Hypothyroidism Symptoms

The common symptoms of hypothyroidism are weight gain, constipation, low body temperature, fatigue & exhaustion, lethargy, dry hair, dry skin, puffiness, joint pain, depression, and irritability. And similar stuff.

The worst symptoms I had, and which I tended to correlate with poor Synthroid levels, were dry skin and irritability. Those were easy to notice. I don't test my temperature (but since it's a good way to measure thyroid function I plan to start, just need to go buy a thermometer), but I tend to be warm. Very warm. People-make-fun-of-me warm, running around the house in shorts and a short-sleeve shirt when everyone else is wearing sweaters, visiting in Winter climates with a think (or no) jacket. I don't think I was like that as a kid, so that might be something that started when I got on Thyroid meds. In other words, possibly my body temperature is running a bit high and I'm over-medicated.

I've never been constipated. I think diet can easily swing one from constipation to diarrhea, though, so I don't consider that conclusive.

Also, my hair has generally been very soft. Women often comment on my soft hair. With the significant changes to my diet over the last month, my skin has also gotten a lot softer.

Probably the biggest thing that I've noticed is the irritability is gone. It's great! I feel like I did in high school, when I remember being in a constant, I-love-life sort of good mood. I remember being happy-go-lucky, up through college, until ... I got on thyroid medication? It's seems strange to me to stop taking my medication and suddenly have the symptoms of the disease that I had come to recognize go away.

So what's up? Why is my TSH so high? There's definitely a suggestion here that I have a thyroid problem, but it's obviously a much more complicated disease than "low thyroid function, therefore you get all these symptoms." I also think my diet, in general, helps many of these specific symptoms: I've always gotten a good number of animal fats and have never been vegeterian or vegan. Now that I'm avoiding grains and other lectin sources, maybe I'm getting much more nutrients out of my food, too, and just have overall better digestive health (which is the point of avoiding lectins and other antinutrients).

I finally scheduled a Dr's appointment for next week, so we'll see. I'll ask for a more complete blood work up. I missed the HbA1c test at the local grocery store last weekend, but I plan to start checking that monthly, and get my 25(OH)D checked often, too.