Thyroid Question?

Question

What have you experienced with your thyroid? What symptoms have you had? Problems you have had? Tell me anything you possibly can about anything to do with your thyroid experiences/problems...

I ask because 6 years ago, my doctor wanted to test my thyroid and all this time, I thought it meant he wanted to stick a need in my throat. He thought I had hypothyroidism, but I never got tested for it because I fear needles and the thought of one going near my throat.

Answer 1

The preliminary test is a blood test. They just draw out a couple of vials of blood, and voila'! its done.
The only need for a needle to the throat would be a biopsy. Likely long before it got that far you'd be in intense therapy for thyroid problems. And I'm not really entirely sure, but if it got to the 'needle' you'd never be aware of it... they'd knock you out and take some tissue from your thyroid.
I had symptoms of hypothyroidism... weight gain, dry itchy skin, hair falling out, constant but minor sinus drippage...
If you suspect a thyroid problem, get tested. It can answer so many issues that you might be dealing with.

Answer 2

Thyroid problems are diagnosed with a morning blood test. The test with the needle is only if there are confirmed nodules on the thyroid gland. YOur doctor should do blood work and perhaps an ultrasound before that test. Make sure blood work is in the morning only, as it could stop a diagnosis. This happened to me. The following year that I tested, it finally showed I was hypothyroid.

Symptoms I had were, weight gain, difficulty losing weight, headache, vertigo, muscle and joint aches, IBS with constipation, sensitivity to light, slow heart rate, low bp, cold feet, ridged fingernails with no moons on fingers, hairloss, thinning eyebrows and fatigue

I started out on a medication called Levoxyl. It lowered the TSH, but did nothing for my symptoms. I did a lot of reading on hypothyroidism and eventually switched to Armour thyroid. The only symptoms I have now are the fingernails and cold feet at night.

Make sure if you test, its a morning test only. Get your results. AACE says a TSH over 3.0 needs treatment, but most labs still have that range as high as 5.5.

Below are some links.

Answer 3

I must not comment on the doctor who advised you a test for hypothyroidism in which a needle is pierced in throat. Test done to diagnose hypothyroidism are T3, T4, & TSH estimation in blood taken from a vein. Symptom are Obesity actually it is eodema of whole body, sudden gain of weight, irritated mood all the time & hair loss.

Answer 4

THE THYROID TEST BY TAKING SAMPLES VIA THE NEEDLE DOESNT HURT AT ALL. YOU LIE ON A TABLE AND THEY GET A SAMPLE BY WATCHING ON A MONITOR WHERE TO DIRECT THE NEEDLE. ALL YOU FEEL IS A TINY LITTLE NEEDLE PRICK THEN THATS IT. THE ONLY THING THEY TELL YOU IS NOT TO SWALLOW WHEN THEY ARE DOING THIS PROCEDURE. DONT HAVE FEAR OVER THE NEEDLE. ITS A SPECIAL TYPE NEEDLE THAT CAN GET CELLS TO SEE IF THEY ARE MALIGNANT ETC. THE NURSE WILL HOLD YOUR HEAD IN THE PROPER ANGLE THE THE DOCTOR WILL VERY GENTLY INSERT THE NEEDLE GENTLY . THE NEEDLE DOESNT HAVE TO TRAVEL VERY FAR TO GET TO THE THYROID GLAND . IN FACT IT IS MORE COMFORTABLE THAN HAVING BLOOD DRAWN FROM THE ARM. JUST DO IT CAUSE IT COULD SAVE YOUR LIFE . DONT FEAR ,RELAX AND LET THEM DO IT. HOPE I HELPED ! !

Answer 5

From what I understand, I have been tested for thyroid by blood test(check hormone levels in your blood) and I have also been tested using a Radioactive iodine uptake test. this was about 6 years ago as well. I'm sure your doctor will have a different way of testing you by now. If not, I suggest finding a different doctor.

Answer 6

My daughter was born with hypothroidism....To test it, it only takes a simple blood test with the needle in your arm, not your throat...Treatment is a simple once a day pill so dont be afraid to have yours tested....Some of the symtoms include tiredness, feeling cold all the time and sometimes your hair falls out...Not alot, but you could notice alot more hair in your brush

Answer 7

I began to suffer from hypertyroidism a few months after my son's birth (some 10 years ago); he was 6 months at that time and I had no idea that something was actually happening to my organism. I was feeling hungry all the time, used to eat thousands of calories everyday, but the more I ate, the more weight I lost; my legs began to fail me from time to time; all of a sudden, while walking, they simply bent; at a certain point, I lost 9 kg in ten days and from then on, I couldn't even drink water, I could eat or drink anything because I was throwing it up; so I decide to see a doctor; he immediately realized that something was wrong with my thyroid, even considering that my dad, my aunt and my grand-dad suffered from hyperthyroidism. They took me to the hospital, there I did all the necessary blood test and had a scintigraphy done too. My heart rate was dangerously high: I had 130 b/min 24 hours a day, so I was gives beta-blocking drugs(just for 3 months though, then it went back to normal); I began to be drip-fed, and was given the necessary drugs. (After 3 days I was back home)The problem with those drugs is that it takes ages to find the right dose to take, and after that (which usually take about 2-3 months), you have to keeep taking them for not more than 2, 2 and 1/2 years because in the long run they damage your organs. In those two years you have to go through regular blood tests to keep an eye on yout thyroid (the tests are T3, T4, Free THS); after 2 and 1/2 years, they cut my drugs because my thyroid seemed to be stable. But after one month I began to feel bad again, my heart rate was too high and I began to lose weight again, so they told me that the only thing to do was to get rid of a portion of my thyroid because my throid was 'relapsing'; since my gland wasn't big, they wouldn't go for an operation, so they gave me some radioactive iodine to drink to burn a portion gland. They told me that such a solution works in 95% of the cases. In my case, it did not work , or better say, it worked too much: my glad stopped working. I was too tired, I couldn't lift a finger, was constantly feeling a sort of numb...I'm a former swimmer and person who always worked out, a very active person, so for me living like that was unbearable. The doctor told me I should have taken a drug to stimulate my thyroid from them on, but dosing it was hard and i^'d ve taken a few months; I was fed up of struugling with this problem, so I decided to solve the problem my way: I bought the drug, and I began to take the hightest dose of it, I forced myself to work out, and in one moth I was back to normal. Since then I never took any blood test to check the situation, never spoke to the doctor again; 5 years have passed, and now I fel great, I keep taking my drug, I still tend not to put on weight, but I play squash, run and workout everyday without feeling tired; I still have some tachycardia from time to time but I always had it, since I was a kid and it doesn't bother me.

Don't be afraid to have a check up, it's just about blood tests, no needles through your throat;) a scintigraphy (if needed)is a simple scan, you have to drink a contrast liquid and that's it; I suggest you to check your thyroid because in case of hyperthyriodism can cause serious problems to your heart. Wish you all the best.