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3 weeks from start of treatment and feel rubbish

Posted , 5 users are following.

evergreen
evergreen

I was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and started on carbomazole 20mg 3 weeks ago. After ten days I started feeling a little better but now I feel like I am back to square one with body vibrating in bed, 'hyper hand' where I keep dropping things and can't do anything that needs lots of hand eye coordination. I feel exhausted, get intermittent chest pains which the doctor thinks is angina. But I don't understand why I feel worse again after feeling a bit better. In fact I feel worse than when I was diagnosed. Anyone else had this? I think the 20mg is a small dose as I am scared of new drugs so the doc put me on a bit lower in case I had a bad reaction. But is it possible for hyperthyroidism to get worse when you are being treated? I'm having blood tests tomorrow but have no idea of what my thyroid levels were when I was diagnosed.

1 like, 16 replies

16 Replies

  • jan.h
    jan.h evergreen

    Posted

    Babe, the treatment isn't an instant cure! Don't panic x

     I feel awful 5 months in, it fluctuates as your body struggles to balance with the meds .

    regular blood tests are essential , and keep a diary of levels and how you feel....see triggers and mark good days, compare your activities and how you felt.....

    lit will get better...me , I'm feeling awful after a family holiday where I exhausted myself.....

    youre not alone......many others have good advice, keep posted!!!

    • evergreen
      evergreen jan.h

      Posted

      Thanks. I have a 7 day a week physical job with horses so it's so hard to rest. I think I tend to over-do it when I'm feeling better and then pay for it. But I'm feeling so anxious and jumpy today. On the verge of tears.
  • linda187
    linda187 evergreen

    Posted

    Many patients are given both beta blockers for palpitations and the antithyroid medication (Carbimazole in UK or Methimizole in North America).  It doesn't sound as though you were given beta blockers.  I was on beta blockers until my diagnosis was confirmed and I was started on Methimazole.  Then I didn't feel I needed them but many patients who have extremely high values need beta blockers along with their Methimazole as treatment.  I found I felt on top of my disease if I always got a copy of all my labs and understood what they meant.  I suggest you do that and you will feel more empowered.  I know at one point when I was actually at the bottom of the range for my labs (not technically hypo but values were lower rather than mid range or higher) I was getting palpitations and I was scared something cardiac was wrong so I went to Emerg and was referred to a Cardiologist for a cardiac opinion.  It turns out my heart was okay but I was relieved to have it confirmed by cardiac tests and a cardiac opinion.
  • linda187
    linda187 evergreen

    Posted

    Many patients are given both beta blockers for palpitations and the antithyroid medication (Carbimazole in UK or Methimizole in North America).  It doesn't sound as though you were given beta blockers.  I was on beta blockers until my diagnosis was confirmed and I was started on Methimazole.  Then I didn't feel I needed them but many patients who have extremely high values need beta blockers along with their Methimazole as treatment.  I found I felt on top of my disease if I always got a copy of all my labs and understood what they meant.  I suggest you do that and you will feel more empowered.  I know at one point when I was actually at the bottom of the range for my labs (not technically hypo but values were lower rather than mid range or higher) I was getting palpitations and I was scared something cardiac was wrong so I went to Emerg and was referred to a Cardiologist for a cardiac opinion.  It turns out my heart was okay but I was relieved to have it confirmed by cardiac tests and a cardiac opinion.
    • evergreen
      evergreen linda187

      Posted

      Thanks, Linda. I did have propranolol but had constant vomiting, and then was put on bisolol and it stopped me breathing after onlly half a pill, so I can't take beta blockers unfortunately.
    • cindy30745
      cindy30745 linda187

      Posted

      Linda

      Is there an alternative to carbimazole/methimizole?

      I ask in case of any contrainfication or interactions it has. 

    • linda187
      linda187 cindy30745

      Posted

      Yes there is Propylthiouracil (PTU) for short.  It is given to women who want to become pregnant or who are pregnant in the first 3 months because it does not cause birth defects.  People who cannot tolerate methimazole are given it as well.  Also there are natural treatment methods and some people choose to use them instead.
  • tammy50000
    tammy50000 evergreen

    Posted

    The best advice that I've received is to rest when you feel badly and seize the days that you feel good. I understand that this is difficult with work but maybe you can be honest with them? For some patients the medication doesn't make them feel 100%, you can still experience symptoms even if your numbers are "normal". And I agree that you should get your lab results and take control of your treatment. My heart palpitations make me very tired. Drinking alcohol, caffeine and stress makes it worse. Also maybe moving to a gluten free diet would help. This is a journey and could be a lifestyle change for a while. I know that it's difficult.
    • evergreen
      evergreen tammy50000

      Posted

      Thanks, Tammy. I'm the person who owns/runs the yard. Only 4 horses (one of my own and the other 3 are client's horses), but I do everything myself and cannot afford to hire anyone. So basically, I am stuck doing everything, mucking out, grooming, field maintenance. 5 hours of solid hard graft every day. I have cut out all the non essentials such as riding and my daily workouts on the cross trainer. I was so fit before getting this disease. I just keep thinking, it could be worse. There are worse diseases to get, but this one does drag you down!
  • evergreen
    evergreen

    Posted

    Hi everyone. I'm feeling much better today after 3 days of feeling dreadful. I'm still shaky but not aching and have more energy. I went for my bloods earlier and got the results from when I was diagnosed:

    ​TSH <0.01

    t3 14

    ​t4 46

    not too high compared to some others. i just seem to have a lot of symptoms! i'm due to see the gp in a week unless he rings me earlier. he's such a great gp. t3="" 14="" ​t4="" 46="" not="" too="" high="" compared="" to="" some="" others.="" i="" just="" seem="" to="" have="" a="" lot="" of="" symptoms!="" i'm="" due="" to="" see="" the="" gp="" in="" a="" week="" unless="" he="" rings="" me="" earlier.="" he's="" such="" a="" great="">

    t3 14

    ​t4 46

    not too high compared to some others. i just seem to have a lot of symptoms! i'm due to see the gp in a week unless he rings me earlier. he's such a great gp.>

    • cindy30745
      cindy30745 evergreen

      Posted

      Nice to hear this. When did the aching start to go?

      Sorry but what were your levels before treatmen?

      Regards

    • evergreen
      evergreen cindy30745

      Posted

      Hi Cindy, these were my levells on 5th April, so three weeks ago.  I will find out my current levels next wed at the latest. My aching went overnight, but I've had this before and then got worse again. Seems I have a few days feeling fine and then I feel awful again. Feel really good today compared with previous days.
    • cindy30745
      cindy30745 evergreen

      Posted

      Glad to hear that you are feeling better. I was wondering what meds u are taking and what your diet consists of. Thanx.
    • evergreen
      evergreen cindy30745

      Posted

      Just carbimazole and temazepam. My diet was fantastic before I stopped eating prior to my diagnosis. Now I eat rubbish because that's all I fancy. I'm getting better though and have started to eat a more balanced diet again these past couple of days. I have just started taking l-cartinine a couple of days ago too, which may have helped me feel better today.
    • cindy30745
      cindy30745 evergreen

      Posted

      Hi Evergreen

      Glad to hear that you are feeling better.

      Thank you for the info about your meds.

      I have heard good reports about the medication that you have been taking for two days as well.

       

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