Hi I'm new here I need some advice I had my thyroid removed in sept 2009 goitre that was cancerous I'm currently taking 175mg of thyroxine
On 10th march I had surgery for appendix and ovary removal I felt ok after surgery not to bad but it got infected and had to go on heavy antibiotics and a lot of mess around since being discharged I have felt terrible the scars have healed hardly any pain and I took all the antibiotics as told here's the issue I just don't feel well at all I get daily dizziness I can't walk to far as I come over funny I've had palpitations and numbness in face as well as buzzing in my feet and my digestive system is in upheaval I am nauseas and have dropped a stone in weight the main thing that's bothering me is this constant feeling something is very wrong like I am going to just drop dead ( I know how that sounds ) my doctor said that thyroid wouldn't be affected that much and wouldn't test me but my chemist said that it can affect the thyroid having surgery an I should be tested :/ can anyone please tell me if they think it might be my thyroid I don't remember the recovery from my thyroid surgery an how I felt an the only other person that would remember left me 2 years ago to be with someone else lol I do remember it took a long time to level my thyroxine nearly 3 years but my memory is shot to pieces just little fragments here an there
Please can anyone help me I'm a single parent to 3 great kids and I wanna be a good mum an be her 4 them
Thank u
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Summerjay
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Your thyroid function can absolutely be affected by surgery. Your GP should test it. If he refuses, see someone else.
As you have been so poorly, there may be other issues too and it would be wise to test serum iron, ferritin (aim for around 70-90), folate (above 12 is good), vitamin B12 ( supplement if below 500), vitamin D and cortisol. As some of the ranges are rather wide, I have indicated levels as a guide. You may find taking supplements is a good idea if your levels are below those indicated even if they are within the "healthy" range. Deficiencies in the above could be causing your symptoms and if you have been having digestive problems, deficiencies are likely.
Something is clearly not right. You should not be feeling this unwell after an appendectomy. Please insist that your doctor takes you seriously and investigates properly. If he doesn't, please try and see a different doctor. There are some good ones out there although it does seem like they are few and far between at times!
I hope you get to the bottom of this so you can recover.
Thank u so much for the reply I already have low iron take b12 injections last 1 was feb an folic acid every day as well as lansoprozle for silent reflux when I asked my doctor why I wasn't feeling great she gave me a prescription for citalapram :/ I'm not depressed I just want to feel better but yes I think a different doctor is the way to go thank you again I appreciate your reply so much x
I haven't been told any of this I'm starting to think a change in doctors is greatly needed !! It's so nice of u too reply in such detail thank you so much you have made me feel much better already thank you xx
Doctors habitually don't tell us any more than they feel is the absolute minimum. To be charitable, I guess they don't have time to get into Stuff. Anything thyroid related can get quite complicated. Start reading up about it. A bit at a time. The book 'Stop the Thyroid Madness' is a good place to start, and they have a website here: stopthethyroidmadness.com/u.... There is loads of information on the web. The more you find the more you will be led on to other useful information. You have to become your own expert, bit by bit. Thyroids are complex things. And being without one (They RAIed mine, so I am too) means that all kinds of odd things go out of whack.
Yes I'm starting to realise there's more to this then I thought I guess I just hid my head in the sand and thought the doctor would do all the hard work I never even read up on the symptoms can you believe that ! Because mine was a cancerous goitre I assumed the removal and chemo magically fixed me I feel incredibally stupid right now an worse the countless times I have been to doctors they have never made a connection either I'm defo going to do research into it now and request a specialised doctor because my quality of life is being seriously affected and if it's from something like not being informed enough or a basic understanding I'm going to feel very stupid
On no account beat yourself up for not knowing about all this, Summerjay. The medical world would have us believe that Thyroxine is a magic bullet. We have come to know (the hard way) that it isn't.
Thank you I guess I should have been more informed or at least made myself more knowledgeable which I shall do now I'm already researching foods that are high in the vitamins I lack I'm gonna retrain my body slowly and carefully an try to get well without to much help from medications thank you again for the help
Summerjay, I'm sorry you are so unwell after surgery. Your chemist is right. Thyroid levels should be tested because some antibiotics can affect absorption and uptake of Levothyroxine and you may be temporarily over or under medicated on your current dose. Is there a more symptathetic GP you can see at your practice? If not, ask the original GP again.
You could also ask for ferritin, vitamin D, B12 and folate to be tested. They are often low in hypothyroid patients and nitrous oxide in general anaesthetic can affect B12. Correcting any deficiencies will aid general health and recovery.
Ask for a print out of your results with the lab ref ranges (the figures in brackets after your results) and member will advise.
I forgot about the nitrous oxide! This would appear as normal levels of b12 in the blood but it would all be inactive B12 and totally useless. An NHS B12 would effectively be pointless.
Thank you I will ring them tomorrow an request a new doctor and tell them that I need a full check over with all the vitamins and blood thank you again for your advice I really appreciate it x
Summerjay, we have to read and learn so much but we can recover our health. First we need sympathetic doctors (difficult to find sometimes) and also the availablity of an alternative thyroid hormone if levo doesn't work. Most doctors stick to the guidelines of levothyroxine only but I am on T3 (liothyronine) and am well. Some find the benefit of the addition of T3 to T4 and some recover on natural dessicated thyroid hormones.
I always think it strange that they wont prescribe thyroid hormones when we have clear clinical symptoms (they don't know them) and diagnose only on the TSH. Yet, for depression there is no blood test, but they will offer anti-depressants. Depression is also another clinical symptom of hypo which could be mainly due to low T3. T3 is the active hormone we need in all of our billions of receptor cells and the brain needs the most. T4 is supposed to convert to sufficient T3 but doesn't always. You mention 'GP hasn't told me' the reason for this is simple - they don't know themselves.
Thank you for the reply and I guess your right they don't know no one ever mentioned that having the thyroid removed would make me hypothyroid I only learnt this recently after a surgeon for my appendix told me so I guess I am as guilty for not researching it as much as a doctor I guess I just believed that my doctor would fix me it's time to grow up an try to help fix myself thank you I will put some research in and go at this with a smarter head
You are definitely 'not guilty'. It all lands at the feet of the people who are supposed to know - the educated - the professional. I don't expect to ask an electrician to come to rewire my home, yet when he's gone and I have everything going wonky and lights not working etc. I wouldn't then go to the library, read up on how electricity works then go through my house fixing what I have paid the electrician to do. The same with NHS doctors. We help to educate them and train them. When we need a service it should be available and the replacement of thyroid hormones should be easy but we should have a choice.
This is a link to a woman who also had her thyroid gland removed and has taken her case to the Scottish Parliament to try to change the system there.
Yours is another familiar sorry story. When you make an appointment for a new blood test for your thyroid hormones, make it as early as possible and do NOT take levothyroxine before it. Leave approx 24 hours between levo and your blood test as TSH is highest then and some GPs adjust medication according to the TSH and seem to know nil about clinical symptoms. When you take levo after your blood test, if you've eaten leave 2 hours before and after levo as food can interfere.
Do you take levo on an empty stomach with 1 glass of water. If you are having stomach problems it might be due to low acid rather than high, so taking some Apple Cider Vinegar in a glass of water (some don't like the taste) or juice or betaine/pepsin tablets at each meal.
I think you should change your GP. He is another who knows nil about treating a patient with a thyroid gland dysfunction. If you've not had Vitamin B12, Vit D, iron, ferritin and folate tested, ask for these to be done.
I have begged my doctor before to see a endocrine doctor as they struggle with keeping me steady on levothyroxine to be honest I forgot how unhappy and ill you can get when your thyroid is not working I guess this is my reminder I'm praying it is this an my doctor has just neglected to notice thank you so much for your help x
I suspect this too and the doctor prescribed fluconazole which I reacted to so I will try the diet I've read into it looks tough but I can do it I hope lol thank you for your help
That's a good point I got small hives and shortness of breath about four days in could this be the die off ? Tbh I've had shortness of breath quite regular since the op I was hoping it was anxiety but I don't hyperventile it's just more a restriction in breathing which could be silent reflux out of control or a reaction I may need antihistamine for I'm hoping that the doctor will see me tomorrow and I'm going to give them a list an some information I've received an hopefully get to the bottom of all this so I can enjoy the Easter holiday with my children
Also add ( to the long list of things to be checked by your doctor ) - calcium levels. You say that you've had facial numbness and tingling/ buzzing in feet - these can all be symptoms of low calcium which can happen after a TT. I don't know if your further surgery may have affected things to cause an imbalance but it's worth getting it checked.
By the way ( I had a TT) there is a Facebook group for discussion by all those people who have had a TT in the UK, it makes for very interesting reading. You can join if you like, it's called " UK Without a Thyroid".
I am sure that somehow our immune system is compromised and I think it takes longer to recover from serious infections and surgery with our thyroid levels being put out of balance during recovery. Hope you feel better soon xx
Thank you for the advice yes I'm already low on iron take folic acid and b12 injections as the doctor won't see me and it's closed due to Easter I think I will try to add extra into my body by foods or supplements see if this makes a difference to my health it's a hard situation because of the reflux food has to be carefully checked and watched I lost 6 stone due to the reflux it hasn't harmed me I was overweight but now I'm at a cross road if I eat I'm sick if I don't I'm sick I've lost another stone since the surgery but tbh I think it's the stress because I've eaten more and lost whereas before I hardly ate and couldn't shift the extra weight lol I'm going to have to be firm as soon as I see the doctor an ask them to test as much as possible
Hi, personally I don't think that one a day would be enough. Yakult and others sit around for so long that there isn't that much goodness still there. I bought myself some Mega 8 Biotix from a health shop but there are cheaper ones around. You are very welcome. xx
It may be total coincidence, but my health deteriorated badly after I had major surgery. I was continually told that it was not thyroid-related, it was just my body adjusting to all the stress blah blah blah.
It was only after joining this site, and doing lots of reading, that I realised it probably was very much thyroid-related. I feel very let-down by the system. It has been quite a battle getting everything sorted.
Thank you so much it's good to know I'm not alone it leaves you feeling as though you are a burden or slightly crazy I'm sick of the looks I get or the well it's been four weeks you should be better like I don't wish I was better or something but I'm really hoping it is just all my levels are crazy and that I can bring them up myself or a doctor will catch it soon
Thank you again I'm so grateful to everyone for all the advice and help x
Oh yes, I hate the looks that you can get. I am convinced that my old GP visibly drooped when I walked in, and I imagine there was a thought in his head of "uh oh, it's her again".
Even the GP receptionist thinks it's funny when I walk in - she often says, "Oh, hello Beansmummy, haven't seen you since ... er ... yesterday"!! We do have a bit of a chuckle (isn't funny really but we do find humour in odd places).
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