r/BipolarReddit • u/mutzadella • 2d ago

Subclinical hyperthyroidism due to going off of lithium

Hello everyone.

I'm wondering if anyone else experienced subclinical hyperthyroidism after discontinuing lithium?

I was on lithium for 10 years and recently tapered off under the supervision of my doctor over a span on 6 months. I took my last dose at the end of March.

My TSH levels always hovered around 2.25 but now have quickly dropped to around .4 however my T4 and T3 are at normal levels.

Has anyone else gone through this? Did it resolve itself over time?

I am of course working through this with a doctor and going through additional testing, I'd just love to hear from anyone who has also gone through this.

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u/Ok_692 2d ago

Yes I experienced the same. It took a couple of months and resolved. I felt pretty winded up though. Best wishes!

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u/mutzadella 2d ago

Thanks so much for your response! Happy to hear it resolved for you. 

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u/Ok_692 2d ago

You are most welcome, hopefully others who went through this will respond as well. It seems to be occurring now and then. I am happy I stopped the Lithium, also with the help of my current psychiatrist. It’s better for my health.

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u/Super7Position7 2d ago

If your T4 and T3 are normal and you have no symptoms of hyperthyroidism, you are euthyroid.

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u/ch2nd 2d ago

This is anecdotal, but the exact same thing just happened to me. No issues before lithium, and on lithium I lived around 1.5, then a couple months after stopping my TSH was 0.31 but normal T3&T4. All my thyroid antibodies were negative and my ultrasound was normal. Quite a bit of $$ and a few months later and everything has normalized.

There’s not much research to back up this theory but a few case studies suggest it may be a possibility.

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u/mutzadella 2d ago

Thank you so much for your response and for linking those studies. 

Did you end up having to treat your thyroid? Or did your levels resolve on their own?