Hypothyroid

[DizzyMoo]

I'm the same as bubbles my thyroid condition where i was born with this condition, but unlike bubbles mine wasn't detected early enough, I'd had years of testing but as at the time being hypo was seen as an elderly persons condition it was overlooked. It took them 3 yrs to finally diagnose me

Generally speaking being hypo & pregnant it is most important during the 1st 12 weeks of gestation to have dosage correct as the baby does not have its own thyroid gland until 12wks so uses your own which is why many women during early pregnancy either find out they have a problem or have their dosage increased . If the thyroid gland isn't treated properly & is severely underactive & no medication is being used then yes it can somewhat affect babies growth but nothing drastic or mega cause for concern as i the baby then has its own thyroid gland anyway. The 1st 12 wks are more important for development & brain development having said that, People who are not diagnosed with it early enough or who have to change medication shouldn't start panicking they have now affected baby. Being hypo is something to be watched but it isn't very common for it to affect baby, Its more about your health rather than the babies. Its very important for YOU to have the correct levels. My thyroxine dose has been 200mcg for 4 yrs , then i got pregnant with bump & it raised to 250mcg going off what the doctors said, but soon as i got with a proper consultant at the hospital & had yet another blood test she realised something was wrong with the dosage & i'm now being started again So i had to start again at 50mcg, now i'm on 100mcg then when bumps born it will be adjusted to 150mcg & so on til my levels settle as they change that much its quite hard to keep mine stable.

I defo think that some people panic to much about having this hypo, yes its a pain & a bugger & all the symptoms are shit but it isn't the end of the world & most of you who have it gestationally will find you are ok after the birth

 

[lillprutten]

Have hypothyroidism too, get checked up every 6-8th week.

 

[bubbles_cymru]

Hey Dizzy moo - Nice to meet you!! Do u have a thyroid gland or is it underactive? My gland wasn't present at birth just an empty space - maybe why mine was diagnosed sooner if that's the case?

Where you from? x Bubbles

 

[DizzyMoo]

Hiya Bubbles hun, Ah right i'm with ya . Yep i have the gland it just don't bloody work lol

I started seeing the docs with problems around age 5/6 as my mum knew something wasn't "quite right", By age 8/9 i was there every few wks with something new but the fainting got worse, to where i was fainting 5+ times a day i think she got annoyed i was fainting in awkward places like shopping centres or the middle of the road

They thought i had arthritis as its very common in my family & the symptoms were similar but apparently one day my doctor who i'd been seeing for years about the symptoms just clicked & wanted to test the thyroid levels, RESULT!! I was by now age 11 , took another 2 years to get somewhat regulated, but its been a pain in my arse ever since.
Every few mth it goes out of whack & the meds are changed again, It never seems to properly settle . Combine that with having belonephobia & lets say being strapped down for needles isn't fun lol .
I've been on 200mcg for 4yrs, then 250mcg when i got preg with bump, now they dropped it big time to 100mcg as i've to start the dosage again & slowly start raising it dont think they know what they're doing tbh.

 

[lspeer]

Hey ladies I am hypothyroid as well (have been since I was 10) and I was just wondering, I read some where that there are different prenatals we should take because of something in regular prenatals. Do any of you take another kind of prenatal or just regular store bought ones? My doctor prescribed me regular ones but now I am wondering if she could have made a mistake?
Thanks, Lisa

 

[snettyb]

i was only given folic acid and thats all i took hun xx

 

[Jolinar]

So can hypothyroid be a cause for big babies? Or growth restriction? I am hypothyroid, and my thyroxine dose was increased when I had my levels checked at the beginning of second tri, and today I go back to have them checked for third tri to see if it needs to be increased even more. Like enzed said, my endocrinologist only brought my TSH down from 4.5-5 to about 2.5 (this was all pre-pregnancy) - I had no idea it was supposed to be under 2 - I will ask about this today.

Anyway, I digress. My baby is measuring about 2 weeks ahead (based on most recent scan). I was tested for gestational diabetes but that came back clear, so I assumed baby was just large because my hubby is 6'7". Can hypothyroid cause a big baby? or a small one?

I was also told bubs might be small but he's going to be a whopper. Dad is also a big lad though so I guess genetics is overriding any other considerations As long as you're fairly well medicated on thyroxine the LO should be fine

 

[LogansMama]

Hi

I'm hypothyroid too. Was hyper but then had radioactive treatment to make me hypo as it's easier to treat apparently. xx

That was me too... Hyper... now hypo after the radioactive iodine. Have to say - I much preferred being hypo! Was Nice being so skinny and eating all day! LOL.

But seriously - my thyroid has been well controlled for years now. With my last pregnancy they had to adjust my dose once in the middle of my pregnancy, then again after I gave birth. My son was born healthy and happy and he is VERY VERY smart. Shocks me how smart he is... I never heard thyroid could affect IQ - but apparently, it was not an issue for us!

This time around they have checked my blood twice (once at my intial 5 week exam, and again at my 12 week). So far my meds haven't needed to be changed...

I'm not really worried about it. I guess its not much of an issue as long as doc keeps an eye on it.

Last time around I did have to go for NSTs at the end of my pregnancy (like 1 time a week for the last 6 weeks I think), but I can't remember if that was for my thyroid issues or my asthma....

 

[cutie4evr01]

Hey ladies I am hypothyroid as well (have been since I was 10) and I was just wondering, I read some where that there are different prenatals we should take because of something in regular prenatals. Do any of you take another kind of prenatal or just regular store bought ones? My doctor prescribed me regular ones but now I am wondering if she could have made a mistake?
Thanks, Lisa

I'm on a regular prenatal vitamin - I never heard anything about needing a different one. I hope that's ok!

 

[LogansMama]

The only thing about vitamins is that you shouldn't take them at the SAME TIME as your thyroid med. Space them out at least a couple hours. I take my thyroid med in the morning and my vitamin later in the day...(when I remember LOL). It would be much more convenient to take them at the same time... that way I wouldn't forget about my vitamin, but my doc says the vitamin can keep the thyroid med from absorbing properly or something (I think thats why anyhow....).

 

[~Pony~]

I was recently diagnosed hypo. I was told they would just monitor me closely to see if I needed my dose adjusted.
I will be following this thread though

 

[Melly]

im also Hypo, was only diagnosed on friday, but im guessing its probably the reason we lost our baby in December as i read it can cause miscarraiges.

have just started on levothyroxine, is that what everyone else is on?

 

[reallytinyamy]

hi, I'm in a rush and not yet read all the replies but i am hypothyroid due to auto immune disease (I have several). I was tested in pregnancy and found to still have the anti bodies that attacked my thyroid so there was a chance it would be passed on.

My story breifly- Chloe was born 10 days early 6lb 12.4oz so weight fine and on time, she is very healthy, no issues at all and has been assesed to have the language and social skills of a 3 year old- she's 18 months old.
So....please don't worry, every case is different and you don't need to elieve everything you read!!!

 

[Heavenx]

Hey all, only just found this thread, I'm hypo too, have been since I was 10, so for the past 23 years (Gee I feel old!!) Having an underactive thyroid, despite taking the medication still can make you feel ill one way or another, I've always sufferred with the cold and what I call my 'mental dull days' where I'm a bit clumsy and my mind is cloudy and can't really concentrate or focus.

When I was pregnant with my first I'd read about how the pregnancy hormones can adjust your thyroid levels resulting in you needing an increase or decrease in mediction, but I unfortunaletly had to argue with 2 Dr's at my surgery to get an early blood test to check my levels, both Dr's told me I was worrying over nothing, however the blood tests showed that I did indeed need a significant increase in thyroxine, good job I poot my foot down and had the tests taken!!

I don't think we're to worry during pregnancy as long as we are being monitored closely and have the correct adjustments of medication where needed. Just don't be fobbed off like I was about not needing blood tests so regularly during pregnancy, I don't know why but my Dr's didn't seem too concerned and they should have been because my instincts were correct about my levels changing.

 

[RealityPuppet]

Don't sweat it hunnie. My mom was hypothyroid (still is) when she had my brother and me. We both turned out fine and my brother is a little smartie

No health problems what so ever...no allergies, nothing Other than me liking to eat, of course lol.

Unless your doctor says otherwise, I'm sure you and your bean will be fine

 

[Tierney]

hey everyone can anyone tell me at what level the thyroxine needs increasing when your pregnant? Is the 0-5 range still ok or should it be 0-2 for pregnancy?

 

[Melly]

no idea, sorry, they are still trying to get mine level, a whole 3 months after diagnosis! im on 75 a day, but have a feeling that drastically needs to be increased because i feel so tired and lazy all the time.

 

[aurora]

My doc said its standard to raise your dosage 30% (er, it was 30 or 35) when you get pregnant. I haven't had mine tested since it was upped but symptom wise I've been great.

 

[wyates]

I am hypothyroid (was before pregnancy) and i am classed as medium/high risk because of it. If you read on the internet about the condition in pregnancy it can be quit scary. It talks of low IQ, still birth, pre term labour, low birth weight etc etc so i thought it might be a good idea to start a thread in here so we can talk about our concerns and experiences.

I feel like a pin cusion lol, constant blood tests and hospital visits and adjustments of my thyroxine. I am shattered all the time and freezing cold, my skin is dry and i feel like shite most of the time. I'm like this most of the time but more so while pregnant,

I was hypo when i was pregnant with DS2 and i am happy to say he was not pre term (6 days late infact) was born healthy at a healthy weight and is developing at a normal rate. I guess the IQ thing won't become clear until he is older but for now he is doing great. My thyroid is worse this pregnancy so fingers crossed this hippo will be fine as well.

Sorry for the ramble lol, so, anyone Hypothyroid? xx

Funny, they dont class hypowomen here as high risk...
I have taken 3-4 bloodtests this pregnancy, that is all monitoring I have had during this pregnancy. But no high risk classification! And mind you, my dr said those abnormalities to a baby happens when the thyroid is totally off the hook, he said those things happens to babies where the thyroid condition is unknown to the health carers.

 

[Heavenx]

hey everyone can anyone tell me at what level the thyroxine needs increasing when your pregnant? Is the 0-5 range still ok or should it be 0-2 for pregnancy?

My consultant increased my dosage by 50mcg from 125mcg to 175mcg but I started having palpitations so it's now been reduced to 150mcg and the palpitations have stopped.