Throat problems with Hypothyroidism

[swarin]

Hi I was diagnosed a year ago now and have been on medication however i do suffer from a strange sensation in my throat and have done for sometime,I have never mentioned it to the doctor but people notice that i have a rasp to my voice and i constantly want to try to clear /move something that I feel is stuck,can this be related ? I am going to the doctors next week for my check is it worth perusing this with him ?

[gabkad]

swarin, you could have something going on with your vocal cords. Can be anything from post nasal drip to scarring from GERD or polyps. Maybe check it out with an ENT. Being hypo can really weaken the voice as well. Mine was getting quieter and quieter and I had to repeat everything I said to people. I thought it was just getting old, older. But it was hypo.

[swarin in reply to gabkad]

Hi Thanks I don't think its GERD but will get it checked will as doctor to refer me to ENT just to be sure,I know my voice gets weak and always trying to clear it to make it get stronger again

[swarin in reply to gabkad]

Hi Just update bee to doctors and my results ..TSH 4.83 which he said was good but he is referring me to ENT to get the voice box checked out,just not looking forward to having camera down throat

[gabkad in reply to swarin]

swarin, TSH of 4.83 is NOT good. (BTW when I was going more and more hypo my voice was getting weaker and weaker. I thought it was menopause. Ha! Now my voice stronger. I don't have to repeat three times everything I say louder and louder with much effort. I felt like I was disappearing.)

[swarin in reply to gabkad]

I do not understand figures all i know it said normal ? so i didn't ask for meds to be increased maybe I should have ..What is a good reading then ?

[gabkad in reply to swarin]

A good TSH for most people is around 1.0. Usually less than 1.0 when taking thyroxine.

[swarin]

I have stopped going dentist as this problem seems to get in the way,and i hate the feeling of the obstruction and the nurse with her suction ..But thanks for the thought something else to maybe explore

[gabkad in reply to swarin]

Hypo means muscles are slack. It's hard to keep the mouth open and breathe through the nose because the soft palate is floppy. And if you are snoring at night, then the soft palate and uvula are inflamed. So thicker and bigger and red. Snoring dries out the throat and the vibrations damage the nerves. Hypo also causes sleep apnea. I noticed years ago that I could breathe in through my nose but would breathe out through my mouth. My soft palate would obstruct the out breath because it would flop into the back of my throat and air wouldn't go past it.

[greygoose]

A lot of hypos have this problem. I have known people that were singers unable to sing any more due to hypo. Constantly having to clear your throat because of the phlegm is another throat-related hypo symptom.

Long before I was diagnosed, I went to an ENT and said : I cough a lot, I loose my voice from time to time - sometimes in mid-sentence - I have a sore throat and trouble swallowing due to the feeling of a lump in my throat; also my voice has changed. All these are classic hypo symptoms, but he didn't know that.

He stuck a tube up my nose and down into my throat - took two weeks to recover from that! - and annouced that there was absolutely nothing wrong with me! (Where have I heard that before!?!)

It seems strange to me that someone whose speciality is the throat doesn't know that the thyroid is right next door to it, and what low thyroid can do to his special area, but he didn't.

I don't have those symptoms anymore, since I've been treated for hypo - except the cough, and nothing, it seems, can get rid of that!

Hugs, Grey

[swarin in reply to greygoose]

Hi Thanks it's good to know others suffer( didn't mean that in a sadistic way !!) ..as I have had this way before I was diagnosed but never put it down to that ,after 50 mil of Levothyroxin it seemed to ease but now is getting annoying.I have never mentioned it to the doctor before so will make sure i do this time maybe I need dose upping ...at least I now know I am not going mad

[greygoose in reply to swarin]

No, you're not going mad! lol You're a perfectly normal hypo. 50 is only a small dose, it wouldn't surprise me at all if you needed an increase.

Hope you get it! Grey

[swarin in reply to greygoose]

Off to see him next week so will let you know if he ups it ,it took another doctor a while to give me meds very reluctant even though my levels where changing each time i had tests and if it wasn't for my voice change think she would not have ,,one last question I notice you discussed foods to avoid ..i have not really researched this but do you think it does help to omit some foods and add others ?

[greygoose in reply to swarin]

I'm not really an expert in this field but I do know from experience that certain foods called goitrogens can add to the misery in our lives. I've explained it all here :

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

Apart from that, we need a sensible diet - no low calorie diets and no fat- or salt-free diets! They will only make us worse. Hypos, I gather, need more protein than the average, and a very good source of this is eggs. Do not be afraid of eggs! Yes, they contain cholesterol but cholesterol is not the enemy. We need it. And eggs contain so many other good things it would be a shame to miss out on them - providing you like them, of course! lol I would never recommend eating something you don't like just because you think it's good for you. If you don't like it, it's probably for a reason!

Sorry to go on. lol But hope this helps.

Hugs, Grey

[swarin in reply to greygoose]

Hi test were 4.83 which he said was normal so did not increase meds now being referred to ENT for that camera not looking forward to that unless they put me out .

[greygoose in reply to swarin]

So that is your TSH, is it? Don't ever just take your doctor's word for it. Insist on a copy of your results, with the ranges - it is your legal right.

Well, a TSH of 4.83 may be within the range, but it is far from 'normal'! A so-called 'normal' person with no thyroid problems has a TSH of around 0.85 - 1.25, something like that. So you can see that yours is well off! And a lot of people on thyroid hormone replacement need their TSH to be repressed to feel well.

Don't be surprised if the ENT doesn't find anything. Throat problems are very likely to be due to low thyroid. Lots of hypos have that annoying cough - I do still. I've coughed all my life, and people are always saying 'Ooooo! You ought to see a doctor about that!' Yeah, right. Like he would know! lol

Good luck, Grey

[swarin in reply to greygoose]

Hi Idid ask for a print out as I had a range of bloods as years ago i was diagnosed with Rheumatoid arthritis ,so he printed the lot off and this was on the end ..I may call the surgery and ask him to try upping my dose from 50 to 75 to see if this helps ..thanks good to share with others who also have these problems ..lets hope I dont have same ENT man as you

[greygoose in reply to swarin]

I doubt you would. Mine was in France. lol

50 is a very small starter dose. How long have you been on it? The protocol is to test after six weeks on a dose and increase by 25 if necessary. In your case it is necessary! He shouldn't have left you on 50 for longer than six weeks.

Hugs, Grey

[swarin in reply to greygoose]

Hi I have been on it for nearly a year now ? It is so hard to get an appointment this took me 2 weeks so maybe I will just ask to speak to him and ask him to up,I think because print out stated Normal he thought that was ok

[greygoose in reply to swarin]

He really doesn't know much about thyroid, then, does he. It isn't OK and you are the proof that it isn't. Try telling him that you still feel ill. A year is far too long to be on a starter dose. You should be on at least 100 by now, if not more.