Hello, I haven’t felt well for around 12 months, had a blood test and I have an under active thyroid, apparently very low, I have been put on Levothyroxine 50mg, been taking this for 2 weeks now and never felt so ill, suffering from anxiety and getting panic attack’s which are debilitating,
Please can anyone advise,
Malteser56
Sometimes we can react to the fillers in tablets and it's worth trying a different brand.
What brand of Levo have you been given? TEVA is the one we hear about most that causes adverse reactions.
Unfortunately some patients can have a reaction to levothyroxine and it may well be due to the fillers/binders in it as SeasideSusie has explained.
You may begin to feel a bit better as your dose is increased i.e. by 25mcg every six weeks after a blood test.
Some hints:-
Blood tests - have to be be at the very earliest, fasting (you can drink water) and allow a gap of 24 hours between last dose and test and take afterwards. This helps keep the TSH at its highest and may prevent the doctor reducing dose.
Always get a print-out of your results, with the ranges, from now on for your own records and post if you have a query. TSH is highest early a.m. and doctors seem to only look at a TSH result before adjusting dose.
If, as SeasideSusie suggest, you've been prescribed Tevo, ask GP for a new prescription and ask pharmacist for another make.
You can also try taking an antihistamine tablet one hour before levothyroxine, and if you have an improvement it is the fillers/binders which could be the reason.
Thanks for your time, this is all new to me, I’m on 50mg of Levothyroxine ( Actavis )
There is a complicated connection between cortisol output and thyroid hormone levels. Having the wrong level of cortisol (too high or too low) is very common in people with thyroid problems, and may be the cause of your anxiety and panic.
Before you started Levo your cortisol level had probably altered slowly as your thyroid hormone levels dropped, and you would have had some time to adapt to your cortisol levels changing. However, taking thyroid hormones means that a sudden change has occurred. In an ideal world your cortisol would adapt to your new levels of thyroid hormones but sometimes it takes a while. In some cases the wrong level of cortisol becomes ingrained and it has to be "pushed" in one direction or the other i.e. up or down.
In the vast majority of cases it is possible to raise or lower cortisol levels with supplements, dietary changes, getting regular sleep, not doing too much or too little exercise... Unfortunately, it is not possible to work out whether cortisol is high or low (or normal) based on symptoms - there is too much overlap. So testing is essential. The normal method of testing cortisol is with a 4-part saliva test which includes a test of DHEA.
See these links :
thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...
regeneruslabs.com/shop/prod...
If you do this test you can look up posts on here that describe how to interpret the results, or you can post your results and ask for help on how to interpret them.
In the meantime, you could stop taking Levo just for a couple of days. Then start taking 25mcg Levo for, say, two - three weeks, then go up to 50mcg for about six weeks. Or you could stretch out the "getting used to Levo" phase for a little bit longer, depending on how well you adjust. Don't leave yourself stuck at 25mcg for terribly long though - it isn't a good idea in the long run - it will probably actually reduce your own production of thyroid hormones and make you feel even worse.
Try to get plenty of sleep (very difficult, maybe even impossible, I know), stick to doing gentle exercise, and eat a good diet, to try and reduce your cortisol levels.
Thank you very much for your help
humanbean will not have seen your reply as you forgot to click the Reply button before typing yours. Easily done !
Hi Malterser56, I too have suffered badly with anxiety and panic attacks. I’ve found practising Mindfulness really helpful- look up book and CD by Danny Penman / Mark Williams or download their ap. Following guided meditations takes time & effort but can really help.
Remember to talk to others (including on line supporters like us!) so you know you are not alone in feeling anxious with thyroid issues.
Thanks for your help, I will look into it, I never suffered from anything like this before, I feel bloody awful on this Levothyroxine 50mg, got hold of my doctor yesterday and she has lower the dose to 25mg, see how this goes.
As I’ve reacted badly to Levothyroxine (ending up at A and E with palpitations & racing pulse), I’m increasing my dose VERY slowly- going up in 12.5mg - started at 25mg, then 37.5mg, then 50mg and now 62.5mg.
Remember you can ask for lower dose combinations if you think this approach could help you 😊
I felt like I was going mad, along with feeling ill, it’s a horrible thing, Thanks for your info,
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