[SueAndHerZoo]

#1060134

So I returned to work yesterday, half days, and thank GOD I leave after only 4 hours. I really don’t think I would make it a whole day nor would I be able to drive home after work if I didn’t only have a 4-mile commute.

I am good for the first hour or two at the office but by the third hour I am watching the clock waiting anxiously to go home and lie down. So far yesterday and today I come home, eat something on the couch, and am out like a light shortly thereafter. I’ve never woken up from naps feeling rested so I’m just as groggy when I wake up as when I fell asleep.

I know I’m being impatient and others around me seem to think it’s normal to be this pooped (surgery was 4 weeks ago today) but I’ve read about others going back to work full time and I can’t even imagine it.

Since I analyze everything and am obsessive about knowing WHY things are the way they are, I’m trying to figure out why I’m so tired. Yes, I’m post-op, but that was 4 weeks ago. I don’t think I am hypo because I still have some hyper symptoms, and I suppose the answer is that my body is busy adjusting to all the changes?

I guess it’s probably just me not being patient, but I figured once I went back to work I would pretty much have my old routine back, not have to leave half day to take a nap. Am I expecting too much?

Sue

[Stymie]

#1180656

Sue,

I wouldn’t be so hard on yourself. Your body has been through a major upheaval as well as the fact that your body is probably on its way to being hypO.

I took SO many naps when I was hypO.

Give yourself some time to heal and take it easy on yourself. You will get there eventually.

Hugs.

Diane

[SueAndHerZoo]

#1180657

Thanks, Diane…. it really helps to hear that you took naps and that this too will someday pass. It’s just that I’ve read about others going back to work full-time after 2 or 3 weeks and I can’t imagine being able to do that even though I have a very un-strenuous office job.

I have been trying to remind myself for the past couple of hours that maybe this is just what it feels like to not be hyper and anxious all the time…… this will definitely take some getting used to. I have been a whirlwind for years and maybe the contrast of NOT being hyper and running around like a hamster in a wheel is what’s got me thinking I’m too comatose.

And it has only been 4 weeks so who knows what my levels are or what my ideal dosage will be.

OK….. patience. Naps and patience. (Those are SO not in my vocabulary!)

Sue

[karenz516]

#1180658

Hi Sue, its so early yet, I had RAI on 12/14/12 and for the first two to three months, I was still out of it and so tired. My understanding is your body still has the thyroid hormones its releasing and I was still hyper until April and then went hypo and began my Synthyroid. It will take awhile, baby yourself and take care of yourself, I stayed home from work on FMLA for two months after surgery. I am just now, August, beginning to feel like my old self. Just saw my endo yesterday and my numbers are all good. So take it slow, you have been through ALOT.

Be well,

Karen

[karenz516]

#1180659

Hi Sue, its so early yet, I had RAI on 12/14/12 and for the first two to three months, I was still out of it and so tired. My understanding is your body still has the thyroid hormones its releasing and I was still hyper until April and then went hypo and began my Synthyroid. It will take awhile, baby yourself and take care of yourself, I stayed home from work on FMLA for two months after surgery. I am just now, August, beginning to feel like my old self. Just saw my endo yesterday and my numbers are all good. So take it slow, you have been through ALOT.

Be well,

Karen

[barbra]

#1180660

Hi Karen,

I’m glad you found your ideal dose and are OK.
I had my RAI on July 1st and thought by now I would be leaning towards hypo but my numbers are not there yet. The endo did reduce my Methimazole from 20mg to 10 and I’m still on Propranolol 80mg and Nortriptyline 10mg for sleep, which I am going to stop because I think it’s responsible for nightmares. So, me being so tired and listless is not unusual? Strangely, it seems to get worse as the day wears on. By 3 PM I am miserable, ready for a nap and still can’t sleep.
I’m glad I saw your post, now I don’t feel like such a freak. The waiting is a bummer.

Sue,

It seems that even with TT it’s not an immediate change. Hope you feel better soon.

Hugs.
Barbra.

[Kimberly]

#1180661

Hi Sue – Hopefully, you are fairly close to your follow up appointment to see where your levels are. Every patient is different and sometimes hypER/hypO symptoms can overlap, but keep an eye out for common symptoms of hypO such as fatigue, joint pain, unexplained weight gain, constipation, dry skin, cold intolerance, and slow pulse. If you start experiencing these other issues, you might consider asking for a quicker follow up appointment.

[SueAndHerZoo]

#1180662

Kimberly wrote:

Hi Sue – Hopefully, you are fairly close to your follow up appointment to see where your levels are. Every patient is different and sometimes hypER/hypO symptoms can overlap, but keep an eye out for common symptoms of hypO such as fatigue, joint pain, unexplained weight gain, constipation, dry skin, cold intolerance, and slow pulse. If you start experiencing these other issues, you might consider asking for a quicker follow up appointment.

Hi Kim.
I thought it didn’t make much sense to check levels until we’re at the 6 week mark, but I do have a routine follow-up with endo next Tuesday so will have blood drawn this Friday. Still, that will only be about 26 days that I’ve been on Levothyroxine so not sure how solid of an indicator that will be.

So you think my needing a nap in the afternoon is not “normal”?
Sue

[snelsen]

#1180663

Sue.
Yes.
100% normal
Thyroid regulation plus not realizing or believing that a general anesthesia can impact us. Even at 4 weeks.
I went back to work full time and could NOT do it.
Pull out the “tincture of time” card. (: I understand being so so tired, yet unable to sleep.
Shirley in the Denver airport..

[SueAndHerZoo]

#1180664

snelsen wrote:

Sue.
Yes.
100% normal
Thyroid regulation plus not realizing or believing that a general anesthesia can impact us. Even at 4 weeks.
I went back to work full time and could NOT do it.
Pull out the “tincture of time” card. (: I understand being so so tired, yet unable to sleep.
Shirley in the Denver airport..

Thanks, “Shirley in the Denver Airport”…….. that’s very comforting to hear. Gonna go look for that tincture of time card.
Sue

[amosmcd]

#1180665

Hi, Sue–

Ha! Naps are my new normal! Who knew? I think definitely you are still early in the post-op period to still feel tired. My endo told me after two months I would feel good. We know how that’s been working for me!–but obviously 2 months seems a reasonable period of time to recover from surgery, and you’ve got a month to go. Plus, our thyroid controls so many functions, I think it’s a double-whammy to the body to have it removed.

I’m glad you’re not feeling so anxious and hyper anymore. We will survive these tough times and come out stronger for it. Hang in there!

Amy

[adenure]

#1180666

Hi Sue!

Just wanted to offer some more encouragement. Yes I remember feeling pretty well until about 11:00 AM and then I would be so tired and wouldn’t be feeling too well. I still pushed on as I homeschool my 3 older boys and have a toddler as well so no naps unfortunately! But, I do remember feeling pretty good and energetic in the morning and not so great in the afternoon. I think once your Synthroid dose is right and you’re stable on it for a few months and your body continues to recuperate, you will feel better. It really is a journey, but I did feel better about 4 months post TT after my dose was increased for 100 to 112 mcg and I was on it for about 2 months.

[SueAndHerZoo]

#1180667

Thanks, Alexis. It really does help a lot to hear that. I know that in 6 months or so I won’t remember what this period was like but while you’re in the thick of it it’s so hard to remember that this is all “normal”. Especially when you feel really good for a while…. you almost forget you’re not well and it takes me by surprise (and I get so disappointed) when I start to feel unwell again.

I’m not sure if this is thyroid-related or not but the way you worded it does strike a cord with me. You said you didn’t “feel well” and in the afternoon, “not so great” and that pretty much describes me at sporadic times. I can’t say I’m exactly sick or dizzy or sick to my stomach or headachey, I’m just “unwell”. Nothing severe enough to really complain about yet it still takes you down several notches and makes you not want to do anything.

So glad you’re feeling great and I know that I will someday soon, too. I’m not one for wishing my life away but right now I kinda wish I could make a few months go by faster.

Thanks for the comfort and support.
Sue

[adenure]

#1180668

I understand that not being able to describe how you feel. I had all these odd symptoms that I’d try to describe. The only 2 that were easy to describe were headaches and insomnia. Otherwise I felt “off”, slightly off center, but not exactly dizzy- I’d describe it like I felt like I was walking on a trampoline or that all of a sudden I’d feel like I was about to float into the air for a split second- really odd. It all went away though.

[ibminlou2]

#1180669

Hi Sue,

Thank you for sharing your journey post TT. I am one week out from my planned TT (background to follow in my own posts), and definitely am thinking I will be indestructible and carrying on full speed ahead in just a few weeks post TT.

Take care!

[Author]

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