The Thyroid Thread (Part II) - Page 37

[michelleklu]

I'm going in to get an ultrasound tomorrow to see if I have thyroid cancer. If they find benign growths should I ask for them to get removed anyway? If they have to remove my thyroid should I opt for surgical instead of RAI?

I have another question regarding iodine. I started taking up to 4 drops of Lugol's because I really felt I had Hashimoto's. I'm not sure if I do but I'm trying to get my lab results tomorrow to read the numbers for myself. The doctor's office always seems closed. Anyway, when I took it I felt so much better - had a lot more energy actually just felt so much better overall, lowered my blood pressure to normal, my heart rate stopped being deathly fast, and my thyroid wasn't swollen anymore. I did notice I got frequent nosebleeds when I was taking a lot of it. If I have Graves disease then why did taking iodine help? I swear I read something like if your thyroid is working incorrectly then something? attacks your thyroid and releases the chemicals/hormones/something and that results in being hyper. I'm so confused. I cannot remember for the life of me where I read that. I have been supplementing with coconut oil, iodine, a multi vitamin that has selenium and supplements derived from plants, and eating virtually no soy. I felt so much better.

What can I expect if it is cancer and they want to see what stage? Would I fine needle biopsy be sufficient? What if they want to do a MRI or something? Would that harm my thyroid? If it is cancer how much time do I have to get a second opinion - for papillary and malignant?

I have so much more what if its cancer questions but I think those are the main ones I need to know so I don't get rushed into something I will regret. Elaine Moore seems to answer all the questions on her Q&A so I'll be sure to post there once I find out what's going on. I'm scared.

[Theloose]

Finally joining the thread, without the brainpower to read the whole thing.
I just get computer time in spurts these days, so I thought I might just post a bunch of questions? Feel free to point me to other reading. And I'm kind of assuming there are no answers for most of these...

Why does ithyroid say to start selenium slow?
If, after eating a bunch of brazilnuts I started to get a sore throat, and a glass of iodine water (atomidine, about 4-5mg worth of iodine, I'd guess) made it go away in minutes, what does that tell me?

Is there an established cause/effect relationship between belly weight/insulin resistance and thyroid? If so, which way does it go?

Has Jane gotten the discussion about mucin going over here yet?

Sore bottoms of the feet/heel, especially after laying down - is that a thyroid thing? Maybe a mucin thing?

Does the thyroid ever do *better* during (a well supported) pregnancy?

Lots of hair falling out 4.5mo postpartum - lack of showers/brushing hair, baby pulling it all out, normal postpartum, or thyroid crashing?

Can not getting enough sleep be a *cause* of thyroid stuff?

My history is strong adrenal symptoms that respond magically to vitamins, blood sugar/insulin issues that I'm catching early, and mild, maybe-hypothyroid symptoms that are getting more obvious in the past few months. And a load of food sensitivities/nutrient deficiencies/healing going on right now. Tests (TSH, fT3, fT4, from a year ago) are normal, but possibly underconversion of T4->T3. My mom has just about every thyroid symptom, but completely normal bloodwork. We're thinking cell resistance for her.

[lil_miss_understood]

Originally Posted by whoMe

Is there an established cause/effect relationship between belly weight/insulin resistance and thyroid? If so, which way does it go?

Has Jane gotten the discussion about mucin going over here yet?

Sore bottoms of the feet/heel, especially after laying down - is that a thyroid thing? Maybe a mucin thing?

Does the thyroid ever do *better* during (a well supported) pregnancy?

Lots of hair falling out 4.5mo postpartum - lack of showers/brushing hair, baby pulling it all out, normal postpartum, or thyroid crashing?

Can not getting enough sleep be a *cause* of thyroid stuff?

I can only answer a couple of your questions, so I've erased a bunch of your post.
I have read that there are a couple of ways that the thyroid/insulin resistance thing can play out. I can't remember much about it though.
Jane has not started the mucin discussion over here yet that I've seen.
Sore bottoms of the feet/heel- also known as plantar fasciitis- has a known connection to hypothyroidism. MSM (along with the various other vitamins I was already taking) helped me with the symptoms. *eta:The MSM helped for a few months but then symptoms returned. I'm not certain what changed. Also, this may be a mucin thing, since mucin has to do with inflammation, right? and all the suggested treatements I've seen for this condition involve anti-inflammatories. However, even with my thyroid replacement seemingly at optimal now and apparently losing mucin weight, I haven't seen a further reduction in plantar fasciitis symptoms.*
The thyroid may appear to do better during pregnancy after the first trimester as that is when the baby's thyroid becomes active. As long as mom is consuming enough of the necessary nutrients to produce the hormones, the baby's thyroid may then give the woman a "boost". This was the case for me (though I didn't know it) with both DS1 and DS2.)
By lots of hair, what do you mean? When I was diagnosed with hypoT, the hair falling out of my head was BAD. When I brushed my hair, I had to clean the brush halfway through, even if I had brushed it earlier the same day. When I washed my hair, I had to clean the shower drain halfway through because otherwise I'd flood the floor of the shower. If I ran my hand through my hair, I had a handful of hair, not just some strands, but LOTS of hair. Additionally, my eyebrows started thinning/falling out as well.
I believe that any form of stress, including sleep deprivation, can be a cause for thyroid problems.
With your response to vitamins, I would suggest looking at ithyroid.com for information which may be useful.
HTH somehow.

[Theloose]

Thanks!

Do you think the MSM might have run down your Mo, and so that's why the plantar fasciitis came back? Did the other stuff it was helping with come back? I'm definitely burning through Mo right now. I had it some for years, definitely had it pre-ds, it went away while pg, and now it's back, more than ever.

After dd was born, I gained weight for the first time in my life (pregnancy practically included), kept it on till I got pg with ds, then almost immediately (still first tri, I was also taking 1-5mg doses of iodine) went back to my normal skinniness. As soon as ds was born, weight back on.

Hair loss isn't nearly that extreme, it's just more than I've ever noticed before. You know how if you don't shower/brush your hair one day, then the next you get a ton when you finally do? I feel like that every time I run my hands through my hair. Of course, its entirely possible that it's just ds pulling it out and me not brushing often enough

ithyroid - the site seems messed up, the links on the left point to the guy's home computer, so I've been hand typing them in, but it seems like something's still missing from the pages. I'll keep trying, though.

[JaneS]

yes I did and JR answered me too

Originally Posted by JaneS

I'm reading Dr. Mark Starr's book Hypothyroidism Type 2. VERY interesting.
http://www.21centurymed.com/?page_id=12

I have myexadema of the upper arm which is another classic hypo sx. It's easier to see with his pics that illustrate the issue, which I cannot find online. But apparently if you pinch the skin of your upper arm, the skin is supposed to be loose, regardless of how chubby or thin you are. I pinch and I get a big thick wad of skin and tissue. This is accumulated mucin.

[lil_miss_understood]

Originally Posted by JaneS

yes I did and JR answered me too

Oh. That was in THIS thread?
Oh man. I'm going to bed!

[lil_miss_understood]

Originally Posted by whoMe

Thanks!

Do you think the MSM might have run down your Mo, and so that's why the plantar fasciitis came back? Did the other stuff it was helping with come back? I'm definitely burning through Mo right now. I had it some for years, definitely had it pre-ds, it went away while pg, and now it's back, more than ever.

Hmm.
I take 1mg/day of Mo. you think i might need more?
I changed brands but can't remember the name of the original brand now... hmm

[Theloose]

Originally Posted by JacquelineR

Hmm.
I take 1mg/day of Mo. you think i might need more?
I changed brands but can't remember the name of the original brand now... hmm

I have the nutricology drops. 3 drops=75mcg. I do a half a dropperful a few times a day, and feel it if I forget, but vie also been mobilizing stuf including tungsten which specifically depletes Mo. I've done country life tablets, too, and can say that the drops are absorbed much, much better than those. I'd say it might be worth a try to experiment with more? If you're taking a lot of MSM, it needs the Mo to convert to sulfate.

[lil_miss_understood]

Originally Posted by whoMe

I have the nutricology drops. 3 drops=75mcg. I do a half a dropperful a few times a day, and feel it if I forget, but vie also been mobilizing stuf including tungsten which specifically depletes Mo. I've done country life tablets, too, and can say that the drops are absorbed much, much better than those. I'd say it might be worth a try to experiment with more? If you're taking a lot of MSM, it needs the Mo to convert to sulfate.

Yeah mine are the 1,000mcg Carlson tablets... I think I was supposed to be taking it 2x's/day come to think of it. I really need to write it down someplace.

[orangefoot]

I still haven't been able to convince my doctor to try treating me for hypothyroid. I read here and elsewhere about selenium and thyroid so have had 2 brazil nuts a day and green smoothies since mid July as I wasn't getting anywhere with my GP.

I got tested for Free T3 (4.2mol/L) and Free T4 (15.7pmol/L) last week and both are in 'normal' ranges. My TSH in July was 4.1 and now on re-testing it is 1.92. Can increasing selenium really have this effect?

I still don't feel that good though so what does this mean? If I continue with the selenium will I start to feel better and better? I can't really manage needing more than 10 hours sleep a day to feel half-human...

[lil_miss_understood]

Originally Posted by orangefoot

I still haven't been able to convince my doctor to try treating me for hypothyroid. I read here and elsewhere about selenium and thyroid so have had 2 brazil nuts a day and green smoothies since mid July as I wasn't getting anywhere with my GP.

I got tested for Free T3 (4.2mol/L) and Free T4 (15.7pmol/L) last week and both are in 'normal' ranges. My TSH in July was 4.1 and now on re-testing it is 1.92. Can increasing selenium really have this effect?

I still don't feel that good though so what does this mean? If I continue with the selenium will I start to feel better and better? I can't really manage needing more than 10 hours sleep a day to feel half-human...

Yes, it can have that effect if there is a conversion problem and/or if the selenium has decreased antibodies.
You might consider researching adrenal fatigue.

[tanyalynn]

Originally Posted by orangefoot

Can increasing selenium really have this effect?

Yeah, it can do a lot. My dog was hypothyroid, had been on doggie synthroid for a few years, but was starting to have other health issues I felt were related, and I started fiddling with selenium and some other things for her, had to reduce her thyroid meds more and more and eventually stopped them. I'm still working to keep her happy and feeling good (a bit tricky to figure out sometimes since she's a half-blind, half-deaf 13-year old lab) but yeah, it can make a big difference.

Have you read the adrenal fatigue thread? The fatigue from both can be hard to separate, it sounds like you've made a lot of change to your thyroid function, but adrenal stuff is different, there are more lifestyle things involved, stress reduction, and maybe stuff that's more underlying, food intolerances were important for me to identify, if there's an underlying reason why you became hypothyroid, looking for that and reducing/eliminating that stress. It took me a long time to separate the fatigue due to thyroid problems from the fatigue due to worn down adrenals, but starting to consider that may be helpful.

[ILoveMyBabyBird]

okay ladies, i finally got my test results from a couple months back. My TSH 3 is 1.80 mIU/L and my T4 is .9 ng/dL which looks pretty low/normal range to me. So back to reality and I am finally pregnant as of a few weeks ago and surprisingly I am feeling better with my symptoms that before pregnancy. Is that normal?

ETA: i did start taking iodine supplement and d3 just prior to pregnancy which may have helped. I am unsure of the the acceptable levels while pregnant so have cut back to taking the pills only about 1-2x each week. (660m/g of iodine) and 1000iu's of d3

[nadia105]

Have any of you ladies had kids before and after you were dx hypo? Before I was, my first 3 kids were the easiest pregnancies ever. Felt great, no m/s at all, breezed through. This one, however, is kicking my butt -- big time. I have to nap everyday, I am nauseous almost all day, threw up the other day, and overall feel like crap. I'm 8 weeks and really hoping it ends with the first tri, any hope?

My mw had all the thyroid levels checked along with vitamins and the reg pg panel the other day, so hopefully I will know soon if one of those is glaringly off (I have been D deficient for years, and have been taking 2000IU to try to help)

[lil_miss_understood]

Originally Posted by ILoveMyBabyBird

okay ladies, i finally got my test results from a couple months back. My TSH 3 is 1.80 mIU/L and my T4 is .9 ng/dL which looks pretty low/normal range to me. So back to reality and I am finally pregnant as of a few weeks ago and surprisingly I am feeling better with my symptoms that before pregnancy. Is that normal?

ETA: i did start taking iodine supplement and d3 just prior to pregnancy which may have helped. I am unsure of the the acceptable levels while pregnant so have cut back to taking the pills only about 1-2x each week. (660m/g of iodine) and 1000iu's of d3

Increase your D3!! It has been shown to prevent serious metabolic disorders.

Originally Posted by nadia105

Have any of you ladies had kids before and after you were dx hypo? Before I was, my first 3 kids were the easiest pregnancies ever. Felt great, no m/s at all, breezed through. This one, however, is kicking my butt -- big time. I have to nap everyday, I am nauseous almost all day, threw up the other day, and overall feel like crap. I'm 8 weeks and really hoping it ends with the first tri, any hope?

My mw had all the thyroid levels checked along with vitamins and the reg pg panel the other day, so hopefully I will know soon if one of those is glaringly off (I have been D deficient for years, and have been taking 2000IU to try to help)

Well, when preparing for pregnancy your TSH should actually be 1 or lower. After a pregnancy confirmation, TSH is supposed to be kept below 2. I know that, when my thyroid is off, I feel nauseated so it may be a contributing factor. And remember that your thyroid levels should be checked every 6 weeks MAX throughout pregnancy!
I have had 2 pregnancies pre-dx and one post. The third was the worst for nausea by far, with me being dx'd with "borderline" hyperemesis gravidarum. However, my nausea got progressively worse with each pregnancy, so which is it? Natural course of my pregnancies or the result of my thyroid function decreasing? Hard to say.
Regardless, I hope that you find some relief soon.

[nadia105]

Originally Posted by JacquelineR

Increase your D3!! It has been shown to prevent serious metabolic disorders.


Well, when preparing for pregnancy your TSH should actually be 1 or lower. After a pregnancy confirmation, TSH is supposed to be kept below 2. I know that, when my thyroid is off, I feel nauseated so it may be a contributing factor. And remember that your thyroid levels should be checked every 6 weeks MAX throughout pregnancy!
I have had 2 pregnancies pre-dx and one post. The third was the worst for nausea by far, with me being dx'd with "borderline" hyperemesis gravidarum. However, my nausea got progressively worse with each pregnancy, so which is it? Natural course of my pregnancies or the result of my thyroid function decreasing? Hard to say.
Regardless, I hope that you find some relief soon.

Thank you! My mw is hypo too, so I think she will be helpful, but it is really nice to have some concrete numbers to talk with her about. I saw her monday at 8 weeks and could either go back at 10 or 12, maybe I will go with 10 to talk over results and plan of action.

[JaneS]

Originally Posted by orangefoot

I still haven't been able to convince my doctor to try treating me for hypothyroid. I read here and elsewhere about selenium and thyroid so have had 2 brazil nuts a day and green smoothies since mid July as I wasn't getting anywhere with my GP.

I got tested for Free T3 (4.2mol/L) and Free T4 (15.7pmol/L) last week and both are in 'normal' ranges. My TSH in July was 4.1 and now on re-testing it is 1.92. Can increasing selenium really have this effect?

I still don't feel that good though so what does this mean? If I continue with the selenium will I start to feel better and better? I can't really manage needing more than 10 hours sleep a day to feel half-human...

Your TSH of 4 is high its not normal. However, I just noticed that it's now below 2, which is better and that was probably the Se. Animal tests show that deficiency in key nutrients will influence thyroid greatly. Have you also tested ferritin? I just read recently that Broda Barnes rec ferritin very high, at top of lab ranges.

Sorry I was reading too fast when I submitted my first post.

But go by your symptoms, not lab tests.

TSH — Why It’s Useless
http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com...y-its-useless/

Hypothyroidism Type 2
http://www.21centurymed.com/?page_id=12

[JaneS]

Originally Posted by ILoveMyBabyBird

1000iu's of d3

too low unless you are tanning in a bathing suit everyday
www.vitamindcouncil.org

[orangefoot]

Originally Posted by JaneS

But go by your symptoms, not lab tests.

TSH — Why It’s Useless
http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com...y-its-useless/

Hypothyroidism Type 2
http://www.21centurymed.com/?page_id=12

Thanks. I read the first link a few months ago when I first started looking into this and *I'm* sticking with my symptoms but the problem is that here in the UK 4-5 for TSH is normal ref range. She wasn't interested in treating me when my TSH was 4; now it is 1.9 she is even less interested and thinks that my symptoms are down to stress.

My serum ferritin is 63.3ug/l which is not considered to be low either as she says 50-70 is ok. My B12 is 297ng/L ???

I can't get a referral to a specialist with these labs and my GP isn't interested.

Thanks tanyalynn and JacquelineR for your responses earlier. I've been reading about AF now and starting to do what I can for that now.

Unfortunately I have a blood clotting disorder called Protein S Deficency and due to having a DVT I am on long term warfarin - Coumadin in the US.

An awful lot of supplements and foods interact negatively with warfarin and I absolutely cannot be outside by safe range for blood clotting time because I can't manage to live with either another DVT or a GI or intercranial bleed.

My haemo has me on the list for taking a new anticoagulant as soon as it is licensed for long term use and this will free me to support my body better.

[JaneS]

Yes, this is the problem... it's hard to find a doctor locally which goes by Broda Barnes, Stephen Langer's, and Mark Starr's methods. It's really ridiculous.

In the UK, there is Dr. Myhill in Wales and Dr. Skinner in Birmingham. And another I can't remember right now.