hmmmm

48801

Before I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism, I was on my way. I exercised, ate the correct amount of fuel. The scale didn't budge, I didn't understand what I was doing wrong, this was a way of life, I was doing what I was suppose to be doing. After the fourth month, I gave in.

I was losing hair, nails wouldn't grow, and do I need to mention to y'all the tiredness......

I went to my to my GP, she did test. Low and behold, we found out.......I will note when I asked how we corrected the problem, "We replace it." So many thoughts were going through my mind, replace.........A donor, what.......As I asked more questions, "I meant we replace it with medication." Thank you very much;-)

At my last blood drawl I was at the correct dosage, of course, I will have to have my blood work done soon.

Now, since I am stable, is is hypothyroidism something I should be concerned about? If I am on the correct dosage, won't I lose weight as any other 51 year old does ;-)

editorgrrl

I lost the weight even before my levels entered the "normal" range—by learning to log everything I eat & drink accurately & honestly. In fact, I kept gaining even on thyroid meds because I was eating more calories than I burned.

Meds reduce the fatigue, so I can be more active. But logging is what helped me lose weight.

lindsey1979

The answer is yes and no -- really depends on the individual. Some are lucky that their form of hypothyroidism responds well to medication, so they get those numbers figured out and they go right back to losing weight like a "normal" person. Unfortunately, for some of us, it's not that straightforward.

So, first, I'd ask what specifically is your typo of hypothyroidism? If it's something that can fluctuate like Hashimoto's or some thing where direct supplementation isn't as effective, it can be more complicated. Also, do you know if your levels of other things associated with or affected by thyroid have been checked -- things like your adrenals (DHEA, cortisol, etc.), insulin/sugar issues for insulin resistance (A1C, fasting glucose, etc.), liver issues (can't remember these off the top of my head), common vitamin/mineral deficiencies (Vitamin D, Iron, Iodine, Magnesium, etc.)? A thyroid specialist will run these sorts of tests in the very beginning, but many docs (even endos) know very little about the thyroid and won't do many of these (even though some are required - like the adrenals - by the Physician's Desk Reference).

If you don't have these other things in line as well, you can experience many/similar symptoms of hypothyroidism or even feel worse when starting on medication. I learned the hard way how important my DHEA levels were recently when I stopped supplementing (totally foolish on my part) and my weight loss totally stopped, despite the EXACT same foods/deficits and exercise regime. I got it back up to where it was suppose to be, and weight started coming off again as expected.

So, it really comes down the individual and looking at the total circumstances, not just thyroid levels. I also second what editorgrrl says about logging/weighing everything so you have certainty about exactly what you're eating. If you're not doing that yet, definitely start. That could the be the source of error in itself. If you are already doing that, then it may be important to look into other things in conjunction with your thyroid.