looking for advice I have had recurring bouts of diahorrea on a regular pattern. Every 3 weeks for 3 to 4 days for a number of years I am on a large amount of medication for anxiety and depression and also for diabetes, I have mentioned this to doctors I.e medical and on mental health side and they have put it down to my anxiety and depression. The thing is I get 3 weeks where I don't suffer any or very little anxiety but once I have had the stomach problems for 3 or so days I crash my anxiety goes sky high and I am unable to physically get out of bed or mentally plan or action things. These were all the symptoms I had before I had the total thyroid and total parathyroid removed.
It takes two to three weeks for me to return back to my organised and happy self then the cycle re starts.
I am currently on metformin and have recently been chatting to a friend who said they have the same problem with their stomach. A light bulb has gone on and I realise on the few occasions I have felt better for longer I hadn’t had the problem with the diahorrea.
I am now wondering if I am getting withdrawal symptoms from the thyroxine and other medications not being absorbed into my body and just being flushed through., I am feeling really Ill at the moment.
I know it’s going to be difficult to test TSH etc because my bloods will be all over the place,
Has anyone else had problems like this, any help and advice would be most appreciated
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Cbreeze1961
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How long have you been taking Metformin? I have a friend taking it he said it seemed to cause him to have terrible diarrhea. I just googled it and it is one of the side effects of that medication.
Became Hyperthyroid and started Carbimazole (was this for Graves / or other reason eg hot nodules ?)
your first ever post says the problem with these cycles of diarrhoea/ anxiety started around now ? (after you had hyperthyroidism /started carbimazole ?).. so i think these cycles of anxiety / diarrhoea are unlikely to be related to loosing levo when having diarrhoea now .
"Dec 2020 had Radioactive Iodine (for the first time), and they left me on 10mg of Carbizamole, they are now saying this should have stopped when I had the iodine treatment over a year ago".
"My calcium levels are raised and my vitamin D levels are low. I was told by a consultant surgeon in February2022 that I needed my parathyroids removing and this should have been spotted 18 months ago."
Breathing problems.
Aug 2022 ...you had total thyroidectomy and all 4 parathyroids removed privately , ( ? NHS said they wanted to do further tests before deciding if op was needed)
surgeon found thyroid had been affecting breathing, and all 4 parathyroids had to be removed too.
Felt ok for 8/9 weeks following surgery . ( no diarrhoea)
Started on 100mcg Levo. (later adjusted to 150mcg , then 125mcg)
TSH 1.34 (on 125mcg levo)
Calcium 2.36
Vitamin D 0.59
Biopsy found cancer in removed thyroid, so
RAI again in 2023
pre RAI ... 25/1/23 TSH 11.5 T4 1.6
"I’ve had bloods taken 24/2/23 but had injections two days prior to encourage any remaining thyroid cells to become active so that radioactivity iodine medication taken after the bloods can zap any stray cancer cells".
TSH 150 T4 1.5 T3 4.5 ( TSH is high due to Thyrogen injections given to raise TSH before giving RAI.. (Thyrogen is basically synthetic TSH .. so the very high level of 150 is measuring the synthetic TSH from the injection ~ it should be ignored )
on an earlier post you said GP had agreed they would keep an eye on calcium levels as requested by surgeon (as apparently you now have no remaining parathyroid glands at all).
What dose of Levo are you taking now Cbreeze , and what were your latest blood tests results ?
I used to have a similar issue and I’ve since put it down to absorption issues. Since I started T3 and feeling much better in myself I haven’t had as many or any issues at all. The cycle previously was every few weeks I’d have a few days of diarrhoea followed by being fine again. Very odd
Are you aware that Metformin could be the cause of your diarrhea? That is one of the many side effects of the drug. It can also cause anemia, as experienced by my husband. And as for the TSH test, there seems to be a growing consensus among many of us who have thyroid problems that the T3 and T4 tests provide a better result. In your case both tests may give you a better idea of what is going on with your thyroid.
Sorry to hear this.I was diagnosed with sibo and leaky gut. The cure took a few years of dedication and will power. Herbals and diet & low fodmap diet for months, then the at home breath test. Still positive, the special antibiotic, 2 weeks off with just the low fodmap diet. Then back on herbals & diet for a few months. After 2 years I began slowly introducing foods with success. I stay mostly with the diet and have treats occasionally. My doc says few get it right the first time through. She said it is a precursor of crohns and IBS. The app from Monash University made grocery shopping less challenging. If you have a sprouts store, their bone broth is pure as is some of their other products. Mail order; Fody products help with making cooking easier and more normal.
Making kubacha, yogurt, and fermented veggies at home insure the prebiotic have not been destroyed before getting to you. These things truly help with depression and anxiety, as does walking and exercising.
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