Re: how do you survive the depression while waiting for thyroid meds to work?

August 12, 2004

...please don't let anyone tell you different. Depression is serious stuff...talk to your doctors, talk to your girlfriends, sisters, mother...anyone that will just listen to you...no, they don't have to fix it but if someone can ride it out with you and not shame you...I am here for you....we are here for you....hang on....I have been where you are...you will make it through...trust...have faith... -e-

wrote:

i've been taking synthroid for two weeks now, but i am still sodepressed i don't know what to do. i know that this is physical, butthat doesnt help me feel any better. i know that i need to be patient waiting for the meds to get into mysystem and work, but i am so messed up emotionally, i don't know how iam going to make it.can anyone help?

August 12, 2004

...please don't let anyone tell you different. Depression is serious stuff...talk to your doctors, talk to your girlfriends, sisters, mother...anyone that will just listen to you...no, they don't have to fix it but if someone can ride it out with you and not shame you...I am here for you....we are here for you....hang on....I have been where you are...you will make it through...trust...have faith... -e-

wrote:

i've been taking synthroid for two weeks now, but i am still sodepressed i don't know what to do. i know that this is physical, butthat doesnt help me feel any better. i know that i need to be patient waiting for the meds to get into mysystem and work, but i am so messed up emotionally, i don't know how iam going to make it.can anyone help?

August 12, 2004

If you feel that depressed, please don't hesitate to seek

professional help. Contact your church, United Way and anyone

else you can think of to get a referral to a licensed therapist.

Most therapy through these sources is done on a sliding scale based on

your income, so that should help financially. Emotionally, it

will make all the difference.

The synthroid will take up to six weeks to fully enter your

system. The initial dosage they will give you should be low, so

your body can adjust to that medication. It may take up to a

year to optimize your medications.

Often, depression in thyroid patients has to do with a lack of T3

hormone in your thyroid. You may want to have him check your T3

during your next visit and prescribe a T3 medication if it is

needed.

I know it's really hard; gosh it's hard when you come down with

thyroid problems. They take a long time to fix and sometimes you

have to go through several doctors and several medications to return

to normal life. However, if you feel you are in a truly dark

place, ask your practitioner to refer you to a psychiatrist who can

give you an antidepressant that will not affect your thyroid or your

thyroid medication.

Believe me, no one understands your suffering more than people

with similar afflictions.

Best wishes--

C.

i've been taking synthroid for two

weeks now, but i am still so

depressed i don't know what to do. i know that this is physical,

but

that doesnt help me feel any better.

i know that i need to be patient waiting for the meds to get into

my

system and work, but i am so messed up emotionally, i don't know how

i

am going to make it.

can anyone help?

Yahoo!

Groups Sponsor

August 12, 2004

If you feel that depressed, please don't hesitate to seek

professional help. Contact your church, United Way and anyone

else you can think of to get a referral to a licensed therapist.

Most therapy through these sources is done on a sliding scale based on

your income, so that should help financially. Emotionally, it

will make all the difference.

The synthroid will take up to six weeks to fully enter your

system. The initial dosage they will give you should be low, so

your body can adjust to that medication. It may take up to a

year to optimize your medications.

Often, depression in thyroid patients has to do with a lack of T3

hormone in your thyroid. You may want to have him check your T3

during your next visit and prescribe a T3 medication if it is

needed.

I know it's really hard; gosh it's hard when you come down with

thyroid problems. They take a long time to fix and sometimes you

have to go through several doctors and several medications to return

to normal life. However, if you feel you are in a truly dark

place, ask your practitioner to refer you to a psychiatrist who can

give you an antidepressant that will not affect your thyroid or your

thyroid medication.

Believe me, no one understands your suffering more than people

with similar afflictions.

Best wishes--

C.

i've been taking synthroid for two

weeks now, but i am still so

depressed i don't know what to do. i know that this is physical,

but

that doesnt help me feel any better.

i know that i need to be patient waiting for the meds to get into

my

system and work, but i am so messed up emotionally, i don't know how

i

am going to make it.

can anyone help?

Yahoo!

Groups Sponsor

August 12, 2004

Hang in there, ,

You're right. It takes time. If you don't start feeling better

within a few more weeks on the synthroid, then maybe your doctor

needs to add a bit of Cytomel or switch you to Armour.

Try curling up with a good book. Are you into meditation or prayer?

Music? Candles & a hot bath? That can certainly help. It WILL get

better!

hugs,

> i've been taking synthroid for two weeks now, but i am still so

> depressed i don't know what to do. i know that this is physical,

but

> that doesnt help me feel any better.

>

> i know that i need to be patient waiting for the meds to get into my

> system and work, but i am so messed up emotionally, i don't know

how i

> am going to make it.

>

> can anyone help?

August 13, 2004

> The synthroid will take up to six weeks to fully enter your system.

> The initial dosage they will give you should be low, so your body can

> adjust to that medication. It may take up to a year to optimize your

> medications.

she started me at 50mcg, so i'm going to try to be patient waiting.

it's just so hard, cuz i don't feel like myself at all. i feel crazy!

i know that it's physical, but it doesnt help that much, because i

still feel crazy, even though i know i'm not.

> Often, depression in thyroid patients has to do with a lack of T3

> hormone in your thyroid. You may want to have him check your T3

> during your next visit and prescribe a T3 medication if it is

> needed.

these were my test results before treatment:

free t3: 3.7 pg/ml (lab lists " normal range " as 2.3 - 4.2)

t4: 7.1 og/dl (lab lists " normal range " as 4.4 - 12.5)

tsh: 1.2 uiu/ml (lab lists " normal range " as .3 - 5.1)

with that much free t3, it seems like i shouldnt feel this bad, but i

do! can anyone help me understand this? i've been reading mary

shomon's " living well with hypothyroidism " and she talks about

hashimoto's a bit and how you can have hypo symptoms with it well

before your levels are actually " out of range " but i am confused as to

why this happens and how to know what i need, etc.

i guess i'm kind of scared that i'm going to feel like this forever if

i'm feeling like this now with so much free t3. at this level, i feel

like my doctor would be very reluctant to add more t3. heck, i'm

wondering why i feel bad at all with that much free t3 and such a low tsh.

> Believe me, no one understands your suffering more than people with

> similar afflictions.

i'm so glad for the internet, so we can talk to each other! it seems

like no one else does understand!

rachel.

August 13, 2004

Some get along fine on Synthroid, but I don't feel that most of us do. If

you are not converting the T4 med to T3 very well, then we're talking

depression here. Can you give some more details? Have you posted your labs

here before or not? Have you had the Free T3 and the Free T4 tested? BOTH

are crucial to finding out what's wrong. What about antibodies?

how do you survive the depression while

waiting for thyroid meds to work?

> i've been taking synthroid for two weeks now, but i am still so

> depressed i don't know what to do. i know that this is physical, but

> that doesnt help me feel any better.

>

> i know that i need to be patient waiting for the meds to get into my

> system and work, but i am so messed up emotionally, i don't know how i

> am going to make it.

>

> can anyone help?

August 13, 2004

Yes, and I think that so many of us has been in that dark place. It does take time to fix. We all have each other also, that's what we're here for.

Re: how do you survive the depression while waiting for thyroid meds to work?

If you feel that depressed, please don't hesitate to seek professional help. Contact your church, United Way and anyone else you can think of to get a referral to a licensed therapist. Most therapy through these sources is done on a sliding scale based on your income, so that should help financially. Emotionally, it will make all the difference.

The synthroid will take up to six weeks to fully enter your system. The initial dosage they will give you should be low, so your body can adjust to that medication. It may take up to a year to optimize your medications.

Often, depression in thyroid patients has to do with a lack of T3 hormone in your thyroid. You may want to have him check your T3 during your next visit and prescribe a T3 medication if it is needed.

I know it's really hard; gosh it's hard when you come down with thyroid problems. They take a long time to fix and sometimes you have to go through several doctors and several medications to return to normal life. However, if you feel you are in a truly dark place, ask your practitioner to refer you to a psychiatrist who can give you an antidepressant that will not affect your thyroid or your thyroid medication.

Believe me, no one understands your suffering more than people with similar afflictions.

Best wishes--

C.

August 13, 2004

Dear --

When I first got sick, I kept expecting specific kinds of

miracles. I expected to wake up one day and rise from my bed

with sparks crackling around my head and a sense of purpose.

Instead, I stumbled into my days, heavy and hurt and confused.

I expected every doctor I saw to sit me down, touch me with

fingers full of white light and heal the questions that troubled me.

Instead, I found more uncertainty and distrust.

I expected that all the medications I took would stop the process

of this disorder-- just as one could reach out and stop the minute

hand of a clock with the touch of a finger. Instead, the illness

crept onward, insidious and quiet.

And finally, finally, I realized that it is good to have this

expectation of a miracle, but while I waited for these specific

glories to happen, other miracles had taken their place. A

friend came over and cleaned my house. Another companion called

to check on me. My mother stocked my refrigerator and made me

dinner. H., my husband, when he got home from a long trip away,

washed my laundry, made me laugh.

Like you, I am in the process of waiting for one of these

medications to work, and for my life to resume its bright colors.

I have been home, sick, for seven months. At this time last

year, I was teaching six college courses, and was the creator/curator

of a large, successful art show.

There are days I am so frustrated I could spit lava, and there

were days when my medications made me so ill that I wanted nothing

more than to curl up in the hospital emergency room. I didn't

cry much, but boy did I want to.

All I can tell you is my own experience-- I have slowed down,

read more books, talked with my best friends about my illness until I

bored myself to sleep (and them, too!). I take warm baths, put a

little make-up on every day and wear bright colored vintage dresses to

keep me happy when my mood is black. I have read a semester's

worth of treatises on nutrition, hypothyroidism, meditation and

eastern medicine. I have pulled out my art supplies and played

like a child. I don't allow anyone to drag on me and I

don't watch the evening news. And I have had a new therapist

since the week I was diagnosed who lets me get out all the pitiful

emotions this illness inspires, in the privacy of her rose-colored

office.

I am not saying that you shouldn't have expectations-- those same

expectations will keep your immune system working. Those

expectations will help you stand up to your doctor if this medication

does not seem to be working in the long run. Those expectations

will save you.

But I have different expectations than when I was first

diagnosed. I expect that I will need to be a full partner with

my doctor in my diagnosis, and I expect that I will do everything

within my power to assist my body with this process of healing.

And I expect that I will get well-- it may be a different kind of well

than I originally envisioned, but I will be well someday soon.

And so will you. I promise.

Best wishes--

Courtenay.

> The synthroid will take up to six weeks to fully enter your

system.

> The initial dosage they will give you should be low, so your body

can

> adjust to that medication. It may take up to a year to

optimize your

> medications.

she started me at 50mcg, so i'm going to try to be patient

waiting.

it's just so hard, cuz i don't feel like myself at all. i feel

crazy!

i know that it's physical, but it doesnt help that much,

because i

still feel crazy, even though i know i'm not.

> Often, depression in thyroid patients has to do with a lack of

T3

> hormone in your thyroid. You may want to have him check

your T3

> during your next visit and prescribe a T3 medication if it is

> needed.

these were my test results before treatment:

free t3: 3.7 pg/ml (lab lists " normal range " as 2.3 -

4.2)

t4: 7.1 og/dl (lab lists " normal range " as 4.4 - 12.5)

tsh: 1.2 uiu/ml (lab lists " normal range " as .3 - 5.1)

with that much free t3, it seems like i shouldnt feel this bad, but

i

do! can anyone help me understand this? i've been reading

mary

shomon's " living well with hypothyroidism " and she talks

about

hashimoto's a bit and how you can have hypo symptoms with it well

before your levels are actually " out of range " but i am

confused as to

why this happens and how to know what i need, etc.

i guess i'm kind of scared that i'm going to feel like this forever

if

i'm feeling like this now with so much free t3. at this level, i

feel

like my doctor would be very reluctant to add more t3. heck,

i'm

wondering why i feel bad at all with that much free t3 and such a low

tsh.

> Believe me, no one understands your suffering more than people

with

> similar afflictions.

i'm so glad for the internet, so we can talk to each other! it

seems

like no one else does understand!

rachel.

Yahoo!

Groups Sponsor

August 13, 2004

Dear --

When I first got sick, I kept expecting specific kinds of

miracles. I expected to wake up one day and rise from my bed

with sparks crackling around my head and a sense of purpose.

Instead, I stumbled into my days, heavy and hurt and confused.

I expected every doctor I saw to sit me down, touch me with

fingers full of white light and heal the questions that troubled me.

Instead, I found more uncertainty and distrust.

I expected that all the medications I took would stop the process

of this disorder-- just as one could reach out and stop the minute

hand of a clock with the touch of a finger. Instead, the illness

crept onward, insidious and quiet.

And finally, finally, I realized that it is good to have this

expectation of a miracle, but while I waited for these specific

glories to happen, other miracles had taken their place. A

friend came over and cleaned my house. Another companion called

to check on me. My mother stocked my refrigerator and made me

dinner. H., my husband, when he got home from a long trip away,

washed my laundry, made me laugh.

Like you, I am in the process of waiting for one of these

medications to work, and for my life to resume its bright colors.

I have been home, sick, for seven months. At this time last

year, I was teaching six college courses, and was the creator/curator

of a large, successful art show.

There are days I am so frustrated I could spit lava, and there

were days when my medications made me so ill that I wanted nothing

more than to curl up in the hospital emergency room. I didn't

cry much, but boy did I want to.

All I can tell you is my own experience-- I have slowed down,

read more books, talked with my best friends about my illness until I

bored myself to sleep (and them, too!). I take warm baths, put a

little make-up on every day and wear bright colored vintage dresses to

keep me happy when my mood is black. I have read a semester's

worth of treatises on nutrition, hypothyroidism, meditation and

eastern medicine. I have pulled out my art supplies and played

like a child. I don't allow anyone to drag on me and I

don't watch the evening news. And I have had a new therapist

since the week I was diagnosed who lets me get out all the pitiful

emotions this illness inspires, in the privacy of her rose-colored

office.

I am not saying that you shouldn't have expectations-- those same

expectations will keep your immune system working. Those

expectations will help you stand up to your doctor if this medication

does not seem to be working in the long run. Those expectations

will save you.

But I have different expectations than when I was first

diagnosed. I expect that I will need to be a full partner with

my doctor in my diagnosis, and I expect that I will do everything

within my power to assist my body with this process of healing.

And I expect that I will get well-- it may be a different kind of well

than I originally envisioned, but I will be well someday soon.

And so will you. I promise.

Best wishes--

Courtenay.

> The synthroid will take up to six weeks to fully enter your

system.

> The initial dosage they will give you should be low, so your body

can

> adjust to that medication. It may take up to a year to

optimize your

> medications.

she started me at 50mcg, so i'm going to try to be patient

waiting.

it's just so hard, cuz i don't feel like myself at all. i feel

crazy!

i know that it's physical, but it doesnt help that much,

because i

still feel crazy, even though i know i'm not.

> Often, depression in thyroid patients has to do with a lack of

T3

> hormone in your thyroid. You may want to have him check

your T3

> during your next visit and prescribe a T3 medication if it is

> needed.

these were my test results before treatment:

free t3: 3.7 pg/ml (lab lists " normal range " as 2.3 -

4.2)

t4: 7.1 og/dl (lab lists " normal range " as 4.4 - 12.5)

tsh: 1.2 uiu/ml (lab lists " normal range " as .3 - 5.1)

with that much free t3, it seems like i shouldnt feel this bad, but

i

do! can anyone help me understand this? i've been reading

mary

shomon's " living well with hypothyroidism " and she talks

about

hashimoto's a bit and how you can have hypo symptoms with it well

before your levels are actually " out of range " but i am

confused as to

why this happens and how to know what i need, etc.

i guess i'm kind of scared that i'm going to feel like this forever

if

i'm feeling like this now with so much free t3. at this level, i

feel

like my doctor would be very reluctant to add more t3. heck,

i'm

wondering why i feel bad at all with that much free t3 and such a low

tsh.

> Believe me, no one understands your suffering more than people

with

> similar afflictions.

i'm so glad for the internet, so we can talk to each other! it

seems

like no one else does understand!

rachel.

Yahoo!

Groups Sponsor

August 13, 2004

Dear --

When I first got sick, I kept expecting specific kinds of

miracles. I expected to wake up one day and rise from my bed

with sparks crackling around my head and a sense of purpose.

Instead, I stumbled into my days, heavy and hurt and confused.

I expected every doctor I saw to sit me down, touch me with

fingers full of white light and heal the questions that troubled me.

Instead, I found more uncertainty and distrust.

I expected that all the medications I took would stop the process

of this disorder-- just as one could reach out and stop the minute

hand of a clock with the touch of a finger. Instead, the illness

crept onward, insidious and quiet.

And finally, finally, I realized that it is good to have this

expectation of a miracle, but while I waited for these specific

glories to happen, other miracles had taken their place. A

friend came over and cleaned my house. Another companion called

to check on me. My mother stocked my refrigerator and made me

dinner. H., my husband, when he got home from a long trip away,

washed my laundry, made me laugh.

Like you, I am in the process of waiting for one of these

medications to work, and for my life to resume its bright colors.

I have been home, sick, for seven months. At this time last

year, I was teaching six college courses, and was the creator/curator

of a large, successful art show.

There are days I am so frustrated I could spit lava, and there

were days when my medications made me so ill that I wanted nothing

more than to curl up in the hospital emergency room. I didn't

cry much, but boy did I want to.

All I can tell you is my own experience-- I have slowed down,

read more books, talked with my best friends about my illness until I

bored myself to sleep (and them, too!). I take warm baths, put a

little make-up on every day and wear bright colored vintage dresses to

keep me happy when my mood is black. I have read a semester's

worth of treatises on nutrition, hypothyroidism, meditation and

eastern medicine. I have pulled out my art supplies and played

like a child. I don't allow anyone to drag on me and I

don't watch the evening news. And I have had a new therapist

since the week I was diagnosed who lets me get out all the pitiful

emotions this illness inspires, in the privacy of her rose-colored

office.

I am not saying that you shouldn't have expectations-- those same

expectations will keep your immune system working. Those

expectations will help you stand up to your doctor if this medication

does not seem to be working in the long run. Those expectations

will save you.

But I have different expectations than when I was first

diagnosed. I expect that I will need to be a full partner with

my doctor in my diagnosis, and I expect that I will do everything

within my power to assist my body with this process of healing.

And I expect that I will get well-- it may be a different kind of well

than I originally envisioned, but I will be well someday soon.

And so will you. I promise.

Best wishes--

Courtenay.

> The synthroid will take up to six weeks to fully enter your

system.

> The initial dosage they will give you should be low, so your body

can

> adjust to that medication. It may take up to a year to

optimize your

> medications.

she started me at 50mcg, so i'm going to try to be patient

waiting.

it's just so hard, cuz i don't feel like myself at all. i feel

crazy!

i know that it's physical, but it doesnt help that much,

because i

still feel crazy, even though i know i'm not.

> Often, depression in thyroid patients has to do with a lack of

T3

> hormone in your thyroid. You may want to have him check

your T3

> during your next visit and prescribe a T3 medication if it is

> needed.

these were my test results before treatment:

free t3: 3.7 pg/ml (lab lists " normal range " as 2.3 -

4.2)

t4: 7.1 og/dl (lab lists " normal range " as 4.4 - 12.5)

tsh: 1.2 uiu/ml (lab lists " normal range " as .3 - 5.1)

with that much free t3, it seems like i shouldnt feel this bad, but

i

do! can anyone help me understand this? i've been reading

mary

shomon's " living well with hypothyroidism " and she talks

about

hashimoto's a bit and how you can have hypo symptoms with it well

before your levels are actually " out of range " but i am

confused as to

why this happens and how to know what i need, etc.

i guess i'm kind of scared that i'm going to feel like this forever

if

i'm feeling like this now with so much free t3. at this level, i

feel

like my doctor would be very reluctant to add more t3. heck,

i'm

wondering why i feel bad at all with that much free t3 and such a low

tsh.

> Believe me, no one understands your suffering more than people

with

> similar afflictions.

i'm so glad for the internet, so we can talk to each other! it

seems

like no one else does understand!

rachel.

Yahoo!

Groups Sponsor

August 13, 2004

> Some get along fine on Synthroid, but I don't feel that most of us

do. If

> you are not converting the T4 med to T3 very well, then we're talking

> depression here. Can you give some more details? Have you posted

your labs

> here before or not? Have you had the Free T3 and the Free T4

tested? BOTH

> are crucial to finding out what's wrong. What about antibodies?

i've been depressed for 6-8 months, and it's been getting

progressively worse during that time. on july 29th, i was diagnosed

with hashimoto's. my antibodies were at 70, on a scale where under 2

was normal. here were my other results, prior to treatment:

free t3: 3.7 pg/ml (lab lists " normal range " as 2.3 - 4.2)

t4: 7.1 og/dl (lab lists " normal range " as 4.4 - 12.5)

tsh: 1.2 uiu/ml (lab lists " normal range " as .3 - 5.1)

i did not have a free t4 done.

with that much free t3, it seems like i shouldnt feel this bad, but i

do! i've been reading mary shomon's living well with hypothyroidism,

and i'm very intrigued by the chapter on t3 therapy. at this level, i

feel like my doctor would be very reluctant to add more t3. heck, i'm

wondering why i feel bad at all with that much free t3 and such a low tsh.

i am wondering how long i should wait before i contact my doctor to

say " hey, this isn't working! " i want to be a patient patient, and

give the medicine a chance to work, but i dont want to suffer

needlessly. i also feel like i need to give it time, because i want

to have that as credibility if/when (probably when!) i ask the doctor

to increase my meds or/and add some t3. my next appointment isnt

until october 11th, so if i wait until then, it's almost 2 months.

rachel.

August 13, 2004