THYROID ISSUES PART II

[godsgift]

do you take meds before your lab tests?

[kurdapya]

wow i didnt even know this thread exists

Ako naman since i was kid ang dami nakakapansin malaki yun leeg ko. I never ate seafood. Squid lang. so nag pacheck ako.. negative result sa goiter and thyroidsm, t3, t4, negative.. but last time i had my medical check up 5 months ago.. mag pa check daw ulit ako coz it's not enough to find out if i have thyroid problem from t3 and t4.

ano ano pa ba mga test dapat ko kunin to know if i have thyroid problem? kasi I couldnt gain weight no matter what i eat.. malaki yun bukol sa leeg ko . halata kahit sa mga photos.

[ms.rain]

^^yes. hindi naman kelangan ng 'fasting' para sa thyroid exam so i guess pwede mag-take ng meds.

[eissej]

yep tama po si ms. rain okay lang magtake ng meds...

sis kurdapya may friend din ako na ganyan ang case sau, kapansin pansin talaga yung leeg niya na malaki kaya sinama ko siya sa endo ko..sabi ng endo negative siya sa goiter at mukhang wala rin siya prob sa thyroid niya pero para daw sure pa ultrasound siya. ang reason daw kaya malaki ang neck niya dahil lang daw sa muscles yun usually nagkakaroon  nun dahil kung nagbubuhat ng mabibigat.. ako sis kaya ko nalaman na baka may hyperthyroidism ako kase dahil sa signs and symptoms.magbasa ka sis about sa mga thyroid problems baka makatulong sau..

mga sis na nagtatake ng TAPDIN, nakaexperience ba kayo ng parang nagka allergy kayo? kase ako mag 2 months pa lang nagtatake pero minsan may missed doses ako tapos ngayon dame lumalaba na mga butlig tapos pagkinamot nagiging pula siya. ibig kaya sabihin nun allergic ako sa gamot? shocks!! pagnagkataon wala na ako ibang option kungdi radiation or surgery...

[godsgift]

^^yes. hindi naman kelangan ng 'fasting' para sa thyroid exam so i guess pwede mag-take ng meds.

medyo nalito lang ako sis, kase naisip ko if we take meds before the test hindi kaya parang regulated na yung result bec of the meds?

[eissej]

pero sis dba po kaya nga tayo nagpapa laboratory para malaman lang kung may changes yung lab results naten, if may effect yung meds na tinatake naten. so i think kahit uminom man tayo ng meds,few hours before our labtest i think hindi naman na po siya makaka affect agad sa lab results...

[prettymom]

it is really very helpful for us to form a support group.
btw, i was also diagnosed of hypothyroidism about 2-4 months after giving birth with my youngest. i used to take eltroxin 100mcg for almost a year, when i ran out of stock and went to the drugstore, they only have the 5omcg, so i started taking 2 pills to make up for the dosage, eventually i forgot i have to take 2, all along i was taking 1(50mcg) i only realized that after i finished 1 bottle(100pcs) and saw the difference in size with the 100mcg, i tried taking the higher dose which was supposed to be my dosage but i experience palpitation, so i went back to 50mcg and eventually evertyhing went back to normal. one doctor advice me to stop taking the medication since i have been tested normal with ft3/ft4 already. now i am not taking anyting, so far i havent had any palpitation so far. do you think i still need to take a maintenance mga sis? has any of you had experiencednot taking medications already?
TIA

[Head_Coach]

it is really very helpful for us to form a support group.
btw, i was also diagnosed of hypothyroidism about 2-4 months after giving birth with my youngest. i used to take eltroxin 100mcg for almost a year, when i ran out of stock and went to the drugstore, they only have the 5omcg, so i started taking 2 pills to make up for the dosage, eventually i forgot i have to take 2, all along i was taking 1(50mcg) i only realized that after i finished 1 bottle(100pcs) and saw the difference in size with the 100mcg, i tried taking the higher dose which was supposed to be my dosage but i experience palpitation, so i went back to 50mcg and eventually evertyhing went back to normal. one doctor advice me to stop taking the medication since i have been tested normal with ft3/ft4 already. now i am not taking anyting, so far i havent had any palpitation so far. do you think i still need to take a maintenance mga sis? has any of you had experiencednot taking medications already?
TIA

What were your latest blood test results?  Often you may have a high TSH level but relatively low T3 levels.  I've discussed this with many endos and they will admit the same conclusion that I have in that a high TSH level yet low T3 levels means that your brain is telling your thyroid to produce T3, but the gland is "not listening".  Also blood tests are unreliable.  The problem is that most endos (especially the older ones) become lazy over the years and spend most of the time diagnosing test results instead of the patient themselves.  This may seem silly but the best advice I can give you is to see a young endo, preferrably one under 30 who still maintains a strong idealistic streak to treat the patient/symptoms rather than the test results.  Do you have a body temperature of 35C or lower in the morning?  Do you have a daytime temperature of 36 or below?  Do you experience fatigue even if you sleep well?  Is your hair thin and brittle?  Dry skin?  Slow weight loss even if you control your calories and go to the gym regularly?  These are many symptoms of hypothroidism that blood tests don't show...and approximately 10% of the population is hypothyroid and doesn't even know it.

Research as much as you can online, and don't trust blood tests.  If you don't feel "right", then something is probably wrong.

[prettymom]

^ hey sis. thanks for the info.
btw, i feel ok. i usually have my blood test every 6 months, the last time, i think around 3 months interval. i was really thinking of having another test and check with a younger endo as you suggest...any reccos?
 

[Juricks]

During my pre-employment check-up last April 2006, na-diagnose ako na may hypothyroidism.

Ang weird kasi napansin lang ng doctor na medyo malaki daw yung leeg ko.  Tapos she referred me to an endocrinologist.  I took the FT4 and the other test (I forgot na)  normal naman both yung results.  Pero my endo still prescribed synthetic hormones to me.  Kailangan ko daw yun itake for the rest of my life.  Kaso tinigil ko kasi di ako comfortable na may iniinom araw-araw tsaka katwiran ko, mahilig naman ako sa seafoods.  Ewan ko ba.  Besides, natakot din ako kasi mejo negative yung dating sa akin ng synthetic hormones.

Now, d ko p din nire-resume yung pag-take non.  But I noticed na naglalagas yung hair ko.  May kinalaman ba talaga to?

[Cristal]

sis, when you're hypothyroid, your metabolism is slow. Your brain sends signals to your whole body that something is wrong. Because of this, the body tries to protect the important organs like the heart, liver, kidneys etc...so it lets go of the not so important parts like hair, nails and skin. that is why you'll notice your skin is dry...your nails are brittle and you hair is dry and falling out. that is why you need to take your hormones (t4 or t3) so that the brain will send signals to the whole body that everything is ok. the synthetic hormones mimick the thyroid hormones that you lack. I've been taking thyroid medications since i was 13. It's part of my life now...like vitamins. Good luck to all of us.

[chinita05]

^

ganun pala yun... before kala ko may hyperthyroid ako kasi skinny ako mahirap para sakin ang mag dagdag ng weight...

eh since hindi naman dry ang skin at hair ko at hindi din brittle ang nails ko wala pala akong hyperthyroid hehe

[eissej]

mga sis share ko lang check up ko yesterday, sad lang kase i will have my RAI Treatment na by first week of june.. kase nag allergies ako sa Tapdin... so for the meantime i'll be taking Lithium Carbonate before my RAI treatment..nakakapraning lang kase this med is usually given to patient with bipolar disorder as an anti-manic treatment...so i dont have any choice now..sa mga sis na nakapag paRAI share your expeiences especially during the treatment and the hospitalization, medyo anxious po ako, thinking na dapat mag1 lang sa room first 3 days after the treatment..huhu!

[vbhyaknoj]

mga sis, pag meron kang goiter masakit ba lumunok? at tsaka meron ka bang mararamdamang konting sakit pag pinisil mo ang bandang lalamunan mo sa may neck mo? normal lang ba yong parang merong matigas sa may neck mo malapit sa lalamunan? tayo bang mga girls meron din adam's apple?

sorry ha ang dami kong questions, sana may magkapanahon sumagot

Thank you!

[alanis_junkie]

mga sis, pag meron kang goiter masakit ba lumunok? at tsaka meron ka bang mararamdamang konting sakit pag pinisil mo ang bandang lalamunan mo sa may neck mo? normal lang ba yong parang merong matigas sa may neck mo malapit sa lalamunan? tayo bang mga girls meron din adam's apple?

sorry ha ang dami kong questions, sana may magkapanahon sumagot

Thank you!

afaik, meron din tayong adam's apple, maliit lang kaya hindi halata.  anyway..kung may lump ka sa throat, na dati eh wala or medyo nag worry ka, pacheck mo na sa endo..

any recommendations sa younger endo?

[babyseth]

^sis, dun sa last thread, maraming nag recommend kay dr. michael villa, may clinic sya sa st.lukes at medical city.  ilang beses na kong nagtangkang magpacheck up sa kanya, kaya lang "box-office" ang pila sa dami ng patients sa st.lukes at by appointment sa medical city   

[mogly]

hello sainyo after a months ,eto nanaman ako ,, well i have a good news ,, nag pa lab ako ng may 6 at binasa ng endo ko ang lab result ko wahhhhhhhhhh normal na ulit,, inalis na sa akin ang pred (STEROID) kaya eto nakakawla na ng ganang kumain ,, at nag xenical narin ko ,,, hindi ba un bad for me , pero un recommend ng doctor sa akin ,,, XENICAL ,dahil sobrang laki ng tinaba ,, i taken xenical today ,,,

[baby_lj]

If you have goiter, whether it be hyper or hypo, it means kulang ka sa iodine. You can find iodine in seafoods. I've had hyperthyroidism since 2002, I was only 18 then. I actually gained weight, my heart rate reached 100bpm, & TSH, FT4, FT3 were very high. My hands were always shaking. My Endo, never told me I had to get it removed. It was out of the question for her. Kasi kaya naman daw magamot eh. So she gave me meds. Takot lang mom ko, coz the thyroid affects the reproductive system. Afraid sya na baka hindi ako mabuntis. Now I'm 25, & expecting my first baby. We're just monitoring the thyroid now, coz it may come back & can affect the pregnancy. I'm on my 31st week. Every 2months I have to do TSH & FT4, but so far so good. Normal lagi results ko. 

My aunt (thru marriage) has hypothyroidism naman. We have the same endo. Hindi rin tinanggal yung sa kanya. Puro gamot lang din. Ok din sya ngayon. Bumabalik lang sya if she's having symptoms again.

[Lexxi]

Im a newbie here. Glad my site about thyroid. Been hypothyroid for years. Need a good endo, St. Lukes or Med. City, any recommendations? Thanks!!

[Cristal]

I totally dont recommend RAI. Im in my 30s na. I had my RAI nung 17 ako. Ilang years din na nag normal ang TSH ko. But after 10 years, lumabas na yung HYPO thyroid ko. Which is WORSE than hyper. i hate the symptoms of hypo. If i knew better at 17 years old, i wouldnt have taken RAI. I would have opted for the surgery. With RAI, it kills all your thyroid gland. Hindi sya titigil until mapatay nya yung gland. Unlike sa surgery, it only takes away a portion of it. so you still have a thyroid hormones. Can you imagine how life is without thyroid hormones? its the worse! from my personal experience, i had depression, brain fog, hair loss, weight gain, no energy, no motivation, insomniac. Im battling with it for years na. i go to the states pa to see my doctor who prescribes t3. Thyrax and eltroxin dont work for me. my body doesnt accept t4 alone. i still have my ups and downs with my medications kasi iba pa rin if you still have thyroid hormones. please do your research. be proactive. wag lang basta sinabi ng doctor mo. if i was just diligent on taking my tapazole when i was a kid, hindi na siguro ako nagRAI. i didnt tell my doctor na im lazy taking my medications eh. i was 13 when i was diagnosed. and at 13 i didnt really care kasi gusto ko lang maglaro or something.  and also, di ka pwede mag anak ng mga 5 years ata eh when you take the RAI.