posted
I'm new and I've been reading old threads. Thyroid comes up a lot. My thyroid numbers were normal for a long time, but recently I show thyroid antibodies and my TSH is going up (still in normal range, but it's over 3 now).
Is there a connection? Could Lyme cause these thyroid problems? I'm not being treating for thyroid yet. I start abx next week. If my thyroid problem is Lyme related, could it improve as the Lyme is fought?
Are thyroid treatments compatible with abx?
If anyone has good advice on any of these points I'd appreciate it, thanks!
Posts: 455 | From Was in PA, then MD, now in the Midwest | Registered: Nov 2008
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disturbedme
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 12346
posted
Yes, lyme messes up a lot of our body's systems, including the thyroid and endocrine system making a lot of people hypothyroid or have hashis, some people also become hyperthyroid, though I believe it's usually hypothyroid more often seen here.
I myself have hypothyroidism and that was diagnosed before my lyme was, though at the time I was very sick. For a long time I thought my problems were only hypothyroid issues because many of the hypothyroid symptoms are also lyme ones.
After treating hypothyroidism for a while and still not noticing a difference in symptoms or how I felt, I realized there was more to it than just hypothyroidism. The only thing that has given me a HUGE boost in my health and how well I feel is lyme treatment (especially Babs treatment).
-------------------- One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar. ~ Helen Keller
My Lyme Story Posts: 2965 | From Land of Confusion (bitten in KS, moved to PA, now living in MD) | Registered: Jun 2007
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posted
I had been sick for about 15 years before they figured out I had thyroid problems. I have Hoshimoto's, a goiter, and hypothyroid. My TSH was 115 a couple years a go.
Kathy
-------------------- You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have. Posts: 807 | From South Dakota | Registered: Jul 2005
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posted
I also have hypothryoidism and take compounded T3 & T4. So far, the compounded T3 is my favorite medication. I like it even more than Armour because I developed high reverse T3 on Armour.
Compounded T3 has been the most helpful with weight loss. My LLMD is very good with dosing. I'd say he's better than my endocrinologist!
I like the website Stopthethyroidmadness.com and The Thryoid Diet book by Mary Shomon. My TSH is very low so I'd never get treated if I was dosed purely by measuring TSH.
Posts: 192 | From Dwight, IL USA | Registered: Mar 2007
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posted
Lyme and thyroid trouble seem to go hand in hand. Based on my research and experience, I'm convinced neurotransmitters are somehow involved, but I have not yet figured out the specifics. After 7 years of searching, I finally found something that lets me reduce my otherwise high daily dose of thyroid hormone: supplements that boost serotonin, such as l-tryptophan, 5-HTP, vitamin B6 and zinc. They also have reduced, but not eliminated, my need to supplement not only T4 but also T3.
Exactly why boosting serotonin seems to boost the action of thyroid hormone (such that I need less T4 and T3 hormones) I have not yet determined. I suspect interaction between serotonin and other neurotransmitters such as GABA. Somehow these are all closely interrelated. I speculate lyme may inhibit serotonin production, and somehow that in turn disrupts our thyroids.
Posts: 727 | From USA | Registered: Mar 2006
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posted
I wonder if Lyme can get into your thyroid. My immune systom has wiped out my thyroid. I can't believe that your immune system would wipe out the thyroid gland unless there was something else there that it was trying to wipe out.
Kathy
-------------------- You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have. Posts: 807 | From South Dakota | Registered: Jul 2005
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tdtid
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 10276
posted
Long before I had any "symptoms" that had me going to the doctor, in regular physicals, I was being told my thyroid was under active.
I really didn't give it much thought since I felt fine and the doctor didn't feel it was enough to do anymore than keep an eye on it at that time.
In 2001, I started having chest pains, was admitted and ended up being given a heart catherization which used iodine. At this time, they said my thyroid was bouncing all over the place in the time frame they were testing it while I was still in the hospital.
The doctor said that seemed odd that my thyroid blood work would be bouncing so much but again, just felt a need to watch it.
From chest pain, came a whole slew of other health issues and pain (five years of it) and through it all, the thyroid was usually under active, but it wasn't until I saw a N.D. for help with "fibromyalgia" that he saw what PCP was "just watching" and said that unless I want to feel like a 90 year old woman with my thyroid numbers like that, I should be on medication, so he started me on Armour Thyroid.
I continued to see this N.D. along with my PCP as my PCP sent me to every kind of specialist out there as more and more symmptoms came up, but it was the N.D. that ran the Igenex when my "fibro" went neurological.
Soooooo....was the thyroid connected to the lyme? In my case, I think it probably was. But that is not saying that all thyroid problems are automatically lyme since we know that isn't true.
But yes, Lyme messes up all sorts of things in our bodies. Many of us have had positive test results to all sorts of things that were indeed lyme.
According to my first LLMD, he said that very often, with lyme treatment, he's seen many patients be able to get totally off their thyroid medication.
I do know I've been able to lower my dosage since treatment, but SO FAR, I'm not off the med, but then again, I started IV treatment in August for Lyme after 21 months of orals...so maybe that will kick start this mess.
And yes, I've never been told I couldn't take ANY of my antibiotic treatments while on thyroid meds. I'd let your LLMD know all medications you are on and the pharmacist will watch out for compatibility issues or as an extra check, you can follow it up online to make sure there are no reasons you can't mix the meds.
So far, I have not come across any you can't mix. Good luck.
Cathy
-------------------- "To Dream The Impossible Dream" Man of La Mancha Posts: 2638 | From New Hampshire | Registered: Oct 2006
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lymednva
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 9098
posted
If you have issues with your PCP I would suggest you go see an endocrinologist.
I have known too many people who have stayed with their PCP's when their thyroid numbers were horrific and the PCP's missed the whole thing.
I have been seeing an endo for my hypothyroidism/multinodular goiter since 1986. Actually, I have seen about 4 endos.
They have handled the fine tuning that is often necessary when adjusting thyroid meds and finding the right combo for you.
Just as you see a LLMD, or Lyme specialist, for Lyme it makes sense to see an endocrinologist for thyroid problems.
-------------------- Lymednva Posts: 2407 | From over the river and through the woods | Registered: Apr 2006
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posted
This is a first-time post and perhaps an admission that I am stuck with Bb and Co for a little while.
I have lurked, but the inter-relatedness of neurotransmitter, hormone and immune function is a monster to me and I have a tale.
18 months back I found Adderall XR. The change in me was big, and good. Then 6 months back I presented with classic Bb complex symptoms and treatment commenced. Since then, Babesia and BLO have been identified.
The point I will make is this: on the antibiotics I have had just a couple hard herxs. However I have noticed that so much of what I considered to be just me has been intensified on the abx. The most prominent is the executive function/ADD.
I cannot make the link between neurotransmitter and immune function but I have a feeling inside (and it's not bacteria.) Also, shocker I have soaring cortisol. I suppose where I am heading is down a road of cause and effect.
The question is not "is there a relationship," but rather what is it? And which should be treated as a cause?
I have a feeling I know a couple LLMDs too who have opinions, and I am sure Marshall does too.
I am not sure where I stand though.
Pardon the Garcia-like post...
-------------------- enjoy the day.
-jmb Posts: 208 | From Maryland | Registered: Dec 2008
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posted
Don't forget blood flow. Hypoperfusion (reduced blood flow) due to brain inflammation is an almost universal finding in SPECT scans of Lyme patients. With the areas of the brain responsible for attention, motivation, decision making, and impulse control choked off from nutrients, you have an infectious version of ADD.
Posts: 195 | From Manchester, CT | Registered: Jun 2008
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