My Opinion of Synthroid's Purported Side Effects

For many patients suffering with thyroid conditions, Synthroid is a lifesaver. One tiny pill can take away the fatigue, depression, constipation, cold intolerance and the host of other symptoms associated with hypothyroidism and Hashimoto's hypothyroidism. But what symptoms should a patient be aware of when starting to take Synthroid?

If you have been prescribed Synthroid, your thyroid is failing to produce the proper amount of thyroid hormone required by your body, and the Synthroid replaces the missing hormone. Many patients will notice only improvement in their hypothyroid symptoms and no Synthroid side effects. In fact, the dramatic improvement in symptoms may cause a patient to overlook the side effects.

What are the possible side effects of Synthroid? According to the drug prescribing information from synthroid.com, common side effects include anxiety, diarrhea, flushing, mood swings, muscle weakness, partial temporary hair loss, sleeplessness, stomach cramps, tiredness, and vomiting. Personally, the worst Synthroid side effect I've dealt with in the last year and a half is the partial temporary hair loss. Every time my dose is adjusted, I go through a bout of hair loss. I still have plenty of hair left, but finding strands of hair everywhere gets a little annoying after awhile!

However, I question whether Synthroid truly has side effects or if the majority of the "common side effects" are really symptoms of hyperthyroidism - when your body has too much thyroid hormone in it. What are the symptoms of hyperthyroidism? Heart palpitations, heat intolerance, nervousness, insomnia, breathlessness, increased bowel movements, light or absent menstrual periods, fatigue, fast heart beat, trembling hands, weight loss, muscle weakness, warm moist skin, hair loss and staring gaze. Do you see the parallels between the Synthroid side effects and the symptoms of hyperthyroidism?

When taking Synthroid, it is very important that periodic blood tests be done. The dosage of Synthroid is regulated by a blood test called TSH. Some doctors also test T3 and T4 levels in the blood (T3 and T4 are different forms of the thyroid hormone). These blood tests allow the physician to check the thyroid hormone level and determine if the Synthroid dose is accurate.

If you are new to taking Synthroid, realize that the reliability of TSH along with the "normal" range for the test is questionable. In the ideal world, if your TSH is accurate and your Synthroid dose is correct, you should experience no symptoms of a thyroid condition, whether hypo- or hyperthyroid.

Finding and maintaining the correct dose of Synthroid for some, myself included, is like a shot in the dark. In 20 months, I have been on six different strengths of Synthroid. I have experienced the nervousness, heat intolerance, trembling and breathlessness of too much thyroid hormone as well as the bone-numbing fatigue, constipation, cold hands and feet, brain fog and host of other symptoms of too little thyroid hormone.

Of course, like any medication, a person can have an allergic to some of the ingredients in Synthroid. An allergic reaction consists of hives, rash, fever, swelling, itching and difficulty breathing.

When taking a new medication like Synthroid, take some time to educate yourself about the medication and the disease. Visit some of the recommended websites below as a starting point.

Recommended websites:
www.synthroid.com
www.thyroid-info.com
thyroid.about.com