Under active thyroid and success rates?

So far I've been losing weight steadily. My medication is working well and my levels are good. If your levels are good, you should be fine. 25mg is enough for a lot of people. Your doctor should check sometimes to make sure it's the right dosage for you. Mine checked every 3 months until I got to the right dose, and then every 6 months since then.

leahcollett1 wrote: »

I've been prescribed 25mg of levothyroxine. Will this be enough. I thought it was pretty low?

It's common to start someone on a relatively low (though best estimate) dose, then have them come back for more blood tests to see whether that dose is sufficient. It takes weeks to (low number of) months - I'm sorry to say - for the particular dose to achieve a stable level in your body, so you'd probably be directed to get a new blood test in perhaps something from 6 weeks to 3 months' time.

You don't want to be overmedicated for a thyroid condition either - very unpleasant/ potentially dangerous.

If the initial dose is insufficient, they should ramp you up from there.

I've been on Synthroid for about a decade. While I can still gain weight rather easily, I have no trouble losing weight. I've lost 83 lbs in 11 months, just using MFP, being consistent in my appropriate calorie deficit, using a food scale to weigh all solid foods, and doing a moderate amount of exercise (I have arthritis in my spine so can't exercise daily).

As mentioned above, it may take time for you to get on the right dosage. Make SURE you go for regular blood tests even after it's on the right track. You body changes, and so will your dosage over time (usually). Mine has increased quite a lot in the last decade. You WILL feel better once you're on track.

Yep, my first dose was 12.5 per day. I had to get a pill cutter! Like you I was tested and diagnosed after a massive weight gain in a short period of time--20 lbs in a single month! I actually had lost it before I saw my doctor but she thought the rapidity of the gain was still worth looking into. I was only borderline but she wanted to get me stabilized because I wanted another kid and wonky thyroid levels can cause miscarriages.

Pregnancy made mine go wacky again and I now take 37.5 per day so still need my pill cutter! I lose weight fine now, but my case was always borderline.

I have hashis and I lost 80lb a few years ago. The first 20lb fell off when I started treatment and went gluten/soy free. With portion control and starting Insanity work outs I lost the rest over the course of about 2yr.

Its easier for me to gain than a lot of friends and slowed to lose so I need to be diligent. I gained 30lb back last year and have lost 10 of that using this site for 4 months. I recently found out I have some common vitamin deficiencies that affect thyroid so I am taking a b-complex and starting selenium which my doctor thinks will help my weight loss efforts.

I'm on T4 and T3, have been for about 12 years. Lost more than the weight I gained when my thyroid went all wacky bo-bo, about 100 pounds and am in better shape than I was before. I just cut calories, still eat all the same stuff I did before. No keto or paler for me, though I did up my protein.

I had to be honest with myself, the first year on medication, I couldn't understand why I wasn't losing weight. I swore I was barely eating. Looking back, I was eating waaaaay more than I thought I was. I wasn't weighing, or even measuring. Just guessing. Now that I am weighing, I know I was eating a lot more than I was willing to admit. The thyroid caused issues to be sure, but my habits made everything worse.

It does get better. It takes being a strong advocate for yourself and finding a good doctor who will listen. It takes a lot of patience.

leahcollett1 wrote: »

Thanks everyone. Day 2 of my medication. I was fine until about 2pm yesterday when I felt like I just had to sleep. Not sure whether it's just myself or the pill doing that but I'll monitor it. Not normally like me as I'm using doing body combat at that time!

I would assume it's the hypothyroidism. Needing naps to make it through the day (when that's not normal for you) or any kind of unusual tiredness or sleepiness are all primary symptoms of hypothyroidism. Thyroid hormones are what give your body it's "oomph" or "get up and go." When they get low most people will be much more tired and sleepy than normal.

Pawsforme wrote: »

leahcollett1 wrote: »

would it be the reason i gained 8lbs 1 weeks and 3lbs the other? ive just been told by another person that it cant be the reason? and so now im kind of feeling gutted again as i thought i had an answe. my food diary is spot on i eat half of my earned exercise calories, i weigh absolutely everything i even carry a little weighing scale in my bag for snacks and apples. so no cheating no binging no chocolate. and yet i still gained that much over the course of 2 weeks. this morning after the 3rd week, i lost 1lb out of the 11 i gained.

Thyroid problems can affect people differently.

But in general I would say no, it wouldn't cause that large of a weight gain that quickly.

I've suspected for the past six or eight weeks that my thyroid has gone wacky again and I need a medication adjustment. The scale has gone up 1.5 - 2 pounds and stayed there when my food intake and activity level haven't changed to account for that (keep in mind I'm small -- only about 4'10" and 110 pounds, so a 2 pound weight gain isn't insignificant). Plus I have other symptoms -- more tired than normal, some brain fog, joint aches, dry skin, lump-in-the-throat feeling occasionally.

Be wary of advice given on here. I think many people who know nothing about thyroid issues or other endocrine problems chime in to parrot what they've heard is true for "normal" people. Someone with an endocrine issue that can suppress metabolism (even slightly) will not gain/lose weight quite like a "normal" person unless the condition is well controlled. Research says the effect of hypothyrodism on metabolic rate is relatively small, but it is indeed a factor. As an example -- for the past few weeks I've been maintaining on about 1450-1500 calories a day, whereas before I suspected my thyroid was going wacky again I was able to maintain on about 1650 calories a day. So as you can see the effect isn't huge but it's there.

My thyroid will go wacky occassionally. The first sign is a headache on the top of my neck in the back that doesn't go away for weeks. The second symptom is extremely fatigue. The last symptom before I catch on is I gain almost 10 lbs in a week. It's happened to me 3 or 4x, and was confirmed with lab results. As soon as I got my levels back to normal, headaches disappear, tiredness goes away, and I lose those 10 lbs I gained.

leahcollett1 wrote: »

Thanks everyone. Day 2 of my medication. I was fine until about 2pm yesterday when I felt like I just had to sleep. Not sure whether it's just myself or the pill doing that but I'll monitor it. Not normally like me as I'm using doing body combat at that time!

I was diagnosed in my early 20's with hypothyroidism, though i think i had it undiagnosed for a long time, I'm 29 now.
I've lost over 50 lbs now though I have a long way to go. I couldn't really lose weight till my medication was at the right level for a while. I tried just about everything, from weight watchers, slimming world and meal replacements. honestly try not to be hard on yourself, though do be honest with your tracking of food etc. since its going to be hard or you might not be able to do what you want till you've been properly medicated for a while.

do make sure you take your levo at the same time of day and be careful of taking it with certain things like soy and calcium tablets as that can effect your levo absorbing. so try taking it in the morning with water before you eat or have a coffee (as that can effect it to) then giving it about 30 mins to absorb then have what ever you normally eat, or another time of day when you know you will be able to take it like clockwork on an empty stomach, some people like to take it before bed but personally i always take it in the morning.

you might not notice yourself being 100% normal again right away, since it takes about 6-8 weeks of taking it to properly stabilize. your doctor might need to adjust the dose too, that's why they normally test 6-8 weeks after adjusting the dose till they get the right level, then its about 6 months or 12 months depending on what the doctor says. they only like to up it by a small amount each time to stop you going over active.

personally i feel a fair amount better about a week after but i don't feel completely normal until month or two after.
I also get a lot of water weight, not sure if that's just me though, so sometimes i will jump 5 or 10 lbs sudden gain for no reason then i realize my legs have swelled with water again.

so try not to focus on the scales, try to focus more on none scale victories and none weight victories like eating healthy for a few months or being able to run again or run a distance etc.

I'm from the Uk too, http://www.thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/ has a lot of info too about thyroid problems.