Results are in advice please

[KGeorge]

Background

Feeling absolutely awful... Eat a very clean diet gluten free dairy free and meat free... (Was) going to the gym 5 days a week now down to 2 simply dont have the energy

Symptoms...unbelievable fatigue...foggy head un explained weight gain even tho i eat clean and train..thinning hair dry skin ect...

Anyway 1st lot of tests by gp on 16/2/16

TSH 3:47

T4 12.4

Serum B12 563 ng/L

Serum folate 7.6 ug/L

Serum ferritin 27 ug/L

2/3/16

250H vit D 102 nmol/L

Serium cortisol 209 nmol/L

Se thyroid peroxidase Ab 129.4

29/3/16

TSH 3.54

T4 11.9

21/04/16

Endo appointment ( no help whatsoever)bloods taken ( havnt seen these results)

13/05/16

Synthacin test ( havnt had results yet)

Results in photo are by BH taken on 2/3/16

I have been supplimenting since end of feb with vit B12 , folate, iron, selenium, vit D3 and vit K2, vit c and magnesium ( the protocall on vitamin d wellness site on FB)

Now stopping vit b12 as i seem to have a good supply of that so im impressed in such a short time

Eager to know why my folate and ferritin do not seem to have moved tho??

I started taking Levotirion 50 mcg on 3/5/16 that i bought over the counter in a pharmacy in Turkey while on holiday i am now 14 days in...no major change as yet

So i would be greatful if someone would be so kind as to shed light on the results...why do i feel so blooming awful... Is levo likely to help or not?? Need help with a plan of action xx

[Jazzw]

You mention a photo - can't see one?

Anyway, yes - levothyroxine should help, though it will take a while, especially as your ferritin was low. How much iron are you taking? It does seem to take ages for ferritin to rise but it's needed for converting T4 to T3, so really needs to be higher.

[Jazzw in reply to Jazzw]

Oh scrub that, photo has just appeared!

I'd keep going with the B12 actually, just take a lower amount. I see you have Hashimoto's so the other thing that might help, if you haven't tried it already, is going gluten free.

[Jazzw in reply to Jazzw]

And double doh, just seen you're already gluten free.

Think I need to up my thyroid hormones - not doing too well this morning, am I?

[greygoose]

14 days is not long enough to see much of a change. All things hormonal take ages to improve.

You feel so blooming awful because your FT3 is so blooming low, right at the bottom of the range, whilst most people need it up the top of the range to feel well. But, Don't be tempted to raise the Levo too soon. You must stay on a dose for six weeks, then increase by 25 mcg. Do you have enough Levo to see you through on a long-term basis? Or are you going back to Turkey?

I Don't know about your folate, but ferritin takes a long time to rise. But, if I were you, I would take a B complex containing methylfolate, rather than just folate, with my B12 because the Bs all work together.

[KGeorge in reply to greygoose]

Hi grey goose yes I have enough to see me thru to my next visit lol....I thought this would happen and gp and endo wd want to wait it out till my TSH hit that magic number of 5...have had all the hormone tests (results are normal apparently and I am awaiting them to be referee to gp so I can have a print out).

I will do as advised and stay on my 50mcg for 6 weeks if I don't have an improvement in symptoms will up another 25 going to research the B's now...have been on foliate, iron and B12 all from amazon and reputed to be filler and nasty free..my ferritin has only gone up .1 in 3 months????? That's pants...think I will start taking it twice a day

[Clutter]

KGeorge,

It takes 7-10 days to absorb Levothyroxine before it starts working and will take up to six weeks to feel the full impact of the dose. You should start feeling some improvement from now but symptoms can lag a couple of months behind good biochemistry.

VitD, B12 and folate are good but ferritin is very low. It can take months of supplementing to raise ferritin. Taking vitamin C with iron aids absorption.

___________________________________________________________________________________________

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.

[Ladywell]

I agree to stay on B12 and make sure the dose is high enough: a very good support group on Facebook can offer that. Folate is needed for B12 to work properly so keep it up too. Last, everyone in the UK and the farther north you live are likely to be Vit D deficient so supps of it can have a big positive impact. You are reading as deficient so find out and take an optimal dose daily. Good luck!

[KGeorge in reply to Ladywell]

Hi ladywell thankyou for your reply that I had responded but it's disappeared? ? Anyway I have indeed been supplimenting with 10,000iu of vit d3 and a vit k2 every day since Feb. ..what wd u suggest wd be an optimal level? It was 102 in Feb. ..

Will continue then with foliate and B12 what would you say wd be optimal.levels for those..

Any ideas on how to get the ferritin up? Up my daily dose? Currently taking 18mg chelated iron

[KGeorge]

Those antibodies..is that positive for hashi or hashi AND graves??

If both isn't that confusing ?? Am I hypo or hyper? Both? ...just typical...can't be a straight fwd case!!

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to KGeorge]

The hallmark for Graves disease is TSH receptor antibodies (TRAB, Thyroid stimulating antibodies, TSI). For which there are no results - and I'd guess you were not tested.

Your results are for Thyroglobulin antibodies (TGab) and Thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOab). These are both common in Hashimoto's and are often regarded as diagnostic.

In fact, some people have TRABs AND TGab or TPOab (or even all three).

You can have Graves and not currently be hyperthyroid. You can have Hashimoto's and not currently be hypothyroid. (It is often pointed out that Hashimoto's can result in periods of at least slight hyperthyroidism even if its eventual result will be hypothyroidism.)

[KGeorge in reply to helvella]

Yup u r correct I wasn't tested for TRAB..so am I right in saying analysing those results I definately have hashi?

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to KGeorge]

Looks right to me!

[humanbean]

Your iron supplement is much, much too low. Most multivitamins (for healthy people) contain 14mg of iron, which is the RDA (recommended daily amount). So 18mg is only maintaining your level, not improving it.

I had to supplement iron, and I had big problems absorbing it.

I was taking ferrous fumarate 210mg, three times a day. Each pill contained 69mg of elemental iron, making my total intake 207mg of iron per day. I took this amount for nearly 2 years. My ferritin level was still not mid-range after the first 18 months. I gave up gluten then and was lucky it did the trick - my ferritin shot up to just over mid-range, which was when I stopped supplementing.

I'm not saying that you need to take as much as I did, I'm just pointing out that you can safely take a much higher dose than you currently do (if you can tolerate it). Ferrous fumarate (the one I took) can be hard for people to tolerate. One that often gets recommended that works well for many people is iron or ferrous bisglycinate, also known as Gentle Iron. You can buy it on Amazon. I've never taken it so can't recommend a brand.

Once you start supplementing iron you will need to get tested fairly frequently because if you do start absorbing it well you have to be wary of overdosing. Iron overload is dangerous and poisonous. Given how low your ferritin level is currently I would suggest testing in three months is soon enough to begin with.

[mistydog in reply to humanbean]

Solgar Gentle Iron is 100% of your RDA, 250mg I think, from Amazon or other health websites.