September 20th
2005
1:44 PM
I posted here in early Sept. about my problems with lisinopril. After reading other posts I started doing some google searches. Because a previous HBP medicine caused my thyroid function go down I was switched to Lisinopril. Two years later, my throid levels which had recovered are now going down again. Several posters mentioned suppelmenting with zinc to deal with the cough so many people develop. A "lisinopril zinc" search had several sites that all stated in practically the same words that no research showed a link to zinc and lisinopril but supplementation might be a good idea. (Don't dose yourself with zinc because that can cause things to go out of whack.) I also found an article by Dr. Ron Hoffman about "Drugs That Steal." He reported that ACE-inhibitors caused zinc to be depleted from the body.
Then, I googled "zinc TSH". TSH is the indicator of how your thyroid is working. There I found several articles about how low zinc levels may cause low thyroid symptoms. Ask low-thyroid sufferers how hard it is to get doctors to diagnose and deal with this wide range of symptoms that are often vague.
Now I'm stuck. Is it lisionpril or is it my thyroid? My doctor sees the HBP first and wants to add medications to deal with the first medication's side effects. But then suppose there are more side effects from the next medication. This is a real quality of life issue.
April 4th
2008
12:06 AM
I'd like to say that I think the Old version of Synthroid that existed
before 1982-83 was MUCH better than what is produced today,
I'd done quite well on Old Synthroid from 1975 to 1982 after
RAI treatment for a bad case of Grave's disease when I was
eleven years old....but when Synthroid was changed to be
more "cost-effective" for its manufacturer, my life was basically
destroyed--and I haven't recovered since then, despite trying many
different doses of various thyroid drugs.
Symptoms I've gotten since Synthroid changed in '82 include:
Severe breathing trouble that really limits what I can do every
single day; extremely dry skin in certain places--like legs and
feet; much poorer memory and thinking ability; much drier hair
and too much hair falling out; tendency to get chest pains whether
dose is too low, too high, or "normal," have had a lot of trouble with
blood pressure at times; getting red in face; too much weight gain
for what I eat; lymphedema (much swelling in legs and feet),
inability to sleep well; always feel congested or blocked up;
vision problems like black spots floating before eyes; sensitivity
to light; double or triple vision at times; involuntary eye-twitching
at times. I'm sure I've forgotten some things, too....
A very odd thing about Synthroid since 1982 (and the other drugs
that've copied it, since that time) is that it tends to give me
symptoms of both high and low thyroid trouble at the same
time, while also causing new symptoms that I'd never had in
the first place. Old Synthroid was much more clear-cut for me.
If the dose was too low, I'd have typical low thyroid symptoms
only (too tired, dry skin, etc), and if too high, I'd get only typical
high thyroid symptoms (too nervous, insomnia, racing heart, etc),
Much easier to adjust and work with than today's Synthroid.
At any rate, I was left with little working thyroid gland after my
intitial Grave's treatment, so I am (unfortunately) very dependent
on GOOD thyroid medicine to help me. In my opinion, I haven't
had any good stuff to take since Old Synthroid left the market
in 1982-83. Haven't been well to accomplish much since that
time--feel like I'm getting punished for being a thyroid patient,
which is ridiculous, really--because I know better medicine once
existed, and I want it again!
Have tried many avenues to get someone to produce Old Synthroid
-- By sd357 | Reply | (6) replies | Private Message meagain, but no luck--I'm not rich, famous, or politically connected,
so no one listens to me. But if anyone out there reading this can
help in some way, please feel free to contact me--maybe we can
work together to bring back a better treatment that would help at
least some folks out there who are really suffering. S.D.