What do I do?!

[Michelleyd28]

Hi everyone,I'm in the US. I have good insurance but I have seen primary, endocrinologist,and metabolic weight Dr. They will not do anything for me, wondering if it's worth it to pay to see a functional medicine doctor? Have tested TSH every month,1.8,2.9,5.1,2.8,and 3.0. I feel I have every symptom,cold,tired,can't lose weight,sore,hair loss,last 1/3 of eyebrows have disappeared. I also have fibromyalgia and know some of my symptoms can be related to that too. What do you think?

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Before seeing anyone else I would be getting full thyroid tests to include

TSH

FT4

FT3

TPO antibodies

TG antibodies

With your TSH fluctuating like it is, it's possible that you have autoimmune thyroid disease.

[greygoose]

Do you always do your tests at the same time of day and fasting? TSH is highest early in the morning, and drops throughout the day. It also drops after eating.

[Michelleyd28 in reply to greygoose]

The 5.1 was in the morning,fasting. The 3.0 I took yesterday was at noon,but fasting. The other lower numbers were all in the afternoon,no fasting,taking vitamins. Magnesium,biotin,fish oil. I know biotin affects the test now,that was the 1.8. Of course I found that out myself,not from Dr!

[greygoose in reply to Michelleyd28]

No, doctors wouldn't know!

So, anyway, you can't really compare those results, can you, because they were all done under different conditions. So, what you really need to do, is start again. If you get two tests showing elevated TSH, at three monthly intervals, then you are hypo. Whether or not the TSH would be high enough to impress a doctor, I don't know. But, you will know.

However, I've never been very impressed by the treatment given by functional doctors. I don't think they necessarily know much about thyroid. Very often, they want to prescribe iodine. And, that is absolutely the wrong thing to do, unless you are deficient. Could you not, rather, see a private endo?

[Michelleyd28 in reply to greygoose]

I saw one already,she prescribed vit d,it was 18. My TPO showed no hashimotos. So she didn't think I needed anything else. Didn't care about symptoms

[greygoose in reply to Michelleyd28]

No, they don't care about symptoms - they don't even know what the symptoms are! But, she was right to give you vit D.

Doctors care about the TSH, which is why I say to get to tests done under the right conditions, so that your TSH will be at its maximum. When your TSH is high enough, they will start caring.

Antibodies fluctuate, so one negative test doesn't entirely rule it out. Besides, there are two types of Hashi's antibody - TPO and Tg. They both need testing.

[Michelleyd28]

Thanks!