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I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism in 2011 (I was 28 at the time) and when they tested me my tsh was over 70 so I got on medication right away. It has been over 8 years now and my numbers have been stable for a while but I still don’t feel the way I did before I got diagnosed. It seems like there’s always books and blogs and videos of people talking about how to heal your thyroid. Has anyone had any real life experience with this and not just for subclinical hypothyroidism but for severe cases?
So OP are you saying you felt better with a TSH of 70? I've had my struggles with thyroid starting my 50's and my TSH was like 2 or 3 at the time and since I've been on support since 2002, all depression is gone. Maybe you are on the incorrect med for your issue. T3 and T4 are important and I follow the info on Stop The Thyroid Madness blog.
So OP are you saying you felt better with a TSH of 70? I've had my struggles with thyroid starting my 50's and my TSH was like 2 or 3 at the time and since I've been on support since 2002, all depression is gone. Maybe you are on the incorrect med for your issue. T3 and T4 are important and I follow the info on Stop The Thyroid Madness blog.
I meant to word it more clearly, I meant I felt better when my thyroid was functional and I needed no meds. I feel leaps and bounds better now that my thyroid panel numbers are in a normal range than I did when my tsh was abnormally high. I just find it hard to feel how I did when everything was working on its own.
I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism in 2011 (I was 28 at the time) and when they tested me my tsh was over 70 so I got on medication right away. It has been over 8 years now and my numbers have been stable for a while but I still don’t feel the way I did before I got diagnosed. It seems like there’s always books and blogs and videos of people talking about how to heal your thyroid. Has anyone had any real life experience with this and not just for subclinical hypothyroidism but for severe cases?
Do you have vitamin deficiencies? I have a friend and a coworker who have Hashimoto’s and they both also have chronically low vitamin D. One lives in FL, is out in the sun regularly and eats a health diet, so he has no idea why his vitamin D is low.
Do you have vitamin deficiencies? I have a friend and a coworker who have Hashimoto’s and they both also have chronically low vitamin D. One lives in FL, is out in the sun regularly and eats a health diet, so he has no idea why his vitamin D is low.
I don’t have any deficiencies I am aware of. I have had my vitamin D and B12 tested in the past and they were normal. I do take Vitamin D supplements daily because the podiatrist recommended it due to when she took X-rays of my foot she said my bones were abnormally thin and she was worried. (Side note: nothing was broken but I had deep muscle tears in the intrinsic muscles of my feet- determined by other testing) Based on this I got a DEXA scan but they determined my bone mass was higher than the baseline they compared it to so my doctor concluded I just have a very small frame and bone structure. I take a multivitamin daily also.
I have hypothyroidism, and I will say that diet plays a HUGE role. I've eliminated all grains, dairy, soy, alcohol, etc. and I feel like a new person. The AIP (Autoimmune Protocol) diet is wonderful. The thing is that most people won't make these changes. They want to keep eating crap and still feel better, lose weight, whatever. It doesn't work that way.
When the soy rage hit the U.S. I jumped into the soy milk and didn't realize the damage I was doing to my thyroid..a chiro tested me with his therapies and found soy was the culprit....I was falling over with fatigue drinking the soy, I avoid all soy as best I can. It's in so much ... but I do my best.
I have had hypothyroidism for 31 years, since age 16. Back then I developed a goiter so they did all kinds of testing. I do not have Hashimotos (tested for that many times over the years). I have been on Synthroid pretty much the whole time. I tried to go off in college way back in 1992 thinking I didn't need it and it didn't take long for my TSH to shoot way up over 100 and I was nearly bed ridden. Since then I have taken it consistently every morning spaced away from eating by several hours. I was told I would be on it for life. My dose has ranged over the years from 50 mcg to 137 mcg but for years now it's been 112 mcg. I take brand name Synthroid as the generic caused my numbers to bounce all over and I felt horrible on it. I feel so much better on Synthroid and all my numbers are stable (T3,T4, TSH etc).
I am not one who cuts out a ton of foods. I did that for a while. I was down to raw vegan due to an eating disorder, living on fruit and leafy greens for weeks. I was very very underweight. I was soy free vegan for 6.5 years (though very occasionally would consume soy but avoided it for the most part). I did periods of gluten free as well, but it didn't make any difference even after several months, though keeping soy intake down definitely makes a difference. Years ago I drank soy milk regularly and TSH shot way up. Simply cutting that out brought it back down without the need to increase meds.
I am skeptical of claims of curing thyroid disease with diet or supplements if you have genuine thyroid disease. Certainly what and how you eat can help your meds work better and help you feel better over all. I am pescetarian now, eat small amounts of fish, a few eggs each week, a little bit of dairy, still mostly plant based. I do not avoid gluten or dairy. I do keep added sugar down. I maintain a low healthy weight and have for five years (was underweight for years before that). I exercise very consistently which has done wonders for my energy and sense of well being. I started with an exercise program in 2007 as back then I was going through surgical menopause in early 30s and my body felt like it has been hit by a freight train. Worst decision of my life to have that surgery. At any rate I also ended up with severe osteoporosis and was in bad shape all around. I worked with a physical therapist and started exercising regularly and at first it was tough but in the long run it made a huge difference in strength, energy, mental outlook. It did not cure my thyroid disease but it certainly helps regulate my metabolism.
I do suspect that having thyroid disease and being on thyroid meds for so many years has had a profound effect on my bone density since I had such low DEXA scores as early as age 34. It is something to monitor for sure if you have been on thyroid meds more than five years! I am not thrilled having to take a medication (and brand name Synthroid is not cheap) but it makes a difference for me. Very briefly I tried other thyroid meds, Cytomel and Armour I believe, and felt horrible on those. I also feel horrible on generic levothyroxine. My sister doesn't feel well on Synthroid and claims she does better on Armour but she is always freezing and wears sweaters even in summer.
I haven't met anyone who had genuine thyroid disease and claims it was cured. I've seen some raw vegan gurus claim that diet cures it but I highly doubt it.
I have had hypothyroidism for 31 years, since age 16. Back then I developed a goiter so they did all kinds of testing. I do not have Hashimotos (tested for that many times over the years). I have been on Synthroid pretty much the whole time. I tried to go off in college way back in 1992 thinking I didn't need it and it didn't take long for my TSH to shoot way up over 100 and I was nearly bed ridden. Since then I have taken it consistently every morning spaced away from eating by several hours. I was told I would be on it for life. My dose has ranged over the years from 50 mcg to 137 mcg but for years now it's been 112 mcg. I take brand name Synthroid as the generic caused my numbers to bounce all over and I felt horrible on it. I feel so much better on Synthroid and all my numbers are stable (T3,T4, TSH etc).
I am not one who cuts out a ton of foods. I did that for a while. I was down to raw vegan due to an eating disorder, living on fruit and leafy greens for weeks. I was very very underweight. I was soy free vegan for 6.5 years (though very occasionally would consume soy but avoided it for the most part). I did periods of gluten free as well, but it didn't make any difference even after several months, though keeping soy intake down definitely makes a difference. Years ago I drank soy milk regularly and TSH shot way up. Simply cutting that out brought it back down without the need to increase meds.
I am skeptical of claims of curing thyroid disease with diet or supplements if you have genuine thyroid disease. Certainly what and how you eat can help your meds work better and help you feel better over all. I am pescetarian now, eat small amounts of fish, a few eggs each week, a little bit of dairy, still mostly plant based. I do not avoid gluten or dairy. I do keep added sugar down. I maintain a low healthy weight and have for five years (was underweight for years before that). I exercise very consistently which has done wonders for my energy and sense of well being. I started with an exercise program in 2007 as back then I was going through surgical menopause in early 30s and my body felt like it has been hit by a freight train. Worst decision of my life to have that surgery. At any rate I also ended up with severe osteoporosis and was in bad shape all around. I worked with a physical therapist and started exercising regularly and at first it was tough but in the long run it made a huge difference in strength, energy, mental outlook. It did not cure my thyroid disease but it certainly helps regulate my metabolism.
I do suspect that having thyroid disease and being on thyroid meds for so many years has had a profound effect on my bone density since I had such low DEXA scores as early as age 34. It is something to monitor for sure if you have been on thyroid meds more than five years! I am not thrilled having to take a medication (and brand name Synthroid is not cheap) but it makes a difference for me. Very briefly I tried other thyroid meds, Cytomel and Armour I believe, and felt horrible on those. I also feel horrible on generic levothyroxine. My sister doesn't feel well on Synthroid and claims she does better on Armour but she is always freezing and wears sweaters even in summer.
I haven't met anyone who had genuine thyroid disease and claims it was cured. I've seen some raw vegan gurus claim that diet cures it but I highly doubt it.
No one said that changing diet cured anything. But it sure as heck helps. A lot.
How old are you now?? It might be an "age" thing. Had my thyroid removed in 2000. Never had my meds changed at all. I eat a fairly healthy diet. 19 years later I don't spring out of bed etc. I get tired, etc. NINETEEN YEARS HAVE PAST. I don't point my finger to the thyroid. Get a thorough physical check up etc. I dunno what to say.
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