Breathlessness

Is it likely that the breathlessness I'm experiencing is down to my thyroid?

It started when all the other vague symptoms for hasimotos appeared, along with weight gain, dry skin, constipation.

Latest private results -

TSH - 1.44 mu/L (0.27 - 4.2)

T3 - 4.8 pmol/L (3.1 - 6.8)

T4 - 16.4 pmol/L (12 - 22)

Ferritin - 72.8 ug/L (13 - 150)

Active B12 - 77.9 pmol/L (37.5 - 150)

Vitamin D - 65 nmol/L

I'm taking 100mcg levothyroxine since Feb and due blood test at GP Monday morning.

I'm taking B12 and Vitamin D which was just 12 in Feb so is improving.

The last 2-3 weeks I've just felt generally unwell again. So tired, everything wipes me out. At first I thought maybe I was getting a virus or infection but no temp and weeks later I'm just feeling worse. Really low, moody, tired and breathlessness has kicked back in again.

Could this just be that I'm undermedicated and need an increase in levothyroxine?

The weight gain has stalled. Luckily I haven't gained a lb in months but definitely not losing either.

Thanks.

[jamesal0]

I was the same - I would walk up two flight of stairs and I'd be be breathless. The real indignation was my friend smoked and he was less breathless than me. I went up from 100mcg to 125mcg of Levo and things improved, but not fixed and I was putting on weight like crazy. It wasn't until went on NDT (Natural Dedicated Thyroid) that I felt I was normal again, well at least for those two things. Note NDT isn't a panacea, it has it's own challenges, but I had got away from allot of the Levo side effects I was experiencing. Google levothyroxine side effects or drugs.com/levothyroxine.html

Note2 most people don't have any Levo side effects - but as a Levo user you should know what to look for.

[GrowingVeg in reply to jamesal0]

I have just read the link above and it says to avoid walnuts?! I never heard that before... I wonder how many you have had to have eaten...

[Pearlteapot in reply to GrowingVeg]

I wonder if that means just in the 4 hours after medication while it’s being absorbed? I love walnuts and eat a lot of them so hoping that is right?

[tattybogle in reply to Pearlteapot]

No , not just for the few hours after the tablet .... they are saying avoid all those things in general , it is accepted that soy stops thyroid hormone working so well. NOTE ~ this is not because of reduced 'absorption' via the digestive system , it is because soy interferes with how thyroid hormone works (at cellular/blood ? level, forgotten the exact details just now ,sorry)

However, i wouldn't place too much weight on the "Grapefruit juice / Walnuts / Cotton seed meal / High fiber foods" bit unless you can verify what science this is based on ... its not certainly something i've heard of on here very often .. or at least" walnuts" isn't.

[jamesal0 in reply to GrowingVeg]

I googled walnuts and they seem pretty wholesome - I wouldn't take too seriously. Everything in moderation...

[Batty1 in reply to GrowingVeg]

I haven’t touch a walnut since my sister told me about them.. weird.

[bellk]

I was certainly breathless before I had any treatment at all.

[GrowingVeg]

I felt breathless... There seem to be so many things that underactive thyroid affects. It takes time to get the treatment right, I found that symptoms that came and went as the dose was being worked out. First I'd feel better, then worse. Just like you say, it felt like having a virus, but your not I'll that way. It's a strange thing to try to track! Hope things go well with the gp. Lots of help and info here.

[Hidden in reply to GrowingVeg]

It still catches me off guard lol. I'm like oh no I'm getting sick then couple weeks later I realise it's not an illness on the way, it has to be my thyroid. Such an up and down journey!!Just wanna keep the feeling good bit lol. Hopefully I can convince the GP for another increase.

[jamesal0 in reply to Hidden]

Every time I think I have something major wrong with me - no no it's my thyroid and thyroid medications are wrong

[Lulu2607 in reply to jamesal0]

True, but knowing when to assume it's thyroid and not something else that needs investigation is tricky isn't it? If it is thyroid we don't want to go through needless investigations but at the same time we don't want to miss something else that possibly needs treatment,

[SecondAngel]

I'm experiencing breathlessness too. It started when the doc took me down to 75 levo but hasn't quite resolved now I'm back at 100.

I'm dreading raising it with the doc at my next appointment as I think he'll just suggest it is something else, like covid (which I haven't had yet, unless it was asymptomatic).

[Hidden in reply to SecondAngel]

I had COVID beginning of March but didn't feel breathless til May but I'm sure my GP will try use that one too lol

[JonathanPittsCrick]

I think it's helpful to work out exactly what is making you breathless – there are only 6 basic causes:

1) - the obvious one, but unlikely - your lungs are not working properly to get oxygen into your blood. If this is happening your blood oxygen saturation will drop when you exercise. You can test this easily by using a finger pulse oximeter (bought for about £20 or, better, borrowed).

2) - most common - you have become unfit by not doing enough regular exercise and/or putting on weight.

3) - not very common but worth checking - not having enough haemoglobin (the red stuff) in your blood to carry oxygen (anaemia). May be due to iron or vitamin deficiency, or blood loss.

4) - not very likely - your heart is not pumping enough blood around tour body. This generally makes you feel faint and go pale when you try to exercise (as well as feeling breathless) it can be caused by:

4a) The heart is not beating at the right speed. It could be too slow because of underactive thyroid.

4b) The heart muscle is not pumping properly (cardiomyopathy); this can also be cause by underactive thyroid.

4c) The heart isn't getting enough blood itself to do the work ("silent" angina).

5) - and by far the most common if you are otherwise fit - the brain is getting "fake news" messages from your body and making you try to breathe more than necessary (hyperventilation). It can be caused by a wide range of factors such as a recent virus or anxiety, and including subtle changes in thyroid activity. But the cause doesn't matter because it's not dangerous and can be avoided by learning to control your breathing.

6) - very rare - a kidney or other problem causing your blood to become more acidic. This directly stimulates your breathing – because by breathing out more carbon dioxide the acidity is partially corrected (respiratory-compensated metabolic acidosis).

Being unfit and hyperventilating are the usual causes of breathlessness and you can fix them yourself. A simple method of breathing control is to take one breath every 8 steps (4 steps breathing in, 4 breathing out) walking on the level or every 6 steps (3 in, 3 out) walking uphill.

[EMBoy]

Hi,

I nearly died because for a year, I blamed the symptoms of a serious heart condition (tiredness, fatigue, light headedness) on my hypothyroidism.

Your blood results are all within the normal limits, so, it would probably be a good idea to get yourself checked out by your GP. There's probably nothing to worry about, but better safe than sorry.

[BitSpaceEm in reply to EMBoy]

Oh my gosh, hope you’re alright now. How did you know to get your heart checked?

[EMBoy in reply to BitSpaceEm]

I collapsed and was taken to hospital. I have been fitted with a pacemaker and am well and living a normal life. My Hashimoto's is under control.

[SueHG]

This my experience. I was experiencing breathlessness, saw Dr Peatfield, he put me on t3 but was still having problems. Because I wasnt converting from t4 to t3 for a few years it had affected my heart and I had to have a pacemaker fitted. I was 70. Maybe you aren’t converting so it could be affecting your heart. The cardiologist confirmed that was the case with me. You need to find out if you are converting and if not perhaps change to t3 and stop the t4 build up.

[BitSpaceEm]

I just started taking Armour thyroid 1/2 grain twice daily 3 weeks ago, after changing from 100mg levo, and about 2 weeks in my breathing seemed to get radically worse. Not covid. Asthma nurse has put me on Clenil twice daily which seems to help some. Has anyone else experienced anything like this? I’m