Can stimulants (eg ritalin) affect your TSH levels?

[Lara Site]

Hi y'all,

I'm a new reader to this group who suspects I could be hypothyroid and
have a question:

Does anyone know if stimulant meds (eg for ADHD), such as ritalin,
adderall, concerta, etc, can lower TSH levels (because they are
dopaminergic). I found a post from this group in 2001
(http://groups.google.com/groups?selm=fe13c701.0110020650.4999c71%40posting.google.com&output=gplain)
saying just that, but haven't found any other info on the web to
support this.

My TSH is 3.2, which is still considered normal by my GP (though I
understand what's normal is controversial). However, I also have been
taking adderall for ADD for a decade and am wondering if that is
messing with my TSH level.

I have MANY unexplained problems (muscle pain, exhaustion - the
general 'fibromyalgia' thing) which could be explained by
hypothyroidism and want to know if I should be pursuing this
possibility with my doc.

Thanks so much!!
Lara

[Herman Family]

"Lara Site" <lar...@mad.scientist.com> wrote in message
news:8ce741ec.04082...@posting.google.com...

Lara,

I don't think Ritalin plays with the tsh level, but I do think that the
need for Ritalin may be traced to a thyroid problem in a number of cases.
You are quite possibly a little hypo, and may benefit from a wee bit of
thyroxin added to your medication regimen. You might see the ADD drop off
with the thyroxin added.

Michael

[Skipperbeers]

>From: "Herman Family" cel...@frontiernets.net/without_any_s/

>I don't think Ritalin plays with the tsh level, but I do think that the
>need for Ritalin may be traced to a thyroid problem in a number of cases.
>You are quite possibly a little hypo, and may benefit from a wee bit of
>thyroxin added to your medication regimen. You might see the ADD drop off
>with the thyroxin added.

You're correct about the ADD connection. As for Ritalin and TSH I can't say
for sure. However, there are some medications that raise cortisol levels.
Dexedrine side effects include an increased cortisol level late in the day.
Excess cortisol causes problems with converting T4 to the active T3. The
literature for Prednisone, a drug that mimicks cortisol, says it causes lower
T3 and artificially lowers TSH. That might mean your own cortisol levels tend
to do the same when elevated.

I don't know if Ritalin is the same in that regard as Dexedrine, sometimes it's
hard to find that kind of info. There are some sites that say that Prozac will
greatly escalate your cortisol levels. I suspect that means it may not be the
best drug for hypos.

Jacob Teitalbaum who wrote "From Fatigued to Fantastic" has mentioned Dexedrine
as sometimes being the only thing that will touch chronic fatigue, and he may
have said it might be helpful to the adrenals.

Again, I don't know how similar Dexedrine is to Ritalin, only that they are
both stimulants used for the same condition. (Ever wonder why Ritalin could
calm hyperactive children down? Maybe it's because children are crankiest when
they don't get enough sleep or are tired, and they don't have to fight sleep as
much on the stimulants.)

Skipper

[Lara Site]

Thanks so much for your responses Skipper & Michael. It doesn't sound
I can make a hard case with my GP that my meds are messing with my tsh
level, but hopefully she'll still consider the hypothyroid
possibility...

> Jacob Teitalbaum who wrote "From Fatigued to Fantastic" has mentioned Dexedrine
> as sometimes being the only thing that will touch chronic fatigue, and he may
> have said it might be helpful to the adrenals.
>
> Again, I don't know how similar Dexedrine is to Ritalin, only that they are
> both stimulants used for the same condition. (Ever wonder why Ritalin could
> calm hyperactive children down? Maybe it's because children are crankiest when
> they don't get enough sleep or are tired, and they don't have to fight sleep as
> much on the stimulants.)

I wish Ritalin/Adderall would wake me up! I sometimes even use it to
help me fall asleep (since it stills my mind). I think this is part of
the paradoxical stimulant response for people with ADD.

Thanks,
Lara

[Skipperbeers]

>From: lar...@mad.scientist.com (Lara Site)

>I wish Ritalin/Adderall would wake me up! I sometimes even use it to
>help me fall asleep (since it stills my mind). I think this is part of
>the paradoxical stimulant response for people with ADD.

When Dr. Derry was on trial for helping patients with thyroid problems, some of
the doctors were comparing thyroid meds to amphetamines. They seem to think
people want to get "high" (or is it something else like "stimulated" when this
class of drug is involved?) on thyroid meds. They said something like Speed
makes you feel good too.

Some people even on stimulants, simply feel more normal. I have been on
Dexedrine at times, I've yet to feel any "high" that would make me want to take
medications like that, except when I consider whether or not I can work
productively so I can put food on my family's table.

Just a thought. For most people, excessive cortisol would keep them awake at
night. However, low cortisol may cause trouble sleeping. One thing cortisol
does is help a person focus. It's a stress hormone and in the oldern days when
there was danger all around, raised cortisol levels would permit a mother to
keep vigilant watch over her children instead of falling asleep.

My wife, who had high cortisol, said she was always tired, but she never
napped and stayed up late into the night because she couldn't sleep. I, on the
other hand, would watch TV for about 2 minutes before nodding off. One thing
that Dexedrine does is raise cortisol levels late in the day. I don't know how
it does that, if it's a good thing, or if it's putting too much stress on the
adrenals. However, if my hypothesis is correct and one has low adrenals, the
increased cortisol may be what helps you sleep. I know hypothyroidism can
cause sleeping problems, I don't know for certain that low adrenals can (except
by causing low thyroid or poor conversion of T4 to T3.) Thinking about it, if
it does raise cortisol levels late in the day, maybe at that time it helps
convert T4 to T3, which would help with some of the thyroid difficulties in
getting to sleep.

I think Adderall is the same as Dexedrine, just another name? I don't know the
effect of Ritalin on cortisol. I bet there is one.

Skipper

[ML]

Heard that cocaine (another stimulant, although with a different
method of action that amphetamines/ritaline) addiction / withdrawal
can cause hypothyroidism. Don't have the exact link but the page is
part of the biopsychiatry.com webring - loads of interesting stuff
there anyway !! Such as the article about the bonobo apes :) Check it
out

lar...@mad.scientist.com (Lara Site) wrote in message news:<8ce741ec.04082...@posting.google.com>...

[jennifer.m...@gmail.com]

Hello, I know for a fact that ritilin and concerta most specifically will cause an overactive thyroid (lower tsh levels) and it raises blood pressure sudden death is most likely in use of these medicines not just for thyroid reasons but any and all reasons in normally healthy people taking them.

[melon...@gmail.com]

Sounds like magnesium deficiency. I take liqhid gluconate/malate combo. Dont over fo it , just do it regularly

[rsmont...@gmail.com]

I have been diagnosed with Hashimotos. I've been taking thyroid medication for 3 or 4 years and don't feel any better. I'm very intolerant to heat and I flush regulatory. I believe that the flushing is an underlying anxiety issue. I take diazepam for that. My TSH level is 5.25 (because I stopped taking my thyroid meds cold turkey the end of April. I feel like I am defeating myself at life and may have ADHD. Could that effect high TSH levels? I mean it isn't that high according to the web. My endo says I should be between 1 & 2. HELP!

[deT notsuH]

My question for you is what is your free-T4 result? Both before and
after treatment? Heat intolerance is more of a marker for
hyPERthyroidism, *not* hyPO. Anxiety can certainly cause flushing and
heat intolerance, and there are many causes of anxiety, but among them
also happens to be hyPER. A few causes of non-thyroid-based high TSH:
too much iodine, lithium, amphetamines, Cimetidine (H2 blocker).
Similarly, you might have a high TSH due to a (rather common) pituitary
tumor. Without having a fT4 result to corroborate that TSH, you are
driving blind.

On 5/28/18 10:03 PM, rsmont...@gmail.com wrote:
> I have been diagnosed with Hashimotos. I've been taking thyroid medication for 3 or 4 years and don't feel any better. I'm very intolerant to heat and I flush regulatory. I believe that the flushing is an underlying anxiety issue. I take diazepam for that. My TSH level is 5.25 (because I stopped taking my thyroid meds cold turkey the end of April. I feel like I am defeating myself at life and may have ADHD. Could that effect high TSH levels? I mean it isn't that high according to the web. My endo says I should be between 1 & 2. HELP!
>

--
deT notsuH bass-ackwards
ude.hcimu@pcird
An apple a day keeps the doctor away. An onion a day should take care of
everyone else.

[warens...@gmail.com]

What is Adderall?

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Generally people buy Adderall online to treat the symptoms of ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) and Narcolepsy (feeling sleepy when surrounded by a relaxing surrounding). But what they may not know is that Adderall is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant consisting of two stimulants: amphetamine and dextroamphetamine.
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How does Adderall help?
When we told you that an order for Adderall online is placed throughout the year because it treats the symptoms of ADHD and Narcolepsy, we meant that like most CNS stimulants, Adderall increases the amount of chemicals found in the brain like dopamine and norepinephrine. In case of ADHD, the drug helps in improving the concentration power of a person and enabling him to stay alert and focused.