when it comes to the thyroid doesn’t mean much. The range of normal is between 0.2 and 7. And I mean 7, not 0.7.
For me, I feel like myself and am symptom free when my TSH is at about 0.2. When it’s at 2 I start to lose my hair, get tired, have a constant headache, get crabby, etc.
I’ve really had to push it with my Dr. however, she and I have worked to find a does of Synthroid that works for me.
My point is, if you are diagnosed, and you’re not having a good response, make sure you follow up. It can take a while to get your dosing sorted out.
IANAD, but I’ve been through both palpitations and thyroid removal. In my case they were unrelated, except that my treatment for atrial fibrillation accidentally revealed a growth (non-malignant) on my thyroid.
Thhis book was the best resource that I found. Ain, the author, is well regarded.
No thanks. Without a face to face interview and decent physical exam, it’d just be extensive speculation, and to cover even the most common possibilities would run to more paragraphs than I’m willing to commit on a Saturday morning. Or at least this Saturday morning. Ask again during a blizzard…
Just an update - my GP said my thyroid levels were fine but my cardiologist still wants to take a look at them and run some more tests.
I did find out that I have mitral valve prolapse, which explains the palpitations and my migraines (among some other things). Has your daughter had her heart checked out? You may want to see about that next.