# Alcohol and Hashimotos



## HeidiBR

I am wondering if anyone has noticed if he/she metabolizes alcoholic beverages differently once you have this delightful disease?

I went to a wedding last weekend. I had 3 (small) glasses of wine. I was smashed. And sick that night and the next day. All bloated out for several days. Normally, 3 glasses of wine would give me a buzz, but it was like I drank 6 glasses of wine.

Not to self: cannot handle drinks. Good to find out before I go on vacation.


----------



## Andros

HeidiBR said:


> I am wondering if anyone has noticed if he/she metabolizes alcoholic beverages differently once you have this delightful disease?
> 
> I went to a wedding last weekend. I had 3 (small) glasses of wine. I was smashed. And sick that night and the next day. All bloated out for several days. Normally, 3 glasses of wine would give me a buzz, but it was like I drank 6 glasses of wine.
> 
> Not to self: cannot handle drinks. Good to find out before I go on vacation.


Yep; it's shocking, isn't it? We just don't metabolize. It stays in the system. Not good; not good at all.

You can have Virgin Mary's; that is what I do. Once in a while I can handle a low/no alcohol brew.


----------



## HeidiBR

I really was shocked. I wonder, does this get better as the meds get optimized, or is it just something to expect?

If meds are optimized, then we should be metabolizing like a normal person - at least in theory. If we are metabolizing like a normal person, then we shouldn't be having these issues.

I just don't get it. I don't get how if we take meds for metabolism and we are at levels that are called for - why doesn't everything work like it is supposed to?

I guess if I knew the answer to that, I'd be a millionaire.


----------



## HeidiBR

I wonder, too, if it might have something to do with the Synthroid, and the way alcohol and the med is processed by the liver?


----------



## Andros

HeidiBR said:


> I really was shocked. I wonder, does this get better as the meds get optimized, or is it just something to expect?
> 
> If meds are optimized, then we should be metabolizing like a normal person - at least in theory. If we are metabolizing like a normal person, then we shouldn't be having these issues.
> 
> I just don't get it. I don't get how if we take meds for metabolism and we are at levels that are called for - why doesn't everything work like it is supposed to?
> 
> I guess if I knew the answer to that, I'd be a millionaire.


No; at least not for me. I could live w/o it though so it is no big deal. Some things are unfixable, I am thinking and in my case, I have been euthyroid for years until I could not get Armour for about 18 months. That really messed me up but I am getting back on track now.


----------



## GD Women

I am with Andros. I have no problems with Alcohol affecting me any differently than before. Alcohol being a stimulus, it would affect hypers, but not in my case.

I also can live with out it.


----------



## Lovlkn

I think I am a cheaper date being hypo (without a thyroid and on replacement) vs. being on anti thyroid medication, I drink less for the same buzz for sure.


----------



## HeidiBR

GD Women said:


> Alcohol being a stimulus, it would affect hypers, but not in my case.
> 
> I also can live with out it.


Alcohol is actually a depressant. I think with our bodies being slower, alcohol just makes it worse, as it stays in our bodies longer. Just a theory...

I can live w/o it too. I just wish I had known before I attended the wedding :a1Thyroid:


----------



## HeidiBR

Lovlkn said:


> I think I am a cheaper date being hypo (without a thyroid and on replacement) vs. being on anti thyroid medication, I drink less for the same buzz for sure.


That is a positive way of looking at it!


----------



## hillaryedrn

Heidi - I think you might be right about that. It makes sense, after all!



> Quote:
> Originally Posted by Lovlkn
> I think I am a cheaper date being hypo (without a thyroid and on replacement) vs. being on anti thyroid medication, I drink less for the same buzz for sure.
> 
> That is a positive way of looking at it!


Hahaha! I love it!! hugs6


----------



## HeidiBR

I have been eating really clean, since my theory is that anything too chemical-like or processed now sits in my system longer (minimal sweat, constipation) because the metabolism is slower.

Ironically, I forgot all about alcohol. Talk about a toxin.

I am headed off on vacation to an all inclusive resort in a couple of weeks. I guess they will save money on me, as I will only be drinking virgin coco locos!


----------



## peaches

My husband thought I was nuts. Now I can say I told you so. We went to a local winery this past fall and one glass of wine made me sick as a dog. I used to bartend and hold my own with the best of them and now one glass of wine makes me look like a sidewalk drunk. He didn't believe me when I told him I thought my Hashimoto's did it to me. I'm glad I'm past my wild youth and don't drink much anymore. I must admit, I do miss the occasional glass of wine and a good cold beer on a hot summer's day.


----------



## HeidiBR

Peaches,

Are you on Synthroid? I think part of the issue, for me, is the Synthroid.


----------



## peaches

Yes I am on Synthroid but it was happening before they ever put me on thyroid medication. My best friend, my husband and I like to go to wineries and try new things so when I went to Colorado I found a neat local winery and bought a bottle. We all tried it when I got home. I had 1/2 of a glass and about 15 minutes later thought I was going to have to have my husband help me out to the car. I felt like I was stumbling drunk. It lasted for about 2 hours. That was the last time I drank any wine. I can have about one bottle of beer and don't feel to bad as long as I don't do it often.


----------



## HeidiBR

I agree it was happening to me before I was diagnosed and taking Synthroid, but the effects seem much worse now. Empty calories, anyway, I keep telling myself


----------



## CA-Lynn

I have never enjoyed the taste of alcohol or the feeling of being out of control....so I just don't drink except on a very rare occasion [once every 5 years or so?] I might have a glass of wine. Invariably it hits me like a ton of bricks.

In my pre-Synthroid days and while in college I was able to drink like everyone else.


----------



## stacy80

Before I was put on my synthroid I could have less than one drink and feel like I had to stop. Now that I'm on the synthroid I can have 1 or 2 and be okay. I didn't realize that the synthroid could actually make the problem worse. I like the idea of being a cheaper date! Too funny!


----------



## HeidiBR

Here's a new twist: sugar makes me sleepy.

Tonight I had a frozen chocolate custard with bananas. I split one regular-sized one with my husband. Within a half hour, I couldn't keep my eye's open. I fell asleep for an hour. This happened to me once before about two months ago after a sugary breakfast. I was like a narcolept - bam! asleep. This is odd as I never nap.

I have been eating a low-sugar diet the last 8 weeks.

Alcohol has fermented sugar. Could this all be related?


----------



## stacy80

That's really interesting. I notice after all meal times that I'm sleepier than usual but I attributed it to a slow metabolism. Maybe sugar is harder to metabolize for some reason? Not sure. Definitely something worth asking a doctor about just to find out.


----------



## CA-Lynn

I'm a Type 2 diabetic, too, and naturally have to watch my carbs. One of the rules most diabetics follow is to eat throughout the day [now don't chow down each time!] and to avoid processed foods like the plague. It helps with the energy, I've found.


----------



## HeidiBR

CA-Lynn said:


> I'm a Type 2 diabetic, too, and naturally have to watch my carbs. One of the rules most diabetics follow is to eat throughout the day [now don't chow down each time!] and to avoid processed foods like the plague. It helps with the energy, I've found.


That is how I have been eating - except for the frozen custard last night 

When I first started Synthroid at the end of March, I ate a bunch of sugar, crashed, and then blew up like a balloon with water weight. Friday, my meds were upped to .75, I ate a bunch of sugar, crashed - but at least today I haven't blown up like a balloon - yet.

I am convinced that sugar is inflammatory.


----------



## Linda1957

I am new to this forum and joined to look for answers. I have noticed that even after a few glasses of wine, I feel sick to my stomach the next day and have to take antinausea meds. The sick feeling lasts all day and even into the next day.
I have Hashimoto's and gluten intolerance; all of this has transpired in the past year and this is about when I noticed what seemed to be an inability to metabolize alcohol. Does anyone else struggle with alcohol in this way?


----------



## Andros

Linda1957 said:


> I am new to this forum and joined to look for answers. I have noticed that even after a few glasses of wine, I feel sick to my stomach the next day and have to take antinausea meds. The sick feeling lasts all day and even into the next day.
> I have Hashimoto's and gluten intolerance; all of this has transpired in the past year and this is about when I noticed what seemed to be an inability to metabolize alcohol. Does anyone else struggle with alcohol in this way?


Because Thyroid Disease is a metabolic situation, many of us no longer process alcohol effectively. It seems to linger and sometimes makes feel quite ill. Just a drink or 2 will do that.


----------



## Linda1957

Thank you for your comment, Andros. I've been reading the posts and see that I wasn't imagining things, that the wine I drank really wasn't being metabolized very well. It just didn't make sense that I would feel sick the next day every single time after not having a history like that before.

Last night I drank 3 glasses of wine over a 6 hour period at a BBQ, ate a big healthy dinner there, and even took Chaser pills all evening. I felt pretty inebriated after just one glass-and this morning felt like throwing up; had to take anti nausea meds. I thought maybe because I hardly ever drink anymore, that was the problem. I decided to go research Hashi and alcohol and was so grateful to find this forum!!

I don't want to feel this way anymore and even one glass of wine isn't worth it!!!!!


----------



## HeidiBR

Linda1957 said:


> I don't want to feel this way anymore and even one glass of wine isn't worth it!!!!!


That is my conclusion. I simply don't drink anymore - maybe one glass of wine on an occasion but never more than one. With one, I don't sick.


----------



## Andros

Linda1957 said:


> Thank you for your comment, Andros. I've been reading the posts and see that I wasn't imagining things, that the wine I drank really wasn't being metabolized very well. It just didn't make sense that I would feel sick the next day every single time after not having a history like that before.
> 
> Last night I drank 3 glasses of wine over a 6 hour period at a BBQ, ate a big healthy dinner there, and even took Chaser pills all evening. I felt pretty inebriated after just one glass-and this morning felt like throwing up; had to take anti nausea meds. I thought maybe because I hardly ever drink anymore, that was the problem. I decided to go research Hashi and alcohol and was so grateful to find this forum!!
> 
> I don't want to feel this way anymore and even one glass of wine isn't worth it!!!!!


You got "that" right!


----------



## Islandgirl

Way before I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's and on meds for it, my husband and I went out to eat. (I had begun noticing some problems with my stamina, always feeling tired and cold, but hadn't gotten any real answers from the docs.) Anyway, at the restaurant, I ordered a margarita. About half way through the drink, I was convinced that the waiter or bartending staff had spiked my drink. I even asked the waiter how much tequila they'd put in there. He just gave me the weird look. I was pretty tipsy. We ate our food and went home, where I promptly passed out in bed. The next morning, I had a hard time getting out of bed and STILL felt drunk! This feeling didn't pass for about 24 hours! A few weeks later, I had a beer, same result. Now 9 years later, I already know I can't drink. I don't miss it most of the time, but I used to enjoy a good German draft at our favorite German restaurant, and that I really do miss. I can have a few sips, but that's all. There was a time when I had been feeling euthyroid for several months that I could drink a little more, without feeling like I'd had triple the amount of alcohol. But when I'm feeling as bad as I've been feeling lately, I KNOW it's better not to imbibe.


----------

