Hypothyroidism Support Group

Hypothyroidism is the disease state caused by insufficient production of thyrohormone by the thyroid gland. There are several distinct causes for chronic hypothyroidism, the most common being Hashimoto's thyroiditis and hypothyroidism following radioiodine therapy for hyperthyroidism. Advanced hypothyroidism may cause severe complications, the most serious one of which is...

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TC40
TC40
I haven't been here in awhile. I had a good long run of awesome thyroid luck. My numbers went from below 1 in October to over 2 in December. In December, I started having horrible lower leg pain (in the front part of my shin bone)...pain so bad that at times I could barely walk or drive. I also began to suffer from lower back pain. I had a cat scan a few weeks ago. It showed two bulging discs and multiple cysts in my bone (shin bone..where it hurts)..I am now starting to experience radiating pain in both of my legs ...I had my thyroid checked last week and my tsh is over 6. My dr never checks t3 and t4. I guess my question is..could ths pain be caused by my thyroid wacking out?? I was referred to a pain management specialist and I cannot afford 1,500. Ithe pain is really odd. Some days I barely hurt and other days, wham, it hurts to walk or drive...
Ty for your help
MButterfly
MButterfly
TC40, I know I've said it before, but "You need a new doctor ASAP!"

And, yes, hypothyroidism can cause intractable pain. For instance, a bruise that might normally go unnoticed can be extremely painful because of low thyroid levels (Free T3 and Free T4). Bottom line: it can cause idiopathic (unknown reason) pain and exacerbate pain from "other things". Before consenting to a pain-clinic (which is a merry go round you do NOT want to get on) or surgery...get your thyroid balanced by someone who is NOT an idiot.

Stress, illness, and simply Hashi's itself can cause your thyroid levels to chance (for the worse). I suspect that's what's happened here....but again: You need a Free T3 and Free T4 test and someone who will medicate you properly.

It infuriates me that your doctor would be willing to send you someplace where they rx some serious pain meds that are addictive - instead of treating your thyroid properly. Fire this doc - QUICK.

If you want more info on this whole pain/thyroid merry go round - MSG me.

PS You CAN order the test yourself - it's alot cheaper than 1500.00.
MButterfly
MButterfly
PS Another reason you need another doctor is that this *could* be related to your thyroid disease. Or, it could be something more serious. Your doctor doesn't seem to know what's going on...and pain meds are NOT the answer at this juncture.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Endocrine_bone_disease
TC40
TC40
My regular dr was the one who want me to go to the pain clinic. My endo doesn't know about how much pain iam in
cd3764
cd3764
If your endo is the one (mis)treating your thyroid, I doubt he/she will think your thyroid is to blame for your pain.

My 3 former endos dismissed any symptom I had to anything but the thyroid....even though they kept me horribly hypo.

I realized my GP at the time didn't understand thyroid, either. He didn't understand why I had over 30 symptoms with "normal" (aka in-range) thyroid labs.

I'm sorry to say that, until you find a doctor willing to run the vital FreeT4 and FreeT3 tests *and* who will work with you to optimize those levels, you will continue to suffer needlessly.

Have you seen the doctor recommendation list I'm linking below?

http://www.thyroidchange.org/patient-recommended-doctor-list-us.html

I am aware of many people in various parts of the US who have had success with various doctors on the list.

You really need a thyroid-savvy doctor. It makes a world of a difference.