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QUESTION:
Is there anybody with Hashimoto's (that is not on any thyroid medication) that
has increasing severity with low-back pain & constipation? My thyroid
antibodies have come down to 500 (from 2000) & I thought I would experience
some relief from some of my symptoms, but it seems that even if the antibodies
come down to normal, I will probably still have severe symptoms. Nothing has
helped for the constipation & I HATE prunes anyway. It's not just a
once-in-a-while problem, it's every day. Is there anybody that has gone on
Synthroid that has seen an improvement in constipation and/or low-back pain?
I'm even seeing a chiropractor & my low-back pain has increased considerably.
I realize that straining on the toilet is not good for the low back, but it's
never hurt my back this bad before.
ANSWER:
I'm not sure what kind of back pain you have, but a friend of mine who
was very constipated used to have sciatica (back pain plus pain down
the leg). It was always bad but worse when she lay in bed and her
doctor told her it was caused by the large amounts of impacted food in
her gut pressing on her sciatic nerve in her lower spine. She
controls this now by eating a large bowl of All-Bran with a tablespoon
of oat bran for breakfast and eats a piece of fruit with every meal,
eats lots of vegetables and wholemeal bread and drinks 6 pints of
water (in addition to her normal drinks) every day.
I was so uncomfortable with constipation I was on a permanent laxative (from
the doc) and waiting for a repair op for a cystocele and rectocele caused (I
was certain) by staring ineffectually over a very long period. I also had
severe and recurrent pain in the coccyx caused by the pressure, and this
could be your lower back pain -you have my sympathy - it was agonising and
undignified. The good news is that on thyroxine (150 mg over nearly two
years now) all that is a thing of the past, I don't need the repair - I was
diagnosed hypo whilst waiting and it explained so many things especially the
constipation. I believe I had been ill for a very long time. so practically
every bit of me was deficient in something, and every symptom I had has
improved or disappeared. It seems even your muscles give up on you when
badly hypo. I can't see why you're not on thyroxine. Why not have another
word with your doc?
the constipation part of your question, anyway. I
was quite happily surprised at the almost immediate relief I
experienced when I was finally put on Synthroid! 20+ yrs of fighting
to regulate my bowels gone almost overnight;-)))) I still get lower
back pain, but there's so many possible causes of that... And oh, I'm
Hashi's/hypo.
I too have suffered constipation for most of my life. It didn't improve at all
while 3 years on Synthroid. It did however, improve significantly when I
switched to Armour thyroid. I am sure everyone responds differently but I am
convinced that the T3 had a lot to do with the improvment. I also lost 18
pounds since going on Armour
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