Synthroid and synthroid

Ive been on synthroid since Saturday august 23rd and I noticed Im more nervous like I want to climb the walls and im sweating profusly. I have lost over 100 lbs since February and I had blood work done on tues august 19th and the doctor put me on 25 mg. Im suppose to go back in 6 weeks and get my level checked again but Im going to call the doctors office tomorrow and tell them what is happening. If this is what is going to happen Im not staying on it. Im only 42 and I am battling deg.disc disease which hurts enough and sciatia.

Hi,
I am 50 years old. I was diagnosed with as hypo at age 39. My doctor prescribed Synthroid at 25mcg and I have (proudly-ha!) worked my way up to 125mcg. I was always one of the "lucky ones" who could eat any and everything and my weight stayed the same. I am a busy mom of two and a first grade teacher, so the 33 lbs. I have gained since age 39 has not been due to diet changes or sitting around with a bag of chips in front of a TV all day. I also questioned my doctor about this and he just brushed it off. Well, I am tired of not feeling good about myself. My life is in good order except for my weight. I want someone to take this seriously. Should I see a specialist rather than my regular internist?
Wow! I think I just lost a little weight telling you great people about this!
jf

It took 3 years for me to be diagnosed with hypothyroidism and for a year I tried levethyroxine. This was a total waste of time. I was so exhausted the kids kept missing school, I kept walking into things, couldn't remember anything so I asked my doctor to let me try armour thyroid. This has apparently T4 T3 T2 and T1 and the T2 is the one that helps your metabolism (weight).
The change is nothing short of miraculous...I know it may not work for everyone but it is worth trying. I also had very extreme mood swings and the doctors were considering manic depression, but the latest thinking with that is to take your TSH levels higher before considering drugs such as lithium. I have just moved to Reading and my new doctor thought my T3 levels too high so reduced my armour dosage by half .....BIG mistake. Ended up in bed for days, couldn't remember which day it was, and the mood swings
!!!!!!! screaming, tearing my hair in frustration, punching my boyfriend. I staggered, literally, in tears back to the doctor who reinstated my original dosage of 2 grains one day 3 the next etc. For me my TSH has to be 0.1,
T4 around 14 and T3 around 8 to 9; basically on the high side but my blood pressure stays low as does my body temp and I feel alive again. It is worth trying different variations synthetic T4 AND T3, and don't rule out armour thyroid if nothing else is working after 6 months of use.

I was diagnosed with graves disease last year, I had a really acute case that turned me into a total nut job.
In October after going through several thyroid storms and the doctors not being able to keep me stable with medications, I had a full thyroidectomy in October.
I started on .100 mcg of levothyroxine and then the dosage was gradually decreased, I started having a lot of random body aches, mood swings, lots of muscular pains and no energy.
They ended up raising my dosage and detected that I had a large vitamin D deficiency, after several treatments of taking 50,000 units of vitamin D, and also adding my levothyroxine dosage I started feeling better. I still have mood swings here and there, and feel sad periodically, but the last month or so I've been feeling more fine than I have in a long time. They have me on .170 mcg of levothyroxine for two months now. Last week I started getting headaches more frequently, and one of the times I got this nose bleed.
This past weekend I got a headache, and then later that night I had another nose bleed.
I don't usually get nose bleeds or this many headaches so I'm a little concerned.
Also the last time I was getting headaches and constant nosebleeds was when I was really hyperthyroid.
As far as the doctors go, I'm in between insurances and quite honestly I've been frustrated with both my pcp and endocrinologist...

Re: Dosage Confusion- Synthroid

This simple of communicating dosage became confusioning. To prevent confusion synthroid is always discussed in terms of (mcg). That is, micrograms (mcg) vs. milligram (mg).

This is of tremendous value The conversion factor is 1000, for example a dose of Synthroid represented as 0.025mg, would be converted as
.025mg x 1000=25mcg. To fully understand this blogger’s statement feel comfortable to talk with your pharmacist or physician.

I've been on synthroid now for about a year. My dosage is VERY little (0.075). My doctor keeps running blood tests every 3 months and assures me I am within the "lower-end" of the norm, but I still feel tired, sleep deprived, wake up with night-sweats and I keep gaining weight...

I am only 24 and have just been told that I need to take this medication for the rest of my life, it\s pretty depressing. I keep asking if there are other ways to lose weight and feel more energized. He tells me that I need to keep taking this medication and has put me on a "sleep hygeine" routine where I go to bed and wake up at the same time every day.

Does this "disease" mean I will always be overweight and tired for the rest of my life? I would like to know if someone else with more experience with this medication can give any sort of advice? Feeling a little hopeless about it and not really interested in complaining to my doctor anymore.

Thanks:)

I have been on synthyroid for the past 4 months and my doses have been increased from .75 to .112 which I am currently on. I weigh 92 pounds, which is my normal weight, but it seems this new increased dose has increased my appetite (I always had a fast metabolism) given my palpitations, flushing, sweating, high and low blood pressure and generally feeling overstimulated. It's been two weeks since my dose was increased and I felt better with the lower doses. My endocrinologist keeps increasing my dose since my TSH levels are still not in the right numbers, but this new dose is making me sicker than I was before. Could this new dose be too high for me.

I have Hashi's and have been on Synthroid for about 2 years. I was recently on 75 mcg and was teetering on the brink of being hypo again so my doctor increased my dosage to 88 mcg last week. Ever since I have been on the new dosage, I have had the worst insomnia. I wake up covered in sweat (in air conditioning) and I feel caffeinated all the time ( I don't consume caffeine). I feel strung out! Is my body just getting used to the new dosage or am I being over medicated? I don't want to complain yet to my doctor if this is just my body getting used to the new dosage but this really is terrible.

Hello To All,

I too am on this med, I have been on it for 1 year as of July 2008-

35 pounds, brain fog, headaches, eye sight for reading, chest pain and fluttering heart beat. My doctor who is my friend has told me that he will up my dose... "Dear God" any more and I will go nuts. Does anyone know of any study done in a medical journal that theu could forward to me so I can show my doctor.

Please email me at ****** I would be so very thankful.

Thanks to all and be healthy.

I am a diabetic with hashi. I had been taking synthroid longer than metformin and had been on both for at least a year now. Recently I have been to ER due to heart palpitation and shortness of breath, so I had stopped my synthroid .1 for one day and felt better. So I stopped taking synthroid altogether, After 3 weeks I took it again because I was afraid not to follow my doctors order. 3 days into it, I was back to a high pulse, shortness of breath, chest pin and palpitation. I went to a different doctor,
and he agreed that we experiment on the dosage and try a generic brand.
I took .25 this time and I had the same reaction as taking synthroid .1.
I have now stopped completely, I am hoping to that my doctor will listen to me and will give something else other than synthroid.

Wow! So glad and sad to find other sufferers. I wish our doctors would listen to us and take us seriously! Why are they stuck on forcing Synthroid on us? At this point, I think I'd rather not take any Synthroid. I stumbled upon this site while looking for something I might take to counteract the effects of Synthroid. I had to halve my 112 mg pills because of the side effects: frequents headaches, bloating, weight gain, irritability and anxiety, dry mucus membranes (eyes, nose, throat, etc.), allergies, muscle fatigue, achy joints. Of course, my doctor is slowly upping the dosage again, because my TSH is chronically high, but I feel like sh*t, physically and mentally. I used to feel so much more normal and like myself before I was diagnosed and "forced" to take Synthroid.

This medicine is horrible for me! I gave it a long while to give it a chance. Rapid weight gain, hair loss (ongoing), terrible aches and pains, hives, dead tired, terribly hot, irritable...the list goes on and on. After getting pro-active with my health care provider, I have now changed to Armour and now I'm remembering what 'normal' feels like again. I've lost all the weight I gained, my hair and skin feel much softer. I can't believe the amount of people that feel bad on this drug. It seems to be bad-mouthed all over the internet. I guess as long as the major drug companies retain it as the 2nd or 3rd best selling drug in the States and continue to fund, wine and dine and court physicians, we're never going to get rid of it. I chose to dispose of every single one of those evil pills. Armour stepped in to change my life for the better as Synthroid was slowly destroying me.

A couple of other symptoms I didn't mention before are I still get cold a lot and ibuprofen is my best friend because of all the aches and pains. But running on 3-5 hours of sleep a night with the occasional 7 hours has definitely diminished the quality of my life.

I was diagnosed as having Hypothyroidism in 1-07. My TSH was 83 and I was sleepy all the time, moody and anxious, hair falling out, gaining weight, heavy clotting peiods, etc. I was 51 and it was all blamed for a while in perimenopause. I have been on Synthroid .50 since then and some things are better like hair loss and sleepiness. My last check a few months ago was 1.3. What I hate most of all is waking up after a few hours of sleep and I feeing like I am on some kind of speed. My mind is wide awake and jumping from one thought to another, sometimes sweating heavily with my heart racing. I was diagnosed 10 years ago with Inappropriate Sinus Tachycardia and was on Beta blockers for a while. I have a new doctor now and never discussed this with her. The anxiety is awful sometimes too . I start to get fears of not being able to swallow or breathe but can keep it under control. An average night of sleep is five broken up hours of sleep and every now and then from exhaustion I will get close to seven hours. I am foggy headed a lot but I never hardly yawn or feel sleepy in the daytime.

I suggest to anyone that has Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (type of Hypothyroidism) to have a blood test done for Celiac Disease. There has been research done linking Celiac Disease and Hashimoto's Thyroiditis. Celiac Disease can be controlled by a gluten-free diet (wheat, rye, and barley free). In the US, not many doctors recognize/know of this link. I have been hypothyroid for 20 years (had Hodgkin's Disease (cancer) - radiation/chemo at age 16) I have 2 sisters with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis and were iron and B12 deficient. I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis 3 months ago with iron and B12 deficiency. I have been on a gluten-free diet for 2 months now. My dosage of synthroid (levothyroxine) was 175 mcg and now is down to 137 mcg. I hope that I am one of the lucky ones that will have their antibodies to their thyroid normalized (no more synthroid!) I have a couple of days left before my next blood test and I hope that it goes down more. I am feeling better now than I have in a very long time. I have attached a link for those of you interested. It is an endocrine article from Finland outling the link between Celiac Disease and Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (among other things). I hope that this helps some of you. http://edrv.endojournals.org/cgi/content/full/23/4/464

I've been on Synthroid for 8 months after gaining 10 pounds in two months. The symptoms started to appear when my Mom was very ill. Doctor said it was caused by stress and started me on 25 mcg of Synthroid. My reading at that time was 5.56. I had blood work done every 4 weeks,and the numbers are going down (1.8 last reading), but so is the quantity of my hair, which I see all over my white tile. My weight hasn't budged even though I am dieting. My doctor upped me to 100 mcgs. My blood work is not good - low white count, low lymphocytes, borderline anemic. Mom died, and I didn't get any better. I feel sick all the time and it's difficult for my husband to understand how bad I feel. I've tried to get my doctor to prescrive Armour, but he doesn't even return my phone calls. When I see him in the office, he keeps telling me it takes time. I hate living this way and want to stop the pills completely.

I just took synthroid for the first time last night, and had some intensely weird nightmare dreams, which is why I am here, googling "synthroid" and "nightmares" - has anyone had this experience and had it subside? Please respond if that's the case, I certainly don't want my sleep to be like this every night.

I have been on Synthroid since about 1995. I had a thyroidectomy and do not have a thyroid anymore. I have been on 0.175 mcg for about 10 years and did not have any side effects except for fatigue and a little depression.Everything else was pretty good. My TSH is registering low so my doctor moved me to 0.1 mcg of Synthroid and 5 micrograms of Cytomel. I took this for about three weeks and for the last 1.5 weeks have had awful headaches and the dryest eyes ever. Something, I have not experienced before. My doctor keeps saying he wants to help me but does not listen to
any of my symptoms. I actually pulled off the symptoms from the list online of hypothyroidism and have 15 out of about 20. I am wondering why I felt so much better on the higher dose than this low dose. Can anyone releate. I am starting to think maybe my body is not processing this right. The funny thing is is that my lab work came back with normal results today, which means my doc is probably going to keep me where I am and I feel the worst I have felt in ten years.

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
again, 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.

Would like to know if anyone with side effects to Synthroid, have at any time been diagnosed with Sarcoidosis(inflammation of the lungs). I only get symptoms(read other posts) when taking Synthroid, not other thyroid meds. Please reply a.s.a.p.

My thyroid troubles started in 1993. I am not sure how long before the discovery I had the problem. Mine started as a nodule on one side. I was immediately put on Synthroid and had to go see the Endo every 6 months for a biopsy. In 1995 I became pregnant. I had one more biopsy until after the birth of my daughter. The Endo told me he wanted to see me right away after she was born to do another biopsy. I had my suspisions, but didn't think anyhing until after she was born and went for my biopsy. Well, I had cancer. I went through the whole thyroidectomy, the 3 days isolation with radio-iodine, and every year to every few years after I had to go back and get the radio-iodine treatment, while not the high dose as the first time, it went with the complete body scan. In fact, I am due now, but don't have health insurance. My dose has been switched a lot, I have probably been on every dose from the lowest up to .200mcg, which has been the highest for myself.

Symptoms: pre-thyroid disease, I am 5'2. I was always 110-115 lbs, I was 22 yrs old and 120 lbs. when I married in 1993. I did notice gradual weight gain, probably because of my thyroid problems. I am sad to say that now I am around 180 lbs. I cannot seem to lose the weight unless I go on a total starvation diet. I managed to lose 10-15 lbs over the past summer, but unfortunately for me it has come back over the winter. I tried to stay as active as possible by going to stores and malls to walk around. I do for a fact notice that when my dosage for Synthroid goes higher, so does my weight gain. I was on .137mcg over the summer, and I think that was a good dose for me, that was through the regular dr. The Endo is the one who put me back up to .150mcg. My Endo told me the thyroid is a regenerative organ, so it CAN grow back. I guess they don't want that in case of cancer again, and I guess that is why he keeps me on higher doses.

I personally cannot stand it. I feel it is a horrible curse. I feel very robbed of my previous active life. I have been dealing with this now for 12 years not having a thyroid and being on this medication. I feel angry that I do not have the energy to do things with my 12 yr old and 3 yr old. I miss the way I was before having thyroid disease. I feel very sad when they come up to me asking to do certain things and they (nor anyone else I know for that fact) can understand that I just feel so whooped, and no energy. All I ever seem to want to do is take a nap. I have migraine headaches constantly, I am constantly tired. I cannot concentrate, I have some memory loss. My ex-husband, and my current husband too for that fact think I am just being lazy. Well, that is not so. There are moments when I do feel a burst of energy, but then, I have to use that burst to do the things I need to do around the house.

Pre thyroid disease I was always active, never tired, could do anything. After: TIRED, I was 24 in 1996 and felt like an old lady, dry skin, no matter how much lotion I put on. The tub is full of hair, while it doesn't come out in clumps and I still have thick hair, I have hair all over the place. Irritable, mood swings, happy to angry and the snap of a finger. I can have insomnia some nights, constipation, lots of the same stuff others have listed on this forum. Those side affects are the same no matter what dose I am on. And like I said the higher the dose for me, the more weight I pack on. It is instantanious. Over Christmas, and no, it wasn't from eating all the goodies, I gained a lot of the weight I had lost over summer back, and that was because a few weeks before, the Endo had put me on the .150 mcg.

I switched from a generic levothyroxine to Synthroid. After four days I awoke with extreme pain in one heel and the opposite knee. Both were caused by inflammations with no known cause in exercise or joint trauma. I switched back to the generic and both problems improved rapidly. Was Synthroid the cause? I don't know.

I have been on synthroid for about 6 months now. Some of the side effects I have been experiencing are numerous.I have hair loss, sometimes I get so ill that no one can stand to be around me, my weight has gone up about 30 pounds, my cholesterol levels went sky high so now I'm taking Crestor, I'm bloated most times, I have episodes where my face flushes and gets so red that it feels like its on fire, and now I've just started experiencing burning and aching of the legs, I'm tired a lot too! My doctor said I would lose the weight but every time I go for check ups and get on the scale it just keeps going up. I would like to know if anyone else out there is experiencing the burning and achy legs because I have been tested for everything and they can't find out what is going on. They of course say it's not the medication.It seems to never be. Does anyone feel me??

I have been on synthroid for about 3 yrs. I am considered subclinical (can't find hypothyroidism with blood test- normal range).
Grant it, the medicine took away the almost angina pain and loss of breath. However, my body seems to have deteriated structurally. I have tremendous lower back pain, that worsened. I have been in pain every day since. I starve, (veggies - then dinner). It's been very, very difficult. Always looking for help.I'm hoping that a natural hormone will change this, I know my husband will be glad; he won't have to hear me cry anymore.

I have read a lot of these blogs and I am seeing that many other people have the same side effects. I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism when I was in 6th or 7th grade I think and I am now a high school senior so about 5 years taking Synthroid. the doctors said that my antibodies had completely destroyed my thyroid gland so I wasn't getting any of the hormones I needed which became very noticeable when I started gaining weight and loosing energy in 5th grade. I haven't really seen any weight gain in a while but I still look like I am overweight. I am 5'6 and 130 lbs so I am about average. Side effects that are also occurring are rapid mood changes, one minute I am happy and something sad happens or I think about something and ill be tearing up. I feel depressed a lot. I am currently on 150 mcg. also during 9th and 10th grade I was put on this drug to stop my puberty so that I could grow more while on the Synthroid I guess it helped a little with height but I still look like a freshman. I don't know if I should stop taking it or keep taking it because I stopped for about a month once and started getting really sick, I would get really bad nose bleeds at random, had constant migraines and felt sick to my stomach. I started taking the Synthroid again and felt fine. I really don't know what to do.

I must say that I HATE this medicine. I have been on it for about 30 years. Constantly like playing a game. Too much then too little. It is driving me crazy. I swear that I have tremors from it. I also have gain lots of weight and my hair falls out everyday. Surprised I am not bald yet. I use to be able to go to the gym for 5-6 days a week and now it is soooo hard to get out of bed in the morning.

I truly wish that there was something that I could do. I have had one side of my thyroid taken out and now have to go and get a ultra sound of the other side. Still cant figure out why the doctor took one side and not the other when the other side had nodules too.

I am so tired of it and just don't know what to do.

I do know that I will be definitely speaking with my endo and even if my levels are okay she has to do something to help me.

175 mcg Synthroid, post Total Thyroidectomy due to bilateral papillary thyroid cancer. Increased appetite and increased bowel activity have been noted as well as a weight gain....even though my level of medication would normally be categorized as hyperthyroid(low TSH is indicated for post cancer treatment) recent tests have indicated elevated blood sugar as well("pre diabetes") some times I wonder if I shouldn't have just risked the cancer.....

hello everyone
i am a full time college student and I believe that i have some side effects from synthroid. As i was reading everyones blog i notice that some people feel the same way that i do. At times i feel that i'm normal but if something upsetting happens i get really tired, depress, and I have a never time concentrating at school and home. My body hurts all the time. especially my joints and i feel that i don't want to do anything. I have about a year left until i graduate and its the going to be hard. I cry sometimes for no reason. help! i'm going to talk to my doctor but if any body else feels the same way please reply.

I have been on Synthroid for about a year. I had high blood pressure and the doctor did a number of tests and found a thyroid deficiency. I started with 75 mcg and was moved up to 100 mcg.

I have gained weight in the last year - at least 15-20 lbs. It is all in the stomach. I look like I'm pregnant. It is very hard to get rid of! I am exercising my tail off, and giving up snacks, sweets, etc, and it's not going away.

I also never had problems sleeping but I do now. I'm glad I found this discussion group, because I see many others have had weight gain problems.

I stopped taking Synthroid after 4 days due to extreme joint pain (9-10 on a scale of 1-10), confusion and emotional roller coaster that's very unusual for me. Like most others, my doctor and a specialist were of no help. I looked online and found that joint pain can be a symptom of hypersensitivity to inactive ingredients.

I discovered that Levoxyl doesn't have the side effects for me that Synthroid does -- in fact, so far I feel great! I suspect I had a hypersensitivity reaction to an inactive ingredient because those ingredients vary greatly from brand to brand. In fact, I wonder if folks who get better with Armor are simply getting better by getting off Synthroid? Maybe others who may be having trouble with Levoxyl could have better luck with a different brand?

It's such a small thing to try, just changing brands, before going through extremes of changing doctors, taking handfuls of other medicines, or suffering through unreasonable side effects. Has anyone else had that experience that switching brands cleared up their side effect problems?

my eyes are puffy all the times no matter what a do they are the same please let me now if any one have that problem and when you started the treatment Synthroid did that when away all what would be better for me to do so I can get back the way my eyes was. i talk to my doctor and never have a answer. Thank You

Hi i have been on synthriod for 10 years now and until 2006 i started having serious surges in my heart rate as well as my hair constantly falling out. i have been to my (endo) doctor so much about all these problems all the tsh test and blood work are fine and normal he says, but you know I really wonder had i not ever gone on this synthroid in the first place would my body be doing this. the papitations i get are so bad, and worse when i eat and settle down in the evening. nobody knows or understands me, but you all who post on this forum because you are all going threw the same thing too.

I was born without a thyroid gland so I can't compare the way I feel now to the way I would've felt with a thyroid. I've been on Synthroid my entire life (22 years), and I'm up to 112 mcg now. I am very skinny (5'5", 104 lbs) and feel constantly fatigued no matter how many hours I sleep, what I eat, and how much exercise I get. I periodically get pain in my hip joints, heart palpitations, and intense mood swings. My thoughts race but I have very little physical energy. I feel restless and gloomy almost all the time for absolutely no good reason. My doctor tells me I'm depressed but I honestly have no reason to be depressed and I wish she would see it as a symptom instead of a diagnosis. I graduated from a good college, I've got a job I like, I have friends, I enjoy life and my hobbies, yet I feel overwhelmingly sad. This does not seem like depression to me.

I find that after I do aerobics I get a tightness in my chest, which makes me worry about my heart, but again my doctor doesn't seem to think this is cause for concern. I have been irritable/fatigued for YEARS and I suspect I'll feel this way for the rest of my life. The worst of it started when I hit 16 years old and started the 112 mcg. My tests are always normal and it frustrates me that my doctor disregards my symptoms. I've tried other doctors, but they always send me away with my 'normal' test results. Can anybody help?

Been taken synthroid for 2.5 years. I am 30 old male, Really athletic.
I notice that I get fatique very easly and memmory and concentration problems. But the most noticable is shortness of Breath, and I have very high anxiety. I lost wait since being on synthroid.

Had total thyroidectomy 9 months ago and started taking Synthroid immediately thereafter. For the last 4 months I have noticed significant hair thinning. I have always had very thick, healthly looking hair but now it's just dry and brittle all of the time. I always feel tired and bloated around my stomach area in particular. I have always been a size 4-6 but have inexplicably gained 6 pounds in the last month. Is there an alternative to snythroid without these side effects?

I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism in April of this year (2007) kind of by accident through a routine checkup. I had gained a bit of weight over the past two years, but that was really my only symptom. I was begun on 75 mcg of a generic brand of Synthroid, levothyroxine. Since I began this medication, I have rapidly gained another 15 pounds despite a 1,000 calorie per day diet. I retain fluid horribly. My ankles, wrists, hands and face swell daily. My muscles ache, especially my legs, upon walking across a room. I'm fatigued, short of breath. My LDL cholesterol level has skyrocketed in only three months and now I'm being told I need to be on a statin drug. I cry frequently and feel uncharacteristically anxious and irritable, but this could be due to the frustration I am experiencing with the loss of my sense of well-being. In essence, I felt much better before being placed on the medication. I may, in fact, discontinue the medication totally and see if over time I begin to feel better. Like so many other stories I'm hearing, my doctor seems totally unconcerned.

I've been on synthroid since October 1996. My ankles are always swollen. That didn't start til I started the medication. My Endocrinologist keeps telling me that it has nothing to do with the meds. My TSH levels are constantly being taken. He says to cut down on salt. I don't eat much salt and besides, I know people that practically eat whole pigs and they don't have swollen ankles. Has anyone experienced this? Any suggestions, I'm desperate!!!

i've been on synthroid for 9 years. started at some low dose and gradually went up to112 mg. get extreme itching all day everyday if i don't take allegra for that.not a rash just itching. that doesn't bother me as much as the fatique. every joint in my body aches all the time. sure there are better days but fo rthe most part it's bad. tried physical therapy and chiripratic care but no avail. they ended my sessions. my legs get sooo weak and my feet burn lower back really aches. sometimes muscle cramps. i'm very negative towards my loving family and it hurts me to do so. can't seem to keep upbeat. soo tired all the time.
is it the syntroid? i used to be very energenic and a doer. now i have spurts of activity in the morning , but then i just can't get motivated. help me any suggestions?

I've been on synthroid for three years now, and was caused by stress during pregnancy. i gained 80 pounds, started losing my hair, and was very fatigue after haveing a baby, when the doctor finally thought something was wrong. She uped the dose two times because no changes have been made, Im still at 147 yes 147 on tests. Im on 125mg now I still feel no difference. I going to be 300 pounds by the time they realize its not working. Thank god Im on adderall too because thats they only thing keeping my weight down.

I think what a lot of people are posting here are more side effects of thyroid conditions rather than side effects of thyroid medication. After my RAI treatment I started on a generic brand of levothyroxine. I even got my doctor to let me try Armour Thyroid since many people do well with it rather than Synthroid. Armour didn't work well for me, but it definitely is the only way to go for some people. After months of misery, things finally smoothed out. I was a royal pain in the butt to my doctor because I questioned everything. The biggest side effect for me going from hyper to hypo was edema. A clinical name for water retention. It wasn't so much the bloated feeling that bugged me. It was the pain in my hands and feet from the water retention. I have never, ever had a problem with carpal tunnel syptoms even though I have always used my hands a lot for work and I play the guitar. I had to add a small dose of dieuretic to control the edema and relieve the hand and feet pain. Sometimes it does flair up depending upon what I eat and how much I sweat, but that's what goes along with this type of illness. It's not just a magic pill that makes you feel "back to normal". You have to be demanding of your doctor to try other things to get you to feel right. You even have to pay attention to how you feel at different times of the year to figure out how to adjust what you take, eat, or do to feel better. I have noticed that with all things remaining constant, how I feel in terms of energy level and edema is related to the season. The body is weird that way. I still have side effects from the treatment from time to time, but I finally figured out what seems to work best for me. Maybe things could change over time, but I've learned that medicine just doesn't have a black and white treatment plan that works the same for everyone for thyroid related conditions. To sum it up, question everything your doctor tells you, demand to try things that you think would help you feel right, pay attention to what your body is telling you and adjust, and fire your doctor if they treat thyroid problems as black and white. Your doctor is not the one suffering from the condition, you are. It's your life and there's nothing wrong with being demanding about wanting to feel right.

I have been taking Synthroid since Jan. 2006, am on 100mcg per day and all test results have been 'normal', I have been told to take this medication in the morning an hour before eating anything, if I do this...I have headache all day, I can't eat after an hour because I am so sick at my stomach there's no way. I feel hungry, but feel like if I eat it's coming right back up. Am having serious joint pain in hips, knees, elbows and wrists, my neck hurts really bad as well. I wake up to arms asleep anymore and just feel like I haven't slept in months...am very weak and very tired all of the time.

I have found that if I take my pill at night this gets a little better, but holy cow, don't tell your Dr. your taking it before bed...no, take it of a day. (don't know why this is a major thing?)

Anymore I feel like I am walking around with flu symptoms constantly, and the Synthroid hasn't done anything weight wise with me, because I was so HYPERthyroid before the RAI, I was very thin and looked like a bag of bones, have been waiting and excited about putting on weight...at one point I stopped taking the Synthroid and let myself go HYPO just so I could gain weight, it worked and I got up to about 130 pounds, was very HYPO so they told me critical that I get back on meds...I lost it again because it makes me so sick I can't eat.

NO-ONE can tell me the Synthroid is not the cause of this problem, if I stop taking it I feel WONDERFUL, but my test reults are bad. After a while of course my feet become numb and I end up having some bad hypo symptoms, have tried breaking pills in half....oh Lord no, need it all...

Have been told they are thinking about raising my dosage again anyway, I can't do this, I will break down in the office if they try to raise it. Right now my TSH is fine but my T4 is 'a tad bit' off. I am already an emotional wreck, if they raise my dosage I am going to try and go a different route with this, am on my 3rd Dr. at this point anyway...

I've been taking synthroid for several years due to radiation caused thyroid damage. I appear to be quite sensitive to Synthroid. I get a total rush from a 77 mcg, but have no such effect when taking a 50 plus a 25. I've been told it is due to the dye in the 77. If my doses are too low (50 mcg), then I feel great for a week or two, but become foggy mentally and after a few weeks have sharp pains in the joints and muscles. At higher doses, I become irritable, have shortness of breath (77 mcg) and have burning sensations in the kidney area.

I find that regular exercise (walking 1-2 miles/day) moderates these effects greatly and stabilizes the emotional swings. The amount of medication that I need to balance between these two extremes varies depending on the amount of exercise I get.

I also suffer from puffy, irritated, dry eyes and when my dosage was too high, I also had bloating. Hair was falling out but I think it is slowing down some. Most of all I'd like to know what to do about my eyes, I can't seem to get any help from doctor.

Feeling like I was choking. I felt like something was blocking my windpipe and it was from swelling in the throat.

I've been taking Synthroid for around 4 years and am currently on a 125 mcg dosage. I haven't had my period once while one the medicine. I was wondering if this had happened to anyone else??

I've been on levothyroxine for 3 months now. I have anxiety at night while trying to fall asleep. In the morning my hands feel so tight and are a bit swollen. My right knee and calf have started now too. My feet hurt when I get out of bed. After about 10 mins of walking they feel better. My face is also a bit puffy in the morning and I look tired all the time. I have pains on the right side of abdoman, just under my ribs....Is this normal? Could it be my liver from the meds?

I'm wondering if synthroid is the answer for hypothyroid? I mean, pretty much all our guts give out over time... How many people actually go into a coma and die from hypothyroidism? I took synthroid and had to get off it after just one week! I was slamming doors around here, screaming, out of control, miserable. I've talked to plenty of women at work who have lots of trouble controlling their dosage. I've read some other comments here: BEFORE I took synthroid, I had aching legs and feet, thickness in my throat, weakness, tiredness, can't concentrate. I only take a tranquilizer for eight years, same dosage, for anxiety. I'm thinking there HAS to be another way to treat hypothyroid. What if my kidneys are giving out and synthroid is overloading it, and THAT is the primary disease, with the hypo business secondary. I can see kidneys giving out, what with all the stuff we eat, yearly innoculations for flu, and so on. Anybody have any thoughts on (1) How many folks actually die from hypothyroidism via coma, and (2) Is hypo the primary condition, or is kidney primary, and (3) What is with my feet and legs hurting and aching all the time?!?! Gail

Has anyone out there experienced leg cramps or a feeling like weak muscles in your legs?

Does anyone have any side effects which affect voice quality - husky, airy or weakness in the voice speaking or singing? I'm hypothyroid, 200mcgs synthroid daily, some depression, insomnia, weight gain and struggling with getting back to my pre-hypothyroid state of well being.