We're do I go from here

[Marymay]

I was wondering if any one else has had a hard time with being well enough to work.I have hashimotos and I feel awful ,anxiety and extremely teird all the time .I feel like I need to push myself to work .but I honestly don't think I could .it's been almost three months since my surgery .I just know how I can help provide for my family .feeling hopeless and depressed constantly about my situation.

[Nanaedake]

Have you been back to your GP to explain that you still don't feel well? In addition, have you had your vitamin levels tested. B12, folate, iron, ferritin, vitamin D? You might be low on iron after your surgery and possibly other vitamins too.

You could post your latest blood test results here along with the laboratory ranges, the number in brackets next to the result and people here will give you some good suggestions.

It took me a long while to feel well again after thyroidectomy. Some people sail through but not all of us do. I have had a few bouts of time off work as a result. Perhaps you need to agree a suitable arrangement with your employer to give you a little more time off work and perhaps a phased return? Or could you cut down to part time for 6 months?

You will get back to nearly normal again but it can take a while and some of it is trial and error. Have you tried going gluten free because although your throid is gone, you might still benefit?

[Marymay in reply to Nanaedake]

I been to the doctor a few times .she hasent been a whole lot of help IV been complaining about body and joint pain ,being teird and fainty.she took me off my blood pressure medicine witch help a little bit with the dizzyness .she said I had to just try to ride out the swelling and body pains.that eventually it would get better by itself.she did tell me my tsh levels were at 12 .she said that that was normal.from what IV study up on I thought 12 was high.IV been asking for medical records and blood test.I still haven't received them.I haven't had a job in a while from being sick.its started 7 months before I had my surgery .haven't work since.bills are pileing up .I'm wondering maybe if I need to apply for disability or if they would even help me.

[Nanaedake in reply to Marymay]

Post your results here with the lab ranges, they don't sound 'normal' to me. People will give helpful suggestions.

Could you go to citizens advice for finanial advice? I don't know anything about disability benefit. I think it's very difficult to get these days.

[Marymay]

They haven't gave me any lab results .never heard of citizens advice I can look into it.thank you for your help

[silverfox7]

They can't refuse to give you your results if you are in the U.K. There may be a small charge to cover paper and ink but I've never been asked to pay for mine. If they do say there is a charge and it sounds too much then say you will copy them down from the screen and don't forget the ranges as they differ from lab to lab.

12 is far too high and I'm sure must be over the range so no wonder you are feeling rubbish. Have you had a hospital follow up? They should sort this out for you. Hope you soon start feeling better.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Are you in the USA? Or UK

A previous post you mentioned being also on propranolol. Are you still taking this? Propranolol slows down our bodies ability to use thyroid hormones, so it's not a good idea. However you must never stop taking this suddenly, we have to reduce dose very slowly.

Going gluten free may well help. Even though you have had thyroid removed, you still have Hashimoto's. Hashimotos is an autoimmune disease. It doesn't only affect the Thyroid. Very common to have poor gut function and then low nutrients. Get your vitamin D, folate, B12 and ferriylevels checked. Come back here with the results including the ranges and members can advise

Read as much as possible about it. The Thyroid Pharmacist website has masses of info, as does her video series the Thyroid Secret on you tube

[Marymay in reply to SlowDragon]

I'm in the USA ,the doctor took me off the proprananol cold turkey ,I don't think she's did alot of test except for ths and t3 and t4.

[Hidden]

Your previous posts say you had a large goitre and had a total thyroidectomy and now you are still ill several months after the surgery. Your spelling of goitre (ie you spell it as goiter) I imagine you are not in the UK.

I had several months off work way back in 1989 after a partial thyroidectomy for a benign "standard" inward growing goitre. It took that long for the remainder of thyroid to start working again. In 2005 the problem erupted again, nearly killing me in the process, as a multinodular goitre; surgery and RAI solved that particular problem immediately.......BUT after a short while I started to suffer the same problems as you are now experiencingwhich got worse and worse.

There was no help whatsoever forthcoming from either my GP or endocrinologist. They said there was only the one medication, levothyroxine, and you need to adjust the dose until you feel fine. WHAT A LOAD OF RUBBISH!!!!!! I started to take NDT (Brand Thyroid-S from Thailand) and felt very much better more or less immediately.

Others on the forum can advise you for different levels of whatever in blood tests, I have no personal experience of trying to balance these readings. I had tried changing the dose of levo, eating all sorts of different products, checking temperature, avoiding certain foods and a lot more, all in vain.

All I can therefore offer is the suggestion that you will never feel well whatever these readings may be. What you actually need, as do the majority of us who no longer have a thyroid gland, is NDT, perhaps Armour brand, perhaps a much cheaper Thai clone such as Thyroid-S or Thiroyd which are equally effective.

I haven't tried a combination of synthetic T3 and T4 (levothyroxine plus liothyronine) and that may possibly be easier for you to obtain. That may or may not give you same results as NDT but having now taken NDT there is no way in this world that I am ever going to let any synthetic levo pass my lips ever again, whatever may accompany it.

[Marymay]

Thank you for shareing your story.right now my biggest stress not be able to help provide for my family .I need to work .but I don't feel like I can yet.I use to be able to take care of family ,house hold chores ect.Now it's a battle eavry day .I'm teird from the time a wake up intill I go to bed.I hurt constantly .im just trying to find that balance in between .