(GP advised me to go gluten free which I did for 8 weeks)
September 2014
Thyroid Stimulating Hormone – 33 (0.2-4.2)
Free Thyroxine – 9.6 (12-22)
Free Triiodothyronine – 5.9 (3.9-6.7)
Anti-Thyroid Peroxidase antibodies – 214 (<34)
Anti-Thyroglobulin antibodies – 112 (<115) (On T4, 50mcg)
October 2014
Thyroid Stimulating Hormone – 0.62 (0.2-4.2)
Anti-Thyroid Peroxidase antibodies – 245 (<34)
Anti-Thyroglobulin antibodies – 108 (0-115)
I thought the GP would be right in saying that going gluten free would help me but I don’t understand why my antibodies have doubled. Does that mean going gluten-free didn't work?
Thank you
Written by
Ella78
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Many Hashi sufferers find their antibodies and flare ups reduce and notice improvement in bloating, gas, constipation and diarrhoea after 3 months g-f. It doesn't work for everyone but it is worth trying it 3-6 months and see then if your antibodies have reduced. If gluten is triggering an antibody response you need to be gluten-free permanently.
What thyroid replacement are you taking? That was a high rise in TSH between April 2013 and September. It's a shame your FT4 and FT3 weren't tested in October.
Thank you for the links. I'm surprised that there are two forms of thyroiditis. How would I know which one it is that I have/had? My neck swelled up at the start of the year so that could mean the goitrous form I guess.
The causes listed for hypothyroidism aren't any that I have but I have a lump at the side of my neck (not thyroid area but over to the right.) Probably nothing.
My symptoms are all over the place and not all of them are listed -
Slow movements, thought and speech
Pins and needles in legs only.
Breathlessness but with chest pain and having to draw deep breaths most of the time.
Dizziness, I'm not sure about but I get lightheaded when sitting down or standing after sitting.
I don't have loss of libido, oddly enough I have a lot of it!
Dry eyes, yes. The GP previously prescribed me eye drops but said it wasn't due to the hypothyroidism.
Hoarse voice - I had a bit of it today but it cleared up
difficulty swallowing, yes, I get choking fits all the time and it sometimes takes two swallows for food to go down.
Hair loss - loads of hair coming off on my brush but I only thought that's because I have fine hair. Eyelashes sometimes fall out but my eyebrows haven't lost any hair.
Dry skin - on my fingers mainly.
Muscle and joint pain - depends although I had some pain this morning in bed.
Carpal tunnel syndrome - I've had some and it's worse during a period but it's not every day I get it.
Loss of appetite - I only eat 1 meal a day and most of the time I'm not hungry. But I have eaten 3 meals a day including breakfast and I haven't gained any weight at all. The GP is concerned that and she is thinking of referring me to a gastroenterologist.
Constipation - I get this most of the time but sometimes it's been looser and sometimes watery. Hence the possible gastroenterology referral. Worse in the mornings and happens 15-40 minutes after eating anything with gluten, sugar or milk in it.
Out of the goitrogenic foods mentioned I've eaten almonds lately. I haven't taken any of the drugs listed.
Ferritin result has been done but GP has said I'm not iron deficient. Result is posted at the end of this reply.
Would my Free T3 (too much putting the whole name!) be worth testing for more often? If it goes up when I'm not on any T4 meds then is something not quite right?
Would I be better off going completely gluten free again despite it not working out before or would I need to be on my meds for longer and see what happens?
Ferritin result - normal - no action needed - 28 (30-400)
Ferritin is not fine! Surely even the doctor can see that's under the bottom of the range?
Words fail me sometimes....
You are iron deficient. In order to effectively convert T4 into the active form of thyroid hormone, T3, it's thought by some thyroid researchers that we need ferritin levels to be at least 70.
I spoke to the GP over the phone. He told me ferritin needed to be in single figures before iron tablets are prescribed but he has put me on ferrous sulphate. Is that any good?
He's an idiot. What sort of state you'd be in if your ferritin was in single figures, I dread to think!
You're not eating enough!!! It's not the food you eat that makes you put on weight, it's your low metabolism due to low thyroid hormones. Besides, I doubt if it's even fat, it's more than likely water.
You must eat more than once a day - even if they are only tiny meals. You need the constant influx of nurishment and calories. Yes, you NEED more calories!
Do not listen to your doctor on that subject. Doctors know even less about nutrition than they do about thyroid!
There are more than 300 symptoms of hypo - don't worry, you don't have to have them all to qualify! lol Here's a list. Personally, I would say it's incomplete.
Thanks for the link Grey. I've listed my symptoms below and have added details to them so that if anyone else on here can understand the exact problems I have with each symptom then I know I'm not alone. I have trouble telling my friends and family just how bad I have been feeling.
Chronic fatigue - some days I feel slowed down and that my energy just gets sapped from me. I can get a bit more extra sleep in the mornings and feel fine when I get up but then I'm walking around and the energy just dissipates.
Long recovery period after activity - something like walking for long distances can make the backs of my legs ache and walking uphill is a struggle because I get very out of breath. I just assume it's because I'm out of shape.
Inability to concentrate - If I'm reading I still manage to get myself lost on the same line of the text I'm reading. Probably nothing.
Insomnia - I get times when I wake up during the night and can't get back to sleep but I also get vivid dreams. Sometimes the noises from outside transfer into my dreams. (?)
Need naps in the afternoon - I used to nap during the afternoon around about 2pm-4pm but I have deliberately stopped doing this and wait until my evening bedtime hours.
Weakness - in arms and legs mainly.
Wake feeling tired - Yes, all the time!!!! I wake feeling sick and with a headache some other times, too, although this is usually in the afternoon/evening when I take my naps outside of bedtime hours.
Frequently oversleep - Yes!!
Weight gain - I have gained weight but this is mainly around my middle. I can literally hold the flab in my hands but it's not enough to give me a "muffin top".
Weight loss - I have lost weight significantly. I was once 7 stone 6 and I'm now 6.9 stone. Oddly enough when I eat more that makes the weight loss worse! Could it be what I've been eating?
Anorexia - I don't know if what I've got is anorexia exactly.
Heightened appetite - Yes but mainly for sugary foods.
Diminished appetite - Yes but mainly for healthier foods.
Cold extremities - Hands and feet get cold easily.
Heat intolerance - Used to be all the time but not as much.
Cold intolerance - This is happening more often now than the heat intolerance. I can sometimes randomly shiver.
Internal shivering - My spine sometimes "shivers" almost as if it's an out-of-body experience. I'm aware of it but I don't know why it's happening.
Cold hands - Yes.
Low basal body temperature - My basal body temperature today is 35.7 degrees Celsius. I track it daily.
Slow movements - In hands/arms mainly but sometimes my legs.
Slow speech - Sometimes if I have trouble constructing a sentence.
Frequent infections - Only infections I get a lot of are vaginal and urinary infections.
Frequent sinus infections - My sinuses sometimes feel stuffy in the mornings upon waking.
Frequent throat infections - I have enlarged tonsils but I get a lot of sore throats.
Candida - Is that where there is a build-up of white lumpy discharge "down there"? I get a lot of that but I get a lot of discharge anyway!
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease - I'm not sure about this but I get a lot of pain in my lower abdomen. Ultrasounds done 4 years ago on my womb show nothing.
Reynaud's Phenomenon - My fingers and toes can go white and numb when out in the cold and they go red when I'm in the rain. (?)
Swelling and thickened skin - eyes, face (on cheeks), lips (they get chapped and flaky), hands and arms.
Difficulty swallowing
Sensation of lump in throat
Sensation of pressure on throat
Pain/tenderness of neck and/or thyroid area
Goitre - If that's a swelling of the neck which I'm sure it is then yes. When it happened I didn't know what it was and so I didn't go to the GP about it.
Burning sensation in throat - I thought that was acid reflux.
Swollen tongue - I have a big tongue so I just thought that was part of who I am.
Choking fits
Distorted sense of taste
Sweet cravings
Speech problems - My voice can sometimes go funny.
Dry mouth - Oh yes!! To the point where it bleeds.
Cavities - I recently had a tooth fallen out despite maintaining good oral hygiene but it was only part of a tooth and was loose anyway.
Gum disease - I get bleeding gums sometimes when I brush my teeth so I use mouthwash to stop the bleeding.
Irritated gums - They throb sometimes.
TMJ - I get clicking in my jaw area and I can voluntarily/involuntarily produce it.
All the ear problems
All of the eye problems apart from the cataracts and glaucoma
All of the hair problems apart from the baldness, eyebrow loss and premature greying.
Nail problems - my toenails are worse than my fingernails and so all the listed problems happen with them apart from the ingrown toenails.
Skin problems - Yes apart from cellulitis, tendency to form blood clots, varicose veins and premature aging. I haven't been tested for allergies and I had hives once but that was when I was a kid.
Numbness and tingling - arms, legs, feet, hands and back.
Pain - Migraine, headaches, backache, loin pain, wrist pain, muscle pain, joint stiffness, tendonitis, heel spurs, plantar fasciitis, pain on soles of feet, cramps, aching bones and muscles, joint pain and TMJ. Don't know about fibromyalgia.
Digestion - Hard stools, constipation, loss of appetite, food allergy/sensitivity (Whatever I eat doesn't agree with me), I don't know about the intolerances as I've never been tested for any of them, gas, nausea, acid reflux and GERD (possibly)
Menstrual - Scanty periods, heavy periods, short cycles, severe cramping, irregular ovulation, PMS/PMT, PCOS (I don't know but I know my mum had it)
Reproductive - Loss of libido, sometimes a lot of libido, vaginal dryness, painful sex (I haven't had sex but sometimes having fun by myself can hurt), lumps in breasts
Emotional - Tension, irritability, wanting to be alone, anxiety, mood changes, feelings of resentment, jumpy, easily startled, lack of confidence
Other - Anaemia (GP says not but my ferritin is 28 with the range 30-400), lack of coordination, clumsiness, tendency to fall, lurch and stumble, dizziness, fainting episodes, tremor, growth disturbance (not sure but I am short for my age...)
Brain - depression, memory loss, confusion, brain fog, mental sluggishness, poor concentration, phobias (only two of them - spiders and pain), obsessions (with dust/dirt), substance abuse (in the past, with painkillers) and nightmares
Kidney/bladder - protein in urine, urinary incontinence, cystitis, recurrent UTIs
Liver - Hypoglycemia (is this where you come over tired and shaky when missing a meal and that when you have sugar this corrects it? If so, then yes)
Lungs - air hunger, difficulty breathing, shortness of breath, tightness in chest
Heart - fast pulse, slow pulse, palpitations, arrhythmia, chest pain
Are there any steps I can take to correct these issues? Are there way too many to deal with (I sound like a lost cause with all these problems I listed from your helpful link!) or can these all be corrected on the right dose of T4?
More like the right dose of T3. It's T3 that the body uses, not T4. If you're a champion converter, that would be fine. But a lot of us are here because we can't convert.
Also, how is your vit B12. A lot of these symptoms might be down to low B12. You also need to up your iron, that is very important when you are hypo. And you need to eat more! You need more calories.
Your vit B12 is too low. The Japanese consider B12 needs treating if it is Under 800. Ignore the upper limit, you can't over-dose because it's a water soluable vitamin. So, you need to supplement that.
Ferrous Sulphate is not the best type of iron, I believe. Not easily absorbed (but as doctors don't consider it important, it doesn't matter to them, does it!) If you type iron/ferritine into the search box, I'm sure you'll find someone recommending the right one to take.
Ella, Ferrous Sulphate isn't easily absorbed or tolerated. Ferrous Fumarate is available over the counter from good pharmacies except Boots, I think, and is more easily absorbed and less rough on the gut. Take each tablet with 500mcg-1,000mcg vitamin C to aid absorption and mitigate constipation.
Well, I couldn't get it out of Boots, that's for sure! They argued and argued about why they couldn't give it to me without a prescritption because it's dangerous Oooooo Until I said, OK, I'll go get it in another chemist! Your loss!
You should also take magnesium when taking iron - to help with the constipation! lol
They said because it was dangerous to just take like that. It needed a doctor to prescribe it! Of course, they didn't have the brand I'd been prescribed in France (that was an OTC). It made me really mad, because the girl at the counter called out two of her colleagues to have a go at me and talk to me as if I were a demented two year old. And one of them was so obviously hypo it was all I could do not to say : you ought to get your iron levels checked too, dear, hypos usually have low levels!
I will never go into Boots again. And I used to like them. But they didn't even have Zinc and Castor Oil Cream! Really, what use do they serve!
Thanks for recommending me the ferrous fumarate tablets. I tried one today and the tablet tasted awful even with the Vitamin C added! I guess I have to put up with it.
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