Weight gain is making me so depressed

It is definitely harder to loose weight if you have hypothyroidism but it can be done. I have proved this in the last few months. I got shock just before Christmas when I was told I had diabetes. I had had a really bad viral infection which had affected my glucose levels which turned out to be only a temporary blip but I was shocked into realising I could have an additional problem to hypothyroidism. So in November I started cutting down my portion sizes and perhaps most importantly limiting my intake of carbohydrates, potatoes bread etc and fat. The result has been that I have lost 12lb, about a 1lb a week. My husband too has lost weight. We neither of would have been classed as obese but definitely over weight. We are both in our 70s and want to remain active as long as possible, I already feel the benefit and intend to carry on with the way I am eating. I am not cutting out anything completely in fact every evening we now have 1 chocolate with our coffee after our evening meal and 1 glass of wine most days but drink plain water most of the time otherwise. I think positive thinking does pay. We all want to feel we look good and I'm sure you can. Good luck Maggie

Thank you. I do watch what I eat; I know I should exercise more but my medication dosage still isn't right and I feel tired a lot and it is difficult, I know I need to push myself more. I will most definitely try your suggestion of cutting down on carbohydrates and fat. Your success is fantastic, really encouraging so well done to you!

I was in counselling last year for depression and anxiety so I may consider going back to get myself back in the right mindset. I do realise I need a more positive attitude. I will freely admit that I still have a lot of residual anger over the situation/my condition as I'm quite young (only 22) compared to most other people I know with hypothyroidism who are above 40 and like I said previously feel let down by my own body as silly as that sounds. Thank you so much for your response. I don't feel like I have many people to talk to about hypothyroidism who properly understand how much of an effect it can have on your life.

I do understand believe me. When I was in my 20s and suddenly lost all my energy no one thought then it might be due to lack of a fully functioning thyroid. Blood tests were not done for it or if they were I didn't have one. I can say I has several years when I felt dreadful and didn't know the cause until years later in my 50s Even then it took years until I got my medication right. Probably I have been at best for the last 8 or so years since I had endocrinologist appointment and I was put on 100cgmsT4 and 10 mcgms T3. I have kept pretty well since then. Yes I too felt pretty bitter about loosing a career in my 20s but feel lucky to be having a good period of health now. Incidentally my 38 year old son started a very aggressive decline in his energy levels until the problem was picked up last year. He is still not sure if he is on optimum levels of medication

Insist on seeing a specialist if you continue not to feel good. Depression is an accompanying problem not always recognised with hypothyroidism. What ever you do, don't give up. It takes a lot of energy to fight for one's right treatment sometimes but it is worth it. Maggie W

It is hard not to be discouraged when you are dealing with hypothyroid. There are so many areas of your life that can be impacted. My mother was never diagnosed until her 60's and probably lived with many symptoms not knowing the cause. I have been diagnosed for about 5 years now and will be 52 this month. Like my mother, I have always struggled with weight...eat a froot loop...gain 2 lbs....at my highest I have probably averaged being 20-35 lbs overweight. I decided to see endo Dr. a couple years ago for weight gain, hair loss, etc. My age also means perimenopause so I get the double wammy. I cried all the way home from the Endo because all he said was..you probably aren't working out as hard as you think you are...you can't eat the way you used to at your age...all said with only asking me a few questions about my habits. Last April after being so depressed about my continual weight gain and despite watching what I ate at every turn. I considered all the fad diets....but I know these don't work long term. I then came across the "Fast Metabolism Diet" on a tv program and went to work on researching it. I found enough credible success stories I decided to learn more. I purchased the book, 12.00 on amazon. The science of it just makes sense and you eat alot and alot of good foods. Its a 28 day program and you cycle through 3 phases weekly so you don't get bored. The first 2 or 3 weeks I was pretty religious about following everything exactly but did sneak my little nibble of cookie, glass of wine etc... which the author accounts for and tells you what to do. I began drinking lots of water regularly..also something I never did before because it just made me feel more bloated.....I stayed on this for about 6 weeks all together but afterward I really kept many of the same habits and foods going......in total lost 21 lbs. which was right around my goal. I am now a believer in something I never thought I would see again after being so discouraged. The great thing is I didn't go back to "normal" food because I was eating it all along. When I traveled for work during several weeks in the Fall I put a few lbs back on which I expected but as I've continued with some of the great habits of drinking water, and look forward to the things I CAN eat rather than thinking about what I shouldn't. I love the mango smoothie recipe in her book.... I stepped on the scale the first time in weeks the other day and I found I was only up 4 lbs. It really did help my metabolism. All in all I just wanted to say I was at a super low point and was obsessively thinking about losing weight every day and feeling bad about myself but this experience gave me confidence that I needed to know that it could be done despite the obstacles found with hypothyroid.

Hi

I can understand how you feel. I was eventually diagnosed with hypothyroidism in 1995 after it had progressed to Myxoedema, I piled on the weight, my hair fell out, my skin was flaking off, my brain was addled and I lost the use of both hands for 7 months. I was told by my GP that I would never lose the weight!

Having tried in vain for many years to lose weight I came across a book called The Fast Metabolism Diet by Haylie Pomroy (approx £8 from Amazon). The diet is like no other I have ever tried and means eating three main meals and two snacks a day (recipes included in the book). You eat all food groups in a specific way and she explains what works and why it works.

I went from size 24 to size 12 in 5 months and lost 4 stones in weight. This has changed my life in so many ways. People don't recognise me and have asked me how I did it so I have told them about the book. I have people ringing me to tell me how thrilled they are with the results. The book is fascinating reading as Haylie Pomroy is animal trained and medical trained and speaks such sense. The great thing too is that I have maintained the weight loss even though I am not on the diet now but still follow the principals.

It certainly worked for me so I am pleased to pass this on to you and hope it does for you too. Wishing you well.  Mandy

hi janine

im the exact same-age27, i was never ever overweight-always very slim, now i exercise for few hrs daily-eat very little and still overweight-really upsets me, clothes-my one true love-dont look right anymore-constantly tired. im getting testd for my thyroid tomorrow-hoping doctor can do something