For years I felt the cold easily, had dry skin and hair, brittle nails, thin lashes and eyebrows thinned towards the end. Just thought that was how I was.
Started to struggle to manage my weight (not in a really bad way, but regular calorie control didn’t seem to make any difference and I couldn’t work out what I was doing wrong. I also started to get really tired, and really achy muscles. I was really busy at the time, every day, so put it down to that.
Mentioned it during a routine appointment for something else to find out if certain supplements might help (I kept thinking a B complex might be the answer to all my problems!). GP said that wasn’t normal and was going to run some bloods - I was pretty surprised tbh, kept emphasising how busy I was, but luckily for me he said, “Nope, still not normal”. And there you have it, 10 years diagnosed and doing much better on levothyroxine! It’s not been a wonder drug for me, but it has addressed out the core issues (like skin, nails, I’m less sensitive to cold now, brows and lashes are better, don’t readily get the terrible tiredness and muscle ache), but I’ve found exercise and diet (with support of my GP, a physiotherapist and a nutritionist) necessary to really feel well, however I’ve been told most people feel good primarily with just medication.