Total Daily Cortisol = 210.9 (range 21 - 41nmol/L)
DHEA levels Sample 2 am = 77.00 High
Sample 3 pm = 0.08 Low
DHEA Mean 38.54 (range 0.10 - 0.50)
DHEA Cortisol Ratio 18.27 (range 0.4 - 2.0)
Scretory IgA = 497.4 (normal range - 118 - 641) (optimal range - 130 - 471)
Can anyone advise me on what to do next? At present I am on 50mcgs of Levo as my THS levels were 14.9 a few weeks ago. Everything I've read so far seems to indicate that GPs are not that familiar with these readings from the Saliva test and probably won't do much with the information. Although to be fair he wants me to see an Endocrinologist.
A few weeks ago I was almost ignorant of all of this stuff and went for a blood test as I have to admit I was feeling unwell. How on earth did I reach this point? Having been given the Hypothyroidism diagnosis and the fact that at some point I will need surgery of some sort for Bicuspid Stenosis I'm totally baffled.
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Suzy61Taylor
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Sorry, your question seems to be have been missed. Hopefully someone will see this in latest activity...
I can't help with the adrenal test, but I was wondering what your FT4 result was? If you haven't had it tested, I would suggest it would be a good idea, along with your FT3 & TSH again.
Have you felt an improvement on 50mcg? Are you taking it with water only, 30 mins-1 hour before food?
Hi Louise. Yes I have various readings re: my thyroid. My FT4 was 10.5 (range 10 - 22). TSH was 14.5 (range 0.4 - 4.0). Some of my symptoms might also be due to my newly diagnosed Bicuspid Valve Stenosis. My cardiac output and palpitations are adding to my worries. I am just getting to grips with all the advice out there - Sue
Some people don't feel well until their TSH is towards the bottom of the range and T4 towards the top. Email me for something which says this - louise.warvill@thyroiduk.org
Hello Essybabe. The only medication I take is Levo 50mcgs. Absolutely nothing else at all. I eat so healthily. No gluten, wheat, sugar to an absolute minimum and I always cook from scratch. No alcohol either and I limit myself to one cup of coffee a day and some days I don't have any caffeine. As an ultra marathon runner I am used to being mindful of my diet. I have been losing muscle mass and body weight over the last few weeks. From one hour to the next I don't know how I'm going to feel.
Hey suze, it looks like you have high cortisol for most of the day, which will have a knock on effect on your thyroid. I presented the same results to a endo and this was ignored , not sure what you take for high cortisol, bushings can cause this. X
Hi Merissa. How long can I run at such high levels? All the advisory information I've been given i.e. clean diet, no caffeine, no processed food I adhere to anyway. I cannot see what else I can do. I know exercise can raise cortisol levels as its still a stress inducing state. I used to be able to do a 10 mile run regularly and much longer at the weekends. Now I feel pleased with myself if I can take my dog for a decent walk. After 30/40 mins of walking I am so tired with real hypo type symptoms. I have bursts of energy for such short periods and then if I take advantage of those brief episodes I know I will suffer a couple of hours later. The big shocker for me is the relatively short space of time that this has happened. How did you bring down your cortisol levels? Why don't Endo's take the results seriously?
Hi everyone
Adrenals problems are very common in hypo pacients.
I recommend you to check STTM in where they give some advices for adrenals problems and see what is the best for you.
Inform your endo about your research and try to get a solution of your adrenals, because this issue is the most import thing to get the T4 and T3 into the cells.
Other thing could be that maybe you are not converting the levo you are taking into T3,so the symptoms still being.
I hope this information can really help you and you will get better soon
Hi hun, same as you!!! I just started back mauy boxing, I'm I'm in agony hrs later. Firstly endo was upset I seeked private professional, secondly they don't want to take results on board because of this factor. Hence there method is a 24 hr urine cortisol test, which is useless because it won't show variations during the day.
You could try submitting your results, dnt bother if your at treliske. With me it seems that when I attempt excerise, like yourself I'm fatigued and have more pain.
Adrenal issues in my opinion are more likely the cause here. I have read , I need to remove stressors, to be honest I'm not stressed, so it baffles me how my cortisol is high all day.
However when I push myself through this barrior, my cortisol levels can't cope, therefore thyroid symptons appear as a result. There are a few methods that can correct this issues, that is taking adrenal support. Dr p advised me on this subject.
Google, treatment for cortisol levels ( naturally) I understand your frustration especially as you have been determined through life style changes. It could be also you are not getting enough vitamins and minerals and could be lacking co factors, like vitamin d, b12, iron, good bacteria.
It's looks like we have to be our own detective , because there is no help from the nhs. X
Thanks everyone for their imput. Does anyone know of a private Doctor as close to Cornwall as possible. One that might be willing to dispense something like Armour or any NDT? My GP hadn't ever heard of it or so he said!!! I think he thought I was talking about Desiccated Coconut x
I had high cortisol, although nothing like as severely as you do. I tried Seriphos for a few weeks, and I did (eventually) feel a bit better, although it wasn't a quick fix - I did most of my improving in the weeks after I stopped taking it.
I haven't done a follow-up saliva test since I took Seriphos, but I intend to do so as soon as I can afford it. I feel that things have improved, but have no proof as yet. If I need more treatment I will take Seriphos again, although I can't say I enjoyed the process the first time round.
Thanks for the links. Very interesting. I'm so nervous at taking anything. Is there a particular brand or type of Seriphos. Do you recommend giving it a go (probably an unfair question). Is it readily available. I know my Cortisol results are high, but am I dangerously high? I just don't know how this equates to all the other problems. I worry about my bone density as I've already been told I have osteoporosis after a bone scan done 3 years ago after a nasty wrist fracture. I believe high cortisol levels are damaging to your bone structure as it seems to inhibit absorption of calcium. Actually the more stuff I read on the subject the more anxious I feel. In the past a good run of 8/10 miles gave me relief but I can't do that anymore. Sorry, I'm not normally such a pessimist. I feel very doom and gloom at present.
Seriphos is a brand name I think, and I only know of one manufacturer (Interplexus), but there could easily be others - I really don't know the answer to be honest.
In your shoes I would be inclined with your results to ask for a referral to an endo to be checked for Cushing's Syndrome or Cushing's Disease.
Do you suffer from chronic insomnia? And/or anxiety and the jitters? Those were my symptoms, and they have reduced a bit since I took the Seriphos, particularly the insomnia. I worried about the bone density/cortisol connection too. I didn't want to just ignore the problem. I was lucky enough to have a bone density scan in my 30s, and at the time my bone density was really excellent. I had a repeat scan done about 15 years later and my bone density had dropped to just below average for my age.
I can't really advise whether or not you should take Seriphos. All I will say is that I tried it and survived and, although I didn't find it an "enjoyable" experience, I haven't regretted it.
Doing nothing is always an option. But then nothing changes and it is unlikely that things will spontaneously improve. Only you can decide whether that is acceptable to you or not.
My GP is going to refer me to an Endo, but last week he was more concerned about my cardiac problem which I guess is understandable. My sleep patterns are shocking. The family were always slightly amused because I could wake up at 0430 and be so wide awake that I would go to do the shopping (the up side of 24 hrs opening)! I cannot go through the day without a cat nap and then I want to sleep most of the evening. I then get a second wind at 0930 and find it hard to switch off. Just lately I feel jittery most of the time. I seem to have racing thoughts but nothing of any value or importance - just fleeting activity in my brain which is disturbing in itself.
How would a endo check for Cushing's Syndrome or Cushing's disease? Is it all by saliva testing. I do appreciate the time and trouble you are taking to reply to my questions x
What you describe about waking up and being wide awake at inappropriate times is familiar, and I still suffer from that quite a lot. I do at least get to sleep more easily than I used to now.
I'm afraid I know almost nothing about how Cushing's is tested for.
I know that the NHS doesn't generally accept saliva results as proof of anything - an attitude that baffles me, because saliva measurements of cortisol are used in research nowadays, and they are beginning to be accepted in the US (allegedly). The NHS test often involves people collecting urine over 24 hours and then they just do a single measurement of cortisol from that. How the NHS can believe that one urine sample can be more informative than 4 saliva samples at different points in the day is something I shall never understand, because there is a circadian rhythm in cortisol production that a 24 hour urine collection will completely ignore. To be honest I don't think they believe it either, but I do think they believe deeply in saving money at the expense of people's health.
There is also a test called the Dexamethasone Suppression Test
And another test is the short (or long) synacthen test, also kown as the ACTH stimulation test but this may be more appropriate for people suspected of Addison's Disease i.e. very low cortisol production.
All I know about these tests is that they are best done as early in the morning as you can possibly manage so you should refuse any appointments after 9am. Since you want them to catch your very high cortisol result in the morning this makes sense.
Please don't take anything in this post as gospel truth, and please do your own research - I have only picked up bits and pieces about these type of tests, and so I could easily have got things wrong. My own cortisol was over the range in 3 out of 4 of my saliva samples and was right at the top of the range in the other test. But overall, my problem is/was minor compared to yours. I never discussed any of this with my doctor, and I have never sought treatment from the NHS. (But I think perhaps you should because your results are appalling.)
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