went to guy's on monday after blood test show some things up with my tyriod so i get there after being sent arount the house's i walk in he asked my symtoms and i hand over my blood test ohh i see you have an under active thyroid take this and bye what the hell what do i do now come back in sixs weeks don't know what to do or where to turn
anti-thyroglobulin abs 77u/ml
anti-TPO antibodies 940U/ml
serum tsh level 8.4mlu/l
serum free t4 level 11.7 pmol/l
what does this all mean for me and should i start changing my diet and life style
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soxysarah
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What has he given you? It looks as if you might have an auto-immune condition that is affecting your thyroid. You could look at the auto-immune paleo diet - google it and you should find lots about it.
SoxySarah, do you have the lab ref ranges (the figures in brackets after your results) for FT4? TSH over 5 with antibodies means you have autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto's) which causes 90% of hypothyroidism.
What medication have you been given?
Hashi sufferers can benefit from a gluten-free diet as it often reduces antibodies and flare ups.
Sarah, you will have been started on a low dose so as not to shock your system. It will take 7/10 days to feel any improvement. You will need a follow up blood test in 6/8 weeks to check your levels. Dose increases/decreases are usually in 25mcg increments and should be followed by 6/8 weekly blood tests until dose is stable.
Levothyroxine should be taken with a full glass of water on an empty stomach an hour before, or two hours after, food and drink. Allow two hours away from other medicines and supplements and four hours away from calcium and iron.
It's a good idea to ask your GP to test your ferritin (stored iron), vitamin D, B12 and folate as these are often low or deficient in hypothyroid patients.
Make sure to get a print out of your test results with the lab ref ranges (the figures in brackets after your results) after every blood draw so you can monitor your health and post the results for comment/advice.
for me this is all to scary as i've never been ill broke a bone or stayed in hospital other then having kids i don't know what to ask or where to start i know my next appointment is in six to seven weeks i've been thinking of writing a food diary and the same for symptoms and keeping an eye on my weight is this a good idea and make a list of questions to ask
that's an excellent idea re the diary and the questions. And next time take someone with you if you possibly can.
Levothyroxine is the treatment they give, without the patient making a fuss, for an underperforming thyroid. What dose have you been started on? Usually it's a low one and increased until your blood test results fall within what they call normal parameters. For most people that works out OK. But for a significant minority either the dose isn't enough, or (rarely) too much, or Levo just doesn't suit the patient.
Early days yet. Let us know how you go on. And don't take any nonsense off this chap. Is he a thyroid specialist or a diabetes one? If the latter, and you do your homework, you may quite quickly end up knowing more than he does. :o)
Hi Soxysarah, Sorry to hear that your appt didn't go too well. Doctors can be very casual and don't explain things the way they ought to.
You've had some very good advice here, but I just wanted to say, don't worry too much about your diet and life-style at this stage. Cutting out gluten might help lower your antibodies, which is a good thing, but it doesn't work for everybody. Just try it and see.
Apart from that, what you eat probably won't make any difference to the way you feel - unless you know that something upsets you (for me it was strawberries!) in which case just cut it out. Don't go on a low-calorie diet, as this could make you worse. And don't cut out fats or salt, your body needs these. Go easy on exercise too, as exercise uses up your thyroid hormones, and you don't have enough of them at the moment.
Look after yourself, be kind to yourself. Get plenty of rest and sleep. And don't worry. You are being treated, so you are in no danger. I know it's very frightening at first when you don't know anything about it. I didn't even know what a thyroid was! lol But you will soon learn if you read all you can, and you will be able to take it all in your stride.
Make sure you go for your follow-up appt in six weeks. This is important because your blood will be tested and your dose probably increased. You should have a blood test six weeks after every increase in dose.
If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask them here. There are lots of people that will be able to answer them and set your mind at rest.
i don't eat that much any way one meal a day some times lunch but never breakfast i stay clear of chocolate as it affects my depression and pork coz i'm allergic this has not stopped me going from 7st 12lb to 12st 12lb as of yesterday and i can't seem to drop it grrrrr the doc told me this thyroid thing is coz i smoke is that right coz all this started after i stopped
Of course it hasn't stopped you from putting on weight! You are not eating enough. You are not getting enough calories to support your convertion from T4 to T3. It's your thyroid condition that is making you put on weight, not what you do or do not eat. Try to eat a bit more.
A lot of people find that they are hypo when they give up smoking, because smoking masks the hypo symptoms (it could have something to do with nicotine increasing the T3 supply to the brain but I don't think much research has been done on this), although it almost certainly started long before. Smoking does have an effect on the thyroid but I don't know just how much.
But you have anti-bodies, so your thyroid problem is auto-immune, nothing to do with smoking. He's an idiot.
Giving up smoking also makes you put on weight and nobody really seems to know why (maybe something to do with the thyroid???). My 'brilliant' (not) endo said that it was because I ate more without noticing it!!! Fantastic conclusion. Sorry, but I'm not an idiot, I do know how much I eat! Anyway, giving up smoking could have played a part in your weight gain. Not saying that you shouldn't have given up! It was a brilliant and brave thing to do. Well done!
so you think i should eat three meals a day again ok dam this is all so overwhelming i've always had a prob with food i could go days with out eating but i over came this thanks for the advice just wonna give my body the best chance you work right
Well, two at least. A lot of us can't face breakfast. I can't. But in order to get some nourishment into me I start my day with a glass of cold water, a glass of some sort of fruit juice (unsweetened - my daughter swears by lemon juice in hot water, but I haven't tried that yet), and then a spoonful of unsweetened cocoa powder mixed with some coconut sugar and hot water (no milk). And I seem to thrive on that.
Yes, it's very easy to forget to eat. It helps if you live with family who get hungry and remind you! But I live alone so I do sometimes forget a meal here or there. I know I should eat more but it can be difficult.
To give your body a fighting chance, you need, if possible, to get your vit B12, folate, vit D, magnesium and iron tested, and supplement if necessary. Hypos often have difficulty absorbing these things.
And yes, it is over-whelming at first, but I promise you, it will all make sense to you one day soon.
Most unlikely that there is a correlation between your thyroidism and smoking. Otherwise the world would be littered with hypothyroid smokers. Which it isn't. Fluoride is sometimes cited as a potential culprit. And what's in the water that comes through the pipes? That's right.
Courage, mon brave. Eat a bit more if you can. The weight should start to go when you're on the right amount of medication.
Yeah I can't why smoking is to blame. My eldest sister had thyroid cancer and has never smoked, my grandma had thyroid problems and had one sobranie Russian black at Christmas every year. My mum had it and smoked 10 a day till she was 40. I smoked like a chimney till I was 30 but have never touched one since and was diagnosed 23 years later with hypo. My other two sisters are ok one smoked when she was younger (she has some endocrine issues) the other is a heavy smoker with no signs of hypo at all. Mind you I am glad I stopped when - I did it is an achievement to be proud of.
Don't forget not to take your levo on the morning of your blood test (and preferably the previous day's one) but take it just after. And to have the test done as soon as the blood unit opens as this is when results will be at their highest.
I was treated at Guys. The understudy I saw first was a dead loss. I was very ill at this point and was told very little I am not sure if this was deliberate so as not to overload a very ill person I don't think I could have taken much on board at that point getting through the day took all my energy and I had little enough of it. The understudy was supposed to have booked a ultrasound scan (there is a history of cancer of the thyroid in my family) he messed that up ... I thought my next consultation was the scan. The endo I saw was very kind and got all the confusion it had caused sorted out and did the scan as soon as he could - thankfully there was no cancer. He upped my Levo as rapidly as he could and kept seeing me until my TSH was better controlled. I was told very little except my thyroid had been attacked by my own body and I had thyroiditis. He did help me massively and never patronised me in any way. I found his quiet sympathetic manner reassuring when I was still feeling so dreadful. I saw the thyroid nurse at the end and got a lot more information from her and a refusal to let me stop on 125mcg Levo on which I felt hugely better. I always felt under medicated after the reduction. To this day I don't know what type of hypo I have but presume it must be HT. I am sorry you have had such a bad experience there. I think they just aim to get your TSH down there. You will find the help here you need with diet etc it is a wonderful supportive community I only joined TUK long after my discharge from guys which has marked the start of more improvements after the worst of the illness was rectified but my quality of life still left a lot to be desired.
Hang on in there and this community will help you to regain your health.
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as of yesterday and i can't seem to drop it grrrrr the doc told me this thyroid thing is coz i smoke is that right coz all this started after i stopped 
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