Anyone else hypothyroid?

[surf mama]

I am nervous about how my thyroid will effect this pg so I'd love to chat with any other hypothyroid mamas to learn from you and calm my nerves.

I was diagnosed (hypothyroid and Hashimotos) this past summer and when I saw the endocrinologist recently he said my thyroid is gone so I was taking synthroid 100mcg before and now 150mcg. I will get my blood drawn next week to see where my levels are. They were .6 before getting pg.

I just hope I am doing everything right to keep me and baby healthy. I'm also wondering about how it will effect breastfeeding but I know I've got awhile before I have to worry about that.

[mimi!]

surfmama: with ds I was really worried about my TSH too, but really, everything was fine. I had it tested every month and increased the dose only once. I don't remember what week that was, but I recently read that around week 8 your body needs more T4 so maybe then you'll need to increase it a bit. I think I added in .25mcg of eltroxyn at the time. Even with my last pg. my TSH was fine and not the cause of the m/c.

HTH

[surf mama]

Jessica-thanks for sharing your experience. This is all so new to me and being so early in the pg I'm just feeling so nervous about it.

[autumnfaery]

I've got Hashimoto's also. I was dx right before getting pg with my first (so 8.5(!!) years ago). It's not been a problem with any of my pregnancies. Other than keeping tabs on my levels and upping my dose once or twice during the pregnancy. I'm currently on 150 mcg, but the dr wants to up me to 175mcg right away, now that I'm pregnant. My last level was 1.4, which is pretty good for me. You want to keep your TSH down around 1 if you can. Back in my first pregnancy, my endocrinologist said, especially during pregnancy, it's better to be a little on the hyper side than on the hypo side.

As for after, my levels always get really wonky (I go hyper), but with some time and messing with my dosage, it levels off pretty good usually. I've never had any trouble with breastfeeding as a result of my thyroid.

[surf mama]

Dena-that is so good to hear! I guess I've just read worst case stories and figured that was the norm. I'm glad to hear that my thyroid probably won't cause any problems.

I have been taking 150 and it is making me feel hyperthyroid. My endo also told me it was better to be a little hyper but it doesn't feel good. I am hoping to get in to get tested tomorrow so they can adjust it. I'm glad breastfeeding went well. I had such a good experience nursing my dd I wanted to make sure I could do it again.

[Henry's_Mamma]

I'm also hypo (no Hashimoto's dx, but I suspect). I've been on meds since Jan. of 1999. My ob last pg only tested me once a trimester and I know my levels went up in a not so pleasant way (for me at least -- still within the range of "normal"). But I had a healthy full-term pg. Ds is STILL bfing (at 25 months), and the only problems we had were entirely unrelated to me being hypo.

I'm going to insist that my mw check me more frequently and make appropriate adjustments to keep me in my more comfortable range. I wish I had an endo but none of them are in my insurance and I can't afford to go out-of-network right now. If you have an endo., keep him/her involved in your pre-natal care and testing.

[magpiedee]

Yep, i'm hypo with Hashimoto's, and my endo says my thyroid is having "death throes" and rocketing up and down. He still assured me that I could have a perfectly safe and comfortable pregnancy, and that I might even find I feel more "normal" during pregnancy. So far, I am! I found out I was hypo in August, started 50mcg Synthroid and was TSH 1.55 as of Nov 3. As soon as I found out I was pg on 12/15, I made an appointment to have my blood tested again, and I am now waiting on the results.

My mom was hyper with graves while she was pregnant with me and was therefore unable to bf me. She says it is one of her biggest regrets in life, although I doubt anything could make us closer than we are now. I am so thankful for the leaps in medicine that will allow me to have a safe and healthy pregnancy and to bf my baby. I feel great and hope it continues!

Good luck to you. We're all going to do fine!

[surf mama]

wow-there are more mamas with hypothyroid then I realized. It's nice to know I'm not the only one and that it has worked out so well for many of you. I just got my blood drawn so I should know my #s later this week.

[nfbmom]

I'm also hypo and have been through 3 of 5 babies. I was dx's 11 yrs ago. To be honest, I never realized being hypo made me high risk. I've got so many other problems I think being hypo is the least of them. I think the biggest problem with thyroid problems and pg is miscarriage and wierd cycles.

As for breastfeeding, never had any problems. I nursed the last two until 18 mo and 28 mo.

Incidentally, my now 3yo dd was dx'd w/ Hashimoto's at age 2. I have a huge family history of it. 4 of 5 siblings have it, my Mom and my fil. So it's not so surprising that dd ended up with it too. I get all of my kids tested yearly for it.

[surf mama]

sounds like I should get my dd tested. My fil is also hypothyroid but I don't know if he has Hashimotos.

I found out my tsh is now 2.9-How low do I need to get it to? I'm glad it's not super high but I know that is starting to get at the upper end of normal.