constant over heating and excessive sweating

[johnnyxs]

I have been suffering from over heating and excessive sweating for about 10 years now but this year it has worsened to the point that for most of the day I have to sit and walk around with a flannel on my head soaked in cold water. Every few minutes I have to rotate the flannel until eventually it is practically dry and warmer than my skin temperature at which point I have to hold the flannel under the cold tap again.

Most nights I cannot get to sleep unless I place a wet folded flannel across my forehead .

I sweat most of the time especially on the back of my neck and top of my head.

Clearly something is making my core temperature rise but I'm not sure what.? Occasionally it gets worse after eating a large meal which is to be expected but I shouldn't be hot like this all the time.

Occasionally maybe 3-4 times a year I experience a sort of low blood sugar /anxiety attack as well as sweating and at these times I need to eat lots of carbs and fat very urgently or my hands start to shake and I feel very anxious and weak.

I read recently that the excessive heat symptoms could be a result of a gluten intolerance and as I eat a lot of bread cake biscuits cereals and other wheat,rye,barley, products I thought that I would try a gluten free diet for a few of weeks and see if there is any noticeable change although I appreciate it would probably require going gluten free for several months to bring about any significant improvements.

I was wondering if anyone else suffered this ?

[Clutter]

Johnnyxs, Thyroid controls temperature regulation. What were your thyroid results from the tests you had 5 months ago?

[johnnyxs in reply to Clutter]

Hi clutter thank you for responding . Apologies for delay in replying ,

I did promise to post my results and never did. I'll try and find a minute late tonight to type them up and post them.

It would be interesting to have an expert assessment

[johnnyxs in reply to Clutter]

I've moved links to scans of my blood panel results to the end of the thread

[humanbean]

I'd be curious about your cortisol levels as well as your thyroid levels. Poorly regulated temperature can be caused by cortisol being out of kilter. The best way of finding this out is by getting a private adrenal stress profile test done (it uses saliva samples).

gdx.net/uk/product/27

For more info on the test, see here on how to order :

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

Sweating far too much has been a problem for me for ever. In the past I have sweated copiously in the middle of snowstorms, and my head and neck have been major problem areas for me too.

If you do the test I linked above, post the results here after you receive them, including the reference ranges.

[johnnyxs in reply to humanbean]

this is an excellent suggestion. I have been meaning to get this test done for months. I have been feeling so exhausted all the time particularly this year and I suffer almost constant anxiety and periods of depression , so I stated reading up on adrenal fatigue and pretty soon recognised all my own symptoms in the condition.

I suspect it may have something to do with the chronic infection I have in the roots of my teeth and gums for the past 20+ years.

This is definitely a physiological condition with me and not psychological one. I have absolutely nothing to be anxious or depressed about now that I have retired and no longer have financial concerns. very weird !

I'll make some enquiries about the testing and send off some hair and saliva samples.

[humanbean in reply to johnnyxs]

Be aware if you do this test that the NHS won't pay any attention to it, although they might be persuaded to do their own tests on the strength of it if your levels were very low or very high if you fought hard enough.

Also, if your levels turn out to be high, help is hard to come by, even on the web. It generally tends to be of the "relax and sleep more" type, which isn't very helpful if you've got chronic insomnia.

There is far more info available on how to deal with low cortisol.

[johnnyxs in reply to humanbean]

thanks for the advice HB but I took the responsibility for my health away from my Doctor and the Health service last year.

I reckon they have had 15+ years to help improve my health without result so I can scarcely do any worse.

I now decide what I think is best for my health and hope to get some assistance from the NHS

[HIFL]

If you're severely hypothyroid, noradrenaline rises to compensate for the lack of thyroid hormone. It'll keep your heart beating (although sometimes too fast), and can sometimes make you hot. Do you also have a fast pulse and high BP? Read reference #13 here and see if this page applies to you: tiredthyroid.com/feeling-hy...

For you to be hypoglycemic means your cortisol is probably very low, also common when someone is severely hypo. You will probably need adrenal support to raise your thyroid dose.

[johnnyxs in reply to HIFL]

thank you for your reply.

I have suffered high blood pressure for a number of years now and very occasionally have experienced arythmia and palpatations . I have assumed that the latter was due to over medicating on Levo .

I frequently suffer anxiety attacks which is very odd as I am a strong independent type used to making decisions for myself and others. These days I seem to agonise over every little decision however trivial and have no confidence in my decision making process. I make endless pros and cons and what-if lists about everything.

Sometimes I feel like I'm falling to pieces and its frustrating thinking that if only I knew the cause I might be able to do something to make myself feel better

My Mother and two of her Brothers had Hypothyroidism and diabetes. The two Uncles both died of Diabetes so I really should be making a bigger effort to reduce my weight and cut down on the carbs . I suspect I probably have the onset of diabetes although my Doctor would not consider the possibility .

Fortunately attacks are relatively rare at the moment about 3-4 times a year.

[humanbean in reply to johnnyxs]

Arrhythmia and palpitations can have various causes. I had the problem when I was severely iron-deficient. Getting my levels up improved my heart health enormously. Don't automatically assume it is thyroid alone causing the problem. You need to investigate other possible causes as well.

Oh, and my anxiety reduced when I got iron levels up.

[johnnyxs in reply to humanbean]

thats an interesting experience HB . I have intended to go though my blood results and the stuff I have found on the net and put together a relevant vitimin and mineral supplement list. Iron, folic acid and the B group are top of my list ...when I get a minute to myself that is lol

[johnnyxs]

I remember now ,why didn't post the results before....its way too much to type out lol.

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[HypoHim in reply to johnnyxs]

Are you currently taking levothyroxine or any other thyroid hormones? Your TSH seems to be low, but your FT4 and FT3 are also low, which seems to be an unusual combination. Hopefully someone who has experience of this will comment?

I noticed your glucose level was borderline high too - are you being monitored for diabetes?

[Clutter in reply to johnnyxs]

Johnny, are you still taking 125mcg Levothyroxine? TSH 0.13 is low but your FT4 7.8 is deficient (below range) and apparently not for the first time. FT4 should be in the top 75% of range. FT3 4.5 is less than half way through range and ideally will be in the top third.

I think your GP should increase your Levothyroxine dose and refer you to endocrinology to see why your FT4 isn't responding to treatment. TTg appears to have ruled out malabsorption due to coeliac disease.

VitD 43 is low. 75-200 is optimal and most are comfortable around 100. Supplement 5,000iu softgel capsules or spray daily and retest in 6 months.

B12 311 is low. Optimal is 1,000. Supplement 5,000mcg methylcobalamin sublingual lozenges for a couple of months to build levels then maintain at 2-3,000mcg daily and take a B Complex vitamin to keep the other B vitamins balanced.

Ferritin is optimal around half way through range. Either eat more iron rich food like liver or supplement a little iron and take with 500mg-1,000mg vitamin C to aid absorption and minimise constipation. Retest in 6 months.

Iron and vitD must be taken 4 hours away from Levothyroxine.

[johnnyxs in reply to Clutter]

thank you clutter for taking the time to wade through my blood results and especially for your advice . Its a bit of an indictment of the medical profession when I receive empathy and better advice on here than from my GP,!

My GP refused to prescribe Vit D3 despite my best efforts so I have been taking 800 daily since March as well as tryig to spend as much time as I can outdoors in the sun (when its out ).

I am about due for another blood test so I'll see if there is any improvement and if not I'll up the dosage to what you suggest.

My GP simply will not accept that any of my results are out of range. He's convinced that provided my result is inside the threshold that good enough. He completely ignores my symptoms and won't even consider that my health might improve if I was closer to the mid point within any range.

I have been supplementing Magnesium Selenium and Zinc and will add the Vit B group as you suggest. Strangely I have been wanting to eat lots of Spinach lately and just can't seem to eat enough ? body must be trying to tell me something....

I'll study your suggestions more closely tomorrow...off to bed now finally.

Johnny

[Francy3344 in reply to johnnyxs]

Johnnyxs,

I know it's been two years since you posted regarding your overheating and profuse sweating, but your post is as close to mine that I could relate to.

Since it's been two years, I'm hoping you have found some answers?

I am at my wits end! My GP also doesn't take my symptoms seriously. Anyone I speak to just tells me it's all from my meds! Infuriates me!

So if you can let me know where your overheating and sweating stand today, whether you have found some answers that helped, I'd appreciate it. Thank you.

[johnnyxs in reply to Francy3344]

Hi Francy . Yes I think I have pretty much solved my sweating and over heating problem but to be honest I'm not entirely sure how.

I rarely suffer with head and neck sweats now but the few mild episodes I occasionally suffer nearly always seem to coincide with eating something. Frequently I seem to get a mild flush and head sweat about half an hour after eating certain foods and I am beginning to suspect that it might be as a result of IBS.

Thinking back most of my sweats seemed to have occurred at night time just a few hours after eating a main meal

Lately my digestive system has been more problematic than ever and although I know that I am intolerant to certain foods like bread cake pies etc I still keep eating them occasionally although I have quit bread completely now.

A few months ago I restarted taking Vitamin and mineral supplements and within 4 weeks all my dreadful wrist and ankle aches completely ceased. Prior to this I needed to take 2x 500/30 Solpadol in order to get even 2 hours sleep a night and for over 16 weeks I sat up all night in an armchair with terrible pain in my bones and restless legs .

The supplements are definitely responsible for eradicating my Arthritus symptoms and I suspect my infrequent headsweats are due to my cutting out nearly all sugar after my Type 2 Diabetes diagnosis last year.

Since cutting out bread from my diet I no longer suffer with continual bloating and my digestive system is probably in better shape now than at any time in the past 15 years.

I will write more on this later probably in a separate thread as I want to share this valuable information with insomniacs that sufferer with bone and joint pain and restless leg syndrome.

If you are interested in trying an experiment I would thoroughly recommend that you try a 4 day elimination fast and then slowly reintroduce foods one at a time to see if you can identify foodstuffs that you are intolerant to. Do a search on youtube.. there are plenty of helpful guides on elimination diets.

[Hidden]

Hi Johnny, out of all the blogs posted here, your'es relates to my complaint or as near as damn it. I've had all the tests, glands including thyroid but nothing wrong anywhere say the pro's ? I do have C.M.T and my lower legs and feet are always cold, the rest of me is hot. Its been a mild day today, a nice break from hot summer days but I still needed clean dry clothing and only from pottering around the house.

[johnnyxs in reply to Hidden]

sorry Ulrich but I never saw your post and now my response is totally out of date.

I would have recommended that you buy a blood glucose meter and test your self first thing in the morning after fasting all night and half hour after meals and make sure you are not an undiagnosed pre Diabetic as I was for over 10 years.

The other thing I would recommend would be a blood test for Prolactin to eliminate a problem with your Pituitary gland

[Hidden in reply to johnnyxs]

Hi Johnny, All you mention has been covered but thanks.