The MakeMeThinner Support Forum

[TonyR]

I had to go Monday and get a physical for work because I was trying to go from the 2nd level of Life Insurance to 4X my base salary and of course the Insurance company didn't believe that I had lost 153 pounds from last year when I tried to do this.. .. the physical went fine and the doc was shocked at my weight loss, but praised me for making a healthy change in my life.

I got the results back from the labs and my cholesterol was 147 and my blood sugars were 76. The doctors office called and said that I am showing an underactive thyroid and that he wants to do more blood tests. Here are some symptoms that I have experienced:


Increased sensitivity to cold
Constipation
Pale, dry skin
Hoarse voice
Muscle aches, tenderness and stiffness
Pain, stiffness or swelling in your joints
Muscle weakness
excessive tiredness

In addition, you may become more forgetful, your thought processes may slow

I forget some things that I would remember right away!!

Anybody else experiencing this...it also says that eating high amounts of soy can bring this problem on...

[Ct. Yankee]

~~~

[Mike]

I got the results back from the labs and my cholesterol was 147 and my blood sugars were 76.

Tony, sorry to hear about the thyroid problems. Congrats on the other tests though, those are great numbers.
Get healthy, cuz you gotta take care of that wonderful wife, the new one coming, and that precious daughter of yours.

[Serendipity]

Increased sensitivity to cold
Constipation
Pale, dry skin
Hoarse voice
Muscle aches, tenderness and stiffness
Pain, stiffness or swelling in your joints
Muscle weakness
excessive tiredness

In addition, you may become more forgetful, your thought processes may slow

Wow, I've had most of those symptoms, but just attribute it to getting old!....I guess it could be that, too.

[TonyR]

yeah I thought so too, but I am only 32!!

[TheShadow]

Tony, I've been hypothyroid for many years (20+). I was diagnosed at age 23, quite by accident, when blood tests were done for another issue. They will probably do an antibody test, to see if you have anti-thyroid antibodies. That would indicate what is known as Hashimoto's disease. It's auto-immune disorder where your immune system attacks your thyroid. It's good that you found this. The treatment is super simple, you just take thyroid hormone pill every morning for the rest of your life. It's really not a big deal once they get your meds to the right level. You will get tested at least once a year after that to make sure your meds are sufficient, and that's it. The thyroid hormones are like the master of your metabolism, and they have quite a role in weight gain and loss, so getting them to the right level will help you stay your newly svelte self. It will give you more energy and work on those aches and pains too. It doesn't happen overnight though. It will take weeks for your levels to come up on the meds and then they will re-test you, until you get to the right dosage. Good luck and don't worry. Many, many people have this and it doesn't affect their lives negatively at all once they're on the meds and at the right dose.

[Mike]

The thyroid hormones are like the master of your metabolism, and they have quite a role in weight gain and loss, so getting them to the right level will help you stay your newly svelte self.

I remember when I was 12 I was tested for hypothyroidism. I prayed that that was the reason I was fat. .:sigh:. unfortunately, it wasn't the reason. It was because I ate too much But now I have Medifast, and its changed my life

[nickieluv]

Hi - I was just diagnosed last spring, around March, and since then I've been to the doctor every 2 months for lab work and dosage adjustments. It's a bit of a pain having all those appointments but the doctor is always telling me that when we get it right, I'll have more enery and feel better and it will help the weight loss, too. There are issues with the soy in MF and when you take your pill, so watch out for that if you do indeed have low thyroid. I take mine now at night and I always have the hot cocoa or something else without soy as my last meal of the day, just to be safe. It's not so bad, though, as diseases go - you'll be fine!

[Mike]

It's not so bad, though, as diseases go - you'll be fine!

That just hit me the right way I think. Sounded very funny.

[bikipatra]

I am on synthroid but almost always forget to take it as prescribed, one hour before my meal or even coffee with milk in the morning. What an order!

[Seaside]

Sheesh. It worried me to hear that soy could affect hypothyroidism so I bashed around on the net a while. What I got out of a very quick scan of the literature is that the isoflavones in soy can affect people who have already have low thyroid function, but whether consumption of soy products causes thyroid problems isn't clear, except in infants who drink soy formula.

Anyone got any more info on this?

[TheShadow]

Basically, soy can affect the absorbtion of the thyroid hormone that us hypo people have to take. So we are not supposed to have any soy within one hour of taking our thyroid meds. I put my pills right next to my toothbrush so I take them within about 10 minutes of getting out of bed. I eat about an hour or more later. I find putting them next to the toothbrush reminds me to take them, because my mouth tastes so funky in the morning I never forget to brush my teeth.
One good thing to know about thyroid hormone is that it takes a long time for changes in dosage to show up in your blood, like 6 weeks! So if you have soy and don't perfectly absorb your hormone one day, it's not suddenly going to cause you a problem. Just try not to do that again. It will even itself out over time. It's really the easiest disease to manage I think. If I have to have an ilness, this one's not all that bad.

[bikipatra]

My doctor told me that any food could affect the absorbtion of synthroid so that is why it had to be taken an hour before breakfast. This is just what I was told and didn't often follow!

[big ron]

Tony,
I have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis which causes Hypothyroidism. There are different diseases that can cause the thyroid to be underactive but the good news is they found it and its easy to treat. You with probably be put on Synthroid or similar medicine and this is a very small pill you take one every day for the rest of your life. They have to check your blood every 6 weeks to adjust your dosage due to the 1/2 life(drug buildup) that the drug has in your system.They have to move the dosage in increments carefully since it is dangerous to go overactive.
The good thing is it will help your weightloss to get it regulated. The symptoms you describe are real and I get them when I am off. The forgetfullness and Foggy feeling is real. Mood swings is also a symptom.
Dont get worried it is not curable but very treatable and you can be normal otherwise.
One tip when you take your pill do it the same time every day and it will be more stable. I always take mine an hour before I eat that way it doesnt react as much with the food. Some food can effect the drugs dosage. Hope this helps Ron

[TonyR]

Thanks everyone! My goal is to not even have to take any drugs and that my diet (transition out of medifast somewhat except the 2 or 3 supplements) will help this.