Does anyone else get bad muscle spasms off and off with their thyroid issue?
Trembling,waves of tightness especially in back and thighs??
I am hypothyroid and have PSVT of heart too.
yes!
i have been going through hell the last few weeks!
i noticed in the last few days, iam beginning to have a trembling feeling, and my my muscles in my thighs and lower legs is almost more than i can bear!!
i see my reg doc wed, iam in hopes i can find an answer to this!
my endo started me on synthyroid about 8 months ago, and uped my does from 100, to 112, and since then, i have complained to him more than once about my issues with the leg pain, and he says see my reg doc for that..
well, thats what iam doing wed!
but if he slofes it off too, iam going to be very upset!!
i just dont know what to do anymore??
i just dont want to feel like this!!!!!
theres got to be an answer somewere...
bren
memawof3,
Please post any info you receive here... I have had this off and on for 2 years. It is sometimes so bad I can't sleep, feel like my muscles are being pulled taught and then released- like a puppet on a string
My PCP says to try increase vitamin C to 2000 mg daily and increase calcium slightly... sometimes it helps. If I take to much calcium it suppresses my parathyroid we found after lots of tests/trial and error so I try to stay at 1000mg or less daily.
I have also done accupunture and massage therapy which helps somewhat.. but it always returns, especially at night!! Good luck and let me know what you discover at your appt.
I haven't posted on this board for some time. I have had my thyroid removed for cancer. I have had muscles spasms mostly in my eyes in the form of twitching, while I was hypo.
Some other symptoms I had during that time which is hindsight now but now that I am currently medicated properly I feel wonderful and can attribute most of my issues to the hypothyroidism.
1. Aches and pains in the morning, pain when I first got out of bed
2. eye spasms, so bad people across a table would notice them.
3. Weight gain - of course
4. hair loss - which I still experience every time my endo. tweaks my dose of synthroid.
5. groggy tired feeling
6. Anxiety - very bad severe anxiety, which has completely subsided now
7. diarahea
8. Frequent and severe colds and viral infections
I was a mess for quite some time and as I said many of these symptoms I didn't even attribute to my thyroid- some I did but most not so I didn't even mention them to my Doctor. In my case my thyroid function affects my quality of life. It was a long road getting to where I am at now and many dose increases and adjustments, but I feel normal again.
If your thyroid bloodwork is off kilter you need to make sure you doctor addresses it and you give the meds time to kick in. A year ago today I would have never thought I would feel this good again. Good luck to you and all going through thyroid problems. It is not a fun journey to be on!
memawof3,
Please post any info you receive here... I have had this off and on for 2 years. It is sometimes so bad I can't sleep, feel like my muscles are being pulled taught and then released- like a puppet on a string
My PCP says to try increase vitamin C to 2000 mg daily and increase calcium slightly... sometimes it helps. If I take to much calcium it suppresses my parathyroid we found after lots of tests/trial and error so I try to stay at 1000mg or less daily.
I have also done accupunture and massage therapy which helps somewhat.. but it always returns, especially at night!! Good luck and let me know what you discover at your appt.
i sure will!!!
iam like you, iam miserable!
ive tried about everything i know how..
i will let yo know!
bren
kscb30, Good to hear a success story. What kind of thyroid medicine are you on. Everyone says Armour is much better than Synthroid which I'm on. I feel terrible but I do have other health issues but if I could get the thyroid thing in order it would be great. I also had thyroid cancer but supposedly clear now but my doctor is never satisfied and even though a pet scan came out clear in December she wants me to do another radioactive iodine scan which I really don't want to do. I feel so terrible during preparation and after swallowing the pill even though I did the thyrogen injection last time and didn't have to go hypo. Any input would be appreciated.
kscb30, Good to hear a success story. What kind of thyroid medicine are you on. Everyone says Armour is much better than Synthroid which I'm on. I feel terrible but I do have other health issues but if I could get the thyroid thing in order it would be great. I also had thyroid cancer but supposedly clear now but my doctor is never satisfied and even though a pet scan came out clear in December she wants me to do another radioactive iodine scan which I really don't want to do. I feel so terrible during preparation and after swallowing the pill even though I did the thyrogen injection last time and didn't have to go hypo. Any input would be appreciated.
Beth
hi beth,
i wanted to tell you, i went to my endos office today..
i told the nurse how i was feeling, and she took some blood for another test!
i told her i was not going to take anymore synthroid until she calls me back..
i asked about droping my dose down to 100, from 112 to see if my symptoms improve..
tomarrow, i see my medical doc aswell..i sure do need answers...
just letting you know..
bren
kscb30, Good to hear a success story. What kind of thyroid medicine are you on. Everyone says Armour is much better than Synthroid which I'm on. I feel terrible but I do have other health issues but if I could get the thyroid thing in order it would be great. I also had thyroid cancer but supposedly clear now but my doctor is never satisfied and even though a pet scan came out clear in December she wants me to do another radioactive iodine scan which I really don't want to do. I feel so terrible during preparation and after swallowing the pill even though I did the thyrogen injection last time and didn't have to go hypo. Any input would be appreciated.
Beth
Beth67 I am on synthroid having no thyroid at all my dosage right now is 150mg one day and then 175 the next day so I am averaging 162.5 mg, I think it is mg it might be mcg but you get the just of it. I am on the name brand Synthroid not a generic. I still notice when he tweaks my dose I lose a lot of hair even though I dont' go hypo at all - just a strange thing and par for the course. My TSH has been varying between .01 and 1.22 right now he is trying to get me to .1 without going below. I just can't tell you the myriad of symptoms I had before all this was in control. My tumor was small enough I never had to undergo RAI so I don't know that path at all which I am happy about. Hope this helps somewhat.
memawof3,
Please post any info you receive here... I have had this off and on for 2 years. It is sometimes so bad I can't sleep, feel like my muscles are being pulled taught and then released- like a puppet on a string
My PCP says to try increase vitamin C to 2000 mg daily and increase calcium slightly... sometimes it helps. If I take to much calcium it suppresses my parathyroid we found after lots of tests/trial and error so I try to stay at 1000mg or less daily.
I have also done accupunture and massage therapy which helps somewhat.. but it always returns, especially at night!! Good luck and let me know what you discover at your appt.
hi beth,
i told you i would let you know what i find out from my doctor..
well, iam disapointed right now myself!
my endo docs nurse took my bloodwork yesterday, and said she would call yesterday afternoon, or first thing this morning..well, i still have not hears from her! and its almost 6pm here..
so, i took it upon myself to cut my dose back to 100mcg from 112mcg.
i just dont know what to do??
i went to see my medical doctor today too, told him about all thats going on, havent seen him in almost a year, he asked a few quistions, and said see you in 6 months!
gee, i feel like iam out on a limb!!!!!!
so, what do i do, if i dont hear from my endo doc????
bren
I had severe leg and foot cramps before I got my levels up. I'm still not quite optimal but I seldom have a cramp now. Also Synthroid can cause all kinds of aches and pain. It nearly crippled me before I changed to Armour.
Memaw of 3,
Sorry to hear about your dr appt. We get SO excited waiting for the appt, thinking we are finally going to get the help we desperately want and need... and nothing. I have left appts in tears, so frustrating.
However I refuse to give up.. If this dr doesn't "cut" it and help me I move on... I get out my insurance and make appt for next on list.
I am building a team, and only good, solid informative drs. can be on my team to get well. Been thru quite a few drs...but it is my health and MY life.
I also wanted to add I take fish oil 3-4 capsules of a "good, distilled" brand daily and 2000 mg of vitamin c daily. This seems to help with my muscles spasms and twitches- my PCP recommended this. If you have hx of kidney stones might want to talk to dr. about vitamin c first.
Last week I ran out of fish oil, forgot to buy and was off for a week, had bad spasms especially at night. After taking it again for 3 days it got better, coincidence.. maybe.
Now if I could just sleep well too....and get some energy....
shmily,
I tried armour... my heart went crazy, after being on it for 5 days I could not take it, still trying to get back to where I was. I am an exception I know, I have SVT and the T3 in it and I do not agree. Wish I could take...begged endo because I heard so many good positive stories.... but it caused great havoc for me and my levels..
And I loved the sucess story- hardly get any posted here, all out enjoying life again. Thanks, you inspire me to hang on... and on... and on.... God bless.
I had severe leg and foot cramps before I got my levels up. I'm still not quite optimal but I seldom have a cramp now. Also Synthroid can cause all kinds of aches and pain. It nearly crippled me before I changed to Armour.
Shmily..
I was just going to suggest getting off her SYNTHROID too, and trying another T4 med. I started out on Levothroid, and later went for treatment from an endo at an air force hospital. well, all they carried in their pharmacy formulary was SYNTHROID. I became so so ill on that stuff...I honestly felt like I was dying, and got worse day after day. I've read of many people saying the same thing. I swear there was poision in SYNTHROID!! So I got back on Levo on got better, but it took long, for me. Memaw...if you don't feel better soon, ask for a change in T4 meds...it's possible the Synthroid is making you feel horrible. Maybe not, but I've seen people on this board say that, more than a few times.
I too had extremely severe muscle spasms, the worst in my upper back, and even my diaphragm would spasm! That was super scary! I would also get them in my toes, and eye twitches. The worst tho was my back and my abs and diaprhragm. It felt like my whole torso was one large spasm!! I had them daily, all day long. Horrible! 4 different muscle relaxants and not one of them helped, [Soma did a little].
The only thing that really helped was geting my T4 up. I was on Armour for 14 months, and had nothing but bad luck with that. It too made my heart pound hard and breathing was all screwed up too. Very SOB at times. My T3 levels were real high, [over the range at times], but my Free T 4 levels were so so low,...at times under the range. It was like I was hypo and hyper. It just didn't agree with me, although I know it works quite well for some people.
Once I got the free T4 levels up, and my T3 in a good place, the spasms started going away...but slowly. I had them for over 2 years. I think it was from the low T4 levels, for so long, and then after reaching decent T4 levels, it still took a long time for those muscles to heal.
I also take calcium citrate, magnesium, B complex, C, D, E, L-Tyrosine, Co-Q-10, Fish Oil, evening Primrose oil, Glutathione, B-12, selenium, and a couple of others. I also drink a whey protein shake daily. Try to get plenty of sleep, [if you can], and try to do some stretching everyday. Hot baths help too.
You are right... as my T4 levels go up I think I feel better, less spasms. For me synthyroid helps as I increase the doseage.
And I tried Armour for 5 days... my heart went WILD!!! I do have SVT
( came with thyroid problem, never had heart issue before). I only tried it for 5 days ( very low dose too) and it has taken me 2 months to start to feel slightly better... horrible experience for me.
So disappointing.... heard so many good reports from lots of other thyroid patients... just goes to show what is good for one person may not work for another. We are all created differently....
Good luck to you all!
IMO most people who have trouble with Armour do so because they either start out with too much or increase too fast, or both. Granted there are some that need to take a little T4 along with their Armour to balance the FT's. You should never increase Armour more than 15 mcg at a time and should start out at a smaller doze than you know you will need to get leveled out. If you are sensitive to thyroid meds you may have to increase in smaller amts than 15 mcg. I always get my Armour in 15 mcg or 30 mcg tablets so I can split my dosage or if the hashitoxocosis kicks in for a day or so [luckily this hasn't happened for some time] I can reduce my dosage.
I know Armour may not be the best for everyone and some do just fine on the T4 synthetics. Also there may be some that have a normal FT3 and a low FT4 that will need a T4 only.
In the information archives at the very top of home page they refer to a Website called GAIL'S THYROID TIPS [so I would think it's OK to suggest it here]. Very interesting information about the different thyroid medications, and many other good tips. Everyone should read the information on this site.
I took Thyrolar for yrs. and never had any side effects or problems from it. It is a synthetic T3/T4 combo. It would be my 2nd choice.
We did start out low. And titrated doses slowly...but I just couldn't tolerate it very well. It really speeded up my heart and bm's like there was no tomorrow...tremor in hands, no sleep. I tried so hard to make it work...14 months on it. The worst of it was I was so SOB. I could only tolerate so much, and not enough to raise my Free T4, but my T3 was SO high.
I was so hoping it would work for me, as it did do some good things for me, as I was not feeling cold for one, and it kept my weight down! I would've liked it if one of the 2 endos I was seeing would've agreed to let me take a lower dose of Armour,..say like 30 mgs, and then make up the rest with a T4 med...but they wouldn't hear of it.
I'm not sure if the recent problems I've been having, [ie; tight chest and trouble breathing], was because of my overall dose being too high, or just .5 Cytomel...maybe I just can't tolerate that either. I am feeling better already though, so I think it was my overall dose. I should know in 6 weeks or so. If I still have problems...then I'll try cutting my Cytomel down to 2.5 mcg. I just don't want to give up taking T3 completely. We'll see what happens, I guess,...in a few more weeks.
Deda,
Wow, I am surprised you lasted 14 months... I only lasted 5 days and felt like my heart was going thru my chest. I am still working to get back to where I was before I tried the armour. It has such a great reputation but for me it was not the answer.
SVT- supraventricular tachycardia... abnormal racing of heart. Came along with the thyroid issues, never had heart problem in my life. Is it related??? Drs don't think, but I do.
And I have some SOB when climbing stairs, heaviness in chest, racing, pounding pulse at times. Better on heart meds.. but they make me feel even more tired... sigh.... like a vicous circle going round and round.
I want off this merry go round as I am sure the rest of you all do too!! Good luck to all!
Hi T.. It wouldn't surprise me if it was the hypo that caused it for you,...who knows, if it came around the same time. That's a shame you have to take those meds now that make you more tired. It will take time, but I know you'll get there and feel well again, someday. Just be patient.
After I got off of Armour, I had to start out with a real low dose of Levothroid, as it gave me all kinds of horrible symptoms at first. I had to titrate at first from 50 to 75 to 100, 112, etc, and really never felt "normal" again until my TSH got to around just below a 1, and free T levels around 50-60% of range. Actually, it took long after that happened, another 18 months, [or so]. I guess it was time for all of my tissues and cells to heal. As for staying on Armour for so long....that was my fault. My doc suggested going back on T4 only, but I thought it would make me worse, as when I initially took it, [when first dx'd] taking Levothroid caused me to feel crappy too....so I was stubborn and put up a fight. Took me a while to realize it just wasn't working for me, like it did for some people.
So back to the Levothroid...I guess from lacking thyroid hormone for so many years, any of it caused a shock to my system, and that made me feel terrible. Glad most of that is past me now. I don't feel too bad these days, just some recent "things", [after feeling pretty well for a while], and we press on...tweaking my meds still. I'm close though, I know I am. You will get there too, sweetie...just be patient and think positive.
Deda,
Guess we are alot alike. You stayed on armour... and I really wanted to try it much against my endo's advice. But I persisted and she gave in... wish I never had, but I am armed with knowledge now. My hubby said I am stubborn and better know now then later... cause I would have not given up til I tried armour. He is right but I still want to kick myself... all in the quest of wanting to feel GOOD, not just a..... little better.
I always tell the doctors... I am not out to become a young Diva again, just want to feel remotely human and my age - lots of time later to feel old and sleep in the chair.
As we gain knowledge I really hope I can use it to help someone else, spare them the agony. I guess this is what this site is all about.
Re: muscle spasms anyone else/? 
Re: muscle spasms anyone else/? 
