Thyroid removed

emar831
emar831 Posts: 16 Member
edited November 17 in Introduce Yourself
Hey everyone. My name is Emily and I'm 35 years old. I had my thyroid removed about five years ago and now need to lose around 75 to 100 pounds. I'm looking for friends who may be in my same boat as I have learned losing weight with thyroid issues can be very difficult. With medicine my levels are within the normal range but I still have issues that I did not have before. We tried upping my medicine and I felt great but my levels were going too high and I had to go back down to my regular dosage. I'm hoping losing some weight will help get me back to the old me, before surgery.

Replies

  • vczK2t
    vczK2t Posts: 309 Member
    My thyroid was removed, and I am strictly on thyroid meds for that. My levels are where they are supposed to be, but It's STILL calories in vs calories out. JUST being on thyroid meds isn't a magic pill. You still have to do all the work.
  • emar831
    emar831 Posts: 16 Member
    Oh, I know I have to do the work. I don't expect my medicine to get me over my levels so I can lose weight. I would like to feel like I did before it was removed as weight gain is not the only thing that has changed since my surgery. I am simply not the same person anymore, mind or body. My doctor told me that I may have to cut down to 800-900 calories per day before I will lose weight. Before my surgery, I had no thyroid problems. I was losing weight on a strict 1200 calories per day diet and had lost 50 pounds. After my surgery, on the same diet, I gained 20 pounds in less than a month and gained everything I lost within 4 months after surgery. It took a year for my thyroid levels to level out on meds (which I know is normal.) I am currently on 1000-1100 calorie per day diet with exercise 5-6 days per week. I am logging/weighing everything and not eating a bunch of empty calories. This is my 4th serious attempt at losing weight and the lowest I have gone on calories with this much exercise. I always lose a few pounds right off the bat and then nothing. I am going to give it a couple months before I go down to under 1000 calories per day as I don't want to make myself sick either. I was more wondering if anyone has found a certain diet (low carb, no sugar, whole foods only, etc.) to work better than another when paired with Thyroid issues.
  • lifeisahighway
    lifeisahighway Posts: 490 Member
    I still have my thyroid, but I suffer from hypothyroidism. <3 Big hugs!
  • 1thankful_momma
    1thankful_momma Posts: 298 Member
    I had my Thyroid out too. It sucks (which we both know is an understatement).
    Keto works for me. I'm am working to overcome emotional eater issues as well.
  • vczK2t
    vczK2t Posts: 309 Member
    emar831, I apologize for saying you still had to do the work. I wasn't paying attention to what i was typing. Could you possibly ask a dietician about the calories before dipping below 1200? That sounds WAY too low, an additional 800 calories to burn a day? I don't know your doctor, but I would get another opinion from a person that has qualifications specifically in weight issues and losing weight.
  • Sandragrimesisawesome8596
    Sandragrimesisawesome8596 Posts: 3 Member
    Yep. Struggling to lose too because of an under active. I feel your pain.. Its very disheartening.
  • ImpulsiveDaydreamer
    ImpulsiveDaydreamer Posts: 20 Member
    Hi All, I had total thyroid removal back in April. I had hyperthyroidism before then causing many annoying symptoms. After surgery it was a relief to be able to breathe properly due to the goitre. I’ve not yet managed to get my levels where they need to be so have just stuck with what worked before my thyroid issues occurred. Eating once a day and then fasting the rest of the time. I’ve so far managed to prevent weight gain(not lost any weight either) with intermittent fasting but am looking for a healthier plan that includes more meals and actually helps me lose weight.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
    @CSARdiver and I have both had our thyroid removed

    Csardiver can explain more about all the. Science - I will say when it comes to Keto and thyroid - I've seen studies that have a tentative correlation between increased TSH levels and Keto (not necessarily good at all)
  • CSARdiver
    CSARdiver Posts: 6,252 Member
    edited September 2017
    Thyroid impacts your metabolism (Resting Energy Expenditure REE) by ~5% from clinical observation. What thyroid (and any hormonal imbalance) will do is impact your satiety and hunger triggers.

    Is you diary open? Have someone experienced with this review and identify any possible errors in logging as this is usually where the errors are made. Note there is also an inherent 20% margin of error in calorie estimation to begin with.

    Physicians are generally horrible at weight management and know less than your average MFP user. Unless they have specific training do not take advice from your doctor.

    I had a total thyroidectomy in 2000. I put on 70 lbs over 14 years, but was not tracking intake/output. I found MFP in 2014 and lost 60 lbs in the first year simply logging and maintaining a moderate and safe deficit.

    Go slowly on this and don't make any changes you don't see yourself doing for the rest of your life. Small changes hold dramatic impact over time.

    Edit - what were your levels and what was considered too high?

    TSH, fT3, fT4, rT3 - need a full thyroid panel to make an informed assessment. New normal on TSH is 0.2-2.0. With a total thyroidectomy you want this as close to 0.2 as possible, especially if this was removed due to cancer.
  • VioletRojo
    VioletRojo Posts: 597 Member
    emar831 wrote: »
    Oh, I know I have to do the work. I don't expect my medicine to get me over my levels so I can lose weight. I would like to feel like I did before it was removed as weight gain is not the only thing that has changed since my surgery. I am simply not the same person anymore, mind or body. My doctor told me that I may have to cut down to 800-900 calories per day before I will lose weight. Before my surgery, I had no thyroid problems. I was losing weight on a strict 1200 calories per day diet and had lost 50 pounds. After my surgery, on the same diet, I gained 20 pounds in less than a month and gained everything I lost within 4 months after surgery. It took a year for my thyroid levels to level out on meds (which I know is normal.) I am currently on 1000-1100 calorie per day diet with exercise 5-6 days per week. I am logging/weighing everything and not eating a bunch of empty calories. This is my 4th serious attempt at losing weight and the lowest I have gone on calories with this much exercise. I always lose a few pounds right off the bat and then nothing. I am going to give it a couple months before I go down to under 1000 calories per day as I don't want to make myself sick either. I was more wondering if anyone has found a certain diet (low carb, no sugar, whole foods only, etc.) to work better than another when paired with Thyroid issues.

    Honestly, I would get a new doctor. I had my thyroid removed two years ago and have maintained my weight just fine. But it took almost a year to find a mix of thyroid hormones that worked to make me feel normal. Like most people with hypothyroid, I take T4, but I also take T3. T3 is what made me feel like me again.

    Losing weight for someone with hypothyroid shouldn't be any different than for a "normal" person. You just have to get the meds right and that's more than just getting in the right range with TSH.
  • ImpulsiveDaydreamer
    ImpulsiveDaydreamer Posts: 20 Member
    Thank you @deannalfisher and @CSARdiver! 2 Months ago I was told everything was normal apart from my TSH levels that were being suppressed and a Vit-D deficiency. I’ve just today had blood tests so i’m hoping for better results this time round.
  • HeidiCooksSupper
    HeidiCooksSupper Posts: 3,831 Member
    I had a thyroid hemispherectomy 25-ish years ago and my remaining half a thyroid decided it couldn't keep up a decade or so later. Daily synthroid has my thyroid levels normal. If I eat at a calorie deficit, I lose weight. Never noticed any particular thyroid-based effect on weight. Like my mom, who had 1/2 her thyroid removed when Nixon was first inaugurated and is now 94, I'll probably just keep taking my synthroid (levothyroxin) forever.
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