Help please, Im sure Im hypo but results normal... - Thyroid UK

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Help please, Im sure Im hypo but results normal going to take Raw Thyroid

bigbum profile image
12 Replies

Hi, I'm just looking for a bit of info / guidance.

I had my third child 3 yrs ago but after the normal hair falling out it kept doing it and where I was 8st 11 straight after birth, I am now 10 stone - this gain happened in the last yr. I'm normally fit and active but since April my back just decided to give way in the sacro joint and I'm in pain constantly. My diet has not changed yet I keep gaining,, I'm cold to the point where some days I walk around with a blanket on me. My hair loss is mainly at the front and I've gone grey quickly. Im 40. I have a tummy now where people ask if im pregnant again !!! I'm only 4ft 11 - so weight gain is very noticeable. I have suffered from depression for yrs so this is not new but because of the gain I no longer want to go out. I feel trapped in a fat persons body not mine...I finally went to the drs who did bloods and the results are TSH 2.59 T4 13.1 these are normal but I don't think these are normal for me. I was a thin little thing and something has gone wrong.. All other bloods iron etc fine. My dr now says it maybe poly cystic ovaries but my periods are normal in dates maybe a bit heavy then sudden stop. I still feelits my thyroid so have bought Raw Thyroid from Natural Sources but am now scared to take...... please help

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12 Replies
shaws profile image
shawsAdministrator

Hi imtich

I wouldn't take Raw Thyroid. This is a link with some comments:

amazon.co.uk/Natural-Source...

If you were going to buy over-the-counter products I would only buy one that I know I will have confidence in.

Do you have the ranges of your above tests, please. It helps members to comments as labs differ throughout the country.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/diagno...

It would be good if your doctor did a Free T3 test which gives much more information as it is T3 which is the driving force for our bodies.

These are a couple of links for information. It's not unusual to have clinical symptoms and be denied medication due to your blood test results.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

I think the last one will be very much of interest to you. Nowadays many doctors don't know clinical symptoms and have been directed only to prescribe if the TSH reaches a certain No. mainly 10 and people could be quite unwell by then. Some sympathetic doctors prescribe if it's over 5.

If your GP hasn't tested Vitamin B12, Vit D, iron, ferritin and folate ask for these to be done and get a print-out with the ranges.

bigbum profile image
bigbum in reply to shaws

Hi thanks for your reply. Dr carried out lots of bloods liver function, iron etc all came back normal. I cannot say what is what the range was only that I'm in Suffolk and that the figures given above were " normal". I had been using kelp/ iodine as I thought I maybe a bit low thyroid and relora for stress/calming so don't know if this changed the figures. Help

shaws profile image
shawsAdministrator in reply to bigbum

From now on always get a print-out of your blood test results and the ranges are usually in brackets after the results.

Normal in itself is meaningless with regard to the results of thyroid hormones if we have clinical symptoms.

Did you read the last link? Take a copy to your GP and ask if he will do the tests suggested to clarify if you have/haven't a problem with your thyroid gland.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/diagno...

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...

Ask your GP to check thyroid antibodies in case you have an Autoimmune Thyroid Disease

If we have hypothyroidism, it's important that we have a proper diagnosis as not getting the right medication may cause other more serious illnesses.

bigbum profile image
bigbum in reply to shaws

Yes, I read the links and I have spent days trawling through reviews. I cannot get my Dr to give me the paperwork she just says its normal. I thought the free 4 only being 13.1 was low. I asked her to just try for a month on thyroid meds but she said ur normal....still my hair falls out ,, my bum gets bigger and im not this person

shaws profile image
shawsAdministrator in reply to bigbum

imtich

Some members may come forward with some more details. We understand what it's like to be told 'normal' or told nothing at all as we never had a thyroid test before being diagnosed so remained undiagnosed.

If you are thinking of self-medicating, it isn't advised by Thyroiduk but many members understand how it comes to that as they have clear symptoms but no diagnosis.

As you can see from the above link a TSH of above 2 with symptoms can be indicative of hypothyroidism.

deborahknight profile image
deborahknight in reply to shaws

omg i ave just posted similar to yr story mine came on after birth of my baby 11yrs ago! my doc wouldnt take any of these test but finally got him to refer me to specialist, an thye just taken T4 cortisol, an VIT D !!!! its so frustrating i feel yr pain, an its very hard with a baby to look after as it was for me plus 3 boys! i hope as me u get some answers, as god knows wot its doing to our bodies, my gran went undiagnoesd for yrs an ended up in wheel chair b4 they relised it was her thyroids :( she had to minor strokes an then massive heart attact at 67 :( my dad died at 53 so sad he never got tested either :(

Poshpenny profile image
Poshpenny

Please get a copy of your blood test results from your GP, you are entitled to this information under the data protection act. Premature greying CAN be a sign of a B12 deficiency, hair falling out CAN be a sign of a ferritin deficiency. But your Dr can say you're "normal" if your result is 1 point within the lower range, this happened to me, and it was only by getting paper copies of my results and going through what they meant with the help of Dr Google and Internet forums like this, that I was able to get a grip on what was really going on. the results will almost certainly point you in the direction of what is wrong, even if you find it hard to believe at first. Low in the range (make sure the results are printed in such a way that you can also see the ranges) is nothing like the same as "optimal". the doctors describe anything within the range as "normal" and appear to dismiss clinical symptoms and diagnose on the blood test result numbers. that's evidence based medicine for you.

bigbum profile image
bigbum

So you wouldn't think that Raw Thyroid would help me.?

I don't know what else to do and the Dr even agreed I have the symptoms and was surprised when the bloods came back normal.

Would taking extra kelp help me??

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply to bigbum

Do not ever take iodine or anything containing high levels of iodine without first being tested for deficiency.

Iodine is necessary for making thyroid hormone, but not all hypothyroidism is due to iodine deficiency. Supplementing it will only help if you are deficient. Taking too much iodine can make things worse instead of better.

If I were you, I would stop all your kelp, etc, and get an iodine test.

As to the raw thyroid, I would be wary because there is no list of ingrédients. I always want to know what's in something before I put it in my mouth. Would your doctor refer you to an endo and get that FT3 done? Because that's what's going to tell you what's really going on.

bigbum profile image
bigbum in reply to greygoose

Hi, I thought that if I took kelp or got some slimming patches with Kelp in, it would help me to lose weight. The same as with the raw thyroid. I'm not getting anywhere with the Dr other than she says to go for an ultrasound for PCOS now. If I only took the Raw thyroid as one a day like it suggests, surely if I start to feel better/lose weight then that would show that was the problem.. What damage can it do?

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply to bigbum

Well, no...

Kelp does not make you lose weight. As I said, iodine is necessary to make thyroid hormone in the thyroid gland. If you are iodine deficient, your gland cannot make enough thyroid hormone so you become hypo and put on weight. True. But not all hypothyroidism is due to iodine deficiency. There are all sorts of reasons for becoming hypo.

IF you are iodine deficient and you take iodine, yes, you may start making thyroid hormones (or you may not) and lose the weight you've put on (hopefully).

But if you are NOT iodine deficient, and you take iodine, it can make you hyper, or more hypo, or even cause Hashi's or cancer.

Also, if you take iodine and you are selenium deficient, that can cause problems too. So, that's two things that need to be tested before you can even think about taking iodine without making yourself worse.

Iodine is not something to take lightly, it can be dangerous in excess. It is not a Wonder cure-all.

As to the Raw Thyroid, as I said, you shouldn't take things without knowing the exact content. As one comment said, she even wrote to the people distributing the product but didn't get a list of ingrédients. That says to me there's something shifty going on. There might be things in there that are contre-indicated. Like iodine!

Synergistic Complex. What does that mean? It probably means stimulants. And if your thyroid is sickening, the last thing it wants is stimulation.

And, as another comment said, just one tablet isn't going to do very much. It could even make you feel worse. Why? Because one tablet will not contain very much hormone. Imagine that your own gland is putting out 50 mcg of hormone a day. You take a tablet that contains 25 mcg (just guessing because impossible to know how much hormone it contains). That is enough to shut your thyroid production down, but not enough to make you feel well.

That means that, in effect, you have had a reduction of 25 mcg of hormone a day. If you didn't feel good on the 50 mcg your gland was making on its own, you're going to feel even worse on the 25 you're getting from the tablet. And that certainly isn't going to make you lose weight! It will probably make you put on more.

Hormones are not things to play around with. You have to know what you're doing or you could get into all sorts of trouble. You know that there is something wrong with your thyroid, but you Don't know what. Your TSH is too high, but because the range is too wide, doctors Don't realise that it's not right - in fact, doctors know nothing about thyroid. End of.

There are things you can do. You can have an iodine test to see if you're iodine deficient. You can ask to see an endo to get your FT3 tested and see if they'll treat you on that basis. You can get your anti-bodies tested because you might have Hashi's. You can get a copy of your blood tests for iron etc and post them here - it might simply be iron deficiency that is causing the problem. You can even wait until your TSH gets higher - as it probably will - and they decide to treat you. But the thing you must not do is mess about taking things you know nothing about because, believe me, there's lots of harm it can do.

shaws profile image
shawsAdministrator

I don't think it would do you any harm as I doubt there isn't too much thyroid hormones in it. It is sold as a supplement so not prescriptive.

This is from thyroiduk.org and you will see some info on the blood tests.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

I think before you go the self-medication route if you have a Free T3 blood test. You can have one done privately from Blue Horizon. At least then you would know for sure that you either need thyroid hormones or not.

If you put a code (I think it is TUK10) you will get a discount. I believe it's a pin-prick.

If your Free T3 is very low I think your GP might prescribe (hopefully). If not I think you might have to purchase proper thyroid hormones and then members can assist you better. As I said it's not preferable to self-medicate but some are forced to have a trial. It cannot do you any harm if you start gradually.

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