WOW ! I don't want to jump to conclusions but, if my problem has been lack of Thyroid hormones amplifying my Myotonia, then, you're a life changer ! I goofed ! It's not 150mcg it's 150 mg .It's interesting that you mention body temp. Imagine, I've had my temp.taken a gazzillion times and it runs 97.1-98.3. You'd think someone would say," hey, 2+2 doesn't add up here, this ain't right" but no, they write it off and say' Oh you must be cool in the summer". Many have actually said that and doctors ( endocronologist) have never made the connection.What an eye opening !

Thanks Jan - Will do. I almost always run low - always have. I kept a basal journal for many months in 1979-80. I think they thought I didn't know how to take my temp, or was too impatient and didn't leave it long enough!! LOL!
David - I have annual labs done - my thyroid is always normal. Now he's checking it again, because I have been having greatly increased palpitations in the last 3 weeks (have had mild, transient, occasional ones most of my life - seconds or minutes, but this is weeks...)
I have a mild heart murmur, but my echos and EKG's have been fine, but now seems may have PAC's (small premature firing of the muscles of the atrial chambers, which give the fluttery or pounding sensation - usually not dangerous). lois

Thank you everyone for your input regarding the thyroid. An ENT doctor discovered two nodules on my thyroid a few months back. I have extreme fatigue, low libido, and become cold, then hot. Of course, this may be due to menopause as well, but the doctor believed the nodules were causing a sluggish thyroid.

Your discussions about body temperature made me realize that my temperature is usually lower than 98. I was on a thyroid med, Levoxyl I believe, for only 3 weeks because I felt that I would bounce off the walls and couldn't sleep at night. I was removed from the medicine and now I don't know if the nodules have shrunk or not. I see the ENT again in April. I never questioned anything he did, but out of the blue he told me that if I needed a second opinion, he could refer me to a specialist at UVA. Does this sound to you like his way of washing his hands of me because he's not sure what to do next?

Frankly speaking, I get very tired of playing doctor to myself. I'm just not as knowledgeable as the rest of you, and trying to figure it all out has added to my fatigue levels. It's winter and I'm sure SAD is contributing to my fatigue as well. I'm thinking of seeing the thyroid specialist at UVA, but I am reluctant to plunge into medications. Can you advise if surgical removal of the nodules might restore thyroid function, and how safe is thyroid surgery? Thank you so much folks. Mary

Hi Mary ! Personally, I can say that a lot of what I've learned has come from the mistakes, poor judgment, and lack of interest on the part of most doctors. Here in Taxachusetts, we have some of the finest hospitals in the world but, most doctors live with blinders on and without common sense. They're so cookie cutter and by the book that they can't get out of their own way. It's too bad and extremely frustrating. I wouldn't wait another day to get another opinion. Grab your records from that poor excuse of a doctor you have and run.After my thyroid diagnosis,the doctor told me to wait 4 stinkin' months before they would start me on replacement hormone because of the high level of hormones I had acquired from my thyroid going crazy. Two and a half weeks later I was begging my wife to shoot me because I was out of hormones, out of energy and out of my mind. They still refused to start me until I made a seen in the emergency room that my doctor was trying to kill me. My head felt like I had a spinal tap and repeatedly kept sitting up to see how bad it would make my head feel. Needless to say, I left there with hormones after a simple blood test determined I was on empty. Don't give up ! Stay in the fight ! Go to your family doctor and have them do a blood work-up on you tomorrow. Best of luck !

Mary,

I always welcome second opinions. Thyroid nodules are usually benign but a small percentage are cancerous and it's a good idea to get them checked (thyroid cancer is very treatable and very slow-growing). Menopause is notorious for setting off thyroid problems, partly because of fluctuating estrogen levels which bind thyroid hormone.

Maybe you can try a different thyroid hormone. I think it's best to start with a fraction of what the dose says and work up very slowly to avoid reactions. Taking a full dose right off can make you feel like you're on speed!

The one thing I would NOT recommend is SSKI or potassium iodide drops. They made me terribly stiff because of the potassium and there are warnings on potassium iodide tablets related to MC.

I really like Mary Shamon's website at http://about.thyroid.com She has loads of good information about thyroid disease, hormone replacement, surgery, etc.

Jan

You will also find a lot of discussion here about thyroid - I believe many of us have perfectly normal thyroid tests, but our basal body temperatures are low, and we apparently might benefit from some replacement therapy. I have never done it, but I am considering discussing it with my PCP when I see him in April... meanwhile, I will do the temperature log each morning, so he has something to go by. I am just not really into taking medications, so it's something I have to weigh carefully - since I've been living like this for 58 years, I'm sort of used to it.......(LOL) lois

Thank you again, everyone, for all the good advice. I plan to seek a second opinion about my thyroid now!

Just for laughs...picture me lugging a three-person innertube up several flights of stairs at our nearby waterpark this weekend, then plummeting down the extreme water tube with my two granddaughters at breakneck speed. I actually did it more than once. I also went up and down, up and down the smaller slides with the youngest granddaughter all day. You get the picture!!

I was very tired and very sore on Monday and Tuesday, still fatigued on Wednesday, and just beginning to recover today. I'm thinking it's thyroid, but maybe this is just from being a crazy grandma!