Thyroid Surgery--need input please :)

kappyblu
kappyblu Posts: 654 Member
edited October 2 in Health and Weight Loss
My doctor is removing half of my thyroid later this month. I am pretty nervous about this; my doctor says it's a complicated surgery (takes about 3 hours) and I am worried about what it will do to my metabolism. He said we wouldn't let it hurt my metabolism, but I just don't understand how it won't. Has anyone else out there ever had thyroid surgery or known anyone who has? What was the recovery time like? How did you feel afterward? What happened to your metabolism afterward? I appreciate any and all help on this.

My weight loss has come to a halt for the past two months. I've been dancing around with the same 2 pounds up and down for that period of time. I have heard that is good to give your body a break after losing weight for a long period of time. (for me, it's been a little over a year--Aug. 17, 2010 is when I started) I have been bummed about it, though--my huge plateau. I would love anyone's input. Thanks so much for sharing and hope you all had a great holiday weekend!
:smile: :bigsmile:

Replies

  • TipMcE
    TipMcE Posts: 158
    Hi there,
    My mom had this done. I will talk to her about recovery etc. and get back to you. I do know she's taking thyroid medication, but her thyroid was removed completely. How if affects your metabolism would depend on the reason it's being removed. If its overactive, then you should not have a problem with low metabolism. I would discuss thyroid medication with my doctor and ask lots of questions. I think one of the reasons it's complicated is that the thyroid is so close to your vocal chords and one slip could damage them. I'll send you a PM when I've talked to my mom. Take care.
  • jlbay
    jlbay Posts: 473 Member
    My husband had half his thyroid removed about 6 years ago (or, 1 lobe). I don't remember if they said anything about it being a complicated surgery - but the surgeon we saw had done MANY of the procedures. The doctor did tell him that the longer he waited, the larger the growth would get and the more risk of damage to the parathyroids and vocal cords.

    He recovered amazingly well - quick and with little pain, which was easily controlled by the medicine the doctor gave. I think he only took the pain killers the first 2-3 days. His doctor did a great job and today I'm probably the only one that notices the faint white line(scar) from the surgery - because I know it is there. He went home that same day - immediately after they cleared him in the recovery room. I remember being surprised at how quickly he was able to go home. He was home within 2 hours of the surgery or less. Since he wasn't having the full thyroid removed and the parathyroids were left intact, I think the risks of complications were much less. I took him home and he napped the rest of the day, groggy from the surgery.

    After the stress of worrying about cancer (we found out during the surgery that there was no cancer -which was a concern - so they only had to remove half the thyroid) - the recovery was a breeze! I believe he took a full week off from work, but he was bored and ready to go back to work in only a few (2-3) days. I don't remember exactly when he went back, though. I was very relieved by how easy it the surgery was - relatively speaking.

    As for his metabolism - he's always struggled with that. So, I don't think there has been a great difference before and after and neither does he. His hair has thinned a bit, which we wonder if it is the thyroid or aging (he's 37 now, but comes from a family of men with thick hair into their 80's & 90's) - hard to tell. I keep telling him to talk to his doctor about it, but he won't for whatever reason. If he works out and watches his diet, he will lose weight, but he does gain weight seemingly easily. Then again, he likes to eat and drink, so you can't necessarily blame his thyroid. I'm sure everyone is different, though.

    Good luck!
  • Primrose1960
    Primrose1960 Posts: 55 Member
    Im sure they will do blood tests on you afterwards on a regular basis and you will be given a thyroid replacement tablet to take daily if needed which will sort out your metabilism. I had a friend who had hers removed and she is perfect. Dont worry, (easy for me to say!) you will be fine.
  • mmm77
    mmm77 Posts: 10 Member
    My sister had half of hers removed. I don't remember exactly, but I'm thinking recovery was about a week. She doesn't need any meds and her metabolism is the same as before. Good luck!!
  • bmwaa
    bmwaa Posts: 7
    I see this is about a week old.. But the last two years I have been dealing with thyroid problems. I ended up not having mine removed however it is still on the table. I have graves decease.... How ever I have it so severe they are doing a study and writing a medical case study on me. I was also told I "might" have cancer they did several biopsy's and could never confirm one way or the other. I did have my thyroid killed with radiation and some chemo to shrink the extra nodules. During the past two years I have gained 60 pounds. No matter what I do I have had a lot of trouble losing this weight. I didn't go nuts eating every thing around me or anything I just gained a lot. In the past two weeks is the first weight loss I have had which is 6 pounds. So I would be extra extra careful about weight while they get you to the right dose of thyroid meds after they take your thyroid out. Part of my problem was I rejected the meds at first that simulate your thyroid. I am on levothyroxine now and am FINALLY feeling better and I think soon I should see the scale go down even more! Good luck every case is different as I talk with other people who have had thyroid problems. I know another lady who lost weight when she had her thyroid removed.
  • sewedo1
    sewedo1 Posts: 200 Member
    Most likely you will be given medication to replace any thyroid hormone deficiency following the surgery. Regular blood tests can be done to monitor the hormone levels and as long as you take your medication, your metabolism should not be negatively impacted. I've been taking synthroid for a number of years and there have not been any major metabolism issues since the thyroid disorder was discovered and corrected. Good luck to you!
  • MIMITIME
    MIMITIME Posts: 405 Member
    My sister just had half of her thyroid removed about two months ago. She got along very well in recovery. She sees an endicronologist on a regular basis so she was concerned about the weight thing because they had just gotten her thyroid regulated in the last year and she had lost a lot of weight. The doctor told her that in the beginning that they had to keep her checked closely becase when part of the thyroid is removed, the remaining part kicks into over drive and may lead to hyper thyroidism. Sure enough it did. Anyway, the key is a good attentive doctor and a good attentive endocrinologist and she has both. I don't know your age but she is 48. She has a great sense of humor and ask the doctor to please find an existing crinkle (wrinkle) for the incision. After the surgery, she looked like she had been cut from ear to ear and scared her husband to death but she had not. So, if you look really bad immediately after the surgery, don't freak out. I think a lot of what her husband saw was left over Betodine(sp?) that looked like blood. Anyway, she got along great and has a very minimal scar. The docs do keep her levels checked on a regular basis. Good Luck
  • SophK90
    SophK90 Posts: 56
    Hi,
    I'm hoping your still using this, I'm about to have mine removed! How long was it until u could go back to work? Have u been left with a scar?
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