Hypothyroidism and alcohol

[snoopswa]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

Doggygirl,
She is in a bad place right now. One day she tells me she loves me, the next day she says she doesnt. Before the thyroid symptoms were first noticed, she would admit to being an alcoholic and needing help. Lots of appologizing the next day, not anymore. There is NO WAY i could get her to stop drinking now. I was hoping the natural thyroid meds would work despite the drinking. Then maybe her depression and need to drink might level back to where it was or better.

[Doggygirl]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

Have you found a doctor who prescribes natural dessicated porcine thyroid meds, and has she agreed to see that doctor and get the necessary blood tests? It will also be important to discuss her current med schedule with T4 only and have a specific plan for when blood is drawn for new tests in relation to taking the meds. (although this is a bigger issue with T3 only meds, or natural meds containing T3 than for T4).

Finding a doctor can be the hardest part. Do you already have someone?

[LibraryGirl]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

I'm sorry your gf is having such a difficult time snoops, and by proxy, you. I don't have any advice, and know practically nothing about this (disease?). I started reading and was going to mention my symptoms but wanted to express my sympathy to you first.

I have been struggling with weight issues too for over 10 years now. I was a normal weight all of my life until my late 30s. No one in my family has weight issues (and I have 6 brothers and sisters, no steps), except for me. It is not a 5-10 lb thing either, it's 50-60 lb thing. I have been tested for thyroid problems at least 3-4 times and always comes back normal. I have alopecia areata that also started at the same time as the beginning of the weight gain, and depression (also starting at same time). I have a hard time believing that absolutely nothing is wrong with me, and it's just a matter of taking in too many calories. For one thing, what caused the sudden alopecia and depression, which has continued to this day?? No doctor, and I've been to several, takes my symptoms seriously and just shakes their head sadly...No, your thyroid is completely normal. As if I'm trying to blame my weight on some outside source. Any ideas? Also, since I quit AL (moderating only one-two nights a week, and not excessively), I have been dieting, and not losing much at all. I have all but given up and have started not counting calories again, and of course, have started gaining back all the hard-won 7.5 lbs that I lost, that practically amounted to nothing in the first place. Can you tell I'm angry, lol.

Before you attribute not losing to modding, I was dieting for two months before I began modding (was AF), and the lbs were NOT coming off.

thanks for any help anyone might offer. What kind of doctor do you suggest I visit?

LG

[Doggygirl]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

LG - have you read the Stopthethyroidmadness.com site? I got a lot of good info there that started me on my own journey. I lost 60 pounds after quitting drinking and starting thyroid treatment and also bioidentical estrogen and progesterone. The weight didn't come off like magic - I had to work hard at it, and still do. But the thyroid treatment at least leveled the playing field so I know where you are coming from.

When you say you have been told your thyroid is normal, what is the basis for that? May doctors base that on a TSH test only. There are a couple of problems with using only the TSH to diagnose thyroid problems. 1) the range of "normal" is extremely wide, especially if the lab is still using the old reference numbers. (and the new reference range is still very wide) and 2) the Free T3 and Free T4 in the blood are the ACTIVE hormones so knowing those IMO, is important to understanding what's really going on. (more about this on the thyroid site I just mentioned)

I also read one of Suzanne Somers books which opened my eyes to a lot of this stuff. Then the hard work began of finding a doctor.

It took a lot of leg work and self education, but i'm glad I did it. I'm way better off now. Good luck to you.

[LibraryGirl]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

I will visit the site ASAP, dg. I have looked into it before, but never did anything about it. I asked my doctors if it was possible that I needed to do a more thorough thyroid test, as I'd also read about the wide ranges of normal, and they said no, you are welllllll below the medium.

How long did it take you to lose that much? Also, how hard did you have to work at it, lol? I feel sure if I started weight training and running, I would lose at least some of the weight. I don't want to be perfect, just normal. If that's 10-15 lbs over my ideal, I'd be fine with it.

[Doggygirl]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

It took about 7 months to lose - I was very strict with diet absolutely no cheating. And did cardio and weights. So lots of work. (and no drinking - still none of that!) Maintaining has been harder. Once I started having some treats, etc. that becomes a slippery slope for me. Still no drinking though, and that is the most important thing for me. My world was falling apart fast with AL there in the end.

Good luck,

DG

[snoopswa]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

I have found a doctor I believe from the stop the madness site facebook group. I sent him an email yesterday but havent gotten a response. I KNOW that she will not entertain the thought of stopping her drinking right now, I might have to bribe her to go see this new doctor. She is in this cycle of one day she is in love with me and the next day she doesnt want to be in a relationship. She is in this '"network" of morons from work that keep inviting her out to bars and parties all the time. I want to see what this new doctor says about the effect the natural hormones will have on her with the drinking. If he tells me they won't really work either, then there is truly no hope for her. I think the thyroid problem has changed her personality, her judgement and her sense of right and wrong all for the worse. She tells me sometimes that she feels depressed. I'm sure that makes her drink more too.

Frank

[Doggygirl]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

Frank, I wish you well. Again, she is fortunate to have someone who cares about her. Ultimately, she will have to decide for herself to pursue treatment for any/all of her issues. I hope you can also accept the possibility that alcohol addiction might be at the root of this personality change. I know my personality changed due to drinking - not due to hypothyroidism. Of course I cannot know what is true for her. I DO know that I have often seen people cling to the hope that problem drinking will magically stop if some other problem is solved. That just usually is not the way it works out.

Mean time, I hope she becomes willing to take an honest look at her own situation and health issues.

DG

[snoopswa]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

Doggygirl,
Was your personality change just all of a sudden or gradual? With her, it was like flipping a light switch.

[Kradle123]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

Good morning-

DG, Bird, Beatle. Finding your thread is almost crazy weird :cupajoe::

I have suffered all my life (I'm 50) from Hypothyroid. My mom had it, my sister has it...and I have always had a small but noticeable goiter on my lower left neck..just always been there...don't think about it really though I know I should. My levels always looked 'normal' so put it on the back burner.

Well, I am almost 40 days AF and about a week ago I am washing my face and suddenly I realize.. THE DAMN THING IS GONE!!! :shocked:: I mean totally Not There!

I am craning my neck, feeling the spot and not seeing or feeling it anywhere... It's ABSOLUTELY incredible. That stupid thing has been part of my life for years and years...which of course is as long as I have been drinking...

I will go and have tests done and keep you posted but if this experience doesn't prove the compete connection to ALCOHOL AND THYROID, I can't imagine what will... At least for me.

Thanks for sharing all your info. Considering my position I should be more educated and am ashamed to say I am not. But nw that Mr. awful Goiter is gone (or at least deflated ) I will be looking at this thread more seriously and getting down to business,

Hugs,
:l

[Doggygirl]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

Kradle - wow that is awesome news. There are so many gifts to be had with sobriety.

Frank - I drank heavy for a lot of years and the changes for me I think were more gradual. However my "mean streak" was quite glaring in the last few years of it. And I don't think there was much (if any) huge "mean streak" earlier on.

When these problems are happening simultaneously I think it's very difficult to say with certainty what symptoms are attributable to one thing v. the other thing. Symptoms can very well be attributable to both things in combination.

DG

[SAUSAGE]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

Just been reading this thread. -had routine bloods done at my doctors last week and was told this morning that I have hypothyroidism. My TSH levels were over 8.5 ( I believe upper end of normal levels are 3 or 5 depending on whether old or new values are used).

This may explain why on this quit I haven't really lost any weight, although I lost loads last time. I had been feeling tired with some unexplained aches and pains, really cold hands and feet plus lots of other typical,symptoms. I also cannot tolerate gluten and I understand there is a link between Coeliac disease and hypothyroidism.

[Doggygirl]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

Sausage - that is a really high TSH. Did the doc also run Free T3 and Free T4? To me, those tell a huge part of the story - even more than TSH. Have you read the stopthethyroidmadness site? It seems you would benefit from treatment - I'm glad I "self educated" before I ended up with either no treatment (my TSH was above 3 but under 5, but my Free T3 & Free T4 numbers REALLY told the story) or T4 only treatment which wouldn't work well for me since I obviously don't convert T4 to T3 real effectively.

The good news is that help is available!!!

DG

[SAUSAGE]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

I believe he will have done but I understand from my husband , who is also a Dr, that those results take a little longer to come back from the lab. I only had the bloods taken Monday. I have been put on Levothyroxine 25 micrograms / day for 2/52, then to up dose to 50. Bloods to be repeated in 6/52. I've started to look at that site and others ( obviously went home and Googled hypothyroidism straight away!!) and its amazing how many of the symptoms I actually had; depression, dry skin, headaches, unexplained aches and pains, difficulty sleeping, broken nails, inability to lose weight this time despite quitting alcohol, tiredness, breathlessness on exercise, feeling cold all the time, freezing feet at night ( was wearing socks in bed) ...... The list goes on. I knew I wasn't feeling quite as good as I should on this quit this time and I actually thought I was anaemic, which is why I requested the bloods done, however I am not, the hypothyroidism was a bit of a shock but I'm relieved they've found something and I'm not just a hyperchondriac!!!

[Doggygirl]

Hypothyroidism and alcohol

Sausage - I'm happy for you that you were diagnosed and are able to get medication! T4 only (Levothyroxine is one) works well for a lot of people. Keep an eye on your Free T3 numbers along with Free T4. If Free T4 improves but Free T3 does not, that would be a sign that you might not be converting T4 to T3 effectively. At that point you can add a synthetic T3 to your synthetic T4, (i.e. Cytomel) or you can consider trying a natural dessiccated porcine med which has T3 and T4.

Good luck! You will be amazed how much better you are going to feel.

DG