Graves' Disease and Methimazole weight gain

taniaosborn
taniaosborn Posts: 2 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello,

I am looking for anyone who has Graves' Disease, who is on methimazole and has gained weight from the methimazole. Please let me know if you have been able to lose the weight from this medicine and how you did it.

Thank you.

Replies

  • clau3260
    clau3260 Posts: 32 Member
    I was looking for something like this too. Same situation here.
  • taniaosborn
    taniaosborn Posts: 2 Member
    Did you ever get any results yourself or reply's from anyone? Do you know anyone else with this disease? I have finally lost 5 pounds and have 15 left to go!
  • subha06
    subha06 Posts: 2 Member
    Hello! Would you mind telling me how you lost weight? I have untreated hyperthyroidism, and my doctor wants to start me on methimazole...I am very scared of the weight gain as I already have gained about 20 lbs in 3 months, though not sure why..I am worried the medicine will make it worse.
  • Sharon_C
    Sharon_C Posts: 2,132 Member
    Methimazole is for hyperthyroid. I thought Graves was hypo? Am I wrong? I was hyper for 13 years and was on Methimazole. No weight gain but that's because hyper makes you lose.

    Have you spoken to your endo? It sounds like your meds need adjusted.
  • ElizabethKalmbach
    ElizabethKalmbach Posts: 1,416 Member
    Sharon_C wrote: »
    Methimazole is for hyperthyroid. I thought Graves was hypo? Am I wrong? I was hyper for 13 years and was on Methimazole. No weight gain but that's because hyper makes you lose.

    Have you spoken to your endo? It sounds like your meds need adjusted.

    Graves generally *ends* in a hypo situation once your immune system takes out your thyroid completely, or if one of the interventions is inappropriately calibrated. Initially, the problem is that you have *too much* thyroid hormone in your system, and the fluctuations as they try to sort out medication dosing can be a wild ride as your overall thyroid hormone balance fluctuates from hyper to hypo and back again.
  • ElizabethKalmbach
    ElizabethKalmbach Posts: 1,416 Member
    I have no experience with methimazole, personally, but a good starting point is to log your food with exacting detail, and adjust your calories down by increments until you find a steady point.

    That said, I have hashimotos and take thyroid replacement, and retain water like a champion. I track calories so that I can tell whether I'm retaining water or actually eating too much. Frequently, I'm just retaining a ton of water and my ankles are gone, and I have to adjust something or wait it out until my body adjusts, depending. (I put on 10 lbs, EVERY TIME I TRAVEL. My body does not like change. It generally drops away after I get back. It's one of those situations where I just wait for my body to adjust, because I'm not cancelling a trip to Disney just because I might get edema in my ankles.) The better quality data you have to troubleshoot your issue, the more certain you can be of your solutions.
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
    calling @CSARdiver
  • subha06
    subha06 Posts: 2 Member
    Sharon_C wrote: »
    Methimazole is for hyperthyroid. I thought Graves was hypo? Am I wrong? I was hyper for 13 years and was on Methimazole. No weight gain but that's because hyper makes you lose.

    Have you spoken to your endo? It sounds like your meds need adjusted.

    Graves is associated with hyperthyroidism because there are antibodies which cause the thyroid to produce more thyroid hormone. It's encouraging that you didn't experience weight gain on methimazole...did you lose any weight and if so, would you mind saying how?
  • Sharon_C
    Sharon_C Posts: 2,132 Member
    subha06 wrote: »
    Sharon_C wrote: »
    Methimazole is for hyperthyroid. I thought Graves was hypo? Am I wrong? I was hyper for 13 years and was on Methimazole. No weight gain but that's because hyper makes you lose.

    Have you spoken to your endo? It sounds like your meds need adjusted.

    Graves is associated with hyperthyroidism because there are antibodies which cause the thyroid to produce more thyroid hormone. It's encouraging that you didn't experience weight gain on methimazole...did you lose any weight and if so, would you mind saying how?

    Yes, I lost weight. I ate in a deficit, met my macros and worked out. Anyone with a thyroid issue can lose weight. You just might have to go lower in calories than you used to. That wasn't the issue for me. I can easily lose at 1650 calories, which is what I always lose at.

    I had my thyroid removed last December and am on medication for hypo. Again, it's been fairly easy to lose. I just started a cut at the beginning of September and have lost 10lbs since then.

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