<p>I don’t know starbright I often end up eating and taking my Thyroid close together, try not to, but the pills are next to the bananas I eat for breakfast and sometimes I just gotta have that banana but I have never noticed any difference. But the docs do tell you to avoid food for a couple hours. I don’t have psoriasis, but I have very dry skin. My H has psoriasis and all the kids all have dry skin issues so hard to say if it’s genetic or related to my thyroid or my husband’s psoriasis.</p>
<p>Count me as another with Hashimoto’s/hypo. Developed after the birth of my first child. Have endured several attempts at a fine needle biopsy of a nodule recently-no success in getting whatever they need out of the nodule. Referred by the surgeon for one more try with another endocrinologist who took a history, looked at previous scans and said, “fugeddaboutit.” He thinks the nodule has been there for years with no change and will follow up in a year. But this whole discussion has given me “food for thought” and I need to investigate further since I have the dryness issue and fatigue.</p>
<p>Add my D to the hypo list. Family friend (a shrink and all-time great “medicine-man” ) diagnosed her senior year of high school. Tested her 3 times and came back inconclusive or borderline or something. Said , “Well , my gut says you are. Screw the tests.” and …she’s been taking synthroid since late senior year with great results. Or I should say, great results when she’s compliant. ;)</p>
<p>Another Hashimoto’s/hypo. Also have the dryness issue and am somewhat fatigued. I’m now bumped up to 125 Synthroid and will have to see what the test results are.</p>
<p>I also have undiagnosed Raynaud’s syndrome - my bare feet turn blue occasionally in air conditioning or in the house in cold weather. I tend to have something on my feet at all times. </p>
<p>Just curious if anyone’s been counseled on foods to avoid that might counteract Synthroid?</p>
<p>Hypo since age 10 - a resident found my goiter while I was in the hospital for something else. So many doctors examined me that I still cringe when anyone come anywhere NEAR my neck. Hashimotos as well - when that first surfaced I actually LOST tons of weight since my thyroid went hyper trying to fight off the antibodies, the teachers at school thought I was anorexic.</p>
<p>After D2 was born I spiraled to the point that I had to get a gynecological “fix” to balance things out again, just hated going up and down with the med levels and how that affected other things…</p>
<p>The endo I see twice a year is nothing short of fantastic - don’t know what I would do without him. I still have been up and down but have been at 150mcg for a while now. I have insisted that my D’s get tested once a year as well, I have a feeling that my D1 will probably develop it at some point (menarche was very late but everyone blamed that on her running), but dang I wish I had half of my D2’s metabolism!</p>
<p>In the event of the demise of industrial civilization, can one prepare one’s own “armour” type medication from bovine, etc. thyroids?</p>
<p>Not really a “survivalist” but one wonders.</p>
<p>This has been a really helpful thread for me; thanks to all of you. I too have dry skin issues but like many symptoms, it’s so easy to rationalize that the cause is something other than it is. Especially with diabetes and menopause issues thrown into the mix. This thread has given me a good list of questions for my next visit coming up with my endo so thank you all for that.</p>
<p>My heart broke for the girl losing her hair. That happened to me at around the same age. I also lost my finger and toe nails as well. Thyroid problems are serious things. It kind of sucks that they’re perceived as a middle-aged woman thing.</p>
<p>I agree, zoosermom. The kids are the ones I especially can’t tolerate suffering. It breaks my heart with the kids with diabetes also. I was diagnosed with late onset Type I diabetes at the age of 28 but at least I got to enjoy birthday parties and sleepovers and being a regular kid without all the “stuff” that comes with managing diabetes. In my perfect world, kids wouldn’t have to learn to deal with things like that.</p>
<p>I lost most of my eyebrows which I never knew was related to the thyroid. Apprently when I was first diagnosed I was in quite bad shape…that type of hair loss (eyebrows) is fairly rare. The minute my dose needs to be adjusted I loose alot of hair. I have very thick hair, but I estimate I’ve lost about 1/3 of my hair head over the decades, which did not grow back. It’s not too bad for me as I have a better forehead now and my hair is more manageable alittle thinner, but I feel for those with thinner hair. My eyebrows never quite grew back, fortunatley I wear glasses. It is really amazing to me how many odd things are related to thyroid that we just dismiss as aging or genetics or whatnot.</p>
<p>
Same thing with me. I lose my hair first. I used to have thick, waist lenght hair that was so beautiful that people used to stop me on the street to compliment it. About three-ish years ago, my dosage couldn’t be adjusted (which is why I now alternate) and I lost so much of my hair that I couldn’t even get a pony tail for two years, it just didn’t grow AT ALL. The hair that I had left got stuck at my ears and went no further. It was really hard for me (vain, I know), but eventually we got the dose right and it started to grow. I finally have a ponytail again for the first time in three years and my hair sits on my shoulders. Sounds like a small thing, but it was a huge victory for me.</p>
<p>I was on the alternate dosage for a while, but it was always a huge pain getting refills. Blue Cross Blue Shield acts as if it has never heard of such a thing! I once had to endure the explanation of the pharmacist and his assistant as to why 84 pills constituted a 90 day supply. I felt as if I was in an alternate universe. Last time I asked my endocrinologist to just put me on the higher dose and so far so good.</p>
<p>Don’t even get me started on insurance companies and getting billings straight between the insurance company and the service provider! Ha That’s another thread in itself. If I were paid minimum wage for all the hours I’ve spent going back and forth, explaining, calling, writing to get things covered that my policy clearly states are covered…Lord help me.</p>
<p>
I have that problem too. I was once in the hospital and the staff was so confused that they told me to bring my own.</p>
<p>I end up coaching my doctor on how to write it: “If you say x, I will get 84 pills to last me 90 days; if you say y I will get 90 pills.”</p>
<p>A handy reference for the more recent guidelines:</p>
<p>[Does</a> Your Doctor Know About the New TSH Lab Standards?](<a href=“http://thyroid.about.com/cs/testsforthyroid/a/labs2003.htm]Does”>TSH Levels: What Do High and Low Levels Mean?)</p>
<p>BTW many mainstream doctors will not prescribe T3 (armour or cytomel), feeling that there is risk of cardiac stress and insufficient studies proving safety. The other side (holistic practitioners, some osteopaths, naturalists etc.) claim that big money pharmaceuticals have influenced doctors on this subject for years. </p>
<p>Food interactions - I’ve read that overdoing soy or tofu , especially for iodine deficient individuals and in certain sensitive women can potentially have a negative, goitrogenic effect, but contradictory claims abound. </p>
<p>[Soy:</a> Does it worsen hypothyroidism? - MayoClinic.com](<a href=“http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hyperthyroidism/AN00454]Soy:”>Soy: Does it worsen hypothyroidism? - Mayo Clinic)</p>
<p>Wow I’ve never stopped and counted what is in my bottle! I assume I’m getting 90, but golly. Next refill, I’m counting. I did do that “alternate” dosing for a year to hit a particular “dose” over the course of the week and that was be wierd at my mail order pharmacy. They did call and ask why I had two perscriptions for different doses. All in all, I think I’ve been fortunate. I didn’t have any problems during my pregnancies except I went from a high normal TSH to a low normal TSH but that was back in the days where they kept you at the high end which is higher than the new “norm” so for two decades I was basically “underdosed.” Back then, they worried that it would be “hard on your heart” to give you “too much” Synthroid. Needless to say I loved being pregnant each time, I felt wonderful. Now I know that it was because my TSH was at a great level for me. I’m glad the doctors are listening better to what patients are saying about how they feel.</p>
<p>Hmm…another reason to avoid tofu.</p>
<p>I prefer my soybeans processed by a bovine.</p>
<p>Zoosermom…my D was so happy when she got her ponytail back! She wears it back more often now, because she appreciates it more. It’s a tiny little thing, but it’s cute.</p>