Last time this was tested I took my 150 mcg levo at 6 a.m. (duh) and had blood drawn at noon (duh). TSH was 0.2 and endo was not pleased. Low end of range is 0.5. I told her 'don't worry about it. Next time it'll be fine.' I was hoping she'd sign me off for 12 months but NOOO. grumblegrumble.
Today, ta daaa, I did not take the levo and got the blood drawn at 8:30 a.m. Score! There were no patients waiting at the blood lab so I scooted right in and got it done in record time.
I ticked the HbA1c test on the lab requisition (she should have because it has been going up over the past three years except now I've lost 22 pounds and I NEED TO KNOW. I need to lose another 20 pounds and sure as heck that won't happen if she decides to lower the dose.)
Appointment is next week on Thursday. Wish me luck peeps! The TSH has to be 0.5 or higher to keep the endo happy. I'm really curious to find out if skipping the morning dose and getting blood drawn as early as possible will make a difference.
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gabkad
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Lots of luck gabkad . This is such hard work when you're fighting your medics. shaws will be along in a mo' with some wise words about some of us needing an indiscernible TSH to feel well.
22 pounds is amazing ! Well done you xx As I would say if I lived in Essex, I'm well jel ( rather jealous, what what ?)
There's more to go. 10 pounds between now and the end of the year and another 10 pounds next year. I've been wearing clothing that I couldn't get into last year and now it's baggy. Better baggy than tight. There's still some clothes that are too tight so a few more inches will solve that problem. I just don't want to end up looking gaunt. 10 years ago I was 20 pounds lighter than i am now and I looked gaunt even though BMI was 23.6 which is ideal but not if I look bad. Mind you the levo was only 112 mcg as opposed to current 150 mcg. My skin is really good right now. I want to keep it that way.
I just feel better and I know exactly what I have to do in order to gradually lose the excess weight. How I'm doing it can be a permanent way of life. Initially I was listening to Dr. Michael Mosley but his 5:2 doesn't really appeal. I just eat half as much as I used to eat. No seconds. I wasn't eating baked goodies, snack junkfood and stuff like that to begin with. Just real food. Too much food. Home cooked. No 'convenience foods' as shortcuts. No sugar, honey, jam, etc. etc. all the sweet stuff was off the menu before. Lots of vegetables, pulses, potatoes, basmati rice plus small amounts of meat, fish, shellfish, cheese, etc. I cut down on the fats but this is not a low fat diet. Just a lower fat diet. Extremely small amounts of fruit, if ever. No dried fruit. No nuts.
I started an allotment garden this year. Lots of activity weeding, watering, etc. We had a drought. Fresh 'organic' produce most days. It wasn't cheaper than buying groceries because of how much money it cost to set up the garden the way I want it. Next year should be much cheaper since everything is now all set up. The start up costs were high but I'm picky and I want my garden to not only produce excellent produce but I also want it to look beautiful. If it produces next year like it did this year, I'm buying a small chest freezer. Then I won't need to be buying much produce.
I'm sure it will Gabkad. I feel that we are conjurers at times - sleight of hand etc.
However, I did a post earlier this week and this is some excerpts from it. i.e. all of the test subjects weren't hypo at all when researchers began the exercise which covered.
"The Hunt Study measured thyroid function with the TSH test in 17,000 women and 8,000 men with no known thyroid disease or heart disease. All patients had "normal TSH" levels meaning the TSH values were in the lab reference range of 0.5 to 3.5. The women were stratified into three groups, lower TSH, intermediate and upper TSH levels, and mortality from heart disease was recorded over an 8 year observation period".
"70% Increase in Heart Disease Mortality for TSH in Upper Normal Range
Heart Attack with Occluded Artery The Hunt study found that group with the higher TSH had a 70% increased mortality from heart disease compared to the lower TSH group. Remember all these TSH vales were in the normal lab range. See chart below for results of the Hunt Study:
Results of the Hunt Study below:
TSH Death from Heart Disease
Group 1 0.50-1.4 baseline risk
Group 2 1.5-2.4 40% higher than baseline
Group 3 2.5-3.5 70% higher than baseline
"This Finding is Earthshaking !! This means that merely by taking natural thyroid pills to reduce TSH to the low end of "normal" (0.5), one can reduce death from cardiovascular disease by 70 percent. This mortality benefit is mind boggling and far exceeds any drug intervention available".
Yes it is, so might it not be more important for hypo patients to be treated optimally as we know many aren't. We also know a higher cholesterol level can be associated with hypo.
The following link is from Dr Lowe and a remark from Dr Skinner:-
Dr L also goes on to say:-
In fact, I’ve ended my clinical relationships with a few patients who carried on with large dosages of T3 while declining to use these heart-protective methods. I considered these patients and the physicians who continued their T3 prescriptions foolhardy. Fortunately, most of our patients have been fully cooperative and safety minded. From experiences with these latter patients, I’m convinced that their use of these protective methods is responsible for none having had adverse cardiac effects.
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