# Urinary Probelms with thyroid disease?



## Prudence (Oct 30, 2012)

Alright, perhaps a little TMI here, but just curious: how many other people here have had urinary problems with their thyroid disease? I urinated quite a bit before I was diagnosed with Graves' (not realizing that could be a symptom) and will often have flare ups here and there since going hypo from RAI that I always get checked just to make sure it's not a UTI. I'm getting an emergency thyroid lab done soon since my thyroid has been known to flip quickly, but it seems off and on this past month, I've been urinating quite a bit (and I also have been keeping track of my blood sugars, so I know it's not because they're too high) and get mild relief when given an antibiotic. I have a urologist appointment next week and it was suggested to get a scope done just to see if the ultrasounds I've had done of my bladder are missing something, but it's highly annoying to be running to the bathroom every hour to urinate (except for at night, where I sleep right through.) Can hypo be related to urinary problems as well?


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## StormFinch (Nov 16, 2012)

Ugh!! I know exactly where you're coming from! When I was hyper I could sometimes go and then leave the bathroom, only to turn around and go right back. It seemed like that's all I did, and heaven help me if I had to run water to do dishes or laundry.  I would also get burning at times, mainly at night. I ended up buying test strips to double check for UTI because the doctors kept wanting to put me on antibiotics. There's a product called Azo that worked well for the pain and let me sleep.

Since my TT both problems have disappeared for the most part, though occasionally I do have a day here or there where I go more frequently. It seems to correlate with other vague symptoms so I'm pretty sure my antibodies are acting up during those times.

If you do a google search for Graves (or hyperthyroidism) and frequent urination you'll see that it's mentioned as one of the symptoms quite often, in humans as well as in cats.


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## sjmjuly (Mar 23, 2012)

Wow. I never thought about it before, but so true! I have hashi's and when I was first diagnosed and going through a very rough HYPER stage, all I did was pee! I would go no less than 5-10 times an hour it seemed like. It settled down finally, but I could never figure out why I almost had to live in the bathroom.


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## Ginav (Jun 7, 2013)

I drink a lot of water but I noticed that I was living in the bathroom when I was hyper and kept wondering why because I drank the same amount for several years. Dr's would ask me if I was urinating frequently and I would say yes but, I drink a lot of water so no one ever went anywhere with it. It has calmed down since I'm on medicine. Thanks for sharing your situation because I never did get any clarity on that and now I know. I'm sorry that you are going through that! I believe you said that you are hypo though. I have Graves. It must be that something is not balanced.
Gina


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## Prudence (Oct 30, 2012)

Ginav said:


> I drink a lot of water but I noticed that I was living in the bathroom when I was hyper and kept wondering why because I drank the same amount for several years. Dr's would ask me if I was urinating frequently and I would say yes but, I drink a lot of water so no one ever went anywhere with it. It has calmed down since I'm on medicine. Thanks for sharing your situation because I never did get any clarity on that and now I know. I'm sorry that you are going through that! I believe you said that you are hypo though. I have Graves. It must be that something is not balanced.
> Gina


Yeah, I had it when my Graves' was not treated-sometimes for weeks on end, sometimes for just a day or two, and then relief. Once I was medicated, I'd only seldom get those feelings and they wouldn't last long. I never had a problem after my first RAI, but since this second one, my thyroid has been like a rollercoaster trying to find the correct dose, and I've had a few instances in just the past few months of this"peeing like I drank a gallon of water" feeling along with back pain, yet blood tests and ultrasounds show nothing wrong with my kidney function or bladder. I'm still going to go ask about a possible scope done for my bladder, but sometimes I wonder if it has to do with the thyroid hormones dropping/raising so much this time post RAI that's throwing my body out of whack!


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

This has been a very eye opening thread for me! I just had a TT, but in the last year I was rapidly cycling between hypo and hyper phases and I developed kidney stones and had symptoms of uti's multiple times, which I never had over the course of 10 years of thyroid issues. My urologist never found a cause for the kidney stones or weird symptoms and I've drank water like a horse (I love it and it's good for you!) for years. I never had the burning (like I got with the one confirmed uti I've ever had) but my bladder would just ache and I would have this dull pain that would last for days. And when I had to pee, it felt like my bladder was full to the bursting point and was physically uncomfortable.

I started using Uva Ursi drops after doing some research and that cleared it up for me as long as I used it regularly. I'm going to keep using it once or twice a week until we've got my meds stabilized.


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## Prudence (Oct 30, 2012)

jenny v said:


> This has been a very eye opening thread for me! I just had a TT, but in the last year I was rapidly cycling between hypo and hyper phases and I developed kidney stones and had symptoms of uti's multiple times, which I never had over the course of 10 years of thyroid issues. My urologist never found a cause for the kidney stones or weird symptoms and I've drank water like a horse (I love it and it's good for you!) for years. I never had the burning (like I got with the one confirmed uti I've ever had) but my bladder would just ache and I would have this dull pain that would last for days. And when I had to pee, it felt like my bladder was full to the bursting point and was physically uncomfortable.
> 
> I started using Uva Ursi drops after doing some research and that cleared it up for me as long as I used it regularly. I'm going to keep using it once or twice a week until we've got my meds stabilized.


Yep, when I first started having the urinary problems, they thought stones, but none were found at the time. After about a year and a half of living with Graves', I had a kidney ultrasound for an infection (an actual one!), surprise-I had a few in each kidney. I now have many small teeny ones, as if those bigger ones finally broke up a bit, but they're non-obstructing and not causing the problem. Apparently doing some research, kidney stones can be formed due to thyroid disease (though I'm more familiar with Graves' causing them.) And I have the same problems you described-no actual burning, but just a nagging dull pain and a bladder that feels like it fills quick and would burst if I didn't use the bathroom right aeay. I had only had 3 UTI's before the Graves', so I think it's connected.

Also, thanks for the reminder about Uva Ursi! I've heard people having great success on it, I think I might give it a try until I can also get my thyroid stable.


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

Prudence said:


> Alright, perhaps a little TMI here, but just curious: how many other people here have had urinary problems with their thyroid disease? I urinated quite a bit before I was diagnosed with Graves' (not realizing that could be a symptom) and will often have flare ups here and there since going hypo from RAI that I always get checked just to make sure it's not a UTI. I'm getting an emergency thyroid lab done soon since my thyroid has been known to flip quickly, but it seems off and on this past month, I've been urinating quite a bit (and I also have been keeping track of my blood sugars, so I know it's not because they're too high) and get mild relief when given an antibiotic. I have a urologist appointment next week and it was suggested to get a scope done just to see if the ultrasounds I've had done of my bladder are missing something, but it's highly annoying to be running to the bathroom every hour to urinate (except for at night, where I sleep right through.) Can hypo be related to urinary problems as well?


All systems are on speed dial w/ thyroid autoimmune disease. It has to do w/motility. Hyper = fast, Hypo = slow.........................


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

> Yep, when I first started having the urinary problems, they thought stones, but none were found at the time. After about a year and a half of living with Graves', I had a kidney ultrasound for an infection (an actual one!), surprise-I had a few in each kidney. I now have many small teeny ones, as if those bigger ones finally broke up a bit, but they're non-obstructing and not causing the problem. Apparently doing some research, kidney stones can be formed due to thyroid disease (though I'm more familiar with Graves' causing them.) And I have the same problems you described-no actual burning, but just a nagging dull pain and a bladder that feels like it fills quick and would burst if I didn't use the bathroom right aeay. I had only had 3 UTI's before the Graves', so I think it's connected.
> 
> Also, thanks for the reminder about Uva Ursi! I've heard people having great success on it, I think I might give it a try until I can also get my thyroid stable.


Prudence, our symptoms sound so similar, it's eerie! It's crazy how thyroid problems can cause random issues throughout the entire body. Knock on wood, I haven't had any issues since this summer (and since using the Uva Ursi drops) and hopefully won't have them again now that my thyroid is gone.

The Uva Ursi drops (not pills) worked great for me--I started getting relief in a matter of days. They aren't the greatest tasting, but I put them in a little bit of water and downed it like a shot. I found mine at a Natural Grocer store, but there are some good ones on Amazon.com, too. Let me know if you'd like the brand name of mine and I'll post it.


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## thumper54 (Sep 2, 2013)

I'm still unclear exactly what thyroid dx I have, but when I asked the endo bout excessive bouts of urinating and he said its not related. However every time I've gotten an ultrasound or a physical exam of my thyroid, the next 24 hours I live in the bathroom. And after finding out my FT4 went from 2.1 to 3.4 I had frequency plus pressure like a UTI, but the urinalysis said no UTI. I can feel my throat swelling and the sweating starts and the bathroom trips increase, then it settles down for a day or two before starting again. I'm sorry you all are experiencing this, but I'm happy to know I'm not alone with it. Anyone also get kidney area pain too? My left side has been dogging me since all this began...


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## ssulley (Oct 28, 2013)

Just wanted to chime in. I have yet to be diagnosed with a thyroid issue due to having normal labs but am almost 100% sure I do given my symptoms and the information I have found on this and other boards. Anyway, urinary issues were the first symptom I had. Frequency and a constant, very uncomfortable feeling of 'needing to go'. It was always worse at night. I did several UTI tests that came back normal. As my other symptoms progressed, I would also get a burning sensation in my bladder and lower back/kidney area at night along with the urge feeling. Of course, I've told the dr's all this and they just look at me like I'm crazy. I should note that I'm not one to be prone to UTIs and, in fact, have never had one before. The good news is that the sensation has let up with time but does seem to return when I'm having a symptomatic day.


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## Prudence (Oct 30, 2012)

thumper54 said:


> I'm still unclear exactly what thyroid dx I have, but when I asked the endo bout excessive bouts of urinating and he said its not related. However every time I've gotten an ultrasound or a physical exam of my thyroid, the next 24 hours I live in the bathroom. And after finding out my FT4 went from 2.1 to 3.4 I had frequency plus pressure like a UTI, but the urinalysis said no UTI. I can feel my throat swelling and the sweating starts and the bathroom trips increase, then it settles down for a day or two before starting again. I'm sorry you all are experiencing this, but I'm happy to know I'm not alone with it. Anyone also get kidney area pain too? My left side has been dogging me since all this began...


See now, I was told the excessive urination _can_ be a symptom of a thyroid disease-some sites list it as something to look out for, with both hyper or hypo! I also do get the kidney pain with it too, sometimes-I know I have small teeny stones, but this isn't stone pain.(I had the pain before I even had stones!) I was also told it can hurt in your kidney area just because basically they're working overtime with the urination thing.


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## kalebsmom (Nov 1, 2013)

I'm glad you posted this as I have never made the connection and it has me wondering. I have very frequent urination and pee a bit drop if I sneeze or cough too hard tmi.. My doctor told me it was just age. I ended up in er with flank pain and they did find stones but never checked for infection. Months later when I was back in er they found I had infection and ended up on antibiotics for 8 weeks. I still urinate constantly and have occasional flank pain but infection is gone and ct shows kidneys functioning normally. Urologist says I may have overactive and stressed bladder. I am ten days post op from having left half of thyroid taken out as well as 4cm mass. Doc didn't do blood work or put me on medication yet he wants to check in 3 months and see if I need it. Maybe if he puts me on meds I will stop peeing every ten minutes. I never knew the two could be related.


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## Prudence (Oct 30, 2012)

Andros said:


> All systems are on speed dial w/ thyroid autoimmune disease. It has to do w/motility. Hyper = fast, Hypo = slow.........................


I just found it odd I was having this again when ringing up hypo still, however you figure I had a dose bump because I was severely hypo (a TSH of just over 53, FT4 at a 0.8, back in September, so waaaay at the bottom) to going to a TSH of 4.04, and FT4 of 1.5 six weeks later.(I forgot what the T3 was, but that increased a little too) I figure that even though I'm still a bit hypo, that happened in just six weeks, so my body might of just went *WOAH THERE * in the sudden thyroid shift, ha ha. I haven't really had many problems lately, I'm still going to ask about getting a scope done just because I know I've had actual infections and that can cause scarring, so it might not hurt to get it looked at.


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