hypothyroidism and weight loss
jk051861
Posts: 41 Member
Even though I have a long history of diet and exercise, I have gained 25 pounds over the last 2 years. Finally, this morning, my doctor told me I have hypothyroidism. I'd like to make a friend or 2 with this same issue to share information and keep me motivated.
0
Replies
-
Hello! My name is Rebecca. I was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism at the age of 8. I have lived with it for the past 15 years. If you aren't on top of taking your medication and watching what you are eating it will be difficult to drop the weight. Growing up with it for most of my life I have learned a thing or two. Will power has been my biggest struggle. If you are dedicated, you CAN do it! I'm not one for "diets" but the Paleo Lifestyle works the best for hypothyroidism. Good luck and best wishes!0
-
Here's my brief history: I was 36, in excellent physical condition, working an active job and hiking every weekend, but I was gaining weight. Every month, I was a couple pounds heavier, even though I was eating less. I was tired all the time and my hair was brittle and breaking. My doctor finally took my complaints seriously, and did blood tests to figure out what was going on. It took about 8 months of playing with dosages, starting low and going higher, to find the right dosage to get my levels to optimum, so lesson 1: Don't panic if the meds don't work right away. It takes a couple of weeks to see a difference in your metabolism.
This doctor also put me on a special 'thyroid diet'- 1000 calories a day, specific foods at different times. This 'thyroid diet' has since been scientifically debunked. Fortunately for me, one of the major components was soy milk, which I can't digest, so I didn't stay on it long. Interesting to note, though, that early in this process, I was still GAINING weight on 1000 calories a day of mostly "thyroid busting superfoods". (I will never eat another brazil nut again. Thank you.) I wasn't able to lose weight until my medications were working and my metabolism stabilized.
Flash forward five years, and I'd been feeling really good, but suddenly the tireds and the hungries started again. Back to the doctor and find out that even just taking my allergy pill at the same time as my levo was messing up how the levo absorbs, so lesson 2: take your thyroid meds first thing in the morning, on an empty stomach, and without taking anything else, even vitamin supplements, for at least an hour. (I take my thyroid med when I get up to feed the cats and then go back to sleep for a bit.)
Lesson 3: Most of the "try this diet to boost your thyroid!" stories are absolute bunk. The people saying they are thyroid med free after eating this or that superfood/thyroid buster/special diet? Are going to be back on their meds within a year. Don't waste a lot of time (and perfectly good calories) with trying to 'fix your thyroid with these natural foods!'. Just eat a healthy, well balanced diet, and keep your calorie intake somewhere between your BMR and TDEE and you'll lose weight once your metabolism is balanced again.
0 -
I too have it, just found out actually. I struggle daily with food and also just getting motivated to move!!! Idk if its because I'm just so fat and tired that its holding me back! I wish there were a pill to make you exercise lol0
-
Jess, once your meds are working, you'll feel a real difference in your energy levels. At least for now, just try to get out and walk twenty minutes a day. 0
-
I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism when pregnant with baby #2 - she is now 27 years old. Once you are on the right level of medication, you will be fine. It should not affect your sincere efforts to lose weight. My only caveat is that you must get your levels tested every so often to make sure the meds you are taking remain at the correct/effective doseage.0
-
My blood work in August of this year showed elevated TSH and once I was finally able to get into the doctor in October I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and put on 50 mcg of Levothyroxizine. At my 6 week lab work my TSH was in the normal range. I must say that since I was also overeating when I started watching my calories and hitting the gym every day I was loosing weight even before my TSH was normal. I am down 34 lbs since August 30th. What has worked for me is wearing a Fitbit, setting Fitbit and MFP to 1 inch shorter than my real height and not eating back too many exercise calories.0
-
My thanks to all of you for the encouragement and suggestions.0
-
I have an underactive thyroid (for about 15 years). I never thought much of it as my mother had one too, I thought it was hereditary. It turns out, I did it to myself with years of self abuse through a diet of high calorie, high fat and high sugar products. The hormones in your thyroid work together with estrogen and progesterone hormones. My estrogen was too high (it likes sugar), my progesterone was too low. That causes weight gain and a whole bunch of other fun issues (especially as women hit their late 30s and early 40s). The high fat and sugar diet also caused my liver to overwork, I needed my gall bladder removed, I had digestive issues.
I am on medication for the thyroid but it did not make the weight come back off as easy as it went on. There are so many hormones and levels in your thyroid and most doctors only test T3 and maybe T4.
And I've still managed to lose 75lbs. It can be done! I've walked, I've ridden my bike and I counted calories. That's it. I've recently been working with food combinations (I noticed I did better with a high protein breakfast and a high carb dinner which made me wonder what else my body would like with food combos). Now, my doc has my on low carbs, which also seems to be working well in combination with my metabolic issues.
You CAN do this! The thyroid is just one more hurdle in your way but you still can lose weight.0 -
There are lots of us on here with hypothyroidism. I was diagnosed 14 years ago. It may take a while to get your levels where they need to be. Hopefully, you are seeing an endocrinologist. Your TSH may been to be lower than most labs call "normal" for you to feel your best. It may take months of testing and adjusting to reach the right dose for you.
Once you are corrected your energy and metabolism will improve and then it is all up to you and your determination.
p.s. There was soy mentioned earlier, be sure to separate soy from your med ingestion as it will interfere with absorption. Read as much as you can!0 -
I too have hypothyroidism. Even though my meds are correct I still gain weight quickly and lose slowly. I'm set for 1lb per week, can be under or bang on every day and still only lose 1/2 lb. I'm getting closer to goal so for me a loss is a loss!0
-
Hi, I understand your struggle. I was diagnosed with hypothyrodism at 17. I am 26 now. Here's a little background info:
I am pretty short (4"11') and when I was 17 I used to weigh 90 pounds. However, in about three months, I went from 90 to 132 without really changing any eating habits/exercise routine. My mother also has hypothyrodism, therefore she knew the symptoms and recognized that the sudden weight gain as well as other symptoms were possibly signs of thyroid issues. I went to the endocrinologist and, sure enough, I was hypothyroid. I started the treatment with levothyroxine. I believe it was a low dose, definitely not higher that 50mg. I took that for years, and during those years I kept gaining weight. My highest was about 150. It was truly frustrating. It wasn't until about 3 years ago that I found an excellent endocrinologist who upped my dose of levothyroxine to 125mg. That change in dosage made all the difference in the world. I do not have any clinical symptoms anymore. And, I am happy to say, that I am really close to my goal weight of 100 pounds.
I thought that losing weight was pretty much impossible with hypothyrodism, but I was so wrong. As soon as I was on the right dosage and started counting calories the weight started to decrease. It is definitely not easy and it is slower than usual, but it can be done. So don't lose hope.
If you have been given the medication you need at the correct dosage you can lose weight with CICO.
As others have said, please check your levels every 6 months or so. And if you still have symptoms, even if your labs look fine, then you need to go back to your endocrinologist and let him/her know. I know that some endocrinologists only look at the labs and do not focus on the symptoms and that is just a pity really. You need to find a good endocrinologist who looks at the whole picture.
Also, some people need to use both a T4 med, like levothyroxine, and T3 med, like cytomel. So have your T3 levels checked as well.
If you want some support feel free to add me. And good luck, you are not alone 0 -
Hi all, I too have an underactive thyroid, since I was 15 (am now 28). I am on 175 mcg of thyroxine. I have a fair bit of weight to lose and do struggle. I am also REALLY short (5 ft 1)! It is really interesting that you American mfp-ers (I presume most of you are from the US) are talking about having your thyroxine an hour before eating or drinking ANYTHING. This has just become a new "thing" in the UK! When collecting my prescription last week the pharmacist mentioned it as "new guidelines". Well, it would have been nice if my doctor had told me about this...or basically anyone in the last 13 years I have been on it! I haven't managed to do this so far as I crave my caffeine and have had to get up super early recently for work but I am determined to try this and see if it has an effect. Interestingly though the last blood test I had done showed me to be slightly overactive...surely this should make me lose weight quicker?! Who knows? I don't think my levels have been stable the whole time I have been on thyroxine!
0 -
For the uk hypothyroid people, another new thing I found from my last gp check was that the 'normal range' for tsh now being used in England and Wales is 0.4 - 5.5. They also won't automatically call you in to up your thyroxine dose unless the tsh level is above 10 (although I've found they will up it if you go in to complain of being symptomatic).0
-
Hi. I did for a while. Unfortunately, I believe that the calories were not low enough to allow me to lose weight. But, I didn't want to potentially risk my health even further and go too low. Especially, since I did not know what was going on with my body at the time. My metabolism was not the same it was before I was hypothyroid. At the low dosage I was still having all the clinical symptoms of hypothyroidism. And as I said in my post, due to that, I believed for the longest time it wasn't possible to lose weight with hypothyroidism. I was certainly and fortunately wrong.0 -
For the uk hypothyroid people, another new thing I found from my last gp check was that the 'normal range' for tsh now being used in England and Wales is 0.4 - 5.5. They also won't automatically call you in to up your thyroxine dose unless the tsh level is above 10 (although I've found they will up it if you go in to complain of being symptomatic).
That is interesting how countries differ. I am in the U.S. and was put on medication with a TSH of 4.90. After 6 weeks the TSH went down to 0.70 so I'm still on the 50 mcg dosage.0 -
Thanks friends. I'm 54, TSH of 6.5. Having all of the symptoms, actually for over a year. My gyno told me it was menopause coming on causing the symptoms even though my TSH was slightly high. This year I told my GP about it. The TSH is higher, the weight is higher, the hair loss is evident. She had no problem starting me on a regimen. I go back for lab tests in 6 weeks, but I truly hope to start feeling better much sooner. I'm so tired of being tired.0
-
For the uk hypothyroid people, another new thing I found from my last gp check was that the 'normal range' for tsh now being used in England and Wales is 0.4 - 5.5. They also won't automatically call you in to up your thyroxine dose unless the tsh level is above 10 (although I've found they will up it if you go in to complain of being symptomatic).
Yea, terrible. And they don't test for fT3 either, which is needed to see if the medication is turned from T4 to T3 and hence is able to work at all. My home country generally assumes a TSH of about 2.5 as normal, but here in the UK it's a real struggle. My GP even ignored the antibodies in the blood test, which really point towards hashimoto. But no, I'm only slightly hypothyroid with an initial TSH of 9.x
Unfortunately, I'm in a very rural area and cannot simply go to another GP, or go to one of the specialists listed at patient websites as there's nothing else here. Thus not sure what to do.
0 -
tiffkittyw wrote: »For the uk hypothyroid people, another new thing I found from my last gp check was that the 'normal range' for tsh now being used in England and Wales is 0.4 - 5.5. They also won't automatically call you in to up your thyroxine dose unless the tsh level is above 10 (although I've found they will up it if you go in to complain of being symptomatic).
That is interesting how countries differ. I am in the U.S. and was put on medication with a TSH of 4.90. After 6 weeks the TSH went down to 0.70 so I'm still on the 50 mcg dosage.
Thank you all for this thread. Definitely interesting. My endo considers me hypo when my TSH is at 2.5 or higher (she tests for a bunch of other stuff too free and reverse T3, T4, vitamin D, etc.). I don't have a thyroid but currently my levels are hypo. When my TSH was at .4 - I felt amazing and was losing weight. In a matter of 6 weeks, my TSH jumped to 4.3. Now gaining weight and a bunch of other aggravating hypo symptoms. My armour dosage has been increased from 90 mg/day to 120 mg/day. Next blood test is in 4 weeks. Praying these next 4 weeks get better! 0 -
I've been told I have Hashimotos for over 20 years. My doc tests 1x a year and my level of meds hasn't changed in over 10 years even though I say that I struggle to lose weight and feel tired quite often. He goes by the guidelines and since I fall within the range I'm supposed to be good. So I continue on fighting for every pound I can take off. Good luck to you!0
-
Thanks friends. I'm 54, TSH of 6.5. Having all of the symptoms, actually for over a year. My gyno told me it was menopause coming on causing the symptoms even though my TSH was slightly high. This year I told my GP about it. The TSH is higher, the weight is higher, the hair loss is evident. She had no problem starting me on a regimen. I go back for lab tests in 6 weeks, but I truly hope to start feeling better much sooner. I'm so tired of being tired.
I went through the same thing -- everything blamed on menopause until my TSH came back at 7.68. I started feeling better within a week or two of starting medication. The brain fog was the first thing to improve. It took about six weeks for me to be able to start losing weight. Within two/three months of starting medication I felt like the calendar had been rolled back 10 or 15 years. It was like levothyroxine was my fountain of youth.
0 -
Agree with what everyone is sharing.... it can be extremely frustrating trying to figure out the right dosage and the right regime for you to feel better. It took probably 2 years of this, that and the other before being diagnosed with hypothyroid/Hashimoto. My 104 year old grandmother had her thyroid out many years ago, my 83 year old mother is hypothyroid, (walks 6 miles a day & plays 18 everyday); my sister (60) is hypo/Hashi...well, you can see genetics play a major role. However, that is the good news also. If my 104 year old grandma is doing so well - lives by herself, but did give up driving last year at 103, then there is hope for all! I have lost and maintained 70# - but that took much research and trial and error to find what works and makes me feel better. Walking/jogging a little, I have cut out and don't miss anymore, anything made from wheat (yep, gluten), watch sugar very carefully. It may not work for everyone - but, I actually can stay awake all day at work (yay!), do 5-6 miles a day with my dogs when I get home and sleep much better.
Moral to this story -- Hang in there! Find the right medication level, right combination of foods that make you feel good, and even when you don't want to, at least go for a walk. You will be happily surprised when in a month or two you actually Feel like doing these things. Oh yes, and of course, like so many have said - take that thyroid medication upon rising in the morning before anything else. I walk into the bathroom, pop that pill with a nice glass of water and then start my day.0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393.4K Introduce Yourself
- 43.8K Getting Started
- 260.2K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.9K Food and Nutrition
- 47.4K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 427 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.7K MyFitnessPal Information
- 24 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.6K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions