I went to my GP just over 3 weeks ago with extreme fatigue & various other symptoms, my GP arranged a blood test to check my thyroid as I've recently had a baby & apparentley thyroid problems are quite common after pregnancy. I had a phone call from my GP the day after having the blood tests as the results were 'very impressive'!?
TSH more than 100
T4 less than 2
She quickly explained that this was why I'd been feeling so ill, put me on Levo 100mg & told me to come back in 8 weeks for a blood test. I was too exhausted to ask any questions & just walked out with my prescription!
I've been taking Levo for 14 days now & although symptoms haven't got worse I can't say they've got better either! How long should it take before I start feeling a bit better? Or can I ask my GP to increase the dosage before the 8 week blood test?
Every day is such a nightmare with a 2 year old & 5 month old to look after when feeling like a zombie!!
Any advice gratefully received!
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Ambeljazz
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Hi, sorry you are feeling so bad, my understanding is it can take 4-6 weeks before you can have another blood test to get a true reading. It can take several weeks to take affect and you should feel some improvement. Hang in there.x
Hi Julia, thanks for your reply! Can I ask whether your thyroid has recovered? My GP mentioned something about 4 out of 5 women's thyroid problems will return to normal after 12-18 months?
Hi there, I asked a similar question here not so long ago! I found my first two weeks taking levo were horrible, after three I turned a corner and started to feel a bit better. Then after an increase again two weeks of back to square one before again feeling better. Everyones different but i do hope that helps. I would say it takes our bodies a while to adjust and that almost feels worse than before any levo at all! I would say though if you feel I'll still after say 3-4 weeks return to your doc and ask for another blood test. My doc has been testing me every month, only giving me a month of pills at a time. You tests showed more severity than mine so would think its good to check you monthly too. Obviously im not a doctor but this has been my experience. Look after yourself, i know its hard, mine was diagnosed after a baby too, but be kind to yourself. And while it can be a struggle getting doses and medicine right, when you get them right you can be 'normal' again. I just got my blood test back yesterday and tsh is now 0.37 but more importantly im feeling more like me again. It is a hard illness, you have children and need to be well, so do not feel bad about returning to your doctor as you feel necessary, its important you do x
Thanks so much for your reply. It's reassuring to know that other mums have experienced (and got through) this illness! Thanks about the advise on revisiting my GP if I feel I need to... I will give Levo another week & if I'm still not seeing any improvements I will make another appointment. I guess part of the problem is getting my GP to understand just how debilitating this condition is. When I initially went to see her she pointed out that I'm an older mum & having two young children is very tiring etc.,! She was quite dismissive of my symptoms & I believe she agreed to the blood test to shut me up rather than because she thought there was something wrong!
Still, I understand the condition a lot more now!
Just out of interest, has your thyroid returned to normal? x
Hello, no, it hasn't, but now i can see i was probably having thyroid proba for a while before my son. Possibly pregnancy made it worse, or maybe it was going to get worse anyway. Doc says i was probably hyper at one stage then thyroid has burnt out and am now hypo. The symptoms i had would support this. My son is now 18 months old and i got diagnosed in Feb, i thought this was just what it felt like to be a new mum! One thing that helped me, ask your partner or family to pay attention to you and observe how you are, i found part of the illness was that i was so cloudy i didn't know how i was being. Sometimes very emotional, tired, unsettled etc but couldn't see it, it helps if they can be your measuring stick on your progress. I would ask for a blood test after a month, your doc can then alter your dose again if need be, i can't see any point in waiting two Months. And you could make a detailed list of symptoms to show. Things i never realised were thyroid related- muscle ached, pins and needles pain in hands, irregular periods, are all now improving. Good luck and look after yourself x
After starting T4 treatment it took my body a good few weeks to adjust and improve and several months to feel 'normal' again - this was without the extra demands you have of a young family! Things will improve - given enough time, but if you're unsure, go back and talk to your GP.
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