Hi there. Trying to keep this brief. I am now 18 weeks pregnant. Recently diagnosed fibromyalgia. Chronic fatigue, joint pains, chronic pelvic pain, feeling cold all time, pale and washed out appearance.....needless to say on antidepressants. Felt like I had been hit by a bus since I had my son in 2012. He was born by emcs for placental abruption.
GP had checked tfts due to fatigue and in 2014 my tsh was 0.03 t4 15 t3 5.2. My most recent tsh is 0.48. Well due to extensive thyroid disease family history and my mums diagnosis of hashimotos I asked for tpo antibodies and my levels were 718. I got excited thinking there might be hope and maybe I can have thyroxine. Well no, the GP, obstetrician and endo all think my thyroid levels are fine despite hashimotos and that I need no further treatment and that there is no risk to the baby!!!!
Is there no hope for me?? I hate wasting my life in bed exhausted and its straining my marriage and has an affect on my 2 year old. Not to mentioned. The fact I have left my Job as a nurse cause I can't cope with the pace anymore.
Advice welcome please. I have bought the thyroid UK info pack and I have a list of private doctors and I am willing to go see them now. But I wonder will they avoid me because I am pregnant but surely that should be even more reason to help me. I need someone who is really proactive and informed!!
Many thanks. Xx
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soapymum
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Soapymum, it's not your pregnancy that will prevent you getting treatment it is your thyroid levels. Your TSH is actually quite low for someone not on thyroid medication but your FT4 15 and FT3 5.2 would preclude treatment. This isn't to say that your symptoms aren't due to Hashimoto's but that doctors seem blind to the awful symptoms it can cause and don't accept that elevated antibodies cause thyroid symptoms when thyroid levels are within normal range.
Many members find a gluten-free diet helpful in managing Hashi flares and reducing antibodies. It may be worth trying for a couple of months.
Email louise.warvill@thyroiduk.org.uk for a list of NHS and private endos recommended by members but I think you will struggle to get a diagnosis unless your FT4 and FT3 have fallen below range.
Hi clutter I have read that people with euthyroid hashi can get signifigant relief with thyroid treatment? And that your body might not be responding to the thyroid levels anyhow. Would be interesting to see what urine levels thyroid were like. Part of me wants my thyroid gland to die but I realise I need to calm down the autoimmune disease rather than blame my battered old thyroid. Xx
Soapymum, High dose Levothyroxine does suppress Hashimoto's attacks and antibodies in some, but not all patients, but they will have low thyroid hormones. High dose Levothyroxine prescribed to a patient with TSH, FT4 and FT3 within low-normal range would cause overmedication which has significant health risks apart from being extremely unpleasant. Calming the antibodies is probably your best course of action.
NHS doesn't treat the underlying cause of the autoimmune disease (Hashimoto's) but treats the resulting low thyroid hormone (hypothyroidism) with Levothyroxine. Symptoms can precede abnormal bloods for years. Many people think that all autoimmune disease starts in the gut which is why Hashimoto's patients are often advised to try a gluten-free diet which can help to reduce Hashi flares and antibodies but g-f isn't successful for everyone. thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...
Do you have the ranges for the FT4 and FT3 results that you've quoted? Without those, it's not ideal for anyone to offer suggestions as to what you can do. Also, if your most recent test was only TSH 0.48 and no FT4 and FT3 were done, then that also does not give a clear enough picture.
As I understand it (and going by personal experience too), thyroid hormone levels in someone with antibodies can fluctuate a lot from high to low over years before things finally stabilise and you end up being either diagnosed as hypO or hypER.
So, my suggestion for now would be to get a full thyroid panel done (i.e. TSH, FT4, Ft3 and antibodies) to see where you are at the moment. If your medics won't do this for you, you can do your own private test. Private test details on the main website here thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...
When you have those results, it may give an indication of how you can go forward.
I agree with reallyfedup, you have all the symptoms of UAT and the anti-depressants should be the first to go! Wean yourself off them and refuse to have any more prescriptions for them, they use up T3 and its the last thing your body needs right now. Doctors are paid to prescribe anti - depressants and other tablets and are quite willing to treat the symptoms separately and not diagnose you properly. No matter how 'good' you think your GP is they have been taught wrong!
I am just pointing out that depression can exist (1) separately to hypothyroidism and (2) linked to hypothyroidism.
I just think it's maybe irresponsible to advise to wean off the ADs, we don't really know all the ins and outs of Soapymum's medical history. I'm sure she doesn't want to take ADs in pregnancy, being a nurse etc, she'll have thought long +hard about that issue.
I agree rach67 that telling someone to wean off ADs is not appropriate. Even if the depression is real and the cause is thyroid, it does not mean the ADs cannot be helpful. For some, ADs do not help, for others they can help. It depends on the individual and the particular type of ADs they are taking.
Hello. I had the same problem when I was pregnant (also v bad pelvis issues!). I saw 4 GPS in England and eventually got one to refer me to consultant who then said of course it's your thyroid even though my blood were normal. I was then given thyroxine and was transformed. He said there can be delay in showing up in bloods. Go luck and hang on in there.
Hi! I really feel for you, I had a placental abruption with my daughter 6 weeks early and despite me hemorrhaging they let me labour naturally..most traumatic experience of my life. Despite bleeding all through my pregnancy I was told it was just one of those things! Thankfully 2nd pregnancy and labour was much easier but i think it was then my thryoid/hashi's went in to overdrive and then stared to give up.. Took a while to finally diagnose me and I was bedridden at one point with two children to care for. I am on levo now and although not 100% I'm back at work part time and trying to get some sort of normality back (although I fear I may never truly feel like the old me) I hope you can get some help and feel well again. It's heartbreaking to feel you are missing out when your children are so young. Getting all my vitamins up seems to helped a bit too! Take care x
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