Hey SlimShady and all of you,
I read this thread with great interest as I was diagnosed with a screwed up thyroid last year. My doctor said that my levels were within normal so I believed him and went about my business. Except that I felt like doo doo. It seemed to me that I was just this fat depressed person and since there was nothing wrong with me, just suffer. Business as usual, right? Well, I heard about Atkins and thought I would give it a try to lose the 70 pounds l need to lose. My hubby went on it with me -since I do all the cooking he kinda had to-hee hee hee.
No, I'm just kidding. He's been great! He's lost weight and feels great after 3 weeks on the plan. I have'nt lost an ounce. Sooooo....I went back to my doctor and he has me scheduled for some tests. Now here is the BIG question. What the hell do I do? What can I say to make them take me seriously? How do I ask for help? They are just going to tell me that my numbers are normal and that how I feel is immaterial. I just know it.
Now, here's my plan ( I always have a plan) I'll try taking an herbal supplement called Maca root and see if my levels improve from last January. Is that a great plan? Or a bad plan? Has anyone here used it? Are there any other supplements that are considered okay for hypo's? I live in a tiny town in SW British Columbia so I don't have a whole lot of options for finding naturopathic physicians here. The doctors are all overworked like crazy in this part of the county and aany specialist that I see will require a minimum 4 hour drive to the nearest Big City.
I want to THANK all of you who have responded to this thread. I had no idea that my thyroid was the culprit. Bad Thyroid, bad bad Thyroid! I went the the about.com link that one of you posted and I canNOT believe that I have so many of the symptoms. It's scary. But at least I know now what the hell the problem is. That alone makes me feel great. Actually, even though I have'nt lost any weight on Atkins the whole low carb thing has made me feel really good. I have lots more energy, I even feel smarter. LOL. We are eating better than we ever have without all the pop and potatoes and crap. Not that we ate alot of it but...well...there you have it. Okay...in closing....thank you God for letting me see this site and this thread and finding some people who are going thru the same problems as I am. It's nice to know I am not alone and that this is'nt some mysterious ailment that I will have to live with for the rest of my life. It's treatable. I love you guys. Laura

Budogirl...here are a couple of supplements I took while I was off thyroid meds and they helped my moods and energy levels...I also have placed some info on each but you will probably want to do a little of your own research...This is just a place to start...Hope it helps

L-Tyrosine
Patients with a Thyroxine deficiency have symptoms including excess weight gain, cold hands and feet, and decreased basal metabolism. L-Tyrosine has been found to assist in optimizing thyroid hormone levels, increased mood, concentration, and productivity.

L-Tyrosine is used to treat conditions including depression or mood disorder, poor coping ability, fatigue, low sex drive, low metabolism, and drug abuse (when combined with Tryptophan). It can also improve endurance under stress and is effective as an appetite suppressant. When taken properly, L-Tyrosine can assist a sluggish thyroid and aid the dieter in losing excess, unwanted pounds.

The suggested dosage for healthy adults ranges from 500 to 1500 mg per day.

Iodine/Kelp
Rich in iodine, Kelp supports the healthy function of a normal metabolism and glandular system and can assist in many weight management programs by supporting a normal rate of fat burning. Due to its high content of minerals, trace minerals, vitamin, and amino acids, Kelp can aid in metabolic and glandular health

Garcinia cambogia fruit extract
Garcinia cambogia, an exotic fruit grown in South India, has been used to impart a distinctive sour flavour to Indian cooking.. It is the source for a revolutionary natural diet ingredient which is currently a rage in America, Japan, Europe and other western countries.

Garcinia cambogia extract is the calcium salt of hydroxy citric acid (HCA), which is obtained from water extract of Garcinia cambogia fruit . It is non-toxic, tasteless, odorless powder and found to be very effective herbal alternate for controlling obesity and cholesterol by inhibiting lipogenesis in our body.

HISTORICAL USES & PROPERTIES OF GARCINIA CAMBOGIA

Garcinia Cambogia is a relative new-comer to the ranks of Western herbalism, but has been used for thousands of years in the Orient as a food supplement. It is used as an appetite suppressant and to inhibit the absorption and synthesis of fat, cholesterol and triglycerides. In other words, it is a dietary aid

Garcinia Cambogia METHOD OF ACTION

The active principle in Garcinia Cambogia is (-)-hydroxycitric acid(or HCA). On a dry weight basis, HCA constitutes from
20-30% of the berry. Garcinia Cambogia works in two ways 1. by suppressing appetite
2. by inhibiting lipid synthesis
This latter mechanism is based on the theory that inhibition of lipid biosynthesis or enhance lipid metabolism interfere with mechanisms that produce and maintain obesity.


Commiphora mukul extract (guggul)

http://www.herbmed.org/Herbs/Herb151.htm



These are a couple of thing I know of that were in a supplement I used to take and it helped me alot...My prescribed med have helped me more...But this supplement did help alot with my mood swings and moodiness and my lack of energy. I hope this helps.

I am so grateful for this website. So many people
"in the same boat" with thyroid issues and
little or no weight loss no matter what we try.

After begging, my doctor just switched me from Synthroid to Cytomel He would not add the Cytomel to the Synthroid, though. What I figured I could do is just go back and say "Hey, the Cytomel doesn't work as well as the Synthroid. Can I go back to Synthroid?" and then just take the Synthroid dosage I used to take and add some Cytomel to it. Those of you who take both please send me comments.

I lost 7 lbs in the first week I did Atkins in February and have only lost 4 lbs the whole month of April. So I know all about stalls.

I have had hypothyroidism for at least 7 years now. That was the first time it was tested. I haven't ever taken anything prescribed because I really didn't want to have to take anything for the rest of my life and really wanted to try and fix it naturally. I have literally been starving myself for the last 5 years and although it never got me to lose weight I didn't gain weight too bad. My highest weight was about 25 pounds higher than my ideal weight. I went to see a Naturalpath recently and he gave me something called T-100. It is a vitamin that is supposed to stimulate your thyroid. Anyway I have been on it for about 2 weeks and have already lost 6 pounds. I have more energy and don't feel as tired all of the time. I am on the Atkins diet also but have tried this diet numerous times before with a lot less positive results. I haven't gone back to the doctor to have my numbers checked yet because I want to give it more time but I was diagnosed with tons of nodules in my throat and I could always feel them and they honestly don't feel so annoying anymore. It could be in my head and I won't know for sure until my numbers start to improve but I thought I would share it with you anyway. My number is 8 and my doctor said I am not too bad because the highest "normal" number is 5 and I am not too far off that but I had really bad symptoms so I wanted to do something.

try using cla hope i can spell this congulated linolic acid type it in yout browser to read up on it.also calcium and magnesium

slim forgot to add this if you read my last reply you have to take kelp, my hubby lost 40lbs just cutting down and taking the vitamins i said im taking them all now will keep u posted,i know when i was just taking my cla i could eat anything within reason and maintain my weight,when i stopped i gained the 20lbs i am now tring to lose

I am on Atkins and losing. Before starting Atkins, even on Metformin and my thyroid meds I was gaining 5-10 pounds per month.

Hi - may I ask what carb range that generally is for you, and about what calorie level you like to stay at daily? (How about fat percentage daily, or would that be too many questions...)

just introducing myself to the forum. my thyroid was removed when i was 18 because of cancer. since then i have been taking thyroxine (the dose gets tinkered with from time to time but hovers around .15 mg - i think its mgs). anyway, i have only been on atkins a couple of weeks, but it seems to be working (10lbs down - 80 lbs to go). in the past i have only had success with very low calorie diets (under 1000 calories) usually medically supervised. my endocrinologist is supportive of my decision to go on atkins and did the blood work suggested by atkins so we can compare 6 months down the road.