So for many months now I had problems with being able to take deep breathes without feeling like I’m restricted. I can no longer do exercise as I just feel tight in the throat and chest. I’ve suffered with anxiety for years. Is there a link between breathing problems and thyroid. I’ve been to my gp and I’ve had a heart monitor, lung function and a chest X-ray which are all normal but can’t tell me why I’m struggling so much. Either now I feel slight tightness in my chest and feel like I can’t take deep breathes. I’ve also been getting pain in the front of my neck more so on the left side but I’ve also had a thyroid ultrasound and a camera down my throat and still no answers. This is ruining my life and I just want to get to the bottom of it so I can improve it. Is there another cause for this or has anyone experienced this and can enlighten me what might be going on. I really want to get my life back and go back to the gym and start running again. TIA
Link between breathing problems and hashimotos/... - Thyroid UK
Link between breathing problems and hashimotos/hypothyroidism
Do you have a copy of your latest thyroid results to include FT3 that you can share with us?
How are your vitamin levels looking and what are you supplementing with?
I don’t have any up to date results unfortunately I may have to pay to get them re tested. As I’ve started taking supplements since my last test results. I’m currently taking megamag calmeze which has 200mg magnesium, 1800mg Glycine, 500mg L-glutamine, 100mg L-theanine, 2000mg L-taurine, 25mg B1, 20mg B2, 20mg B3, 20mg B5, 25mg B6, 500mg Vit C. Also take cymbiotika B12 and B6 but only 3 sprays which would be 0.25mg B6, 400mcg Folate, 250mcg of B12 and 25mcg fulvic acid, then I take cymbiotika D3+K2+CoQ10, 3 sprays so that would be 1000IU D3, 30mg Vit K2 MK-7, 125mcg Vit K2 MK-4 and 5mg CoQ10. Sorry a lot of supplements and I’m currently taking 87.5mcg of levothyroxine.
Whats your approximate weight in kilos? 87.5mcgs Levo is a relatively lowish dose unless you are petite.
Suggest you get a full thyroid panel - TSH, FT4 & FT3 plus ferritin, folate, B12 & D3 tested. Start a new post when you have the results.
What’s your most recent ferritin and iron test results
Low ferritin is frequently linked to breathlessness
My Ferritin is normally pretty good it’s my folate that can be on the low side of normal but I’m taking supplements now. I also keep getting hot flashes the last 3 weeks and when I feel the slightest bit cold I can actually shiver uncontrollably. I had surgery on Monday and when I came around I was shaking and I’ve never done that after general anaesthetic before.
Anaesthetic can dramatically reduce B12
Do you normally take daily vitamin B complex
With Active B12 below 70 recommended to be taking daily B12 too
My test was in February so it wouldn’t take into account having anaesthetic on Monday.
It did use to take B complex but switched to the ones I mentioned because I thought they better than ones with bulking agents etc. I take B12 daily.
That’s no longer the case SlowDragon according to my anaesthetist OH 
My last Ferritin was 141ug/L range being 30-150, folate was 10.4nmol/L range 10-not sure what the high point is. My B12 dropped from 150 to 66.4 range 37.5-188. So something strange going on there. Although I did go vegetarian for 2 weeks.
When did you last check your Vit D level as 1000iu is a small dose?
grassrootshealth.net/projec...
Do you take the megamag daily as it has 25mg of B6 which is a bit OTT, I see they put a warning on the bottle
Last checked Vit D before I started supplements but last one was 66.7nmol/L range 50-250 so that was low normal.
I don’t take it everyday as I forget and I do worry about the B6 but it was recommended by a colon hydrotherapist.
Looks like Vit D is your issue then as that is horribly low, check out the GrassRoots link above as you are looking to get it to 100-150
Ah ok says I should be taking 3000IU.
You'd need to take a loading dose to kick start things
3000iu would be a maintenance dose and you need to boost it up first
How long would you do a loading dose for?
Think it suggests 3-4 days at 25000iu doesn't it?
I didn’t go down that far that’s a lot at 25000IU.
Some people just take 50,000iu per week in one go rather than daily
Surely that can’t be good taking that much.
It's important to get enough, it is fat soluble so the body can store it making weekly rather than daily an option but there is no issue taking 10,000iu a day... toxicity level is more like 200,000 to 300,000 per day.
For me I find 4000iu daily is my maintenance dose which holds me around 145, I weigh 70kgs
About 14 years ago a Rheumatologist prescribed 50,000 IU once a week dosing to bring my levels up from 20. He wrote Rx for D2 for pharmacy, not D3. Once my levels reached 50, I switched to D3. I have to take 10k-15k per day to just to keep my levels from dropping below 50. I get tested every 6 mos.
Does it need prescription?
No, just over the counter, I like the sublingual with K2 MK7 as easy to adjust dose, well absorbed and one less pill!
I currently take the 4000iu and indeed it does little for me just maintanance and am stil very low. Only once, over 10 years ago, when It was first diagnosed that I had severly low vit d, I got a prescription for weekly high dose and it went up to (130 from 18). Since than, I kept asking for a prescription and I was not given one despite me being chronically low and taking 4000iu a day. I will try the one with K2. Thank you
A few days of a loading dose should hopefully do the trick, I know Dr Sarah Jarvis is often on the BBC and takes 10,000iu per day as she avoids the sun due to her very pale skin
Have you looked into silent reflux? I had something similar, thought I had allergic reactions to random things. All wheezy and needing ventolin. Had ultrasound , had MRI. I initially totally disbelieved the Ear Nose and Throat specialist who put a camera down my throat and showed my frazzled larynx.
It’s common with hypothyroidism (so common he says it’s the most widely discussed issue at ENT conferences worldwide now). Used to be treated with antacids and PPIs but now they realise it’s the reverse…. More stomach acid needed. Try betaine with pepsin for main meals, it’s brilliant, also apple cider vinegar (with mother) in or one something most meals. Oh and when I discussed T3 with him he agreed T3 was important for gastric health. Occasionally rich food gives it me again…I just pop a betaine with pepsin 🌱
That’s really interesting more instead of less acid. Would Apple cider vinegar help enough rather than taking the betaine?
It’s been discussed a lot here, different things work for different people. I do both, ACV in my morning smoothie and salad dressings plus betaine with Pepsin with evening meal if I feel I need it. 🌱
I am sure I recognise what you are talking about re: breathing and not being able to breathe deeply enough. It’s not exactly having breathing difficulties it’s more a muscular issue. It is about the body, having hypothyroidism and too low levels of medication. I describe it as awareness of this natural process, normally unnoticed when working well and now it just does not quite do it anymore. It’s not a dreadful symptom but it no longer allows the body to work with complete ease - certainly not enough to allow walking/running the way it used to. I would say low T3. Check your levels by fully testing.
That’s actually quite a good description. Sometimes I’ve actually felt like I was suffocating at times it’s a very weird symptom. I used to think maybe because I’ve avoided strenuous physical activity for so many months that maybe my body is just deconditioned but then I thought that was ridiculous. Then I thought maybe it’s because I shallow breath all the time because of anxiety because sometimes I feel like I stop breathing and then I take a deep breathe. The tightness on the left side of my throat worries me though even though I’ve had a thyroid scan because it does get uncomfortable when I’ve been really physically active. I’ll definitely get more bloods done though.
Yes Cade83. I thought similar but I discovered it was through attempting to do what I used to do and just could not. My youngest daughter kept pointing it out to me. She thought I was hyperventilating but it was simply effort doing what I wanted to do and thought I should be able to do. I totally forced the issue and it was not worth it. Try to get your meds tested and tweaked. My advice would be don’t force the issue. Us hypos have incredible will to get better and you can make yourself worse using your ‘will’ in that way. I have had rare times when this issue is better, without knowing why. I treasure those times and know that if my thyroid meds were ‘optimal’ I could still be ‘right’. I hope you are nearer optimal than myself.
I would look into increasing your B12 sublingually, as I had these symptoms and am supposed to have B12 injections ,instead I take 6000 whatever the units are of mythylcobalamin sublingually.
I also take T3 as T4 gave me the shakes but never made me well.
But no point supplementing without keeping check on your blood results.
Best wishes ,hope you feel better soon.
This is awful mate. I can't imagine struggling so much and not being able to exercise. It sounds like you are doing everything you can and I'm interested to see how you solve it.
A thought has come to me regarding breathing. I struggled in the past when I took niacin and lugols iodine. I was gasping for breath. I was on a vegan diet. I had been diagnosed with lymphoma 4 monhs before. Luckily it was not because of the lymphoma. I was doing gerson diet. Gradually increasing my raw juices, voffee enemas and upping lugols from 2 drops to 3 drops. That was it. That was the point I went into a&e saying I was struggling to breath. They did x-ray and blood tests. Offered a CT scan but I refused as I only just had one a few months back and didn't want the excess radiation. My d-dimer was mildly high. An x ray showed I had big lungs but otherwise ok.
I spoke with a gerson expert and she said it could be the iodine. I stopped it and over a week it normalised and I was ok again.
Interestingly after that every now and then I'd struggle to breath and later realised too much niacin would do it. We're not talking lots of niacin. It could be 50mg or 500mg. I learnt being an undermethylator from symptoms can mean niacin using up too much methyl. While important to utilise it too much is bad. Whenever this happened I took b12 - 1000mcg methylcobalamin. Within an hr I was ok again. I can't explain the mechanism of action but look into it. It happened several times to me.
Whenever I took folate it didn't do anything but too much b6 and folate gives me brain spark feeling so I don't take them.
Now I'm not vegan and eat plenty of meat. My b12 is ok so rarely take it. I do take niacin probably 1-5 times a month but thats small dose at 100mg.
Conclusion
- look into methylation (whether you are an undermethylator) consider your b vitamin regime. Thats a lot of b6 you are taking. Though its not niacin, glycine can also utilize your methyl. Christ Masterjohn blogs talk a lot about methylation. Basically I'd say take a break from niacin, glycine, tmg and anything else which uses up the methyl.
- I can't speak for the meducation because I am not on it, but lugols iodine had a powerful effect on breathing. So maybe meds are doing this or you need more.
-unrelated. Check you don't have any black mould around house. Dust. Building work. Silicosis from drilling into brick or old sand lime mortar. Or spending time around insulation material like rockwool as it stirs up whenever going into loft. Horrible stuff. It should be banned. Look at supplements you might be taking that could have mould. Note: Nuts contain moulds as do fruits.
Best of luck.
hello Cade all interesting above (as always ) … this also might be helpful link Vik Veer talking about Globus and acid reflux / breathlessness and lump in the throat feeling.
youtu.be/ifU0qQlFRAA?si=9PZ...
Also b12 new Nice Guidelines are out and would recommend B12 injections (oral b12 might not be absorbed if your problem is intrinsic factor/ pernicious anaemia). As b12 is water soluble what you don’t use is excreted. B12 injection every day until symptoms subside is in nice guidelines.
Insufficient levels of vitamin B12 within the body may lead to a range of symptoms, including
Quickened breathing or breathlessness
Headaches
Palpitations
Vision issues
Weakness or fatigue
A sore or reddened tongue, occasionally accompanied by mouth ulcers
Challenges related to memory, comprehension, and decision-making (cognitive alterations)
Numbness
Muscle weakness
Difficulties with coordination and balance
Overview | Vitamin B12 deficiency in over 16s: diagnosis and management | Guidance | NICE
May be worth a look
Happy Easter
have you been assessed for Parkinson’s disease?this can be an early sign in my experience.
😳 at 41 years old. I should hope not.
it's more likely your'e undermedicated, i've suffered with breathlessness all my life-my lungs felt like a pair of baggy old underpants-the elastic had gone ,resolved now I'm taking enough thyroid hormone
OK - there are a number of things I know of that can cause this. Firstly, you mention anxiety; that could trigger it. Someone else has mentioned reflux, another known trigger; silent reflux usually presents with no heartburn but with a cough and or breathing issues. Then, of course, there is asthma (which can come on at any time of life), COPD etc.
Interestingly I’ve been having issues with breathing problems for the past three or four weeks. I happen to be asthmatic - and there’s no doubt there is an asthma element to this (the very wet weather we’ve been having hasn’t helped) - but I’m also under consultant led gastro care for digestive issues. It’s not the first time this has happened to me ( this is the fifth time in twelve years) and reflux type problems are not uncommon in asthma sufferers, but it causes a problem when it comes to knowing how to deal with this; my understanding is that research into the subject has thus far failed to find a link between the two. Currently I’m on maximum dose of my (fairly powerful) preventer inhaler and my resp cons isn’t happy about that. He wants resolution on this and is now communicating with my gastro cons to try to sort it out. He also knows that I’m currently being watched for hypothyroidism after a number of TSH blood test results have come back either outside the reference range or only just inside it. Is there a connection there? Possibly - and personally I don’t think it can be ruled out, but when you’re dealing with multiple conditions finding the cause of a problem is rather like trying to sort out a tangle of different threads.
Have you been checked for asthma, COPD etc? I assume you have been. If not, it might be talking to your GP about it.
Interesting that you too have very low Vit D...
Vit D 59nmol/L
Folate 7.4 ug/L (3.8 -26.8)
Do you notice any improvement when you raise it?
Though I realise you have other things going on, being Hypo and yet to be treated
I’ve been lower than that with Vit D (actually not much higher than 30) and not had breathing issues so at the moment it’s not high on my suspects list🙂. Folate - that’s another matter. That has been checked in the past but whether those tests tied up with previous episodes of this is another matter. I’m in the process of trying to access the numbers from past blood test results.
Yeah I don’t think low vitamin D is the reason for my breathing issues but then I don’t think the B vitamins are either as they are normal just on the low end of normal. I’m a bit worried about Parkinson’s now as Ricebowel just mentioned it. I really wonder whether these bloody vaccines have done damage.
If it’s Parkinson’s I have had it for about forty plus years. I am sure the poster did not mean to cause you anxiety but honestly ……..
Low Vit D is very easy to rectify and essential for good thyroid health and or conversion of T4 though
I tell anyone starting out on this journey to optimise vits and mins first to get a clear picture of function
If I get a bread recipe wrong then the outcome isn't great 🙃
I’m working on the Vit D - and of course we are (I think) now just in the time of year when the sun is high enough to have an impact. But as far as Vit D and my current breathing issues are concerned, there is no evidence to suggest there is a connection. Hopefully the weather will get drier and warmer soon too! There was a plenty of evidence (decades of it) demonstrating that damp and cold can act as a trigger.
I'm hoping it will also help with your thyroid levels as you are caught in nowhere land with just slightly raised TSH 😕
Yup - that’s the really annoying part of it. I know someone who was in that position for years, and he had symptoms and had family history, but the medics wouldn’t do anything until he got beyond a certain level,
I had that trouble really badly before I was diagnosed with Hashimotos. It drove me out of my mind, and made my ribs/chest hurt with the effort to get my lungs filled. After getting on medication, it eased but would come back periodically and drive me just as crazy. Finally I googled it, saw something that suggested it was more "in my head" than physical, and gave me a solution, which I can't entirely remember now (seemed like it involved lying on my left side?) I was a little chagrined that it worked. and for the most part I don't seem to have episodes like that any more; maybe the idea that I was panicking over something I had fabricated somehow embarrassed me? That noted, I've also perfected the art of the lung-filling deep breath. Whatever might be true about my psychological response, I do think I don't breathe quite normally...whether it's thyroid-related or just a bad habit, I don't know, but especially if I'm moving about at all, I apparently find I'm starting to be oxygen starved, so every 5th or 10th (I don't know, pretty frequently,) is kind of a catch, fill, hold, release sort of thing that I can feel expands my lungs. I've done this for so long now it's just normal, and seems to get me by. It also can make me feel a little light-headed, but I've gotten used to that. too. I feel for you, though!
Lying on your left side is often recommended for reflux: it has to do with the way the stomach connects to the oesophagus.
When my thyroid hormones were not optimal, I frequently had air hunger. One day my cat escaped and I had to climb a ladder to get her. After that I was laying on the kitchen floor gasping for air. Just as an example. Since my thyroid meds have been adjusted, that has never happened again. I go to the gym, which is much more demanding than climbing a ladder, and breath just fine. Anxiety was also an issue. It is much better now as well.
What you describe can have more than one cause. It could absolutely be a thyroid issue. I think it would be best to get TSH, freeT4 and free T3 tested. Antibodies TPO and TGab would be good as well. Independent of thyroid hormones autoimmune conditions can also cause a number of issues. It can be a domino effect where one thing leads to the next, such as malabsorption of nutrients which can lead to deficiencies in iron and B12, for example, which leads to physical symptoms. Sometimes it can be a chore to keep on top of all this, but it's well worth it. I hope you can get this figured out.
I have been having this too! Feels like my arteries/veins are going pop and my heart rate goes up.. and my left side goes limp.. 😔 I also have fibromyalgia, CFS, sleep apnea.. and well of course hypothyroidism..
I understand the scary feeling and the frustration with medical exams coming back normal..
it’s beyond frustrating.. I haven’t had those medical exams done but I may just ask my rhematologist..
It’s very frustrating to the point I could collapse in tears. Today my energy has taken a huge drop and I almost feel like my whole body is shaking inside because I just feel so weak. Surgery probably didn’t help Monday but I needed to have it done and out the way.
I understand you so much. And I am so sorry that you are dealing with this (as well). Ya surgery probably heightened it a lot.. as have sensitive system..
sending you {{HUGS}} 🫂🫂
Early in my hypo journey ( so 20 + years ago) I used to get problems/ pain with intercostal muscles which disappeared as I improved thyroid hormone dosing ( including T4/3 combo) plus vits/ minerals. I now have had Long Covid for nearly 4 years and get breathlessness and associated pain, which on trying to explain to various medics I have referred to as ‘ like a stitch’ at bottom of ribs/ diaphragm back and front. Had X-rays, breathing tests ( not had formal results) as well as heart ones…nothing found, although very recent tilt table test shows PoTS type postural changes to HR/BP. So for 3+ years I was trying DIY research and treatments, including bumping up my T3 a tiny 2.5 extra ( not tested FT3 yet as NHS won’t) … pain less, tho still get breathless doing household jobs like sauce making at stove). My point really is I believe low FT3, and possibly FT4, can cause ‘deficit’ around the body and we all seem to be slightly different how it manifests, heart and brain need more, but in my case I think so do organs associated with breathing….it was an early symptom and back again when my body had to cope with disabilitating Long Covid.
Hi, not sure if this helps. I had increasing breathing problems with a goitre that slowly got smaller and the breathing got harder. I had mri and ultrasound - they decided not to do anything until I became so asthmatic that the Dr decided to put me forward again to check throat. The consultant I saw decided to do total thyroidectomy. There they discovered the largest goitre he had ever seen - it had grown under the chest bones and was compressing my lungs. This didn't show up on the screening and what did show were very thin tendrils growing down into large sacs of fluid in my lungs (all connected to Thyroid). I am not an isolated case. I now have a CPAP machine and am fit, exercising and doing well. Hope your situation, whatever is causing it, resolves.
It’s interesting, like sometimes I fell sore and feel like I have a goitre but visually I definitely don’t. I’ve had an ultrasound and she said it was ok albeit my thyroid looking taut and she said probably due to being on thyroxine which didn’t really make any sense to me. If my thyroid is tight or stretched looking surely that would cause symptoms of tightness and soreness in that area. Maybe I need to ask my gp and get another one to see if this has got worse. As I did pay privately for the scan which wasn’t cheap. When you describe the goitre and it growing under the chest bones that’s kinda how it feels to be honest. It’s not great that imaging didn’t show this because how do you get anyone to understand how you feel when nothing shows up on imaging. Like I’m lying down now and I have aching either side just under my collar bones and tight feeling in my neck. Breathing feels restricted and I’m lying on my left to see if that did help but nope. If I lye on my back feels a bit better. It’s all so very frustrating.
Hi TBH what you describe when you lie down sounds like it felt for me. I also had a problem that if I tried to lift my head while running or walking fast (just looking up but moving the head and neck) I'd retch and then cough. This was the sacs moving. The tendrils showed very faintly on the ultrasound apparently but the scans always stopped at the breast bone as it is rare but not unheard of, to grow under and down, so they didn't see the sacs. If your thryoid is tight and unable to expand in throat it can/may spread in other directions, it may be doing what mine did. Saw you had a chest xray but what you're looking for is fluid - does that show with Xray? If you can get an ultrasound scan or mri (unsure which is best) to check that may help - at least to rule it out if it isn't that. I understand the anxiety you may be experiencing as breathing is so important and you want to find out what is causing the difficulties. Are you UK? Have you been checked for Asthma? I do special exercises to increase my breathing capacity and my lung function is good now but this took work - anxiety may be inhibiting your breathing. It is amazing what we can be doing to ourselves without realising.
A chest X-ray would show fluid and I’ve had 2 in about 6 months. I’ve been checked for asthma, I had a FeNO test and a lung function test also and was made to do peak flow for 4 weeks which was better than average. So I really am at a loss what to do next really.
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