Hi All, I am so upset my doctor has just totally dismissed me i have loads of hypo symptoms but she says my results are all normal so my thyroid is fine.
i booked an appointment in the hope of getting a referral to an endo, as i have the results of my private tests,(will post below) and it showed low t4 in the thyroid urine test, she just said that the nhs do not use this test and all my thyroid results are fine, low but within range and that i could see the head doctor in the practice if that's what i wanted but he would tell me the same. She also stated that she used to work with an endo and none of them would even look at my thyroid urine results, they only go by the nhs tests as they are specific, unlike the urine test, even said she had never heard of it?? and either would they?? I also asked her if my t4 being low could be due to my pituitary gland not working properly,Or to do with low cortisol she said no it would show up in the thyroid tests i have done and they are fine.
Also i have finished a week ago a course of three antibiotics for a h.pyloria infection, since finishing the meds i had no symptoms, until this sunday night where i could not sleep the discomfort below my sternum/bloating/wind/nausea was so bad it was 3am by the time i got to sleep and then up at 5am for work not to return home until 10pm, I asked if she would refer me for an endoscopy since my stomach problems have been on going since before christmas last year, she said no as it would take my stomach 6 - 8 weeks to settle down after the antibiotics, i tried to explain these symptoms are effecting my entire life, i am constantly tired anyway i go to bed with the children, i go back to bed after dropping my son to nursery, just so i can keep going along with the hypo symptoms and the stomach issues are just adding to it all, she just said people in stressful/high flying jobs have high stomach acid and reflux? And to keep the lansoprazole and omerprazole in my cupboard as i would probably need to take it when i get the symptoms.
She also commented that i was sarcastic at my last appointment for asking how would we know if the infection had been iradicated after i finished the antibiotics ? (As she had stated that my area do not do breath or stool testing for h.plyoria and if she did another blood test it would still be positive, even though it might not be an active infection, so no point) I tried to explain that it was not my intention to be sarcastic at all i was just enquiring as to how we would check the infection had gone, after taking the meds? She said by your symptoms, lets be positive shall we? I was so frustrated i burst into tears and she said see your stressed, I said i'm stressed because i feel so ill and am desperate to find out why? She mumbled something about maybe referring me for an endoscopy in 8 weeks if i still have symptoms?? I think more to appease than anything and then i left with my tail between my legs, and trying to hide that i was crying from my waiting children, Maybe she's right and it is all in my depressed foggy head
Below are my most recent results, If anyone could have a look at my results and advise if it is worth my while going to a private doctor? or are they not bad enough to seek treatment??
I'm sure there are alot worse results on here, and maybe she is right and i am so desperate to get my life back i am not being objective??
sorry rant over .....
Genova latest Results:
Blood tests:
FT4 - 12.7 (9.0 - 22.0)
FT3 - 4.59 (2.63 - 5.70)
TSH - 0.54 (0.35 - 4.94)
Urine test:
T3 - 1027 (592 - 1850)
T4 - 216 (347 - 1994)
T3:T4 Ratio:4:8
Vit D - 44 (75 - 200)
Adrenal stress profile:
Sample 1: 13.2 (12 - 22)
sample 2 - 4.1 (5.0 - 9.0)
sample 3 - 3.4 (3.0 - 7.0)
sample 4 - 2.4 (1.0 - 3.0)
Total daily cortisol: 23.1
Dhea:
sample 2 am - 0.85 (0.40 - 1.47)
sample 3 pm - 0.64 (0.40 - 1.47)
dhea mean - 0.75
dhea: cortisol ratio: 3.23 (2.0 - 6.0)
Any advice gratefully received :-((( Thanks in advance sorry for going on but from thinking i was finally getting some answers feel like i have hit a brick wall and its all in my head :-((
Angel x
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Hi Angel - sorry to hear that you had such a rubbish time at the doctors
Interesting that she said you should go by symptoms for your h.pyloria infection, but is completely ignoring symptoms of hypothyroidism
Your adrenal test results don't look good. I think you are meant to be right at the top of the range for the first one of the day - yours is right at the bottom and your second one is below range too - I suspect you are suffering with adrenal fatigue too (not surprisingly). Dr P told me that this can cause the thyroid to not work well. I do think it would be worth going to see a private doctor with all of these results - do you have the list from Louise?
Your fT4 is quite low, so a trial of thyroxine would seem to be a good start. Hypothyroidism can also cause acid reflux I believe, due to a weakening of the muscle that closes the top of the stomach.
It would be worth googling adrenal fatigue to see what self-help techniques you can adopt. xxx
Thanks so much for your reply clarebear i was starting to think i was going crazy and it was all in my head, i actually felt quiet stupid when i left the drs.
. Yes i have the list from Louise, Thanks for your support i will have a look and see which dr's will look at the adrenals too and make that call, I felt so dejected i wasn't sure what to do. I have just got Dr Wilsons book re adrenal fatigue 21st century, so will read up with vigour! Thanks again Clarebear for your support, so much appreciated to think someone understands, This site is Amazing with amazing people you being one!! Thank you
Dr Barry Durrant Peatfield is the expert on Adrenals, although he cannot presribe thyroid medication. His book Your Thyroid and How to Keep it Healthy is good.
Another book which is well worth a read of her own story is Diana Holmes 'Tears Behind Closed Doors'. Thyroiduk may have a copy you can borrow.
This is a video but the book is unbelievable, I think.
Thanks Shaws, I will pick up a copy of both of those and continue on my steep learning curve! I enjoyed the video too, wish more doctors were like him Patient first!!
I too gave my gp private blood test results but got no where with him. He refused to even look at them, and just quoted again that I was within normal limits from the nhs tests.
I cannot afford to pay privately, am saving for the chance, but I still need a referral from the gp, and the one I have has already refused to let me have a second opinion.
Hi Ann, Thanks so much for your reply, its comforting to know i am not alone but so infuriating that they feel they can treat us like this!! and that any of us have to go through all this just to try and feel well. Its energy i just don't have spare anymore I have just got the private doc list from louise here and most do Not (thankfully in our cases!) require a referral, So keep saving hun, it will be worth it
Ann, regardless of what they think, if you want the opinion of another doctor you are within your rights to ask for it. Although legally he can say no, if you choose to go to another GP about the same issue, he cannot stop you. Might be worth looking at the NHS constitution about your rights. Maybe see another doctor if you are based at a practice or see a different GP from elsewhere.
I too cannot afford to go private but am fortunate enough to have the choice of a number of doctors. One I will never see again, due to her abrupt rudeness and clear disintrest in my symptoms. Don't give up over one doctor.
It's sometimes very stressful to keep going to the GP when you get nothing from them but criticism. My daughter and husband tried and tried to get help from our GP but they were constantly patronised and left the surgery in tears (in my daughter's case) and raging with anger (in my husband's case). The only option was to go private and I'd really recommend that you do that as Clarebear suggests.
Only you know how you feel - the GP does not. It is worth noting that in Belgium and Holland it is the urine test they believed above all others! I hope you can find a private doctor to help you, as like so many others it sounds as though our health service, which is constantly touted as the envy of the world, has let you down very badly.
Thanks so much Jane for your reply, Its so sad we are made to feel this way, so draining and frustrating, yours and reply's like yours somehow gives me the strength to go on and find answers! and confirms it is not all in my head which i am sure my g.p would prefer, cheaper for them that way huh! Or is that me being cynical!?
I will find a private doc and please god get some answers!
I hope your daughter is feeling better Jane, and thanks again for taking time to reply.
Just keep reminding yourself that if you are not feeling well there is still something wrong that needs to be fixed. If the GP can't be bothered then go to someone who can. No it's NOT in your head, you are not being cynical. You went for help to the place where you're supposed to get it and they let you down. Time to move on. Good luck with everything. Jane x x
Ow dear that's not good, firstly acid meds suppress acid and we need acid to digest food therefore taking acid meds compound symptoms. You definitely got gastro issues this is thyroid related or wheat and
Gluten intolerance. your gp is a ass, your tsh seems high normal depends on reference range, your t4is low and so is your vitamin. D. Hope this helps, your not going mad, gp have limited knowledge. Can you change gp? Ha you gp getting defensive because you are challenging ,good for you you, have you had a hormone test and iron ferratin? I do feel for you. Don't be fobbed of, can you take some one with you to the surgery,? Xx
i have also asked about the wheat and gluten intolerance and she said no because it would have shown up in the esr test she had done?? I think your right about changing g.p's, kind of worried what she will add to my notes if i do request to change Dr;s tho!? don't think it would be very positive!?
yes i don't think she was happy that i went for the private tests, but i did explain to her that i knew her hands were tied somewhat within the nhs ranges/tests, but i am desperate for answers and i am not imagining my symptoms or lying around feeling depressed or sorry for myself and that i need to be proactive, but i don't think she listened and took it personal.
I've ordered some D3 drops recommended to me so hopefully they will arrive soon!
I have not had a hormone test i don't think? I have had the antibodies tests done both negative and
B12 - 155.8 - range(25.1 - 165.0)
ferritn - 51 (23 - 150)
folate - 545 (358 - 1099)
Think the above are o.k?
I really don't think i will be going back to the same doctor, If i can at all help it! I have a lump on my thyroid which i have an ultrasound for in a few weeks, so might have to go back to her then to get results but think i will try and request a different doctor, If they'll let me! Argghhh|!!! Thanks for your reply and support Merissa keeps me going....
Lol!! No prob's, My vision is all blurry (another sign i think!) so am probably not much better!! and i have a big screen!!!:-)) xx
Hi Angel,
I'm not even going to comment on your doctor, it would be a waste of time. Instead, I wondered if you had seen this series of articles on stomach acid issues, H pylori etc. Really worth reading through them - might strike a cord with what's going on in your body. You need to read them in order:
Hampster, Wow!! I wish i had this article at my appointment today, I asked if taking the ppi's could encourage the h.pyloria infection to return because it thrives in low acid, She looked confused and said no!! Hmmmm
Thank you so much for your reply and the effort to add those links, How informative! Thank you so so much really appreciated and the information makes such sense!
I mean, I wasn't going to bite, but I've just got to respond to this:
"she just said people in stressful/high flying jobs have high stomach acid and reflux? And to keep the lansoprazole and omerprazole in my cupboard as i would probably need to take it when i get the symptoms."
Seriously? She's dispensing pharmaceuticals based on patients' job descriptions. Oh, and self medicate whenever you like, don't bother worrying about what's actually wrong with you! Ridiculous.
Don't doubt yourself, keep fighting, seek out a better informed doctor. Have you seen a gastro?
I was in shock when i came out, but i think she has closed down now so to speak because i chose to do some of the private tests, even tho i explained my reasons were not personal to her. Just seems to be adamant that it is all down to stress? and my job!? Which for the record i've been doing for 18 years and it hasn't stressed me out yet!! No i asked to be referred for an endoscopy as i have started having symptoms again since the antibiotics to see if there is anything else going on but she was having none of it, when i was in tears at the end through pure frustration she said maybe she would refer me in 6 - 8 weeks? when she gave me the antibiotics she said it would take a couple of weeks for my stomach to heal? Change of surgery me thinks!
If you are going to change gp, put it in writing this will help with any negative comments on your records. Xxx ow wheat gluten mAgnesium b 12 are just markers and can be unreliable. X
I get very very angry when I read about incidents like this over your H Pylori. It is time to sack your GP. Sorry to be so blunt but it is because of negligence like this that my mother eventually developed stomach cancer.
I feel very strongly that after this infection has been found and treated with combination ABs that follow on testing must be undertaken and certainly in your case where your symptoms have returned. This combination treatment if it works should stop the symptoms returning.
My husband had a stomach ulcer caused by H Pylori and it was diagnosed by gastroscopy in the local hospital. He had the combination treatment too and because I was aware of the possibility of the treatment not always working I discussed the follow-on breath test with the consultant. He asked if we were requesting this test and when I said yes he said, 'I'm glad to hear that because it is very wise and sensible'. He explained they were not allowed to do it as routine to keep costs down but if a patient makes a specific request we can do it'.
How dare your GP dismiss your very valid concerns. Also very important - have you had an iron panel done to check for anaemia and tests for B12 and vitamin D? Deficiencies like these can cause very similar symptoms to thyroid problems and you could be deficient because of your stomach problems.
It's so interesting as when i first went in and she told me i was positive for h pylori, she said straight from the start that she had tried to find a breath or stool test to refer me as this is the only certain way to find out if it is an active infection but they don't do it in my area? (Hertfordshire) She actually stated " i could test 100 patients for h.pylori and 50 would come back positive but they would not all have symptoms or an active infection?" So when she had consulted her book on what 3 ab's to give me and changed my ppi, I asked her how we would know that they had cleared the infection once i had finished the med's and she said by your symptoms and lets be positive shall we?.... Very condescending, and now me asking that question makes me sarcastic?? Hmmmm??? I so wish i could have kept myself together in there but to be honest i don't think she would have listened to me anyway??
I did have ferritin and folate tested she said my ferritin was low 51 (23 -150) but i;m not anaemic as in range, B12 was in range and Vit D was low 44 (75 - 100),
I have ordered some Vit D3 drops on line so will start them when they arrive!
Thanks so much for support and info on link will keep plodding and will change my doctor!!
Thank again for sharing gives me more strength to continue:-)....
it's hardly surprising you found it difficult to cope with her behaviour and it's not your fault the consultation went that way. Of course they do the breath test in Hertfordshire. She is fobbing you off. Your symptoms have come back after first line therapy and she should check again. There is a waiting period after first line treatment. There is plenty of info on the internet and you can search for H Pylori protocol and look at NICE guidlines.
You say your results are in range - have heard that before. Can you ask your surgery for a full print out of all your test results with reference ranges and post them here for advice?
Hi Editfmrt, I will do as you suggest and take a look at the nice guidelines, I have asked for a print out and ranges before, She was not happy with this either she told me she was too busy, I explained i didn't expect them right there and then and wondered if i would be able to pick them up in a week or two, She just told me to speak to reception, Which i did i got given a few of my latest results but that was all, I didn't have the energy to argue the point and to be honest i've got to the point now i think she will be especially difficult with everything and anything i ask for! I fear she we will not be able to move on so think i will book a private appointment and if i need to go to the doctors try to get an appointment with another doctor? Or failing that look into moving doctors completly but then i have to move my kids also? and i will have to find another decent doctors surgery that is currently accepting new patients, i am not sure how easy this would be, another thing i will be looking into this weekend!
I understand your feeling in the Dr's completely...the majority of the Dr's I have had dealings with are well practised in condescencion, arrogance and making patients feel stupid. When you feel so crap it is very very difficult to stand your ground. Also brain fog, lack of confidence, health worries etc etc (which are all symptoms of hypo) mean you need understanding gentle treatment which are definitely not Dr's strong points.
After many appointments like yours where I put lots of hope in finally feeling better, I now ease up to a new appointment with my eyes open and try to see it as possibly another part of the puzzle or possibly not. Other parts of the puzzle are putting your questions on here and other sites, reading everything you can on this site, tpauk site, Stop the Thyroid madness site, Dr Eric Ozansky, Dr Chris Kesser, Dr Nick Hedburg sites...they all have great articles...and its all free with an internet connection.
Lots of my friends who mean well have said "Stay positive" "Keep the chin up" etc etc but I find this is easier said than done when I feel, at my worst...like I am dying and really really scared and at my best...ill. I start feeling more positive when I start feeling better and when I have good support.
Thanks for your reply Di, It is an up hill struggle and as you say its a frustrating condition anyway and when all you are doing is looking for answers and just need some help to figure out what is going on! I am new to all this and have always had the up most respect for doctors and the work and time they have put in to be trained but i think i would have had more respect for her if she was more up front and honest! No doctor can know everything about every condition that is why we have specialists, But to blatentley fob me off as if i was stupid was even more upsetting It was if she did not believe me and she thought i was lying! I do not profess to be very intellectual or maybe even very articulate, However i have more compassion and logic in my little finger than she will ever have!
if i were lucky enough to be a doctor i would do everything in my power to HELP people wherever possible and if i was not sure about a certain condition i would find out, read up and or find a specialist to help or refer! Wouldn't that be doing the job to the best of my ability and i would be 100 per cent honest if i didn't know! But would find out!
I have printed out lots of papers from the internet and and look at some other sites also that you have kindly recommended, and also get some books that others have also recommended and hopefully this will help me ask the right questions and finally get some much needed answers!
Thanks again for your reply and support, It makes such a huge difference to know others understand
Thanks for posting your terrible GP experience. Your post has made me realise I should be less timid with my GP and more like you- asking and enquiring.
It's because when I have tentively asked on occasions I can feel the vibes will be the exact same as your GP!
I'm a chicken, but do you know what, you've made me think, what have I got to loose? So I'm going to ask too-I'll let you know how I get on! Any bets!....
Hi pampam,thanks so much for your post its nice to know my post may have encouraged you! I was the same as you and quite timid but out of desperation to get my life back I did private tests to try to be proactive and get some answers that I wasn't getting from the nhs, and I did explain this to my dr unfortunately her attitude changed especially so when I did start asking I think basic and valid questions and she couldn't answer them logically, I knew she no longer wanted to help
Keep strong Hun and please post how you get on, there are wonderful people on here with lots of experience and wise words that will help and advise! Don't give up!!
I know exactly how it feels when the GP has made up their mind they will not record or discuss your symptoms, will not listen to you, will not talk about your health or actually help you.
However, in my case it was because the NHS were the ones who caused my serious heart condition via a botched heart ablation. After that, they have gone out of their way to avoid helping me at all or make it appear that they are helping when the reality is the opposite.
I am left to suffer with the serious, life threatening medical conditions that they caused and they do not want to know.
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