HYPOTHYROIDISM

mom12868

I was diagnosed 6 years ago with Hypothyroidism and since taking the med's have been packing on the lbs.. For the past 2 years I have joined a gym (not that I wasn't excersising before) and have been weight training and cardio 3-4 times a week. I keep my calories around the 1200 and if I excersise I will eat those calories also. My issue is I have yet to loose any weight.. I fluctuate 2lbs all the time but have not seen any real weight loss. This is quite depressing for me because I have gained over 40 lbs since being diagnosed. I did not have a weight issue before the meds but can not come off of them now that I started. Every 6 months they have upped my meds because they cannot get my levels to stay where they should be. If someone has gone thru this please let me know I'm so upset that I try and try and cannot seem to loose

JustDoIt1973

I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism in 1997 after having gained 50lbs in 8 months (with going to the gym everyday). They put me on synthroid and I lost 15lbs from that alone. I have gained up and down since (due to stress and laziness) but do take my meds everyday (levoxyl). Maybe the Dr. should double check your meds and dosage? I know with me they checked me every 3 months for a while to get them right. I will say that having hypo does make losing weight difficult even with meds. I feel I have to work twice as hard for any of it to come off. Call your Dr and explain whats going on and see if they cant change the meds and dosage. ((hugs)) I know its terribly frustrating.

RiverWild

I started with Graves' disease and my thyroid was ablated about 5 or 6 years ago now. I gained a total of 40 pounds after the ablation and have never lost more than 10 of it. I too fluctuate. My thyroid medication needs are getting close to stable, I'm still going through minor adjustments. It is frustrating but I think patience is the only answer, unfortunately trying to fix thyroid levels is like trying to steer a barge. The response time is very slow, it takes 2 months for any adjustment to be stable in the blood work. I believe that if I don't get too frustrated and keep at it that I will eventually work it off. I try to keep in mind that because I'm working at it I'm in better shape than I have been in years and I try to keep that as my focus.

stovall73

My heart goes out to everybody with this deffieiciency! I have been struggling for 3-4 years myself. You need to be checked every 3 months until your levels are stable. I have read a lot and experienced a lot with this. I think the most difficult/frustrating thing other than weight gain is the LOW ENERGY! Is there anyone out there who has overcome this? HOW?

CORTNEY5

I was just diagnosed with this 2 months ago so I want in on all this info!

SHBoss1673

Way more than people with healthy glandular function, people with metabolic conditions really should go to a lab (at least) once a year and have their RMR and TDEE checked. Considering that you have a diagnosed condtion, this may be (probably is) covered by most health insurance plans. If not, there are a lot of university programs that are willing to accept people for testing, you can check that out. Otherwise it's a few hundred dollars to have it checked (well worth it IMHO if you have the money to do it), this can let you know what your body really burns in an average day, and thus can allow you to actually plan your nutrition accordingly.

stovall73

I spellend deficiency wrong! Sorry! Stutter fingers!

stovall73

I spelled spell wrong! I give up!

farmgirlh

I was diagnosed in 2002, I would say find a new doctor. The one you have doesn't seem to be taking care of you properly. Also get a full thyroid test run, now they are probably just checking your tsh and you need to have your T4 and T3 checked to make sure it is all working properly. Your TSH levels should be around the 1.0 mark if they aren't then they need to adjust your meds. It took me 18 months to find a doctor who knew what she was talking about. She also helped me figure out how to lose the weight I had gained. I am always here if you need anything else. Good luck!!

mom12868

I do go every 3 months and they keep increasing my dosage. Yes I'm so tired I could take a nap right now and its 9am... after I slept 8 straight hours. I also got these lovely (sarcasim) things on my arms called Granuloma Annulairs that look like ring worm but are caused by the Thyroid... so not only do I look like crap because of the weight but people think I have a skin disease. My husband is great and said if I wanted Lypo he'd pay but I've told him they could suck it out but it would come right back because my thyroid is out of control. I do feel better because I'm at the gym and I've told my doctor how depressed this is and she just keeps saying give it time... Thanks for all the feed back I just wish I could put a sign on me that says I don't eat unhealthy its my Thyroid so people would stop looking at me like I'm a lazy blob.

mom12868

What is RMR and TDEE?

mzenzer

I was diagnosed under two years ago after years of that fatigue feeling. I did gain weight but could lose here and there if I ate right and exercised. Dr.'s could not figure out what was wrong with me, because I was just under what you would call clinical hypothyroid. Basically, their testing methods are dated and they blamed my fatigue on everything else except what it was. I opted for a natural solution called GTA from Doctor's Nutrition. Problem is, besides being more expensive, is you can only get it from a Doctor, Holistic or otherwise. It's not prescription it's just the company doesn't deal directly with the public. It's made of dessicated pig thyroid. This is what has been used to treat hypothyroid since the late 1800's. Synthroid was developed in the 50s and hasn't changed, and it only addresses T4. Research now shows that all other T levels, especially T3, are important. For an option besides GTA and synthroid, you can try armour thyroid. It is a prescription, but addresses all T levels.

This book helped me a lot. http://www.amazon.com/Stop-Thyroid-Madness-Revolution-Treatment/dp/0615144314/ref=sr_1_24?ie=UTF8&qid=1290175838&sr=8-24

I highly recommend it it's very enlightening. FYI I'm about 8-10 pounds from my goal weight now after losing about 35 pounds.

Edited to add: When I first started taking GTA, I felt high for lack of a better way of putting it. Turns out that's what normal people with actual energy feel like lol!! Sublingual B12 helps a lot too.

SHBoss1673

I do go every 3 months and they keep increasing my dosage. Yes I'm so tired I could take a nap right now and its 9am... after I slept 8 straight hours. I also got these lovely (sarcasim) things on my arms called Granuloma Annulairs that look like ring worm but are caused by the Thyroid... so not only do I look like crap because of the weight but people think I have a skin disease. My husband is great and said if I wanted Lypo he'd pay but I've told him they could suck it out but it would come right back because my thyroid is out of control. I do feel better because I'm at the gym and I've told my doctor how depressed this is and she just keeps saying give it time... Thanks for all the feed back I just wish I could put a sign on me that says I don't eat unhealthy its my Thyroid so people would stop looking at me like I'm a lazy blob.

Resting metabolic rate and Total Daily Energy Expendature.

These are taken via Indirect calorimetry testing (they make you breath though a tube and record the oxygen burn, which directly correlates to how many calories you burn).

If you've had this done, can you post the results? It would be a huge help.

wife2mikejh

I haven't been officially diagnosed but I feel like I have a thyroid problem as well. I have great difficulty losing weight even when exercising and eating healthy. I read about taking pure iodine to help with the thyroid. I am currently taking it for two weeks now and have lost 2 lbs. I don't know if it is that or the exercising I've been doing, but I am going to keep taking it for a while to see.

CORTNEY5

I haven't been officially diagnosed but I feel like I have a thyroid problem as well. I have great difficulty losing weight even when exercising and eating healthy. I read about taking pure iodine to help with the thyroid. I am currently taking it for two weeks now and have lost 2 lbs. I don't know if it is that or the exercising I've been doing, but I am going to keep taking it for a while to see.

Your best bet would be to get to a doc and get some bloodwork done and see if your thyroid is low. If it's not it may be some other underlying condition that you don't want to overlook.

stovall73

I used to take Armour Thyroid! I loved it and it worked. Now I am told it is discontinued, and I am back on Levothyroxine. Not the best at all. Thank you for the idea on the other stuff. I go back for a checkup in a month, and cannot wait to talk to my Dr. about it!

sharper43

I used to take Armour Thyroid! I loved it and it worked. Now I am told it is discontinued, and I am back on Levothyroxine. Not the best at all. Thank you for the idea on the other stuff. I go back for a checkup in a month, and cannot wait to talk to my Dr. about it!

Armour is NOT discontinued! Last year, they temporarily ran out and it took a while to replenish the supply. I started taking Armour last summer and still taking it. It's much more widely available now. Please look into it again if it worked for you.

I used to take Synthroid. I'm SOOO glad I'm on Armour. Even though I'm not having any luck on weight loss, I feel so much better now than I did when I was on Synthroid.

mankymay

I am also on Synthroid and was wondering how much of being hypo effected my energy level and weight gain. I also was just diagnosed with Anemia and am having Iron injections weekly until I stabelize. I hope that my energy picks up so I can focus on exercising. Sometimes it is all I have to make it through a day. I hope that starting to eat better will also help give me more energy.

NikkiJ17

I used to take Armour Thyroid! I loved it and it worked. Now I am told it is discontinued, and I am back on Levothyroxine. Not the best at all. Thank you for the idea on the other stuff. I go back for a checkup in a month, and cannot wait to talk to my Dr. about it!

Armour is NOT discontinued! Last year, they temporarily ran out and it took a while to replenish the supply. I started taking Armour last summer and still taking it. It's much more widely available now. Please look into it again if it worked for you.

I used to take Synthroid. I'm SOOO glad I'm on Armour. Even though I'm not having any luck on weight loss, I feel so much better now than I did when I was on Synthroid.

I take Armour. Yes they did run out last year but I haven't had any problem getting it for at least the last 6 months.

2bfitforever

Way more than people with healthy glandular function, people with metabolic conditions really should go to a lab (at least) once a year and have their RMR and TDEE checked. Considering that you have a diagnosed condtion, this may be (probably is) covered by most health insurance plans. If not, there are a lot of university programs that are willing to accept people for testing, you can check that out. Otherwise it's a few hundred dollars to have it checked (well worth it IMHO if you have the money to do it), this can let you know what your body really burns in an average day, and thus can allow you to actually plan your nutrition accordingly.

How can you find a lab that checks RMR and TDEE? I live in Virginia. Thanks!

2bfitforever

I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease called Hashimoto's Thyroidism when I was 22ish. My levels were out of wack after my son was born so I went on medication. While I was pregnant with my daughter, I was borderline hyper so I went off the meds. My numbers have been normal since (nine yrs). I was able to lose weight after she was born but I was working out 2 /12 hours at the gym. Boring story as to why I quit working out but I have gained 40 lbs over the last 7 yrs. I don't really think it is my thyriod but I do know that it takes a lot for me to lose the lbs. -- like working out 2 1/2 hours a day and eating a low calorie diet. My thyroid is enlarged and has nodules so my endogrinologis wants to remove it soon but I am putting it off until I lose some of this weight.