Symtom Question

[NikkiNicole]

I have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis on top of my Wegener's and spent most of the last night suffering from heart palpitations. Is there anyone else out there who has to deal with thyroid issues on top of everything else? Has anyone had palpitations like this with just wegener's? The only symptom I have with my thyroid issue is the racing, thumping heart so I don't know what else it could be?

[mishb]

Nikki, you are not alone.

I think there has been a thread written on it before.

I also get them. I have a had ECG's and echo's done and everything is fine........all they tell me is that pred can do it to you.
Also anxiety plays a big part as well.

Just to make sure, you should always get it checked out anyway.

[rebekah]

Hi Nikki,
I too have Hashimoto’s and WG and experience heart palpitations. This often occurs when my TSH and free T3 and T4 levels are out of whack. While heart palpitations aren’t commonly associated as a symptom, my endocrinologist says it IS a symptom. I recommend you call your doctor and get blood work done to test your levels, make sure to have them test your free T3 and free T4. The frees correlate with symptoms better than TSH. TSH is a pituitary hormone and generally doesn’t affect how you feel; FT3 and FT4 are what increase or eliminate symptoms. I find that if my FT3 increases, even slightly, I start to experience heart palpitations. Also, be sure to ask for the reference range your lab uses since different labs use different ranges. My best guess (and that’s all it is since I’m not a doctor) is that you either need to increase your meds (levothyroxine/synthroid) or need to be taking T3 as well as T4 in the levothyroxine. Getting on the correct amount of meds should help with this problem.

Like Michelle says, it might be the prednisone attributing to them, but the best thing to do is to go to your doctor and have them look into it.

When I have them they usually last for a few hours and am in a lot of pain, so I know what you're going through. Hang in there… things will get better.

[NikkiNicole]

Wow, I am shocked to meet someone else who also has a combination of Hashimoto's and WG. I felt like an oddball! I know my T3 is elevated. It keeps climbing little by little. My thyroid antibodies were out of control when they last checked during all my diagnostic appointments. I am due to go back up and have another round of Thyroid blood work. I go every two weeks. I'm just so weak from radiation I have to find someone to take me since where I have radiation is right by my house and my lab is about 20 mins north of me. I'm not too sure I want to drive up there alone. Maybe I'll go in the morning when I have the most energy.
The palpitations make me almost breathless, I can feel my heart thundering away in my chest. It's almost like it skips. It's not a fun feeling and goes on for hours. I had the heart issues for a few years before all this WG stuff. Could be related, who knows? They never tested my thyroid before now. I an not taking any meds for my thyroid yet as only the T3 was elevated, and it was not too high. My endocrinologist is out of the office til next week. I'll email her once I do the test and see if there is something I should start taking. Maybe I'll be starting thyroid meds and CTX at the same time. Oh joy.
If I thought I took a lot of meds now .... :laugh:

[Tom]

I had palpitations last summer. My cardio put me on a beta blocker which reaked havoc with my COPD. He came up with Verapamil I believe it is. Seems to help with little interference with the breathing. I will have to ask him about the symptoms again. Mine heart races all the time but that was account of the bad lungs I assumed. I have got a weak left ventricle that the cardio says is probably a victim of the wegs as well as the palpitations. Thats all I need is another health issue. Does that Jack Russel in your avatar answer to Lizzie? We had to put our Jack down a couple years ago. Smartest dog we ever had.

[NikkiNicole]

My avatar is actually my 10 month old Pembroke Welsh Corgi, his name is Loki. He has been an excellent caregiver. For a puppy, he's been very mellow and lays with me. I've been dealing mostly with feeling completely run down and coughing still. My sinuses scream at me for awhile but then they seem to go back to sleep. It's almost as if my body is fighting back against the Prednisone. I was run down before radiation started so, I know it's worse because of that. I know things will be worse before better and that's OK. As long as I finally get to get on the right drugs and stop this attack on my body.
Losing a dog is harder than losing a human, I think. Because we can tell our loved ones goodbye and know they know what we mean. Loki's my heart right now, my constant companion. I'd be so lonely if he wasn't here!

[marylz]

Hope you feel better sooner than later!

I have a cavalier king charles spaniel who is 9 years old. She's my lovey too. Coincidently, while I was in the hospital last month she was doing poorly too. They thought that I had congestive heart failure at first, then diaxed wegs. When I got home my dog was having a terrible time breathing and coughing. I brought her right to the vet and they admitted her with...congestive heart failure! She has responded to the meds and is now at home with me , but how weird is that? My family was so worried about me that they ignored the symptoms of my "baby!" Good thing I came home when I did!

[NikkiNicole]

I'm so glad you were able to get to her in time. Dogs are the best best best therapy. Loki knows just when I am upset and runs over and plops down, putting his head in my lap. I got him in July hoping that he could be my walking companion. I was still feeling miserable and still wanted to exercise. Well, now he just hangs out at home with me because I'm so sick. Poor buddy. He's spoiled rotten and loaded with toys so ... he can't be too sad.
I hope your pup continues to do well with you. That is so weird that you were both having trouble at the exact same time. Poor baby.

[Tom]

My avatar is actually my 10 month old Pembroke Welsh Corgi, his name is Loki. He has been an excellent caregiver. For a puppy, he's been very mellow and lays with me. I've been dealing mostly with feeling completely run down and coughing still. My sinuses scream at me for awhile but then they seem to go back to sleep. It's almost as if my body is fighting back against the Prednisone. I was run down before radiation started so, I know it's worse because of that. I know things will be worse before better and that's OK. As long as I finally get to get on the right drugs and stop this attack on my body.
Losing a dog is harder than losing a human, I think. Because we can tell our loved ones goodbye and know they know what we mean. Loki's my heart right now, my constant companion. I'd be so lonely if he wasn't here! It looks just like our Jack color and all but now that I it, the nose may be shorter. Ours was great companion and was our only daughter, We raised 4 boys and she was a gift from on the bys Girlfriends. They raised and sold them but ours was not able to be registered because of genetic defects. I've been thru the sinus troubles and my lungs are destroyed and have kidney disease from the WEGS and I think Im might be relapsing because I have sore, swollen in the mornings just like l what led up to my dx 2 years ago. I think your body does fight the pred, its an un- natural amount of steroid in your body. Hope you get to feeling better.

[rebekah]

I am so sorry you keep experiencing the heart palpitations. I empathize with you and know from experience they are not fun at all. I hope you can get an appointment with your endocrinologist soon and start the meds if she says you need them. I'm glad I started taking levothyroxine as it has helped me, but I wasn't taking all those meds you are when I started (of course now I'm like a pharmacy, as my friends always joke). Once I started the meds and was on the right dosage (currently 75mcg) it helped with my fatigue and my racing heart beat/heart palpitations. I didn't experience any of the side effects, so hopefully you won't either. Now of course my fatigue is back, but that's from the prednisone and other meds I'm on because of WG. And I always take a friend with me to my appointments when I can just in case I start to feel horrible and can't get myself back home. That, and they're not on all the meds I am on so they can better remember what the doctor says and tell me later if need be. I hope you can get can on the meds you need to and start to feel better asap. I'm actually due to see my endocrinologist in 2 weeks I believe, so if you have any questions you want me to ask let me know and I'll try to get an answer for you... but hopefully you can get an appointment before then so your doctor can answer them for you since she has your records and blood results. I hope you start to feel better soon, Nikki.

I've always been a cat person... but all this talk about dogs on here, and my friend just adopting a cute baby cocker spaniel makes me want a dog. Hmmm... I might just have to go out and adopt one. Glad to hear your baby is okay now, Mary.

[Barbara N]

I have a Briard and a Friesian horse and they are the best therapy there is. I stopped all medication 3 years ago because it was killing me, and do therapy with my horse. six months after starting to ride I realized that the side effect of my medications were gone so I figured why take the medication,just ride. I have chronic arrhythmia some of it they say is due to anxiety but it was funny to hear my doctor say last time my heart went crazy, I can put you on a drip for 2 days or you can go ride that horse of yours. I think the nurse was shocked. I chose the horse over the hospital and it worked. I was in remission for almost 2 years, not one symptom, now I am back with heart problems and every other thing WG gives you. Try and have a positive attitude, something to make you get up, like a dog or animal, breathe deep and enjoy every day. I love the way WG comes in for a while and you think you can't make it and then it seems to go away for a while and lets you breathe. I don't recommend that anyone stop their medication, I did because the doctors had given up on me and the medicine was killing me, it was a personal decision.

[Barbara N]

We say RELAX, LOOK THROUGH THE EARS AND BREATHE. YOU HAVE TO KNOW HORSES TO UNDERSTAND BUT IT WORKS.