Under active thyroid & losing weight.

rachsimpson1

I am 35, currently on 300mg levothyroxine daily with bloods still coming back as hypo. Until now I have never weighed more than 10.5 stone & that was full term pregnant. I maintained on 50mg for years & usually weigh around 8 stone but the past few yrs my thyroid just doesn't want to work no matter what dose they put me on. I went up to 12.4 stone which put me over weight (I am 5ft 7" ). For months on end I have lived on 2 diet shakes & fat free yoghurt daily & have only managed to lose a tiny bit of weight. I can not exercise due to a disease of the spine along with a host of other problems including other auto immune diseases even walking short distances can make me collapse. I was anorexic when younger & almost died from it, I am trying my hardest not to go back to starving completely but I am finding it difficult especially because my husband moans at me saying I look better now but I feel so bad about myself I don't leave the house and if anyone is coming around I stay upstairs because I don't want people to see how fat I am. I feel so bad I don't even let my husband sleep in bed with me anymore it's affecting everything. Any advice on what else I can do to shift some weight? The gp keeps.telling me he doesn't want to put the levothyroxine up again because I am On a high dose already but even if the weight wasn't a problem for me I don't want to feel this ill all the time. Any advice welcome.

staraly

I just had a long reply prepared for you but MFP ate It when I accidentally turned my phone on its side. I don't have time to repeat it or include the research so I'm just going to give you a list of things to look up online. Look for researched info.
Before that though, you have to find ways to get some support. You sound very isolated from the people around you right now and it's really hard to deal with everything you have to by yourself. Talk to your doctor, if you trust them. Can you get referred to someone that would help such as a physio who does water therapy, a dietician who specialises in autoimmune diseases/restarting healthy eating, or a counselor who can help with dealing with illness/anorexic relapse? Which of your friends or family can you talk to? Think of someone who has had to deal with health issues themselves as they get it, or join an online support group.
The list: iron, Vit.D., full hematology, Vits B6 & 12. Small differences have a big effect in autoimmune conditions. Sources of inflammation including soy (in diet shakes? goitrogenic, high lectin), poor Omega 6 to Omega 3 ratio (4:1 is good normally, aim for 1:1 in autoimmune), lectins (increase inflammation in autoimmune) often hidden in dairy & eggs - find out what was fed to the animals that you consume products from as lectins can be passed along in milk and eggs. Choose A2 milk as low in lectin & make your own yoghurt. Choose free range eggs (not organic as still fed organic grains), Change to a nutritional support powder (non soy) until you can eat better. Free T3 levels in mid-range - if low-normal or less, T4 to T3 conversion problems? Look up research on baking soda for reducing autoimmune response (less works best is the rule). Deal with sleep issues (bring on/prolong autoimmune flares). Relaxation therapies.
Sorry for the scatter gun approach, but I hope you find something that helps you.

ccsernica

There's a lot here.

The easiest to talk about is your thyroid. You clearly have something going out outside your GP's area of competence. Try to get in to see a specialist in endocrinology. There might be other problems going on, but that's probably the best place to start since its manifesting as hypothyroidism. (A minor technical note: levothyroxine doses are very small, and are measured in micrograms (mcg or μg), not milligrams (mg).

2 diet shakes and fat free yogurt are not adequate nutrition, and your body image problems are seriously interfering with your relationship and nearly everything else in your life. You very much need professional help to deal with that, to learn to better accept yourself regardless of your weight. You say you were anorexic when you were younger, so you know the warning signs. Don't let yourself fall back into that trap. Please get help.