Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Enlarged Thyroid?

HopefulMama23

Recommended Posts

HopefulMama23 Explorer
HopefulMama23
Posted

Hey- I just saw an endo yesterday for the first time since this journey started eight months ago. I have had symptoms of swinging between hyper (insomnia, head/body hair loss, weight loss, anxiety, raised blood pressure and pulse rate) and hyothyroidism (extreme fatigue and weight gain, depression), although my bloodwork has always tested within normal ranges (usually low end of normal) and the antibody tests I had were negative.

The endo felt my neck and said my thyroid is THREE TIMES THE NORMAL SIZE. I am scheduled for a thyroid ultrasound tomorrow and she redid the blood work in her own office just to check it again.

What could this mean? I had a baby 9.5 months ago and all this started about two months later. I have been gluten free for 6 months now.

I'm scared.

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


Gemini Experienced
Gemini
Posted

Hey- I just saw an endo yesterday for the first time since this journey started eight months ago. I have had symptoms of swinging between hyper (insomnia, head/body hair loss, weight loss, anxiety, raised blood pressure and pulse rate) and hyothyroidism (extreme fatigue and weight gain, depression), although my bloodwork has always tested within normal ranges (usually low end of normal) and the antibody tests I had were negative.

The endo felt my neck and said my thyroid is THREE TIMES THE NORMAL SIZE. I am scheduled for a thyroid ultrasound tomorrow and she redid the blood work in her own office just to check it again.

What could this mean? I had a baby 9.5 months ago and all this started about two months later. I have been gluten free for 6 months now.

I'm scared.

Take a deep breath and don't panic! ;) If a thyroid is enlarged, it usually means that it is working harder to produce the thyroid hormone your body is demanding. It could mean there is inflammation there because that's what happens when an organ is overworked trying to keep up. I have Hashi's and have swung between the two also. My thyroid was enlarged somewhat but I have never had an ultrasound on it. You could feel the enlargement and I felt like I had something stuck in my throat. I still do but it's not as bad as it was.

Thyroid disease is like Celiac Disease...you can have flaming symptoms before the antibodies go out of whack. Some people have really bad symptoms even though their antibodies and other thyroid numbers are just in the low normal range and then doctors do not treat it. Sounds like you need thyroid hormone supplementation to me. They do the ultrasound to check for other reasons but, most likely, it's enlarged because it's overworked. Good luck on your test but try not to worry too much. :D

HopefulMama23 Explorer
HopefulMama23
Posted
  • Author

Take a deep breath and don't panic! ;) If a thyroid is enlarged, it usually means that it is working harder to produce the thyroid hormone your body is demanding. It could mean there is inflammation there because that's what happens when an organ is overworked trying to keep up. I have Hashi's and have swung between the two also. My thyroid was enlarged somewhat but I have never had an ultrasound on it. You could feel the enlargement and I felt like I had something stuck in my throat. I still do but it's not as bad as it was.

Thyroid disease is like Celiac Disease...you can have flaming symptoms before the antibodies go out of whack. Some people have really bad symptoms even though their antibodies and other thyroid numbers are just in the low normal range and then doctors do not treat it. Sounds like you need thyroid hormone supplementation to me. They do the ultrasound to check for other reasons but, most likely, it's enlarged because it's overworked. Good luck on your test but try not to worry too much. :D

Thanks Gemini! I'm a panicker, its what I do I guess. Honestly, I'm just so frustrated- it's been ten months since my baby was born and nine months of pregnancy before that and I haven't felt "right" in sooo long- I just want to be me again!

What were your Hashi's symptoms? How do you treat it?

Gemini Experienced
Gemini
Posted

Thanks Gemini! I'm a panicker, its what I do I guess. Honestly, I'm just so frustrated- it's been ten months since my baby was born and nine months of pregnancy before that and I haven't felt "right" in sooo long- I just want to be me again!

What were your Hashi's symptoms? How do you treat it?

My symptoms I suffered with were complete and extreme exhaustion, mainly in the morning when trying to wake up from sleep. I have a real hard time getting going in the morning and gain speed as the day goes on. I was still a bit fatigued later in the day but not like in the mornings. My nails were splitting, my eyebrows began to disappear, my skin becomes dryer and there is brain fog. I would imagine the strain of a pregnancy and giving birth might

make matters worse for you, if you are low thyroid. It may make it more difficult to feel like your old self in the amount of time you normally should.

I have always been a believer in your "gut" feelings and if you feel like things are not right and you have low thyroid symptoms, then you may have a problem with it. Don't let the doctors blow you off, either.

Treatment is easy. I take Nature-throid thyroid hormone first thing in the morning so I am getting the hormone my body does not make enough of. It is a prescription and there are many different kinds of replacement hormone. Doctors like to push Synthroid but it's more expensive and the makers of it cannot guarantee gluten-free status. It may be gluten-free but they will not guarantee it and some on the forum have had problems with it. It may take a bit to hit the correct dose but it makes a world of difference in how you feel. I have eye brows again! :P

Skylark Collaborator
Skylark
Posted

That postpartum thyroiditis is really getting obnoxious, huh? You'll be fine. Thyroid problems are very treatable becasue we have the nature-identical hormones. They're also really common, so endocrinologists have a lot of experience getting people back to feeling normal.

HopefulMama23 Explorer
HopefulMama23
Posted
  • Author

That postpartum thyroiditis is really getting obnoxious, huh? You'll be fine. Thyroid problems are very treatable becasue we have the nature-identical hormones. They're also really common, so endocrinologists have a lot of experience getting people back to feeling normal.

Thanks for the replies.

I am finding myself hoping for a diagnosis so I can at least begin treatment- I would love so much to feel like myself again....

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. cristiana
      - cristiana replied to Dizzyma's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      2

      Newly diagnosed mam to coeliac 11 year old

      Hi @Dizzyma I note what @trents has commented about you possibly posting from the UK. Just to let you know that am a coeliac based in the UK, so if that is the case, do let me know if can help you with any questions on the NHS provision for coeliacs. If you are indeed based in the UK, and coeliac disease is confirmed, I would thoroughly recommend...
    2. trents
      - trents replied to Dizzyma's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      2

      Newly diagnosed mam to coeliac 11 year old

      Welcome to the celic.com community @Dizzyma! I'm assuming you are in the U.K. since you speak of your daughter's celiac disease blood tests as "her bloods". Has her physician officially diagnosed her has having celiac disease on the results of her blood tests alone? Normally, if the ttg-iga blood test results are positive, a follow-up endoscopy...
    3. Dizzyma
      - Dizzyma posted a topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      2

      Newly diagnosed mam to coeliac 11 year old

      Hi all, I have so many questions and feel like google is giving me very different information. Hoping I may get some more definite answers here. ok, my daughter has been diagnosed as a coeliac as her bloods show anti TTG antibodies are over 128. We have started her on a full gluten free diet. my concerns are that she wasn’t actually physically s...
    4. Scott Adams
      0

      Better-Than-Takeout Gluten-Free Chicken Fried Rice

    5. Kimmy88
      - Kimmy88 commented on Scott Adams's article in Winter 2026 Issue
      2

      Gut Healing After a Celiac Diagnosis: What Science Says About Recovery Time (+Video)

      Excellent article!! I shared with my family, so they would understand!
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      132,923
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    cmckurtz
    Newest Member
    cmckurtz
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.5k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • cristiana
      Newly diagnosed mam to coeliac 11 year old

      By cristiana · Posted

      Hi @Dizzyma I note what @trents has commented about you possibly posting from the UK.  Just to let you know that am a coeliac based in the UK, so if that is the case, do let me know if can help you with any questions on the NHS provision for coeliacs.    If you are indeed based in the UK, and coeliac disease is confirmed, I would thoroughly recommend you join Coeliac UK, as they provide a printed food and drink guide and also a phone app which you can take shopping with you so you can find out if a product is gluten free or not. But one thing I would like to say to you, no matter where you live, is you mention that your daughter is anxious.  I was always a bit of a nervous, anxious child but before my diagnosis in mid-life my anxiety levels were through the roof.   My anxiety got steadily better when I followed the gluten-free diet and vitamin and mineral deficiencies were addressed.  Anxiety is very common at diagnosis, you may well find that her anxiety will improve once your daughter follows a strict gluten-free diet. Cristiana 
    • trents
      Newly diagnosed mam to coeliac 11 year old

      By trents · Posted

      Welcome to the celic.com community @Dizzyma! I'm assuming you are in the U.K. since you speak of your daughter's celiac disease blood tests as "her bloods".  Has her physician officially diagnosed her has having celiac disease on the results of her blood tests alone? Normally, if the ttg-iga blood test results are positive, a follow-up endoscopy with biopsy of the small bowel lining to check for damage would be ordered to confirm the results of "the bloods". However if the ttg-iga test score is 10x normal or greater, some physicians, particularly in the U.K., will dispense with the endoscopy/biopsy. If there is to be an endoscopy/biopsy, your daughter should not yet begin the gluten free diet as doing so would allow healing of the small bowel lining to commence which may result in a biopsy finding having results that conflict with the blood work. Do you know if an endoscopy/biopsy is planned? Celiac disease can have onset at any stage of life, from infancy to old age. It has a genetic base but the genes remain dormant until and unless triggered by some stress event. The stress event can be many things but it is often a viral infection. About 40% of the general population have the genetic potential to develop celiac disease but only about 1% actually develop celiac disease. So, for most, the genes remain dormant.  Celiac disease is by nature an autoimmune disorder. That is to say, gluten ingestion triggers an immune response that causes the body to attack its own tissues. In this case, the attack happens in he lining of the small bowel, at least classically, though we now know there are other body systems that can sometimes be affected. So, for a person with celiac disease, when they ingest gluten, the body sends attacking cells to battle the gluten which causes inflammation as the gluten is being absorbed into the cells that make up the lining of the small bowel. This causes damage to the cells and over time, wears them down. This lining is composed of billions of tiny finger-like projections and which creates a tremendous surface area for absorbing nutrients from the food we eat. This area of the intestinal track is where all of our nutrition is absorbed. As these finger-like projections get worn down by the constant inflammation from continued gluten consumption before diagnosis (or after diagnosis in the case of those who are noncompliant) the efficiency of nutrient absorption from what we eat can be drastically reduced. This is why iron deficiency anemia and other nutrient deficiency related medical problems are so common in the celiac population. So, to answer your question about the wisdom of allowing your daughter to consume gluten on a limited basis to retain some tolerance to it, that would not be a sound approach because it would prevent healing of the lining of her small bowel. It would keep the fires of inflammation smoldering. The only wise course is strict adherence to a gluten free diet, once all tests to confirm celiac disease are complete.
    • Dizzyma
      Newly diagnosed mam to coeliac 11 year old

      By Dizzyma · Posted

      Hi all, I have so many questions and feel like google is giving me very different information. Hoping I may get some more definite answers here. ok, my daughter has been diagnosed as a coeliac as her bloods show anti TTG antibodies are over 128. We have started her  on a full gluten free diet. my concerns are that she wasn’t actually physically sick on her regular diet, she had tummy issues and skin sores. My fear is that she will build up a complete intolerance to gluten and become physically sick if she has gluten. Is there anything to be said for keeping a small bit of gluten in the diet to stop her from developing a total intolerance?  also, she would be an anxious type of person, is it possible that stress is the reason she has become coeliac? I read that diagnosis later in childhood could be following a sickness or stress. How can she have been fine for the first 10 years and then become coeliac? sorry, I’m just very confused and really want to do right by her. I know a coeliac and she has a terrible time after she gets gluttened so just want to make sure going down a total gluten free road is the right choice. thank you for any help or advise xx 
    • xxnonamexx
      Fermented foods, Kefir, Kombucha?

      By xxnonamexx · Posted

      very interesting thanks for the info  
    • Florence Lillian
      gluten free cookie recipes

      By Florence Lillian · Posted

      More cookie recipes ...thanks so much for the heads-up Scott.  One can never have too many.  Cheers, Florence.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.