prednisone and thyroid

[PGTlatte]

Last week I had to take a burst of prednisone for an asthma flare up. I took a pretty high dose for three days. Two days after stopping it, I began to feel a firmness in my neck that I believe is inflammation in my thyroid gland. I know that steroids such as prednisone can mess with your thyroid, and since I have never had any thyroid issues before, I am guessing that it was the burst of steroids that got it out of balance. Has anyone else experienced something like this before ? Can it get itself back to normal without further drug interventions ? I had an allergic reaction to the antibiotic I was on, had to seek emergency treatment for that, had to suddenly stop a steroid - I feel the drugs I took for this chest congestion pretty much messed me up and I would like to avoid further drugs if possible.

[KimPM]

Well, I know that corticosteroids like prednisone can drag down your adrenal glands pretty bad. (They also deplete your vitamin D stores, but that's another thread.) The thyroid and the adrenals work together, in a way. So, I can surmise that prednisone could do something to the thyroid as well, though perhaps not as directly as it does to the adrenals. You could consider taking adrenal and thyroid support supplements and see if that helps. If you're not already taking vitamin D, that's a good idea too.

I wonder...could it be lymph nodes swelling? Because corticosteroids also lower the immune system, making you more susceptible to getting sick. Perhaps you are fighting something off.

[PGTlatte]

Thanks. It just really really feels like it's in the location of my thyroid, and my lymph nodes are fine. I take vit D drops but I'm not very regular about it. I will make sure I get those in today. I also read that being short on iodine can cause this. I made myself some wakame broth - I can't stand to eat the stuff, but I was able to drink some broth from it.

I was also taking benadryl. I was given a shot of it on Wednesday, and then I've been taking it every night. I thought about that and went and read the precautions, and it says anyone who has ever had a thyroid problem should not take it...hmmm. I have never had a thyroid problem that I know of, but wonder if I was already out of balance and the benadryl was pushing me over the edge and causing it to become inflamed. So I did not take it last night. The feeling is less noticeable this morning. I will see how it goes today. Either way, I'm guessing that I need to give this a month to settle down from the steroid pulse, and then perhaps get my thyroid checked.