Anybody Have Their Thyroid Removed? (1 Viewer)

[KiddLattimer]

So I just found out that I need to have my thyroid out on the 4th.  In October I got diagnosed with Hashimoto's  then they discovered a couple large nodules.  The biopsy was "inconclusive" (WTF is that all about???) but my mom had thyroid cancer and half my extended family has thyroid issues so they thought it was best to have it out. 

Just wondering what to expect going in... I heard its not as bad as I assume (it would have to be)... anyone here have it done?

As an aside, since my hashimotos diagnosis my life has been extremely sh**ty..  gluten, dairy, soy, sugar oats, nuts and possibly eggs make me sick now. Instead of stomach issues like celiacs get I get horrible joint pain everywhere and just get generally miserable.  I've been back and forth between anxious and depressed, cant sleep at night, get tremors, had heart palpitations, my hair feels brittle as hell... to put it simply I'm a fkn mess.

Hoping the thyroid removal makes this nightmare go away but not holding my breath.

 

[top dog]

My wife had her thyroid removed due to Hashimoto's disease and Thyroid cancer.  That was about 9 years ago.  She had to go through some radiation treatment which involved radioactive iodine.  She actually had to have 2 surgeries as they did not want to remove her entire thyroid the first time because they felt the cancer was very isolated.  Tests from the first surgery confirmed that the cancer had reached her lymph nodes which surprised the doctors.  They had to go back in and remove the entire thyroid and go with the full blown cancer treatment including the radiation.  Believe it or not, you can barely see the scar now.  She has done great and has been cancer free ever since.  Has to go back and do annual scans and what not but no signs of the cancer returning.  She does have to take synthroid hormones as without a thyroid, your body does not produce them anymore.  

The hardest part was getting her levels down to pretty much nothing to start the hormone treatment.  She was a frigging nut job during that time.

Her cancer doctor told her that there is a link between glutton and Hosimoto's.  She limits her intake of glutton and it seems to help.  Not sure I'm buying that link, but there seems to be some belief in the medical community with that connection.  It seems to help her and I can't imagine it hurts to limit glutton.  

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-raphael-kellman/hashimotos-thyroiditis-we_2_b_7118690.html

 

[shuke]

Had half of mine removed when I was 19 due to a cyst on it.  I was pleasantly surprised by the scar location, lower than my neckline.

I take synthroid daily and get my levels tested once annually.  That's about it.

 

[Christo]

My mother had hers removed because of cancer about ten years ago. 

 

[Dragons]

Brother had his removed several years back due to cancer . Had the several day seclusion and is doing fine now.

 

[Mjolnirs]

Had half of mine removed when I was 19 due to a cyst on it.  I was pleasantly surprised by the scar location, lower than my neckline.

I take synthroid daily and get my levels tested once annually.  That's about it.

Same here.  Had a golf ball sized goiter on one side.  Right after the surgery the scar was holy hell!!!  But, after all the swelling went down and taking care of the scar it was minimal. 

Synhtroid daily and blood work once a year.

 

[Johnny Rock]

My mom, one sister and wife have all had theirs removed. Took my wife some time to get her levels right. Other than that it wasn't much, although easy for me to say. 

Her incision was in a natural crease area on her neck so you can't even see a scar now. Choose a surgeon who has done a ton of the procedures if you can. 

I hope it helps you with your other maladies so you feel better.

 

[belljr]

Wife had hers nuked 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Mother had hers removed around 35 yrs old, cancerous. 

She ended up passing away at 46 from cancer(she wasn't good at yearly visits) so my only advice is once you have this done, please please please keep up with yearly check ups. 

GL and Cheers!

 

[KiddLattimer]

Mother had hers removed around 35 yrs old, cancerous. 

She ended up passing away at 46 from cancer(she wasn't good at yearly visits) so my only advice is once you have this done, please please please keep up with yearly check ups. 

GL and Cheers!

Good advice... I have 3 kids 5 and under so I'm not missing appointments, they need me.  

Sorry about your mom though 

 

[IC FBGCav]

So I just found out that I need to have my thyroid out on the 4th.  In October I got diagnosed with Hashimoto's  then they discovered a couple large nodules.  The biopsy was "inconclusive" (WTF is that all about???) but my mom had thyroid cancer and half my extended family has thyroid issues so they thought it was best to have it out. 

Just wondering what to expect going in... I heard its not as bad as I assume (it would have to be)... anyone here have it done?

As an aside, since my hashimotos diagnosis my life has been extremely sh**ty..  gluten, dairy, soy, sugar oats, nuts and possibly eggs make me sick now. Instead of stomach issues like celiacs get I get horrible joint pain everywhere and just get generally miserable.  I've been back and forth between anxious and depressed, cant sleep at night, get tremors, had heart palpitations, my hair feels brittle as hell... to put it simply I'm a fkn mess.

Hoping the thyroid removal makes this nightmare go away but not holding my breath.

My wife has, going to see if she will respond to you herd.

 

[IC FBGCav]

I had Hashimoto's also. I had many of the same issues that you are experiencing. I had my thyroid removed and it improved my quality of life. The surgery was not bad at all. I had it done midday and was home by 9pm the same day.  I was back at work a couple of days later. I hope all goes well for you.

 

[IC FBGCav]

She wrote the above and said also sleep in the upright position for a few days.

 

[KiddLattimer]

I had Hashimoto's also. I had many of the same issues that you are experiencing. I had my thyroid removed and it improved my quality of life. The surgery was not bad at all. I had it done midday and was home by 9pm the same day.  I was back at work a couple of days later. I hope all goes well for you.

Thank you for this, it's very much appreciated.  If you had food sensitivity did it go away post surgery or stick around?  I've heard of examples of both. 

 

[IC FBGCav]

She said steak or hamburger would choke her before and now no problem.  Her main trouble throid hormone level to stay balanced, it is still an issue for her.

 

[KiddLattimer]

She said steak or hamburger would choke her before and now no problem.  Her main trouble throid hormone level to stay balanced, it is still an issue for her.

Yea it's a pita i hear... I got a preview with the Hashi's though so it shouldn't be a total surprise

 

[Fat Nick]

Just got a call from my endocrinologist.  I had a physical back in December that showed some odd thyroid levels.  Doctor said they didn't make sense and she wanted to run a different set of tests because she thought they could be false test results.  Fast forward to now, and they were indeed some kind of testing errors as discovered by the new tests.

The bad news is that she said I have antibodies for Hashimoto's disease, and that I may have thyroid issues in the future.  She recommended yearly bloodwork and monitoring.  I'm a little anxious now.  It sounds like from the folks on the board it's very manageable, but I'm still a little scared of the unknown.  Need to go talk to the doc again I guess to get a better understanding of what "antibodies" means.

 

[Osaurus]

Just got a call from my endocrinologist.  I had a physical back in December that showed some odd thyroid levels.  Doctor said they didn't make sense and she wanted to run a different set of tests because she thought they could be false test results.  Fast forward to now, and they were indeed some kind of testing errors as discovered by the new tests.

The bad news is that she said I have antibodies for Hashimoto's disease, and that I may have thyroid issues in the future.  She recommended yearly bloodwork and monitoring.  I'm a little anxious now.  It sounds like from the folks on the board it's very manageable, but I'm still a little scared of the unknown.  Need to go talk to the doc again I guess to get a better understanding of what "antibodies" means.

Get a second opinion

 

[glvsav37]

following 

my wife has had Hoshimotos since our daughter was born 11 years ago. She gets tiered very easily (unless she's using that to keep me off of her), and sometimes has button issues. She's very active, 1st grade teacher and dancer so I'm sure that offsets some of the major symptoms. I honestly don't like her Endo and I've been begging her to find another bc/ he doesn't seem to be concerned with her 'tiredness' claiming "well, thats the way it effects you" 
 

 

[Chemical X]

So I just found out that I need to have my thyroid out on the 4th.  In October I got diagnosed with Hashimoto's  then they discovered a couple large nodules.  The biopsy was "inconclusive" (WTF is that all about???) but my mom had thyroid cancer and half my extended family has thyroid issues so they thought it was best to have it out. 

Just wondering what to expect going in... I heard its not as bad as I assume (it would have to be)... anyone here have it done?

As an aside, since my hashimotos diagnosis my life has been extremely sh**ty..  gluten, dairy, soy, sugar oats, nuts and possibly eggs make me sick now. Instead of stomach issues like celiacs get I get horrible joint pain everywhere and just get generally miserable.  I've been back and forth between anxious and depressed, cant sleep at night, get tremors, had heart palpitations, my hair feels brittle as hell... to put it simply I'm a fkn mess.

Hoping the thyroid removal makes this nightmare go away but not holding my breath.

looking for a follow up on this and to see if anyone had a nodule big enough to effect swallowing?  is there a link between gluten or glutton and the thyroid or just hashimoto’s?  anyone with thyroid issues that effected sinuses, phlegm and generally created sinus/breathing issues?  any post surgery issues like eating, voice, talking?

 

[KiddLattimer]

looking for a follow up on this and to see if anyone had a nodule big enough to effect swallowing?  is there a link between gluten or glutton and the thyroid or just hashimoto’s?  anyone with thyroid issues that effected sinuses, phlegm and generally created sinus/breathing issues?  any post surgery issues like eating, voice, talking?

My nodules weren't big enough to cause a problem swallowing but I could see it happening.

There is a link between thyroid and gluten, Hashi's does seem to be part of it. The gluten proteins are similar to the thyroid molecules so the body tries to kill the thyroid thinking its gluten... something like that. I'm not sure if it extends beyond autoimmune thyroid issues (Hashis and Graves mostly) but theres definitely something there. 

Getting rid of gluten and cutting way down on the dairy (should be dairy free) has helped get rid of a lot of issues. My seasonal allergies are a small fraction of what they used to be, I almost never blow my nose, and I used to clear my throat ALL. THE. TIME. and that mostly went away, unless I push it with the dairy. The good news is you don't need to test for it or anything, just stop eating gluten for a week and see if you notice a difference. 

Going GF/low dairy also helped my sinuses a good bit. I had some problems with mild apnea and my ENT told me my sinuses "were a real mess", but when I avoid trigger foods it's better and worse when I don't.  

I've also been kicking tires on eating plant based and I noticed an even bigger difference. When I eat meat my sinuses are still somewhat swollen and it's difficult to breathe through my nose (which contributes a lot to apnea), but when I eat plant based my nose opens up and it feels like its letting in 10x the air.  Still testing that but I like what I'm seeing so far. Also for what it's worth I've also read a lot of stories (like this and this) about how people reversed thyroid issues by going whole food plant based ... some within very short periods of time too. I don't know if that interests you at all... honestly I wish I tried that first.  (Not trying to push any diets... but just letting you know whats out there)

I didn't have any new food issues aside from the ones I already had. My voice is mostly normal except when it comes to singing... I used to be a pretty good singer but now when I try some higher ranges I sound squeaky like I'm going through puberty. Talking is normal though at least. I guess there is some risk because the thyroid is so close to vocal cords.

The biggest problem I've had is the levothryoxine (generic synthroid) that I have to take now... I haven't felt great since I started taking it but I don't really have a choice now. I feel like it has contributed to my anxiety a lot (it was very high anyway) and made me grumpier than I should be. 

If you're going through any of this stuff feel free to drop me a PM, happy to be of any help

 

[Tick]

looking for a follow up on this and to see if anyone had a nodule big enough to effect swallowing?  is there a link between gluten or glutton and the thyroid or just hashimoto’s?  anyone with thyroid issues that effected sinuses, phlegm and generally created sinus/breathing issues?  any post surgery issues like eating, voice, talking?

I have two boys with Type 1 diabetes, also caused by the body's immune system attacking a body part (beta cells in pacreas).  Having T1D means they get screened annually for the other immune misfires - Hashimoto's, Crohn's, and celiac (the anti-gluten disease) are the three I know about.  One of the boys has Hashimoto's, though he doesn't have symptoms yet.

In other words, if you have Hashimoto's, it's possibly you also have celiac's.