thyroidectomy surgery side effects

I had a total thyroidectomy 2 weeks ago and I was completely pain free after surgery, in fact I had no pain meds for 24 hours afterwards and only took them to relieve stiffness and guarding(holding my neck stiff). The incision is completely closed and most of the swelling has gone down. There is still some minor stiffness but I found that gentle stretching, massage and those microwaveable heat pads worked wonders. You will have a forward pulling sensation for up to a week after the surgery , pain meds will relieve this, I just used extra strength tylenol starting 3 days after surgery, I only took about 4 of the prescribed Tylenol 3 with codeine. Good luck.

I'm 37 and am having a total thyroidectomy on Monday 7/28. I've heard horror stories and hopeful stories and am as scared and confused as ever. I have an extremely enlarged thyroid with too many nodules to count. Also, I had radiation treatment as a child for lymphoma. So my chances for cancer are skyrocketed. What I'm most interested in is the effects on my health after the surgery. I know I HAVE to have the surgery, but I was hoping to feel better, not worse. My current dose of synthoid is 200 so I'm high already.

Any words of wisdom?

I'm 33 and had a total done in May of this year. I was out of hospital within 2 days and pain free almost straight after the op - (though the staff tried to test this by trying to convince me that a cheese and onion sandwich was just what I needed after having my throat slit!) I had graves disease with a multi nodular, extremely enlarged (inward growing) thyroid gland which was slowly restricting my airways and gullet meaning that swallowing was becoming a problem and sleeping flat on my back was getting riskier. Having the thyroidectomy has sent me from one extreme to the other - Hyper to Hypo! I returned to work 2 weeks after the op and have coped well until recently. I have become increasing tired and forgetful and mildly depressed so am now undergoing tests to monitor levels as working full time and being mum to a very active baby has tested my body. The treatment is to up my dosage of levothyroxin and apparently all will be cool again. My condition is hereditary so was expected and that helped me make decisions. My father had a partial done in the 80's and 20 years later is now back to square one, so deciding to have a total was no dilemma.

Just had a partial Thyroidectomy 2 weeks ago, I was supposed to have a total but they said the other side was fine so they didnt want to remove it at this stage. My lump was benign and was 3cm by 3cm and i was only in hospital for one night (that is probably the worst bit staying in an NHS hospital) i found the recovery at home was better. I did experience slight tingling in my mouth from lack of calcium but they didnt bother doing anything about this so i assume im fine. The only pain is stiffness in the neck and my neck became infected which made it more uncomfortable but this is rare. Besides all that it is a routine op, lots of people go through it each year. My neck is healing now a red scar in the middle of my neck is all i have and i was told this would heal in a year. Will probably have to go and have the otherside removed in the future but i will wait and see

I just had a near total t-ectomy. One large nodule on the left lobe and 3 small on the right (too small to biopsy) was why.
Large one on left was biopsied and came back possibly cancerous but not definite.
Friday morning was when I went in and stayed in the hospital overnight.
The weirdest thing I experienced was right after surgery I noticed severe pelvic pain and not much pain on my neck. That night, I had a huge amount of bleeding...but my menstrual cycle wasn't due to start. Cramping and soreness, heavy bleeding for 3 days following removal of my thyroid.
Neck pain was minimal...was on vicodin every 4 hours for the first 2 days and then just one at night till Wednesday. No pain meds at all since Wed night and just now have extreme itching at incision site. Benadryl helps as well as an ice pack at itching incision site.
Feeling fine, just tight and a tad bit sore when I yawn, cough or sneeze. Otherwise I am back to normal.

I had a total throidectomy on 12/18. The surgery and recovery were uneventful. The worst part was the lack of rest due to noise in the hospital. I have only taken extra strength tylenol for pain since the second day. Usually this doesn't work for me, but it seems to be doing the job. A small papillary tumor was found - ironically not in any of the growths, but in the tissue. It was encapsulated, so hopefully the worst follow-up will be the iodine test/treatment. I am dreading the hypothyroidism -I am a teacher, and due to go back to work in 2 weeks. I'll keep my fingers crossed that it won't be too bad!

Your thyroid controls the uptake of calcium... I'm surprised your "doctor" didn't warn you about what you were really doing when they decided to cut it out of you. The thyroid is a VITAL part of your body, it controls hormones for everything in the body. You should have yourself tested for a vit deficiency, you probably need to increase your calcium intake and dont think that just cause you dont have a thyroid that you dont need iodine. And no the US diet does not provide you with iodine, well at least the little it does is cancelled out by all the fluoride, soy, chlorine, bromide, mercury, lead, broccoli, peanuts, etc. You may even get lucky enough to regrow your thyroid and then you could work on getting healthier and stop taking over the counter c**p that actually makes you worse off.

Hi - I had radioactive iodine to destroy my thyroid 25+ years ago, and yesterday had a thyroidectomy.

With years of trial and error on synthroid, I want to encourage anyone having problems on it to consider taking THYROLAR instead. It did a world of good for me. Synthroid (T4 only) caused lethargy, dry skin, hair loss, memory loss - felt awful for years! On Thyrolar (T3 + T4), I felt immediately better, as the T4 promotes cell rejuvenation, which Synthroid doesn't have.

You may have trouble finding a doctor who will prescribe it -- it is harder for them to check the numbers. But keep trying - you will feel much better! Good luck!

I am 23 and i had a total thyroidectomy 1 year ago! My whole thyroid and parathyroid was removed after a biosy showed i had a 3/4 chance it was cancerous! I felt frightened and worried before my surgery. The truth is the actual post op pain is not bad. I stayed in hospital for 2 days. I had no neck drains and my wound was glued. It can be difficult for a while to move your neck eg yawning was hard for me. After one year my neck is fine, still jst uncomfortable when moving certain ways but im sure that will go. Well now i am on Levothyroxine (200mgs). This is where i am having trouble. I am either really tired and feeling very un energetic - or - I am very busy always looking for something to do, loosing weight but also feeling stressed and anxious! For me at the moment there is no happy medium! Hoefully i will find a good level as at the moment i experience symptoms for over and under active thyroid.

I am having a thyroidectomy in August due to Hashimoto's disease and I was wondering if there is really anything I need to worry about. I have been thinking about having the surgery or not. My health is ok, I am so tired of being tired and the panic attacks and rapid heartbeats I can't stand anymore. I am 34 years old I have been on synthroid for about three years know and have needle biopsy every year. I am at my max for the synthroid so is surgery my only option know ?

I had my thyroid removed two weeks ago after biopsy showed papillary carcinoma. I also have anxiety issues so I take Prozac. I am on a temporary medication, Liothyronine, until later this month when I understand they will change me to Synthyriod. At this time I am tired often, and at times woozy. The heart thuds (palpitations) are still there - though I was told they would probably stop after the thyroid was removed. Not so. If anyone has recently gone through this surgery and is willing to share how they felt afterwards, I would appreciate some input. I'm not generally a tired person - so this is all new to me. The Endocrinologist indicated what I am feeling is normal. I just want it to pass ...

I had a total thyroidectomy performed three weeks ago. The entire process from discovery to surgery went by very fast! It was papillary carcinoma on my right side. The only contribution I can provide to the discussion is that I have experienced ongoing headaches since the surgery. I have experienced migraine headaches since I was a child. I awoke in the recovery room with a terrible migraine headache. My total hospital time was 2 nights mainly due to low calcium levels. The actual surgery affects on the thyroid were very minimal. No real discomfort although it's hard to discern the difference between the thyroid surgery and the migraine. I have dealt with bad headaches (not migraines) every day since the surgery:-( I am scheduled for raioactive iodine treatment in three weeks. It appears that I will continue to battle headaches until I start the thyroid hormone medication. All I can say is that with all the valuable input on this subject, please keep in mind that headaches may be part of the recovery. There is some information on the internet about the link between hypothyroid and migraines. I sincerely hope that nobody suffers from migraines or headaches. All I can say is LIVE STRONG!

Hi everyone!
If you are told you need or should consider a total thyroidectomy - go for it! It's scary to those of us who didn't know what the outcome would be but in the end, it is virtually a painless surgery with a very quick recovery - and though it takes a lot of energy out of you until the Synthroid dose and your blood levels are coordinated back to a normal range - that was the worst part of the whole ordeal! Believe me - if I had to do it all over again - I would in a hot NY minute! Do not worry yourself like we did - it's a cinch...I promise you'll be fine afterward. As for the weight - excercise, diet and Synthroid helps. I'm not so much losing weight 7 months post op as I am losing inches. My clothes are big in the hips and waist from last Fall's wardrobe. So I guess it's finally starting to come off me. I'm tall and normally a great size 12 but between the hypothyroid and the menopause - ugh! Much better now - matter of fact I am off the HRT and no side effects from menopause - my endo says it was more the thyroid flashes than the menopause flashes and sweats that made me nuts for so long! Good luck!

I just had a complete thyroidsectomy a week ago. I was desperately searching for the side effects after a this type of surgery and came across this website. I had two large nodules one 2.8 on the right and one 1.5 on the left activily growing. I was told that I had a tiny one in addition on the right side. I tested the nodules in April, 2009 and the large one came out benigh. Please note that I noticed two months later that my right side of my neck was swelling up. I called my doctor and they told me that my doctor was going on maternity leave and I had to come back in 6 months. Well, I then decided to go to another doctor for a 2nd opinion. I am so glad I did. They took another ultrasound and sure enough both nodules had grown in a few months. I decided to go through with the surgery. I am only a week recovering, experiencing pain 5 days, pain is easing up. Headaches are very bad. Still very tired, my calcium level is back up, thyroid levels are still low. But the end result receiving the news of the biopsy was worth it. I was extremely fortunate through the grace of God that my two large nodules were benigh. The small nodule had less than 1mm of cancer. I just found it out two days ago. Had I waited who knows what would have happened. Test through the years always came out HOT meaning good sign. But the only true sign to know if everything is okay is through removal and biopsy. I know I will have a long recovery, but I know that this was the best thing I could have done. For all of the years I put off.... It taught me a lesson, that the years of worrying could have been over many years ago. The only thing is I just wish I could feel good again. I am a mother of three and have a very demanding job. My husband is there for support, but I do not think anyone truly understands how I feel. I feel that I am in a fog, and will not get better. My voice was better two days after surgery than it is today. It is very soft, hoarse and rapsy at times and it feels like my voice just gives out. I hear it takes months and with my job in sales, that could be hard. Anyone can help with advice or comfort, please let me know. Thanks for listening!!!

I just had a total thyroidectomy on Oct. 27, 2009, so it's all pretty new to me. The most pain I had was in the hospital, because I just could not get comfortable there. Once home the pain was mostly minimal at times, but other times it was kind of bad. One of the most painful parts about the whole surgery was where the drainage tube was stitched in my chest. For the most part it was not that bad and your talking to a person who cannot tolerate pain at all. My pain meds, which were hydrocodone 7.5 helped just fine. I also ran into a calcium issue with my parathyroid and that caused me to have to stay in the hospital for two nights. My faced twitched, hand's cramped and were stiff with pain and my feet were on their way to doing the same. With IV calcium and a pill called Calcitrol which is Vitamin D that helps you absord the calcium the pain, cramps, and stiffness were relieved with in a couple of hours. It is not uncommon for someone who has their thyroid removed to expierence parathyroid issues because of the closness of proximity of both thyroids. The parathyroid is responsible for calcium and the placement of it in the blood so that is why I had the issues that I did. For now I only have to take the Calcitrol or Vitamin D and Calcium for a few months until my parathyroid returns to normal function. I have one question though, whenever I drink fluids it makes me cough really hard. It feels like the water went down the wrong pipe. Anyone have any insight in that? Thanks, Jill