Hi,
I had my thyroid removed in 7/03...had a 2nd dose of RAI a few weeks ago and have been back on synthroid(112 mcg) for 3 weeks.
I have had many symptoms over the last year, but my worst one is my constant shortness of breath. Just walking across the room makes me feel breathless. I'm not out of shape and I try to exercise atleast a few times a week. My Dr. thinks it may be due to anxiety, but I can't help but think it's thyroid related since it started about the time I found out I had a nodule on my thyroid. I'm currently a little hypo due to being off my meds for awhile before my treatment, but I was feeling this way even when my hormone levels were normal.
Does anyone else have constant shortness of breath? Any ideas on something that might help? I hate feeling this way all the time...I have 2 young children to chase after and it's hard to that when I can't breath!
Hi Hilery
I'm no expert but I'm hypoT and have experienced the same thing. Even though I'm reasonably fit (regularly working out at the gym etc), I started getting shortness of breath from just walking up one flight of stairs! Another similar thing I noticed was that my face would get really sweaty too with even a tiny amount of exercising such as riding my bicycle for 5 minutes. So much so that friends would comment on it. And this never happened before.
I'm pretty sure I read (I think in the book, Thyroid Power), that shortness of breath is indeed one symptom of an underactive thyroid.
And sorry, I've yet to come across a cure for that other than, I guess, waiting for the ol' medication to kick in...
Since you said you had your thyroid removed, I would guess that you were intubated during your surgery. You could have scar tissue in your trachea from where the cuff on the endotracheal tube was placed. This is rare, but it happens. Do you get short of breath even from speaking? Have your doc listen to your throat with the stethescope the next time you go in. There is usually a wheezing sound when breathing if you have the scar tissue. Like I said, this is very rare but a possibility that should be ruled out.
In addition to being hypo for five years, my Primary Care Physician said I have TMJ (TemporoMandibular Joint Disorder). I experience shortness of breath from that. Check the TMJ Board "Sticky" for TMJ symptoms. Someone on the TMJ board believed they developed their TMJ from being intubated like Idolson just mentioned above.
The inhaler I have doesn't work at all. I ended up in the emergency room with shortness of breath. They thought it might be my heart, but my heart was fine. They measured my oxygen/lung intake, and they said I was taking in enough oxygen. It was TMJ related. Good luck I hope you find the cause.
I'm not sure if this is due to being hypothyroid or not because I've had this symptom even when my levels were normal. I didn't think about my being intubated for my surgeries having something to do with it. I'll definatly talk to my Dr. about that. Also, I didn't realize that shortness of breath was a TMJ symptom. I do have TMJ, but it's not severe.
My other symptoms include: chest pressure, lightheadedness, a few fainting spells, fatigue, backaches, and a very rapid heart rate(even when I'm hypo it's over 100). I've had every cardiac test imaginable including a heart cath, so any heart related problems have been ruled out. I've also had numerous other tests, so the only things my Dr.'s have left to blame this all on is anxiety and my thyroid. I've been on every dose of synthroid between 100mcg and 150mcg....and all of my symptoms have stayed constant through every dose. I never imagined having my thyroid removed would result in so many problems. Before all of this...I didn't even know what a thyroid was.
Constantly short of breath...thyroid related? 
