Pregnancy induced hypothyroid?

MattiesMaMa · 09-09-2003, 10:53 AM

I didn't know exactly where to post this, but I have a few questions regarding hypothyroid.

I have been having heart palpatations for a week now and have seen a Dr. who ran tons of tests. One of them checking my thyroid. I didn't get the #'s, but they put me on .025mg Synthroid. He also stated I have low sodium.

Now, here are my questions. Could this all be pregnancy induced? I don't believe I have ever had my thyroid checked before. My first OB/GYN was positive that with my symptoms I have PCOS. Now I'm curious if that was a misdiagnosis. I was told to call the nurse with any questions I might have, and I suppose I should just do that, but I wanted your input also.

They seem to be moving in the right direction, bloodwork in 4 weeks, a repeat Echo in 6 months. I am very confident in my Dr. who is working closely with my OB. I'm just curious if this condition may have something to do with why it was so easy to get PG. First babe only took 2 cycles of low dose Clomid and Met. Second babe, 31 weeks pg, was a complete surprise (just started Met.).

Thanks for reading all this. Thanks in advance for any info you may have to share.

Margaret

JessicaE · 09-09-2003, 04:12 PM

Margaret,

Pregnancy induced hypothyroid is very common. It's also possible that you were hypo before and it was just never diagnosed, there's really no way to tell for sure. Those of us who were hypo before tend to need more medication during pregnancy.

PCOS and hypothyroid don't usually mimic each others symptoms, so an incorrect PCOS diagnosis would not be the first thing that leaps to mind. However, many women with PCOS seem to also be hypothyroid, although a link has not been conclusively documented.

BTW, HYPERthyroid is what would be causing heart palpitations, not HYPO, which is apparently what you have, since they prescribed Synthroid. At certain stages, Hashimoto's Thyroiditis can cause swings from hyper to hypo, but that's during a final "burnout phase." Typically, during pregnancy it just goes low and stays low, so your palpitations may be due to something else.

Four weeks is the right timeframe to have your bloodwork repeated. Ask them for your TSH, T3 and T4.

Good luck!

MattiesMaMa · 09-09-2003, 06:41 PM

JessicaE-

Thank you so much for responding. I guess I'm just curious to find out if this will go away after PG. Your right about the heart palpatations. That was actually one of the things the Dr. told me about that I understood. I didn't make it really clear in the post, I also have pulmonary artery hypertension. Sorry for the confusion. The Dr. just decided to check my thyroid, amongst other things to figure this heart issue out. I was shocked to find out about the hypothyroid. Thanks, also, for the info with regards to PCOS and Hypo. There, too, I was just curious if maybe my OB/GYN had come to the conclusion of PCOS so easily that maybe she hadn't checked my tyroid also. I'm going to ask for any #'s they have on record regarding tyroid. I'm learning so much by lurking here on this board. I hope to one day have some info to help others. Thanks again, so much.

Margaret

SueMaz · 09-23-2003, 01:50 PM

I also became hypothyroid due to being pregnant. I had a full workout prior to getting pregnant and my thyroid levels were normal. After I had my daughter, I was very fatigued and had a hard time losing weight. I went to an Endo and discovered my TSH was 65! I'm now on 100mcg of Synthroid and doing fine. Good luck to you and congrats on your little one on the way!

MattiesMaMa · 09-29-2003, 11:57 AM

Thank you SueMaz! I have done a bit of research on this topic and I've found quite a bit of info about hypo being induced by pregnancy. I didn't have my levels checked after I had my first DD, bit I suspect this all may have started after her birth. We'll never know, but at least now I have a diagnosis. I'm glad to hear you are doing well and thanks for the well wishes regarding my pregnancy. Thanks again for your story.

Margaret

P.S. Sorry it took so long to respond. I haven't been faithful in checking in on the boards.

bananasmom · 09-30-2003, 03:08 PM

Margaret - Mine was dx 6 months pp. However, we (my doctors and I) believe that this was a problem at least since I was 7 years old, after I had a tonsilectomy. This is all just based on observations about my health throughout the years and changes in my body type after that surgery. Basically, when my TSH is high, I experience certain symptoms, that I've had my whole life.

We can't find any TSH tests in my medical records, but even if there were, TSH isn't the whole picture. (especially since my dx is auto-immune)

Perhaps, as you continue treatment and get to know your symptoms more, you might be able to figure out if this was always a problem.