Levoxyl and lupus

I was prescribed 25 MCG tabs of levothyroxine (generic for Levoxyl) by my MD for my hypothyroid. (I was tested at a 4.5 reading -- just below a normal 5 reading). After 60 days of taking levothyroxine EXACTLY as prescribed (i.e.; on an empty stomach, 1st thing in the morning with a glass of water; no vitamins for at least 4 hrs afterward), I started to have symptoms that I've never experienced before: my hands began hurting so bad with joint pain; my lips felt numb; and I was sweating more than I ever had in my life. I decided to stop taking the medication due to these symptoms, and in about 7-10 days from stopping, ALL these symptoms had disappeared and have not returned to date. I relayed this information to my MD who told me that my symptoms had nothing to do with Levothyroxine and that I needed to continue taking the drug. It's more than strange to me how some MDs will not listen to his/her patient -- even more so now that I've read other info on the internet where many other people have had these same side effects taking levothyroxine!! On my own, I am now looking into taking an all natural alternative that I found on wellness resources called "Thyroid helper". I will not take Levothyroxine again if I can avoid it by taking an alternative. Has anyone else out there had success taking "Thyroid Helper"?

Wow am I glad I found this site! I had my thyroid destroyed in May and started taking Levoxyl at the beginning of August of this year. At first things were going well but after the dosage was increased I started to notice leg pain, numbness in my hands and feet as well as joint pain. I spoke with the doc and he said that it could be related to not having enough hormone and after blood tests revealed very high TSH levels, he increased. Since then the pain has worsened and I even went to my primary doctor who tested for Lupus and RA. I had none of these symptoms until I started the Levoxyl, not one! I feel relieved that others are having this experience too and plan to speak with the doctor about it.