Thyroiditis

[JenniferMarie]

About two months ago i was diagnosed with thyroiditis. The lady who give my blood at the clinic i go to said my thyroid goes up down. I have an appointment with a thyroid specialist this coming Monday am so glad cause i am so sick and tired of the way im feeling. I am tired all the time and no energy, muscle aches and pains, especially get leg cramps. I also have a balance problem which i believe is because of my thyroid messing up. Will be so glad when i finally get back to my old self. Does anyone else have some of these symptoms.

[Hidden]

When you say your thyroid goes up and down, do you mean it swells ( like a goitre) then reduces? Mine does the same and neither GP nor Endo were interested in it ( after determining it wasn't cancerous) I'd be interested in following what treatment you receive.

Good luck for Monday.

[Treepie]

Those symptoms are common,poor balance can have a number of causes.

You should post your thyroid blood test results with ranges for advice.

[shaws Administrator]

You will be surprised by the number of clinical symptoms there are. It is a pity most doctors or endocrinologists know few of them. Most appear to treat a 'blood test result' rather than the symptoms we have. These are symptoms:

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...

There can be fluctuations in our tests every time we have a test. The following is recommended so that we get the best possible result in order to prevent a doctor or endo adjusting our medications - they do so commonly as they only appear to look at the TSH alone - maybe the T4 but nothing else.

We take levothyroxine, usually first thing, with one full glass of water and wait an hour before eating. Food and caffeine interfere with the uptake of the hormones.

All tests have to be the very earliest possible, fasting (you can drink water) and allow a 24 hour gap between last dose and test and take afterwards. This helps keep the TSH at its highest as it drops throughout the day and may be a reduction in our dose.

Always get a print-out from the surgery, of the results with the ranges. Ranges are important for members to respond.

You also need B12, Vit D, iron, ferritin and folate to be tested. Deficiencies also cause symptoms.

The aim is a TSH of 1 or lower - many doctors think 'somewhere' in the range is fine - even 5 so read and learn from members posts and you will soon know more than the medical professionals I am sorry to say.

You should have been started on 50mcg of levo with a 25mcg increase every six weeks until TSH is around 1 or lower. The following are clinical symptoms.

Thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_the_thyroid/hypothyroidism_signs_symptoms.html

If you have thyroid antibodies in your blood you will have an Autoimmune Thyroid Disease called Hashimoto's or hashi's and going gluten-free can help reduce the attacks of the antibodies on your thyroid gland. Treatment is the same as for hypothyroidism.

Always get a print-out of your results with the ranges for your own records and post if you have a query.

[Angel_of_the_North]

Sadly, when people in clinics say things like "your thyroid goes up and down" they actually means that your TSH levels rise and fall (TSH is not a thyroid hormone) suggesting that you have autoimmune thyroid disease (aka Hashimotos). You need to post the following results for advice:

TSH

Free T4

Free t3

TPO antibodies

TG antibodies

B12

Folate

Ferritin

Vit D

Those are the main tests you need to know if you have a thyroid problem. Balance is often due to low B12

[JenniferMarie in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

When I go for my appointment Monday I will get my lab results from the specialist and post them on here.

[JenniferMarie in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

I hope its not Hashimotos. I had read online that thyroid problems usually runs in the family. The other day my aunt told me she has thyroid problems and I didn't even know. She said she has Hashimotos.

[JenniferMarie in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

Since my tsh levels rise and fall does that mean I go back and forth between being hypothyroid and hyperthyroid.

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to JenniferMarie]

No, not really. If you have hashis, an attack destroys some of the thyroid, flooding the blood with thyroid hormones so you have temporary high T4 and T3 and low TSH, which looks a bit like overactive, but then you become more hypo. It's teh free T4 and free T3 levels that tell you if you are over or underactive, not the TSH, which si not produced by teh thyroid and often doesn't reflect your thyroid hormone levrls accurately (in spite of what your doctor might say)

[Rmichelle]

Hi I was also told that my thyroid swells up and down by the consultant sonographer, I did ask why, he said if you have hashi or graves it can do this and your levels can change the size of your thyroid, I can always tell when mine swells up as my throat and neck feel Like there's pressure there and breathless.

I hope you get the answers you need at your appointment but sadly I'm on my 3rd Endo has they are not known for their empathy and compassion or knowledge of the thyroid- I would say look after yourself and gain knowledge from this site, oh and always get copy bloods for your info. Good Luck 👍🌟