Had blood test, seeing GP Friday. Very depressed but dont want antidepressants.

[sidneymark70]

Appointment with GP Friday after latest blood test. Have Hashis and underactive thyroid. Am very depressed with bad anxiety and know GP will want me to go on antidepressants. Think 50 mg thyroxine every day is causing anxiety so dont want the dose upped but dont know what to do about depression (partly depressed about weight, just cant lose it) as tonight I feel so bad - as though I'm cracking up. Dont know if GP would consider me taking T3. Might the combination T3/T4 be my answer? How exactly does T3 help, what does it do please? Finding it hard to put my question into words - especially as have very bad brain fog. Would be really grateful for any help.

[gracegirl78]

Im not on this road long but i would say your under medicated and need an increase, your symptoms sound like mine and im hoping to get increased soon. 50 is a very small dose really, how long have you been on it?

[marram]

I may be wrong, but 50mcg might just about suit a Yorkie Terrier. It is a tiny dose, and I am not surprised you have symptoms of anxiety.

The best thing you can do in the first place is to get hold of your results including ranges and put them on here, then someone can give you more specific advice. In the meantime, try to resist any suggestion of anti-ds because they are all too frequently given to thyroid patients instead of proper treatment for their underlying condition.

Anxiety and depression are both symptoms of under-treatment.

when we hear from you with the results, we will be able to give you a bit more help.

Marie XX

[suki65]

please try this

articles.mercola.com/sites/...

i have found intermittent fasting helps with lots of medical problems as it regulates insulin to work on fats rather than sugar my diet is 11am porridge with semi skimmed milk ,sugar free drinks or water 12 dinner salad sandwiches on wholemeal ,fruit 5pm tea anything then between 6pm and 7pm yoghurt or toast thats my last meal .if you try this for 2 months i feel you will see a difference in your troubles please try

[sidneymark70 in reply to suki65]

Thanks for this Suki but I also get bad headaches and have to eat when I get up. If I get too hungry I get a headache!

[suki65 in reply to sidneymark70]

I also get bad headaches right across the back of my head at the top and around the back and above my ears ,i found that drinking water first thing in the morning helps with my headache then an hour later a sugar free brew and i manage to wait till 11am for my first meal .But its up to you if you find it easier to eat earlier but then have your last meal earlier eg breakfast at 9am and last meal at 5 pm or 6pm then after 6pm only drink sugar free drinks i feel that your headache should get better after a week .

do you have lots of sugary things ?

[sidneymark70 in reply to suki65]

No try not to, but of course my will power isnt always great so give in sometimes. When I was younger I was addicted to sugar and used to eat loads of chocolate etc., and what with that and a ridiculous amount of stress, think thats what kicked off my thyroid problems.

[suki65 in reply to sidneymark70]

so what time do you eat first thing and when is the last thing you eat at night ?

[suki65 in reply to sidneymark70]

i find that if i think of someone who is worse off than me this helps pick me up as there is always someone worse off than you ,i have so many bad side effects from the statins i have taken i felt so low and useless i felt like rubbish ,but reading on here how others feel it has helped me so much as now i know what i am going through is due to the statins and i can change this i have to be strong now and let others know what can happen if you get side effects .

the intermittent fasting eating for 8 hours a day helps your insulin to work on the fat in your body instead of the sugar so it does help with how you feel personally

[suki65]

please dont take anti depressants they make things worse what makes you feel the way you do ? when i feel low i think of people in worse positions as me which there is always someone worse off than you ,pease talk it does help and i find on here people listen to you and they dont know who you are so they dont judge you

[shaws Administrator]

I don't know how long you have been diagnosed, but 50mcg is a starting dose and should have been increased in stages of 25mcg until you feel much better with symptoms improving/ed.

Do as Marram suggests and post your blood test results as soon as you get them. You are entitled and they cannot refuse. Just say you want to keep them for your records.

This is an excerpt from Dr Lowe, bearing in mind that before the TSH came in patients were getting doses of between 200mcg and 400mcg Cursor to date November 20, 2002

Dr. Lowe: Keep in mind that T4 alone is the least effective thyroid hormone preparation, and 50 mcg is an extremely small amount. I seriously doubt that 50 mcg is benefiting you in any way. It may, however, be harming you.

T4 is highly effective at one thing: suppressing TSH secretion by the pituitary gland. T4 can suppress pituitary TSH secretion while leaving the metabolism of other tissues so slow that the patient continues to suffer from hypothyroid symptoms. Consequently, the doctor concludes (from the lowered TSH) that the patient is well; in the mean time, the patient suffers from continuing hypothyroid symptoms. Even worse, if the T4 dose is too low, the patient’s symptoms may actually worsen.

It's possible that the paltry amount of T4 you’re taking, by lowering your TSH level, has reduced your thyroid gland’s release of T4 and T3. The T4 you're taking may be far too little to compensate for your thyroid gland’s reduced thyroid hormone output. As a result, the small dose of T4 you’re taking may actually be worsening some harmful effects of your hypothyroidism. The Physician’s Desk Reference contains an important statement largely ignored by conventional doctors: "Inadequate doses of Synthroid [and by extension, any other brand of T4] may produce or fail to resolved symptoms of hypothyroidism."[1,p.1500] (Italics mine.) Doctors currently restricting their hypothyroid patients to small doses of T4 would do well by their patients to read and seriously consider the implications of this quote.

web.archive.org/web/2010112...

Your GP should increase your meds gradually till you feel well.

[sidneymark70 in reply to shaws]

The thing is if I take too much thyroxine, I start feeling agitated. In fact I take 25 each day Sat/Sunday and 50 on Monday to Friday. This morning, after a bad night of not sleeping, I took 50 and a little while later felt really anxious. I find this all so confusing too. Thought I might ask GP about taking T3 too. Thank you.

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to sidneymark70]

Sometime you feel anxious if your body can't use the thyroxine properly, as well as if you don't get enough. Out of whack cortisol levels (insomnia is a symptom), and lack of selenium (brazil nuts) or B12 (methylcobalamin or liver) or iron (spatone or liver) can cause that. Thyroxine stays in your system for several days so your body doesn't know you've taken less for a few days, if yiou see what I mean.

[ladytelita]

Maybe a change of brand is in order?

I have not been diagnosed with thyroid as yet (would be nice to know my latest results *sigh*) and instead been told I have fibromyalgia. I do take an ad for help with sleeping and pain levels but it's a very low dose. Ironically it's not designed for those with thyroid problems. Be careful of any he may offer in case there is an interaction. There is no shame is using ad's if they help you but I agree with many here in that you are either undermedicated or reacting to the meds you currently take. It's possible you have an allergy to one of the ingredients. However rare that may be it could be the case here. As a sort of proof, I have a cat that cannot be treated for fleas due to a bad reaction to the spot on treatments etc. He now has an injection once every 6 months instead, which is fine. See if you can try a different brand and enquire about T3 in case it may suit you better. Good luck.