I have been suffering with anxiety, depression, weight gain, fatigue, ibs, itchy puffy eyes, hot and cold, thirstiness, migraines and much more over the years, my thyroid has been checked and these were the results. My doctor has said they are normal and if anything I would be hyperthyroid not hypo, so obviously it cant be my thyroid. I have always put it down to a hormonal imbalance since suffering severe PND after my first child 28 years ago. I am feeling very unwell and just wanted to ask if this was normal. thank you. Any feedback would be greatly received. I do have other test results on my printouts but was unsure of what if anything else would be needed.
Nov 2007
T4 17 pmol/L (10-22)
TSH - 1.1 mu/L (0.30 - 5.50)
May 2009
15 pmol/L (10-22)
TSH 0.68 (0.30 - 5.50)
November 2009
T4 - 10.1 (7.5 - 21.1)
TSH - 0.52 (0.34 - 5.6)
March 2010
T4 - 11.0 (7.5 - 211)
TSH - 0.66 (0.34 - 5.6)
T3 - 4.8 pmo/L (range 3.5 - 5.6)
Sept 2011
T 4 13.5 pmol/L (7.5 - 21.1)
TSH - 0.76mu/L (0.34 - 5.6)
Written by
Lowlo
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Although your results are in the 'normal' range - you symptoms indicate there's def. something going on. I would suggest asking for the following tests too...
TPO ,TgAb antibodies - Thyroid problems are often of the autoimmune variety.
Iron & storage iron -Ferritin
B12 & folate
Vitamin D - do you feel better in summer? (most of us do and most of us are low).
you should have been tested for diabetes regarding the thirst.
avoiding wheat and/or gluten can help IBS (& autoimmune diseases)
Adrenals often come into play too - but GPs hardly ever test them.
Best to read up - have a look here on HU and on the main Thyroid UK site-
Lowell, there's absolutely nothing in those results to justify the doctor's suggestion of hyperthyroidism. TSH would be <0.03 and FT4 and FT3 above range if you were hyperthyroid. Results weren't hypothyroid then either although FT4 could have been higher.
Those results are almost 4 years old and thyroid levels may have changed drastically during that time so ask for a new thyroid test. Ask for ferritin, vitamin D, B12 and folate to be tested too. Symptoms of deficiency are musculoskeletal pain, fatigue and low mood which are similar to hypothyroid symptoms.
These results are a few years old... there is nothing to tell what is happening with your thyroid now. When is the last time you had tests done? Was it really almost 4 years ago, back in September 2011? A lot can happen in four years.
I'm also going to suggest that you might have elevated histamine levels, and possibly progesterone deficiency/estrogen dominance. Sparerib is also correct in that your adrenals come into play - your ovarian and adrenal hormones are almost never accounted for with conventional doctors, despite the HPA/OAT/HPT axes - meaning that all hormone balances are dependent on each other. If one goes out of balance, it throws them all out of balance. Estrogen toxicity exacerbates thyroid hormone; cortisol excess exacerbates thyroid hormone; low thyroid hormone exacerbates progesterone deficiency, and so on. Too much estrogen lowers thyroid activity (less thyroid hormone can enter the tissues, and less conversion takes place). Additionally estrogen has been found, when in excess, to cause allergic reactions to other things to be intensified - raising histamine levels as well as cortisol - and some people can even become allergic to their own estrogen, which would keep the allergic histamine-cortisol response chronically elevated, further reducing thyroid hormone activity. All the while, as this happens, blood tests show thyroid levels as "normal" - as if taking a sampling of the public, who may be a complete mixture of hypo and hyperthyroid people, and delegating an average range could possibly tell doctors what YOUR optimum range should be - and saying all is well if your numbers fit somewhere within the "normal" range. As if we're not real people with real symptoms, but rather just a bunch of numbers. Anything to make their job easier, never mind the needless suffering. Then you try to tell them about the latest studies, and they may as well cover their ears and sing (scream) "LALALALALALA I CAN'T HEAR YOU! - My mind is made up! Don't confuse me with the facts!" (Please excuse my anger.)
It would be good to know what your current tests say, and it would be good to see what else is going on that is outside the normal search for hypothyroidism. If you can find out what's going on with your cortisol levels, your estrogen : progesterone ratio, antibodies (Hashimotos AND Graves), your protein/albumin levels, creatinine (high creatinine suggests hypothyroidism; low creatinine indicates hyperthyroidism) - you can get the bigger picture of what's going on in your body. It is never normal to feel as you are feeling, and don't let doctors tell you you're "normal" when you're feeling that way just because they can't see past a sheet full of numbers.
Thank you for your reply, I will go back yet again,perhaps, I just suffer with depression and anxiety, I have struggled for many years and sadly I think the gp thinks I am a hypochondriac and I am beginning to think I probably am and that it is all just me. I had a normal blood test not thyroid a few months ago, that came back normal not sure what was on it. The creatinine level in Sept 2011 was 76umol/L (53.0 - 97.) Albumin level 40 g/l (35-48) Ferritin 83 u/L (11-307). And in 2010 Creatinine level 77 umol/L (53. - 97) Ferritin 29 ug/L (11. - 307.) Albumin level (41g/L (35-48). My hormone levels I have no idea.
It's a sad thing when those who are the ones we go to for help - whose job it is to understand the human body - are ignorant, and project their ineptitude and helplessness on to us, causing us further distress in believing there is such a thing as hypochondria when we legitimately feel awful. It's reprehensible. Lowlo, this is on them, not you.
You might want to check out the Perrin Clinic. At the very least, get Dr. Perrin's book "The Perrin Technique" on Amazon, and read it. I think you will find it helpful.
Sending you hugs and hope you can get to the bottom of it, and get well.
Also the Vitamin B12 I cant work out what it means but it looks like it was only tested in 2010 unless it has been done again since on a different test but then it says B12 340 ng/L more than 160 ng/L deficiency excluded. folate level 5.6 ug/L (3.-17) plasma c reactive protein level 2.00 mgl/L (0.00 - 7.5)
Lowlo in 2010 your ferritin was dreadfully low. It should be half way in the range. Your B12 is too low as well and should be at least 5 or 600. Also your folate could be doing with being higher, more than half way in the range. Hope that helps. xx
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