I had my appointment with my endo today. I'm now medicated into being Hypo so of course he lowered the dose of the methimazole. He also told me to stop taking the Atenolol. I asked if I should wean off it and he said just to stop taking it.

If taking this medication for thyroid purposes, do most of you just quit taking it cold turkey? Are there any adverse reactions?

Also… I'm feeling kinda disappointed… because now that I am medicated to be Hypo… I feel that means at some point, to this current point, I must have experience optimal thyroid levels on my way down… yet… I haven't ever felt what I would consider WELL. Someone please tell me this does get better?

What dose of atenolol are you on? Google beta-blocker withdrawal and rebound to see what happens when people stop cold turkey. If it were me I'd wean off the medication. You could also ask another doc for opinions on this too. I'm in a similar boat you are that I supposedly hit the thyroid hormone sweet spot and missed it and am now too low. I do remember two days of feeling really good a couple months ago, lol, that must have been it. Hang in there, all we can do is keep at it.

I think you are supposed to wean off of Atenolol (especially higher doses). It couldn't hurt to wean off of it. If you have a minimum dose of 25 mg or 12.5 (1/2 a pill), my dr. told me it could be stopped cold turkey. It couldn't hurt though to cut the 25 mg. in 1/2 or even the 1/2 into 1/4 for a week just to ease off of it. Every one's body responds differently to medication, doses, and stopping- so weaning seems prudent.

You might have experienced optimal thyroid levels, but know that it takes TIME at the optimal level to actually feel good. A few days or even weeks at optimal levels (on paper) doesn't mean you feel that way in real life. I'm 4 months post thyroidectomy and had 1 dose change of Synthroid. My numbers said I was perfect 2 weeks after the dose change, but I can tell you that I didn't start to feel better until 2 MONTHS after the dose change. I'm still not 100%, but feeling better. So, don't be discouraged if you didn't feel good; you didn't have enough time at the optimal level to feel those levels and feel good. It will happen once your dose gets straightened out and you've spent some time there. Patience, patience… hard, to have, I know.

Thank you so much for your replies. I was on 100mg of Atenolol. I took that dose all at once in the morning. This morning, I didn't take it, just as the doctor said (I had him clarify I was to just stop, instantly, all at once).

I was ok this morning but starting late afternoon I am not feeling very well. My neck hurts, like the muscles up the side and glands? under the jaw. My jaw feels tense, and I have a headache.

I am not sure if it's related to not having that medication or not, but I'm feeling badly enough that I am thinking about taking a half-dose or something. I am trying to just hang in there for another hour or two and hopefully sleep it off without taking anything aside from some ibuprofen. Maybe it's not even related.

Alyianna, I hope you are feeling okay. If you are worried you could go to a drugstore and take your blood pressure & pulse or even at one of those urgent care clinics just to be sure it isn't rebounding up. I'm not sure why your doctor is okay with stopping all at once but you can keep safe by monitoring things.

Thank you! I took some Hydrocodone and Benedryl and went to bed last night. I woke up feeling better so maybe it wasn't related to abruptly stopping the Atenolol. So far, I am still feeling better.

It's a rollercoaster these days… never know how I'll feel day to day, sometimes even hour to hour. I really miss my old self and hope she is still in here somewhere.

Thank you again for the responses… it's nice to know there are people out there who can relate.

Aly

Hello - On the beta blocker question, you might double-check with your endo, or get an opinion from your General Practitioner or your pharmacist.

The Mayo Clinic advises patients to not stop taking a beta blocker cold turkey, *but* your own doctor knows your personal medical history and will have the best information as to whether this is the right course for you.

Take care!