fast pulse vs slow pulse

[mandy72]

when im undermedicated my pulse speeds up

ive just been told im wrong and that im taking too much medication

anyone else get the faster pulse when needing an increase?

when my dose is good my pulse is slower

[humanbean]

Sorry, this won't be a helpful response!

My pulse rate speeds up when I am under-dosed and over-dosed with thyroid hormone. It also speeds up when I am overdue to take a dose of my T3, although this effect has diminished the longer I have been on T3.

[mandy72 in reply to humanbean]

im just looking to see if im not alone in the fast pulse when needing an increase

apparently im a 'medical anomaly' because my heart races when i need an increase when its supposed to be slow

when i increase my pulse slows down if i dont increase it gets faster and faster

[humanbean in reply to mandy72]

I don't think you are a medical anomaly at all. Your experience mirrors some of the things that happened to me.

[mandy72 in reply to humanbean]

i know theres many more who are the same and at first it did scare me but i know when i up my dose my heart slows

[Kitten-whiskers]

Hello Mandy,

Yes I do, I often thought it was because my body was struggling so much, putting more pressure on the heart.

As i can only tolerate a small dose of thyroid meds every Tuesday, by Monday night my pulse is high and then on Tuesday morning (after the meds has kicked in) my pulse goes down. So you are not alone : >

[Hidden]

You know I've noticed that if I'm abit low my pulse can race for awhile, I think its adrenaline kicking in. But then when I'm overmedicated it's fast too. All confusing isn't it.

[Hidden]

Mandy,

Just because it says in the doctors guidebook that low thyroid hormone = slow heartbeat ... It doesn't mean it is right.

I have heart palpatations and big heart bangs whilst sleeping, when I'm under medicated. I think it is the bodies way of compensating low thyroid hormones by using extra cortisol and adrenaline.

I also believe when medicating we loose the ability to wholly match our bodies exact thyroid hormone needs. The person with a healthy thyroid (& pituitary) will have fluctuating hormone levels to accommodate the varying temperature, hunger, tiredness, anxiety, sadness, stressful situations, etc, etc.

I am not saying our thyroid gland directly regulates all of this. Just that it is part of the endocrine system which does..., along with our brain.!

Flower

[Msmoneypolly in reply to Hidden]

I also experience this nocturnal thumping heart rate and am fairly sure to it's attributable to being overdue a T3 dose as I simply don't experience it during the day, even when busy running about looking after my kids. I'm dosing at 5 hourly intervals between 6.30am and 5pm. I'm hopeful that this will resolve with continued T3 usage.

To the original poster:

It's recommended that T3 should only be taken in 5mcg increases 7-10 days apart, as I understand it. Low and slow. I suspect anything higher too soon would certainly make you over medicated.

[mandy72 in reply to Msmoneypolly]

im far from over medicated even with a TSH 0.50 still feel hypo, on 75 T4 and 20 T3, endo wants me on 20 T3 twice a day but didnt feel that was doing anything so asked dr for T4 too and got refused so now self medicating

[Msmoneypolly in reply to mandy72]

Yes, sorry mandy72, i realise I've incorrectly added the dosing advice for you when in fact it was for someone else. Sorry!

Hope things go well with your T3 self-medicating. I'm in the same boat as you although I'm lucky in tat I have a great doc in the Dr. Peatfield. I wouldn't trust my thyroid treatment to anyone else. It's well worth trying to get an appointment with him. If you PM me I'll give you the contact details.

Poll

[mandy72 in reply to Msmoneypolly]

i cant afford private drs at moment, trying to find the money for FT4 and FT3 tests as dr or endo wont check

[Msmoneypolly in reply to mandy72]

I'm not well off by any means and have two small children so costs are high enough as it is. However, I feel it's worth it for Dr.P's expertise and treatment. He's about the only true thyroid expert we have or at least there's very few like him - particularly if you have hard to diagnose conditions such as mine - I don't convert T4 to T3 properly and it's just too complex a problem to pick up for NHS GPs and Endos with their simplistic tests and lack of clinical skill/knowledge. Yes, they ought to be treating us on the NHS and we shouldn't have to seek out private care and pay for costly meds, but unfortunately they can't/won't so we do.

My hypo symptoms went undiagnosed and untreated for nearly 10 years and have cost me dearly in many ways besides financially. In light of that high personal cost, I personally feel Dr. Peatfield's consultancy fee is a pretty modest price to pay to get well.

I wish you well with your recovery. If you can't afford to see Dr. Peatfield then I'd recommend at least reading his book - Your Thyroid and How to Keep it Healthy: The Great Thyroid Scandal and How to Survive it - It's been my bible and worth every penny. It's available on Amazon as a Kindle download for a few pounds:

Link: amazon.co.uk/dp/190514010X

[Nicardiff in reply to Msmoneypolly]

I too have read his book and it has helped me.I didn't know he was practicing...where do you go to see him? N

[Msmoneypolly in reply to Nicardiff]

Sorry for delay in replying. His clinic is in Crawley and that's where I saw him. The address and phone number are listed in the book - towards the back. If that's too far to go then worth asking if there's going to be a clinic held near you as he occasionally does extra clinics in other parts of the country but they fill up quickly as he's in high demand.

[marram]

The racing pulse is always a sure sign that I am under medicated.

Of course a fast pulse is also a sign of being over medicated or overactive, but it is always accompanied by other signs such as sweaty palms, fine tremor and loose bowels, plus it will be constant, not intermittent.

One of the reasons why I went to T3 only was because I had attacks of tachycardia almost every afternoon whilst on Levothyroxine. My pulse could go up to 180 BPM!

I cannot help getting furious with doctors who seem to have a morbid fear of T3 and tell people they will damage their hearts by taking it. Yes, long term overdosing can damage the heart, but nobody in their right mind would overdose long term, the effects are quite distressing.

I have just recovered from major heart surgery (to correct a congenital condition) and in fact the surgeon said the T3 had helped me to recover faster.

So, mandy22, there are quite a few of us who have the same effect. Despite what your doctor says, that suggests low thyroid CAN cause a rapid heartbeat. We may not have medical training, but we can clearly report what is happening to our own bodies.

[mandy72 in reply to marram]

this was on a facebook group, i did get quite angry and was going to have a go but figured whats the point

[imagisal]

I'm so glad you posted as I have been dealing with this challenge too. I have been on t3 only , t3 and t4 and am now on NDT still working out dosage levels and timing and still get increased pulse when the t3 starts wearing off . I too get confused about over and under dosing , I'm only on one and a quarter grains ( previously on Levo up to 150 mcg) but have days where I feel a bit anxious and the rapid pulse episodes can be unnerving. I will have bloods tested next month and will be guided by those as to further hormone replacement. It is good to read of other people's experiences. Best wishes

[mandy72 in reply to imagisal]

in my early days i dont know who told me this but they said small increases and if you start to get tremors then drop the last increase, ive never had tremors so i guess im good to increase again in a few weeks as only been on T4 and T3 combo for a few weeks so will hold out until about the 6 week mark and see how i feel then

my endo dropped my T3 from 62.5mcg to 40mcg saying that depression and anxiety were a sign of being over medicated, i felt awful with the decrease so started on 75mcg T4 and 20mcg T3 and have been feeling better

now im having to fight with drs and endo to get 75mcg thyroxine prescribed and 20mcg T3, they are happy for me to have the T3 but not thyroxine so now i have to look into buying my own