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gatorgirly wrote:On an unrelated note, I fell down the stairs Saturday morning and thought it was no big deal until the pain became increasingly worse. I went to the doctor Monday afternoon and found out my coccyx (tailbone) is fractured in two places. One complete fracture, one large crack. I have been in bed on Percocet since then – not how I wanted to spend the two weeks before OD!
Sorry to hear about this. I hope you feel better soon.
Caro
Hello Amy and welcome to the forum.
I too take 10mg/day. I split my dose so I take 5mg in the AM and 5mg in the PM. My Dr. just said take 10mg but since the pill is scored and I’ve read that it is better to spread it out, I decided to split it. I was taking 30mg/day and back then I used to take 10mg 3 times a day (AM, noon, PM). It works good for me. As a matter of fact, I’m hypothyroid right now. Anyway, if you would like to read my lab history, I just opened a post with it title “Labs Update …”.
As for the symptoms of hyperthyroidism, I didn’t feel any positive changes until 3 weeks after taking the Methimazole. I couldn’t do much of anything. I felt miserable almost all of the time but like everyone kept telling me then, the symptoms do go away and if the Methimazole works for you, you will feel better, no doubt.
Regarding exercise, I was told by my Endo and my General Drs, not to exercise while hyperthyroid. I have finally been given the go ahead by my Gen. Dr.
Hope you feel better soon.
Caro
Great post. I’m so glad you have had your treatment and even though you are not all well yet, I’m glad you are on the road to getting better.
Hope you feel better soon.
CaroHello gatorgirly,
I’m glad your numbers are finally in the normal range. It is very frustrating having to wait so long if you are not feeling well though. Why such a problem getting the labs done? If the insurance pays for it and we pay for the insurance, why are Drs not wanting to run the labs? It is so frustrating. I wonder if it is a power thing. We have heard this so so many times before: “we are all different”. So even if the #s are in the normal range if you are not feeling well, that should be looked at …. because we are all different. I would rather have my #s be a little bit off and feel well than have them be “normal” and feel sick. I’m so so sorry you are going through this situation. 6 months is a long time and anything can change in that amount of time in my opinion. Maybe you can work with your general Dr instead? I have to say that I like my new Endo but one thing that he said last time that I can’t get out of my head every time I think about my next appointment is that he told me that he was going to bring me in for an appointment in 4 weeks. I said “great … that sounds good”. But then he said “which is a lot sooner than I usually want to see people” and he said it in a tone I did not like. Almost as if he was doing me a favor. I like him but I’m still sick and if I need to be seen in 4 weeks, then let it be so. Why the mental game, right? So I hear you … and I hope that you can make arrangements to have your labs ran when they need to be.
I hope you start to feel well soon.
Caro
Thank you for the advice gatorgirly. I was thinking about buying a pill cutter and I’m glad you mentioned where I can find it. I saw my Gen. Dr. this week and she prescribed the 25mg (though she had no problem with me cutting the 50mg) so for now that will help but if I need to go lower, the 25mg is also scored and the pill cutter would come in handy then.
Hope all is going well with you.
Smiles,
CaroThank you Kimberly. I’ve been feeling tired and my neighbor said she saw it at the store. I did some reading and what I read about Royal Jelly sounded good, especially since it is what Queen Bees eat and according to what I read, keeps them stronger and living longer than the other bees in the hive. I don’t know how much this has been proven but the Queen Bee starts out as a regular bee but the only difference is that it is given Royal Jelly for food. I figured it couldn’t hurt since I’m not allergic to honey. The problem I noticed is that it is hard finding pure Royal Jelly. The one at the store had other stuff added to it. I did buy B12 per recommendation by my Gen. Dr to see if that helps. She said that since I have Celiac and since the thyroid problems cause all kinds of unbalances that I’m probably deficient. I found liquid gluten free/yeast free B12 so I’ll start on it soon. Hopefully that will help. I’ll keep researching the Royal Jelly theory.
Hope you are doing well.
Caro
Hello Alexis,
I’m sorry to hear that you are still struggling with the headaches but I’m happy that you are able to sleep better.
I too would be worried about changing the medication now that the #s are all good. In my opinion, the headaches can be caused by several things and not necessarily the Rx. You mentioned that you are breastfeeding. You probably already know this but when breastfeeding you have to make sure you are well hydrated and dehydration can cause headaches. Also, have you tried seeing a Neurologist? Another thing you can try is acupuncture. I know people get acupuncture for headaches and it can work.
Going back to Synthroid, according to drugs.com, headache is a serious side effect and it says to call your Dr but your Dr already knows about your headache so I guess he has already made sure you are okay taking it.
I’m sorry to hear about your hair falling out. Is it because of taking Synthroid? Mine has fall out in patches several times before and it always has come back. I was told I have alopecia areata. I hope yours doesn’t fall out too much and starts to come back. When I saw my Endo the first time, he stated that I might experience hair loss and hair changes but that it would come back if it fall out.
I’m glad you are doing well overall.
Smiles,
CaroI’m so glad Laurel. It gives me hope for the future. I’ve been on Methimazole since June but I’m still feeling tired. My Dr. put me on 30mg and then lowered it to 10mg but I think I still need some tweaking. I will have labs next week. I’m hoping for the best. I’m so glad you are doing better. Please keep us posted.
Smiles,
CaroHello Darcy,
I hear you. I hate the heat intolerance. I want to feel cold but the only time I do is at work, where they keep it very cold. At home I have heat attacks. I’m doing fine and then next thing I know, I’m burning up. The Dr. decreased my Methimazole 3 weeks ago so now I’m worried that I’m going hyper again. I hate it but I’ll be getting labs next week. I wish you the best with your labs and that you find your sweet spot soon.
Caro
Hello Naisly,
I noticed that from May to August your free T4 has increased so I would assume that you are getting more hyperthyroid and becoming more in danger of falling into a thyroid storm (unfortunately, without treatment, this will land you in the hospital).
I too was given 30mg of Methimazole at first but I was asked to take 10mg three times a day so I spaced them out 8 hrs apart. Also, I got labs right before starting so as to have a baseline and the Dr. ordered labs every 4 weeks. I started in June and by my August appt my Dr lowered my dose to 10mg/day because my TSH was in the normal range and my free T4 was low.
My TPOab is also positive and I wasn’t told anything about having Hashimoto’s. I was told I have Graves. This is because my TSI is elevated. I will ask my Dr. about my TPOab next time to see if he can determine if it is Hashi’s related.
I want to tell you what happened to me because it reminds me of what is happening to you. The first Endo I went to see prescribed the 30mg Methimazole but told me to take it for 6 weeks and then stop completely and to see him 8 weeks after stopping the Methimazole. I knew that since my labs showed that I had hyperthyroidism I needed the medication so I started taking it as prescribed but I started looking for another Endo, who I found and setup an appt with him. Endo #2 also wanted me to take the 30mg/day but wanted to monitor me more closely (labs every 4 weeks with followup appts). I didn’t like how Endo #1 wanted to stop the Rx cold turkey and did not want to see me until 8 weeks after stopping it (plus other things that I didn’t like about him and his office staff). He did though ordered labs for after taking it for 6 weeks so I felt good about that in case I didn’t find another Endo in time. My point is, yes, you need to be monitored when you are on Methimazole so if the Dr. did not order labs I would call back and ask if he could order labs for 4 weeks after you start taking it to see if that is possible. And if it is not possible, ask if they could tell you what your lab schedule will be because you know that with Methimazole you need to have labs periodically. Also, if you start to feel sick when taking it, you can call and ask for assistance, can you not? Most Dr’s will order labs right away if you are not feeling well and are taking Methimazole, especially if you have developed liver related symptoms of if you have developed flu like symptoms. The labs should include liver function tests and white blood cell count.
If I were you, knowing that the fT4 # is getting higher, I would be worried about not taking the medication because as you get more hyper your chances of getting a thyroid storm increase. Yet again, yes, you have to be monitored when taking it so call your Dr to setup a lab schedule. When you start taking the medication it will take time for it to start making you feel better. It took me about 3-4 weeks to feel any changes so the sooner you take it, the sooner you will get well.
I wish you the best with getting started on your medication. I’m so glad you have seen an Endo and that you have your prescription. Hope you get the labs situation resolved soon. Keep us posted.
Caro
Hello Shirley,
Thank you for your reply. Well, I did more calling around. I left a message with the manufacturer and I’m still waiting on a reply. I did call another pharmacy and asked the pharmacist the question. She said that “yes, since it is scored, it can be cut in 1/2”. I asked her that if that was still okay since it is ER and she said yes b/c it is scored. So, I guess it is okay to cut the ER scored Metoprolol ER pill in 1/2. I tried it and I didn’t have any problems splitting it with my fingers. I was very careful though so as not to loose any pieces to the table or floor. I think some times that is the danger with splitting pills. One has to be very careful doing it so as not to loose any little pieces to the table or floor. When one has pets or children if some falls to the floor it can be dangerous if consumed by them. I think I would recommend trying to get the pill in a lower dose instead of splitting it but I’ve done this many times before and I’m very careful doing it. Anyway, thank you again. I hope all is going good with you.
Caro
I’m glad that you have started treatment. My only advice is to keep an eye on your BP and pulse now that the Dr. increased your Metoprolol dose. Per your other post, your pulse was already at 65 and your BP wasn’t too high so if he has increased the Metoprolol, I would keep an eye on the BP but specially the pulse. I wish you the very best with your treatment.
Caro
spenanelson wrote:And my RE looked at my labs and said that I was cleared for IVF! So I go in on Thursday for sonogram and Estradol test and then I should start my shots on Friday.I can not believe this day is finally here.
Congratulations!!!!!!! I’m super exited for you. I wish you all the very best with your shots so that pretty soon you can have good news. Please do keep us posted.
Smiles!!!!!!!
Caro
