I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism 15 years ago after my first daughter was born. I only lost 5 pounds after her birth and continued slowly gaining weight despite my thyroid levels being normal. Over that period of 15 years, I gained probably 65 or 70 pounds over my POST-pregnancy weight. My first doc way back when put me on levoxyl. I tried Armour for a few years, which made more of my hypo symptoms seem to go away, but that got harder and harder to find. Our pharmacy was always out. Back to the $4 generic levothyroxine.
As for slow weight loss? Heck, yes. At my heaviest, I was 264 over two years ago. It took me two and a half years to lose 19 pounds. 2 1/2 YEARS for 19 pounds. It's really hard to keep motivated when the loss is so tiny.
I recently changed doctors. At my physical, I pleaded with him at how much I wanted to lose weight, and how much of a struggle it has been. He first switched me from the generic levothyroxine to synthroid to see if that makes a difference. Some people respond better to the brand name synthroid. He also recommended Vitamin D and B12 supplements (my vit D level was borderline low). I round that out with Selenium, CLA, CoQ10, calcium, and a good multivitamin. (I recently quit smoking after 22 years and wanted to boost vitamins and supplements to both repair the damage from smoking and boost my thyroid function). My doc also offered a prescription for phentermine. I'd never tried diet pills before, but finally had gotten to a level of desperation.
I agree, Mary Shomes' The Thyroid Diet is an excellent book, and a bible for what to eat and what not to eat with thyroid issues. I pair the information in this book with the Glycemic Impact Diet. Exercise is also absolutely necessary for people with hypothyroidism to lose weight. It's non-negotiable. I can eat perfectly on plan for a month, but if I'm not exercising, I won't lose and might even gain.
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