So what next?

[littlepotofjelly]

Hello, sorry for a second post on this forum today - feeling a bit low and lost right now.

I got my blood results back today and my TSH is at 3.1 (range 0.27- 4.2). Don't have antibodies so not autoimmune. I've had some great advice already from Clutter and Shaws that this is a sign my thyroid is starting to struggle. (full results history is in my last post from earlier today).

What I don't quite understand is what to do next. I need to take some action because my concentration levels are so low and it's affecting my work quite badly. I'm such a slow thinker these days and that's not like me.

So what can I be doing now that's productive for my health?

Are there other things that could cause a TSH to be on the higher side (E.g. other hormone imbalances or dietary issues). And if so, is it possible to reduce the TSH naturally and prevent it from becoming full blown hypothyroidism in the future? Obviously I would rather do that than have to just wait for it to become worse and then take medication always.

I'm sorry if this seems like a stupid question - I've just been doing lots of reading and trying to understand how the thyroid interacts with other systems in the body but I can't quite get my head around it all.

Also, from reading on here it seems like adding magnesium to my current supplement routine might help. How much per day do people take?

Thanks for any help people can offer - just feeling stuck at the moment. I just want to feel better.

[greygoose]

It's not the TSH that causes you to be hypo. High TSH is just an indication that you are hypo. It's a hormone that the pituitary secrets when it senses that there isn't enough thyroid hormone in the blood. The TSH rises to try and stimulate the thyroid into making more hormone. If the thyroid cannot respond, the TSH just gets higher and higher.

What makes you hypo, and causes your thyroid not to respond to the stimulation, is another question entirely. And, unless your antibodies are high, you'll never know. But, keeping the TSH low, will not stop you getting more hypo. If that were even possible. But, the only thing that can lower the TSH, is thyroid hormone replacement - taking 'medication' always, as you say. It is for life because there's no cure for a failing thyroid, and you can't live without thyroid hormones.

Having said that, there are other things that can cause the TSH to rise, such as a virus. That is why doctors retest in three months after the first high TSH, to give any virus time to burn itself out. But, if the TSH is still high, then it's telling you you're hypo.

Magnesium will not affect your TSH. But, it might help you feel better in some ways. People take anything from 200 mg to 400 mg. Best to start low and work up to the higher dose.

[Heloise]

Hi little, we all understand how overwhelming this is and you should take action. This man explains how the process works which you should learn. Definitely take magnesium, your adrenals use it but try to get something without stearic acid. I'm sure you had good advice on your other post but take time to watch this and learn.

youtube.com/watch?v=T_Re4ja...(Not working as expected?)