# Can Synthroid cause side effects?



## I DClaire

I seem to remember someone here mentioning increased indigestion or heartburn but I can't find the discussion. For the past few days I have been having more severe abdominal symptoms by the hour - to the point where right now I am not feeling well at all.

I told my internist yesterday that these symptoms, *intense burning in my stomach and esophagus*, had intensified since my thyroidectomy. The more I think about it though, I think they've taken on a life of their own in the past week. The doctor said he suspected it was anxiety from everything I'd been through with surgery and not caused by surgery but he didn't offer anything for relief.

I was so uncomfortable last night I couldn't lie down. I'm home this afternoon nauseated by the constant burning. Liquid Mylanta seems to take the edge off the burning but only slightly.

The only change in my routine whatsoever has been taking Synthroid. ALL I'm taking is Synthroid, my blood pressure medicine and Viactive Multi-Vitamin and Viactive Calcium. I am at a total loss! Day before yesterday I ate one small helping of spaghetti for lunch and I thought I was going to die! For some reason the pain seems to slowly begin mid-afternoon and get worse into the night.

It feels like ulcer symptoms and acid reflux combined but the #1 problem is the burning sensation - which at the moment is really making me nauseated. I don't guess it's out of the realm of possibility that it could be an ulcer...but it seems to have started so abruptly.

I'm wondering if eating my weight in Tums has done something to my stomach? The pain started getting serious when I stopped eating Tums and started taking the Viactive.

Any thoughts? All I've eaten today is scrambled eggs, toast and a bowl of Jello and I feel S-I-C-K!


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## Enigma

I DClaire-

WOW- That sounds like me!! I just posted in a similar thread in the Hashi's section.

It started when I started Armour (although did have some stomach issues on Levoxyl). I started having a burning/gnawing sensation in my stomach/abdomen area. I thought it was hunger- couldn't really interpret how it felt. It got so bad that I couldn't sleep more than 2 hours at night. My [former] doctor tried to tell me it was anxiety. But I don't get stomach problems with anxiety! And it wouldn't WAKE me up at night if it was anxiety. I felt so sick. I eventually couldn't eat anything that I used to be able to eat.

Maalox and Prilosec OTC just barely took the edge off, and sometimes didn't help at all. I was at almost a 1/2 bottle of Maalox per day.

An ultrasound, colonoscopy, and endoscopy later and nothing was wrong. They put me on Nexium, and was on it for just under a month. Over the past week the feeling started coming back, in addition to feeling worse right after taking a Nexium.

I saw my acupuncturist last week and a new doctor on Monday. They both (independently) said that it might be due to LOW acid - and that Nexium et al. would only be making it worse. Unfortunately it is not easy to tell if it is LOW or HIGH acid without a lot of trial and error.

I bought some digestive enzymes that include betaine HCL (acid) and have been taking that since Sunday, no more Nexium. I have felt GREAT. I take it with each meal and haven't had those stomach problems since. I am having a tiny bit tonight, but it's more nausea than gnawing pain (I can take this over the burning ANY DAY). It's really been night and day. And I haven't felt the horrible yuckiness I felt on Nexium.

So you may want to try the digestive enzymes with betaine HCL (not all enzymes contain this). See if it makes you feel better (but you may have rebound acid while getting off the antacids). These were recommended by my new doc, along with papaya enzymes and licorice DGL. These have definitely helped me more than any of the antacids I've tried - so it might be worth trying this acid!

Apparently, low stomach acid is common in hypothyroidism. Seems like the body starts eating/digesting more but the acid can't keep up. But doctors seem to miss this angle often (go figure!).

Here is some more info:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achlorhydria

Here are the enzymes that I have been using:
http://www.amazon.com/Twinlab-Enzym...AVH4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1319674675&sr=8-1


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## Octavia

You might wan to stop by and talk go your pharmacist about this.

I have taken Nexium for well over 10 years for bad heartburn & acid reflux. I do not recall my upper GI symptoms changing since I started on my generic Synthroid, but since I already had the acid issues, I wouldn't have noticed. Despite taking Nexium, I occasionally have to take Gaviscon after certain types of meals, especially ones that are tomato-based (which I shouldn't be eating in the first place, most likely).


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## I DClaire

This all sounds very much like the way I'm feeling. In the first 2-3 weeks after my thyroidectomy, my calcium levels were low and I consumed at least two bottles of Tums. In addition to suddenly going from hyper to hypo, I probably destroyed every good digestive enzyme in my body.

I'm going to the pharmacy tonight. I've got a sneaky feeling this is going to help. I've been reading - the symptoms are also the same as for a peptic ulcer and I saw that one reason people frequently develop an ulcer is surgery.

THANKS!


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## I DClaire

Octavia said:


> You might wan to stop by and talk go your pharmacist about this.
> 
> I have taken Nexium for well over 10 years for bad heartburn & acid reflux. I do not recall my upper GI symptoms changing since I started on my generic Synthroid, but since I already had the acid issues, I wouldn't have noticed. Despite taking Nexium, I occasionally have to take Gaviscon after certain types of meals, especially ones that are tomato-based (which I shouldn't be eating in the first place, most likely).


If I had a brain, I'd be dangerous! So help me, I drank a small glass of orange juice late this afternoon rather than walk 15 ft. to get a bottle of water. I might as well have drank a glass of acid! It hurt so bad it took my breath away!


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## Octavia

I DClaire said:


> If I had a brain, I'd be dangerous! So help me, I drank a small glass of orange juice late this afternoon rather than walk 15 ft. to get a bottle of water. I might as well have drank a glass of acid! It hurt so bad it took my breath away!


Yikes! Well, I bet you won't do THAT again! 

I know exactly what that pain feels like...


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## Enigma

Here is more info on the low stomach acid: 
http://www.medical-library.net/hypochlorhydria.html


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## Fissy

Enigma said:


> Apparently, low stomach acid is common in hypothyroidism. Seems like the body starts eating/digesting more but the acid can't keep up. But doctors seem to miss this angle often (go figure!).


Oh wow, I've been struggling with my stomach since my hypothyroidism dx too. I was put on meds to reduce stomach acid. Thankfully my endo pointed out a few days ago that it was probably infact due to low stomach acid and took me off my meds.. already starting to feel a bit more comfortable!

I hope you can solve your issues, I DClaire. It's so frustrating when doctors start putting everything down to anxiety!


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## Octavia

Fissy, what meds did your doc say were likely causing low stomach acid? Was it Synthroid? (Or some other thyroid med?)

This has me very curious...almost makes me wonder if this could be a good side effect for me, and maybe I'll be able to stop the Nexium someday!


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## Fissy

Octavia said:


> Fissy, what meds did your doc say were likely causing low stomach acid? Was it Synthroid? (Or some other thyroid med?)
> 
> This has me very curious...almost makes me wonder if this could be a good side effect for me, and maybe I'll be able to stop the Nexium someday!


I was taken off Somac (Pantoprazole) 40mg and I also stopped taking liquid Mylanta. He said he found it strange that I'd been put on it considering people with hypothyrodism usually have trouble with low stomach acid.
He didn't say anything about my thyroid med (Oroxine) causing it.. which is good 'cause I kinda need that!


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## Octavia

Got it. Thanks.


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## SnoodMama

I wonder if your body reacted to the Tums and started secreting more acid to counteract the Tums. Maybe you could go back up on the Tums a bit and try a slower taper? But you did taper slowly, right?

Yeah I hate how everything is chalked up to anxiety. It is just so unhelpful and kind of insulting and lazy on the part of the doctor.


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## I DClaire

SnoodMama said:


> I wonder if your body reacted to the Tums and started secreting more acid to counteract the Tums. Maybe you could go back up on the Tums a bit and try a slower taper? But you did taper slowly, right?
> 
> Yeah I hate how everything is chalked up to anxiety. It is just so unhelpful and kind of insulting and lazy on the part of the doctor.


I did taper off - from 20 Tums a day slowly down to 4 and then, when I couldn't put another one in my mouth without gagging, I switched to the Viactive Calcium.

Anxiety? I am not kidding one iota when I say virtually every doctor I've ever seen except when I broke my ankle has suggested every symptom I've ever had was "stress related". My orthopedic doctor even said that when people are under too much stress they hold their body differently and that can cause pain.

I have always lived with a certain degree of stress BUT Lord knows a lot of folks have a lot more to deal with than I do. I have a neighbor who has had the same housekeeper/cook five days a week for 40 years, the same yardman, a grown son who has never caused her any trouble whatsoever, a devoted husband who treats her like a princess _and she went to a famous medical center in N.Y.C. for acid reflux...saying she couldn't deal with stress! :winking0001:_

To be honest, I really do believe a mountain of somewhat sudden and overwhelming stress that started in 2004 probably did bring me down to the point that I didn't have any resistance to anything. I was thinking back to all that earlier today and I know stress did nearly destroy me for awhile.

My stomach/esophagus feels wondrously better today. I'm actually hungry and looking forward to a good lunch.


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## Andros

I DClaire said:


> I seem to remember someone here mentioning increased indigestion or heartburn but I can't find the discussion. For the past few days I have been having more severe abdominal symptoms by the hour - to the point where right now I am not feeling well at all.
> 
> I told my internist yesterday that these symptoms, *intense burning in my stomach and esophagus*, had intensified since my thyroidectomy. The more I think about it though, I think they've taken on a life of their own in the past week. The doctor said he suspected it was anxiety from everything I'd been through with surgery and not caused by surgery but he didn't offer anything for relief.
> 
> I was so uncomfortable last night I couldn't lie down. I'm home this afternoon nauseated by the constant burning. Liquid Mylanta seems to take the edge off the burning but only slightly.
> 
> The only change in my routine whatsoever has been taking Synthroid. ALL I'm taking is Synthroid, my blood pressure medicine and Viactive Multi-Vitamin and Viactive Calcium. I am at a total loss! Day before yesterday I ate one small helping of spaghetti for lunch and I thought I was going to die! For some reason the pain seems to slowly begin mid-afternoon and get worse into the night.
> 
> It feels like ulcer symptoms and acid reflux combined but the #1 problem is the burning sensation - which at the moment is really making me nauseated. I don't guess it's out of the realm of possibility that it could be an ulcer...but it seems to have started so abruptly.
> 
> I'm wondering if eating my weight in Tums has done something to my stomach? The pain started getting serious when I stopped eating Tums and started taking the Viactive.
> 
> Any thoughts? All I've eaten today is scrambled eggs, toast and a bowl of Jello and I feel S-I-C-K!


You may have to restore the flora and healthy bacteria in your tummy. Do you have a problem w/ eating yogurt with live cultures such as the now popular Greek Yogurts or others? Just make sure they have live cultures.

Also, is there any reason to think that your thyroid was attached to the eosophagus and that you might have eosopageal injury?

Poooey on the anxiety stuff. These doctors...........that's all they know!

http://gicare.com/MEDICATIONS/Medications.aspx?CID=20&ID=204

This one says abdominal pain from Tums.
http://gicare.com/MEDICATIONS/Medications.aspx?CID=20&ID=204

This one is "very" good!
http://refluxdefense.com/heartburn_GERD_articles/side-effects-antacids-and-acid-blockers.html


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## CLRRN

I'm jumping into this conversation and I hope it's not TMI. I started on levothyroxine on Friday 10/21 after the WBS and my stomach has not been right since. I also resumed a normal diet after being on the LID and thought it might be "culture shock" going back to eating real food so who knows.

I've been nauseated, belching and here's the TMI part-explosive diarrhea after I have a real meal. Not so much after breakfast (usually have cream of wheat/toast or something similar) lunch something light but dinner-normal-protein/starch/veggie and then the alien arrives-gurgles, growls, belching and then explosion. Can last for a few hours-wake me up and then like grown hog day, wake up and start all over the next day. Yesterday and Tues weren't as bad as Sat/Sun/Mon but the GI upset was still there. Call me belching gurgle girl..lol

I'm so tired of complaining and i'm so tired of people saying "do you feel better now that you're on meds"???" REALLY No, i'm tired and i'm tired of being tired. I take my levo in the am before I eat anything and i'm not on any other meds-

Thanks for allowing me to vent and sharing my TMI. I need someone to "get it" because right now, my loved ones don't and I'm becoming a nasty (ok nastier) person...LOL

I'm trying....really am.


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## bigfoot

Don't worry about TMI! :tongue0013:

My hunch is since you have changed things around (recently began levothyroxine) your body is getting adjusted to things. I know I seem to have a far more upset stomach when my Levoxyl dose or testosterone gel is altered. Similar to what you described -- increased motility after eating, etc. After a week or two things start to settle down. (But there always seems to be a random flare up here and there.)

I had no idea low stomach acid was tied into hypothyroidism. Learn something new every day!

Boy, that phrase, "you are what you eat" is taking on a new meaning.


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