Cracking shoulder blades and stiff joints Hypo

[jjkeurope]

I am hypothyroid and take 300mg of t4 due to 2x genetic di02 mutation which slows my conversion t4 to t3 on a cellular level 95% of my symptoms have gone once I am on a mega dose of t4 but I still have extremely cracky stiff shoulders blades and hips anyone got any reasons why this happens with hypo and any cures or treatment ideas thanks jk

[Lora7again]

I had cracking stiff knees when I was ill because my levels were low. Now I feel well my knees don't crack and are not stiff at all. I did take some cod liver oil capsules in the past so I do wonder if that helped.

[Marymary7]

When I do a certain position and I have I lean back during a yoga class there's an embarrassing crack sound that others noticed.

I've got Osteopenia as well as Hashimotos so I do want to know the answers too.

Good luck 😀

[Lora7again in reply to Marymary7]

My neck crunches and feels stiff so I had some investigations and all was found to be normal but I do wonder if it has something to do with my goitre

[Marymary7 in reply to Lora7again]

When I do the neck exercises in yoga it sounds all horribly gristly! I wonder if we are short of something essential because of thyroid trouble.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Dio2 gene variation usually means we need small doses of T3 alongside levothyroxine

For full Thyroid evaluation you need TSH, FT4 and FT3 plus both TPO and TG thyroid antibodies tested.

As you are taking extremely high dose levothyroxine it might be worth paying for also testing reverseT3. It’s expensive test and takes longer to process......but if taking too much levothyroxine reverse T3 may be high

Also EXTREMELY important to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12

Low vitamin levels are extremely common, especially if you have autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto's) diagnosed by raised Thyroid antibodies

Do you have hashimoto’s?

Ask GP to test vitamin levels

You may need to get full Thyroid testing privately as NHS refuses to test TG antibodies if TPO antibodies are negative

Recommended on here that all thyroid blood tests should ideally be done as early as possible in morning and before eating or drinking anything other than water .

Last dose of Levothyroxine 24 hours prior to blood test. (taking delayed dose immediately after blood draw).

This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip, best not mentioned to GP or phlebotomist)

Is this how you do your tests?

Private tests are available. Thousands on here forced to do this as NHS often refuses to test FT3 or antibodies

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

For thyroid including antibodies and vitamins

Medichecks Thyroid plus ultra vitamin or Blue Horizon Thyroid plus eleven are the most popular choice. DIY finger prick test or option to pay extra for private blood draw. Both companies often have special offers, Medichecks usually have offers on Thursdays, Blue Horizon its more random

If you can get GP to test vitamins and antibodies then cheapest option for just TSH, FT4 and FT3 £29 (via NHS private service )

monitormyhealth.org.uk/thyr...

[endomad]

I take 75mcg T3 and I still get stiff joints and loud crunches and cracks, i walk daily and medium active so its not due to just sitting around. My knees and ankles are always stiff, knees painful (no signs of arthritis on xray) I also take omega 3's and tumeric which deff helped.

Today I have painful left hip flexor I think i have just got use to pain as part of my life since thyroid removed, its much better than it was but can still stop me in my tracks. x

[Workingitout]

I have under active Thyroid which seems to be auto immune and take 75mg Levo daily. I developed painful and swollen hip and shoulder joints in November which was found from regular blood tests to be due to inflammation, I was diagnosed with possible Polymyalgia and have now been referred to a Rheumatologist thinking it may be Rheumatoid Arthritis.

However, after watching a seminar from a link posted on here a few weeks ago about resolving chronic pain and inflammation through lab based supplement programmes:

youtube.com/watch?time_cont...

I started taking CoQ10 and Magnesium and have had a great improvement, the pain has virtually gone, I am feeling less cold and tired and have more energy. I am resolving the mild residula aches with physio exercises to strengthen my muscle and stretch the joints. It is only a week after starting the CoQ10 but so far it seems great. (Am taking after breakfast an hour and a half after Levo in case it can interfere, if anyone knows when best to take that would be helpful- definately not in the evenign as it would affect sleep).

[Batty1 in reply to Workingitout]

I have been toying with taking CoQ10 and I have it sitting right next to me, I’m on low dose cholesterol reducing meds and thyroid.

[Workingitout in reply to Batty1]

The Dr in the clip suggested that cholesterol reducing meds like Statins can reduce CoQ10 levels and lead to joint pain, I have also heard that from other sources. Also levels reduce with age. He said you can have tests to see if you need to supplement, but also seemed to suggest that it would do little harm to try it and see if it helps! I feel it has helped reduce pain, tiredness and feeling cold all the time.

[Batty1 in reply to Workingitout]

Thanks. I think I might give it a try.

[Workingitout in reply to Batty1]

Hope it helps, would be interested to hear how you get on. (I bought 100mg tablets and could really feel a surge of energy when I took the first one, 30mg might be better as a starting dose).

[Christabel in reply to Batty1]

I might also try it. I've read that you have to take it for three months before you can know if it has done anything - which is annoying!

[Batty1 in reply to Christabel]

I wanted to try it for a long time never had the nerve to try.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Batty1]

statins not recommended when hypothyroid

nhs.uk/conditions/statins/c...

If you have an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism), treatment may be delayed until this problem is treated. This is because having an underactive thyroid can lead to an increased cholesterol level, and treating hypothyroidism may cause your cholesterol level to decrease, without the need for statins. Statins are also more likely to cause muscle damage in people with an underactive thyroid.

Are your thyroid levels and vitamins optimal

[Batty1 in reply to SlowDragon]

I have read this about hypo and statins but my LDL levels are so high that I wasn’t comfortable leaving them as is in the hope that some Endo will actually deal with me before I have another issue and sadly I also have PSA and psoriasis which can cause cholesterol issues plus and a very strong family history of heart disease.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Batty1]

So you presumably have hashimoto’s

Are you on strictly gluten free diet?

Or tried it?

[Batty1 in reply to SlowDragon]

Hi SD, I don’t have Hashimotos so I’m told and I tried GF for a while never noticed a difference. I think my cholesterol issues are part of many things and currently my dose is only 5 mcg (Crestor) and I retest my cholesterol in March.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Batty1]

Sorry, just read your profile.

Well 5mcg T3 is low dose.

Come back with new post once you get results

[Batty1 in reply to SlowDragon]

I’m on 10mcg not 5

[Batty1 in reply to Batty1]

SD ...lol 5mg was cholesterol lower drug NOT my Cytomel. I thought I was losing my mind for a minute.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Batty1]

Even 10mcg isn’t much.

15mcg or 20mcg more typical

[Batty1 in reply to SlowDragon]

I was on 15 mcg Cytomel awhile ago but like everything in thyroid world when the Endo thinks your TSH (gold standard) is to low they peel it away. I can’t complain “too much” I have been feeling pretty decent with the 10mcg and my new Endo seems to be less reliant on TSH and little more on how I feel, if I feel like I need an increase he said he would....this remains to be seen words are cheap action is what matters.

[Christabel]

My left shoulder in particular has made terrible noises for a long time! It, like the other one, was frozen, but didn't have the operation that side, whereas the right one had the MUA.

Sometimes when I do a 'bridge' (yoga/Pilates exercise where you articulate the spine up and down) I get a crack at a certain point, where there is stiffness.

[Batty1]

Sadly no solution or reason I’m suffering with same thing and I have issues with my lower back that makes bending a nightmare my muscle fatigue and spasms.

[vocalEK]

I used to hear very loud cracking noises when I bent my knees. I haven't noticed this noise very often now that I am taking Vitamin D3 plus K2-MK7. I wonder if calcium buildup in the joints was causing the crackling.

Vitamin D3 helps your body use the calcium you take in from your diet, and K2-MK7 helps to route that calcium to your teeth and bones instead of depositing where it will do harm, such as in your blood vessels, joints, and breast tissue.

[Marymary7 in reply to vocalEK]

Think you need to edit that D2 to D3 which is the best one, probably a typo. 😀

[vocalEK in reply to Marymary7]

Done. Thank you.

[Hidden]

I am can't even sleep at night so much pain in my back neck and shoulders. But the doctors took my tablets away they said they need to test if I still have underactive thyroid or not cause I've been in 25mg for to long.. Don't know what to do

[jjkeurope in reply to Hidden]

if your on the low reg ranges your probably hypo increase t4 slowly and see if helps i.e 50mg week1 then 100 mg week 2 also check tpo antibodies etc there is good endos on this site if you need one

[jjkeurope]

Thanks all for the info definitely looks like hypothroid or hashi is causing this shoulder stiffness and cracking. Regarding my T4 T3 Tsh Rt3 etc I would be on the low range of most of these but now in the high ref range showing hyperthyroid but clearly i am not I had high antibodies TPO but they lowered after I started taking LDN at night I will post an article soon on Dio2 Gene as it may be helpful to people who have hypo symptoms but are told they are not hypo due to outdated ref ranges here's an article on it in the mean time psychiatrycentre.co.uk/blog...

[HashiFedUp]

Well we know that Hashimoto’s patients are under attack from their own immune system and that one of the things under attack is our tendons. They become inflamed and we have trigger points and reduced range of movement in our joints. This brings joint pain and stiffness.

The best I ever found is without a doubt deep tissue sports massage. Not the relaxing type - the one that hurts a bit lol. I have one every four weeks without fail. Also I do yoga and pilate and swimming. All helps my neck back and shoulder pain.

[jjkeurope in reply to HashiFedUp]

Hey Hashi fed up yes massage helps a lot i do reformer pilates too which helps just exactly causing the joints to get so stiff and cracky is it calcium build up ? going to try take some oils omega 3 etc and mag anyone had any supplement that looses them up ? also hashi fed up you should look into ldn it really reduced my Tpo antibodies it stops the immune system over reacting basically.