# Does this sound like Hyperthyroidism to you?



## Crush (Feb 21, 2010)

Hi,

I'm a married 33 year old male that lives in Canada so am asking for peoples help in diagnosing what is wrong with me. I do not have some of the luxuries with my medical system that other countries do. Please, please please tell me if you think I have hyperthyroidsim and or panic disorder, then I can start the long journy of making my way through our system and being put on waiting lists etc. So I'm really asking for help that you guys 'diagnose me' or see if it sound like hyper. Last night was another night trying to sleep and having palpitations keeping me up until 3:30 and I'm sick of it.

It's been a while ride since last June. Let me put it in a nutshell and not try to cloud this with other stuff that was going on in my life:

-Currently:
Weight 230 lbs. 5 years ago I was 170lbs. 5 years before that I was up to 250lbs
Blood results described as 'excellent' (these are not thyroid test though) 
Currently diagnosed with Panic Disorder after a 5 min chat with a Dr.

Starting last summer
-Smoked about 6 ciggarettes a day. Started to notice 10 min 'head rushes' or excitablility after the ciggarettes
-One day smoking outside, noticed that my hands were shaking while holding the ciggarette.
-Started to get a constant muted chest pain in my upper left chest over my heart.
-Wen't to a walk in clinic maybe a week later. She said my blood pressure was a bit high and to go to the ER so they can check it out proplerly.
-I didn't listen. The next day I was at a walmart and my heart rate was at 135.
-I went to a near by hospital and went through some cardiac tests and had 2 chest exrays. Everythign turned out find. My wife asked "yeah but isn't his heart rate at 147 a bit high?" The young Dr who seemed to be our age said that it was normal and didn't know why that I was having chest pains.
-I went back home releived, but the symptoms stayed. 
-I played with my diet and nother changed some days were better than others. 
-Around the time Michael Jackson died I went to a mall and it was real busy. I got light headed and had to leave.
-The next day I was more light headed, palpitations, etc. 
-Went for my second ER visit. I was extremely light headed, pains, palipiations etc. 
-Got diagnosed with panic attacks (after a 5 min chat with an ER dr). I waited 9 hours in the ER.
-Was given Citalopram SSRI. Never thought I was the person that needed this. Taking 5 mg a day because higher dosages were way too much.

Since this I have SLOWELY gotten better. But it's like I will have 5 good days, and then 3 bad ones. And honestly, this is 6 months now. I get the palpitations after I eat and when trying to get to sleep which keeps me up. I have already tested my insuline and do not have diabetes.

The palpitations would be so strong, I could not lean back in my chair because they would hammer though my back. Now they are more mild but still there.

Honestly, my life is pretty good and I dont have a lot to be anxious over. But it seems these darn physical symptoms won't go away and I'm getting fed up. I can list a large, large list of other smaller physical symptoms like muscle twitches, lots of bathroom visits. Actually I go for a poo each day now regardless of what I eat. Before I used to go once every 2-3 days. I can go on and on about other symptoms but though I would stick with the bigger picture.

I'm curious what you guys think. Please help!


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## chopper (Mar 4, 2007)

Hello and welcome. Without thyroid labs it's hard to tell if it's panic or thyroid.

Being hyper can make you feel like you are having a panic attack. My first guess would be panic only because you mentioned the cigarettes. Hyper is not usually reactionary. You had a smoke, thought about how it might be ruining your health and that might have triggered an attack BUT if you were hyper the rush caused by nicotine could also cause similar symptoms. It's really hard to say. If you had a simple full thyroid panel it would be easy to figure out.

If you do get more blood tests, I would ask for an ACTH and cortisol test too to check your adrenals in addition to thyroid antibodies.

Can you stop the attacks if you distract yourself like by watching a good tv show?


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## Crush (Feb 21, 2010)

nasdaqphil said:


> If you do get more blood tests, I would ask for an ACTH and cortisol test too to check your adrenals in addition to thyroid antibodies.
> 
> Can you stop the attacks if you distract yourself like by watching a good tv show?


Hi thank for answering.

I wasn't focusing on the ciggarettes. I would just come in from having a smoke outside and noticed that I was anxious or rushing a bit for about 10 min after a smoke. I actually had to peice together that it was after each ciggarette. I got scared and quite smoking (until this day actually).

Again I'm in Canada where we have a communist healthcare system. The doctor dictates to me, I cannot dictate what I want to him. I got 3 minutes of his time to explain everything to him. This is why I'm coming here to litterally ask you guys to help with a diagnosis.

Today I went to a clinic and the Dr. said he was only going to test my THS. He said "i'm not going to test you for t3 or t4 because if your THS is normal than you won't need further testing.". So he pretty much said no when I asked him. I spoke to him for maybe a few mintues. He rushed me out and moved onto the next patient.

I dont get panic attacks anymore that much. I did last summer all the time. Now I just get a lot of physical symtoms. Lately it's palpitations and body heat after eating. I stayed up late last night. Couldn't sleep. Had palpitations. I get some hot flashes, burning sensations/pains in my arms, wrist, palms, I can go on and on forever about symptoms like waking up drenched in sweat. You name it.

I just don't feel that I'm 'worrying' or am in an anxious mindset. It's like there is something mechanical inside me sending me these things. Like an imbalance somewhere.


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## Kaylasly (Nov 14, 2009)

Can you list more symptoms? I have really similar symptoms and I also think it is something chemical or hormonal because I have nothing to be anxious over either. I also wake up with sweats, I have the burning sensation in my arms, muscle weakness throughout, high heart rate, only when I get up and walk around or if I exercise, then I shake and I am anxious for the rest of the day, I also wake up shaking and anxious, ringing in the ears, I have twitching in my legs and all over body, also have pain in the lower back mostly on the right side, I guess where the adrenals are. I am baffled, this came on with bronchitis in November, also switched thyroid meds a bunch in a short period of time. Were you sick at all before this started happening?


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## Crush (Feb 21, 2010)

Kaylasly said:


> Can you list more symptoms? I have really similar symptoms and I also think it is something chemical or hormonal because I have nothing to be anxious over either. I also wake up with sweats, I have the burning sensation in my arms, muscle weakness throughout, high heart rate, only when I get up and walk around or if I exercise, then I shake and I am anxious for the rest of the day, I also wake up shaking and anxious, ringing in the ears, I have twitching in my legs and all over body, also have pain in the lower back mostly on the right side, I guess where the adrenals are. I am baffled, this came on with bronchitis in November, also switched thyroid meds a bunch in a short period of time. Were you sick at all before this started happening?


Hey,

No I didn't get sick before this started happening. It just came on very gradually. I started getting shaky after having a ciggarette. Then when I remember in a restaruant I stuck my hand out and it started shaking.

I get burning sensations on my skin around my forearms and palms mostly. But can get them anywhere else like my under arm areas too.

The twitching I get has been since the summer and is mostly in my calves, but also my legs, stomach, and the worst place, the chest. I got an outright charlie horse in my calf when in walmart and it hurt a lot. I tried eating pickles... you name it.. here's a really good article on the musle twiching:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/603851/twitching_muscles_most_common_cause.html?cat=50

I dont get the lower back thing. I used to get a pain the left ribs a lot though.

I actually dont wake up anxious and shaking unless it's in the middle of the night. I used to get a lot of shaking, but don't get it that much anymore. I get anxious after the shower when going downstairs. Right now I just woke up and am in bed and feel 100%. I know after my shower and getting on with my day I'll begin to feel some symptoms here and there and by bed time I'll be feeling many of them. I did watch a Youtube video where a Dr. said that everyone is different. Some get it in the morning, others closer to the evening, and others all day long.

Oh heck yes I get the ringing of ears off and on! I've been having that for years. It will sound for me like a high pitched signal that sounds faint. Usually out of my right ear. I just passed that off as fluid leaking in the inner right ear. During the day I can also get ear ring attacks for 5-10 seconds.

Here are the rest of my symptoms that I have gotten since the summer. I don't get them all the time or all at once. But I have gotten these. I'll put a '*' before the ones that I have gotten recently in the past month or so. They come in waves in about 3 day increments. And they usually wont all be at once or 24 hours a day. Recently these last few days for me it's been palpitations after eaeting and arm sensations. The twitches have died down these last couple of weeks.

Tingling scalp
*Hot flashes
cold flashes
*burning cold/hot sensations in palm
burning cold/hot sensations under armpit area
pain in left ribs
*pain in left chest
pain in right chest
pain in middle left chest
pain in nipple
*pain in wrist
pain in fingers
*pain in middle of arms down center
pain in front left neck
pain in left colar bone
pain behind left shoulder
*light headedness
feeling of off balance
room turning sideways
stuttered vision
*seeing things out of corner of eye
hearing a very quick sound which you could swear was a voice
sleepiness
drowsiness
*heart beating heavy 
*heart beating heavy after eating (please no Hypochondriac responses)
almost irregular or irratic percieved beating 
heart beat seeming to go through all parts of the body including fingers
*ear ringing
*muscle twitches in legs.. mostly calves in all different areas.
muscle spasms in calf
bad thoughts popping into your mind (hospitals, sickness, etc)
different sexual arrousal thoughts than you are accustomed too
thinking the same thing over and over for the day
light headed after shower in morning
tingling in left most pinky finger thinking it is the way you are holding the keyboard etc
pain or discomfort around the wrist
tingling in finger tips on left side almost under nails.
leg twitches so bad and so frequent it alsmost feels like there is electricity running though your legs
*an increase in circulation getting cut off while sleeping
weak legs while walking
*feeling of shortness of breath by chocking around the neck area (need for deep breaths)
*feeling of shortness of breath around the chest area from tightness (need for deep breaths)
shaking in hands when holding a fork or something
mild dizziness after a ciggarette


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