I posted recently on behalf of my girlfriend, who has Hashimoto's and often has episodes of feeling numb and dizzy with an uneven heartbeat. Her test results usually come back as normal. To read about it in more detail, here is my last post: healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...
Anyway, the other night, she phoned because she was having a really severe one of these episodes. She felt scared to fall asleep because she was numb, and it felt like her breathing was infrequent and not happening automatically, and her heart was racing, so she went to the hospital. Her heart rate was elevated (138 bpm, I think), so they gave her some Propranolol, but she was too freaked out to take it, and eventually her heart slowed.
She had blood tests after that, and they came back within the normal ranges (attached). Does anyone have any insight on this? Could something else be causing this? Is it normal to feel such severe illness? It really can seem like she's dying when it happens.
Thanks.
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jessicafallible
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I am sorry your girlfriend is feeling so bad. I could be due to an ingredient in levothyroxine she is using. Different makes of levothyroxine may have different fillers/binders.
I myself had very similar when on levothyroxine. When some T3 (liothyronine) was added to a reduced levo it helped a lot and calmed my system down.
I now take T3 only. Propronol (betablockers) can interfere with the uptake of levothyroxine but sometimes they have to be taken - if so I would take them quite a long time after I've taken levothyroxine, which should be take first thing with a glass of water.
Also with Hashimoto's she can have a flood of antibodies which can make her feel awful.
This pharmacist has Hashimoto's herself and many members said her book has been very helpful:
Sorry, I forgot to put this in the original post, but she isn't on any medication. I guess her levels have always shown up normal, so she hasn't been prescribed anything.
She said she does get the floods of antibodies, though. She also doctors don't usually test her antibodies, though, because there's nothing they can do about it anyway, I guess.
If you can get a copy of her latest thyroid results with the ranges it will be helpful. Also if she has thyroid antibodies, she SHOULD be on levothyroxine. Also post the results of the antibodies results.
I just updated the photo on my original post with the results and ranges, but they didn't do the antibodies test. I will tell her about the Levothyroxine. Thanks!
Hi! I just updated the original post, so the photo should show the figures after the results.
I looked at some other people's results on this message board, and the ranges seemed different. It's weird that different hospitals have the ranges marked differently! Is there a reason for that?
The reason why the ranges are different is that the labs may use different machines which have different ranges. That's why knowing the ranges are helpful.
Jessicafallible, your friend's TSH indicates she is struggling to produce FT4 which is low in range, although her FT3 is currently good. Unfortunately most doctors don't diagnose hypothyroidism until TSH is over range ie >4.94 or FT4 is below range ie <0.93.
There is no cure or treatment for Hashimoto's but 100% gluten-free diet may be helpful in reducing symptoms, flares and antibodies.
Your friend should consider taking Propranolol when her heart rate feels uncomfortably fast because it will slow down the heart rate. Some people take it 3 x daily but others prefer to take it as and when required.
The ref ranges are based on population averages local to each lab which is why they can vary from lab to lab and across regions and countries.
I am not a medical professional and this information is not intended to be a substitute for medical guidance from your own doctor. Please check with your personal physician before applying any of these suggestions.
She probably has Hashimotos, to tell ask her doctor to do the TPO. True there isn't a cure but you can control it, google Marc Ryan, he has a hashimoto website. He and his daughter both have it, he can be a great resource. I have all kinds of weird symptoms that are over active thyroid symptoms, even though mine is underactive.
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