Hi all, i posted my original thyroid test results in April. They were TSH 1.99 (0.27-4.20) now 2.91 (0.35-5.50) FT4 12.4 (12.00-22.00) now 13.5(9.00-22.70)
FT3 2.86 (3.10-6.80) now 3.9(3.50-6.50) Whilst i'm pleased to see my T4 & T3 have improved should I be concerned that my TSH has gone up? Any comments would be much appreciated, Jen X
jennystephens1 Did you have both blood tests taken at the same time of day?
To compare results accurately conditions have to be the same, patient to patient tip here when having blood drawn for thyroid tests is to always
1) Book the first appointment of the morning
2) Fast overnight - water allowed
3) Leave off Levo for 24 hours
This gives the highest possible TSH which is needed when looking for an increase in dose or to avoid a reduction, and as conditions are the same every time then accurate comparison can be made with results.
Hi, yes they were taken at 9am having fasted overnight. I should have explained I did not take the NDT which I had been prescribed (nor do I take any other thyroid medication) but decided to try and get my low levels of vit B12, Vit D (also taking Vit K2 MK7) and iron (taking iron complex) up to see if they would improve my FT3 & FT4. (The doc who prescribed the NDT also told me to supplement with selenium and zinc picolate. Bought them but haven't taken any, just got tested and selenium 112 (65-150) and zinc serum 27.6! (11-18). Is it bad that my TSH has risen?
Well, supplementing with the vitamins and minerals could have helped and that's why there's been the slight improvement in FT3 and FT4 but that's not a given as nothing is static anyway.
Your TSH is rising and could be showing that your thyroid is struggling, but doctors tend to wait until it reaches 10 before they will confirm a diagnosis of hypothyroidism.
Did you follow up on research into central hypothyroidism as mentioned in your earlier thread here healthunlocked.com/thyroidu... because that's very likely what you're looking at.
I would discuss the over range zinc with the doctor who prescribed the NDT. I don't have any knowledge of the signficance of this.
Yes I did read up on central hypothyroidism but since my body temperature has gone up to 'normal' I hardly have any of the sypmtoms that I originally posted and my thyroid test results are now within range. I still have a very low resting heart rate but that could be because I exercise loads..insomnia is my biggest problem, i've had it for 10 years and I have just found out that my cortisol levels are very high (which presumably could account for the insomnia!)
I will definitely discuss the over range zinc with the doctor, thank you for your advice, Jen
Yes high cortisol might account for insomnia. Also dehydration and low calories/nutritional deficiency. Just in case it's involved, unstable sugar levels can cause high cortisol so might be worth monitoring these for a few day with cheap pack from pharmacy. The more stable you can get them, the better for your adrenals anyway. Not eating enough can cause glucose instability and then adrenals issues and high cortisol and these issues can cause decreased thyroid function as your body will respond by forcing it to slow down and preventing conversion. Worth a think anyway. If you're eating tonnes and around 2000 calories a day or more, then maybe not so likely unless you eating the wrong things lol 
Thank you so much for these really useful suggestions. I think it's a really good idea for me to monitor my sugar levels (will go to chemist today and ask what I need to get!). I eat pretty healthy, exercise lots but must confess to enjoying a few pints of lager prob 4/5 days a week! (could mean blood sugar levels drop in night?)
You can normally get a three day pack - the finger prick tests that diabetics use to monitor.
My adrenals were really low and had suspected addisons but going GF reversed this and now mine are a little high lol! But things like this can affect adrenals and thyroid and effects us all differently and many of us have found improvements so might be worth a try - although that includes beer lol?
Over exercising will lower T3 levels?
Oh no, so cut down on beer and exercise...2 of my favourite things in life lol!
Lol - maybe just temporarily until you get the problem sorted and all balanced and then build back up gradually making sure all okay or ruled out lol! Or maybe just try some gentler forms lol
High cortisol/adrenal issues can suppress TSH and therefore lower T4/T3 levels but also thyroid issues or forming of thyroid probs can cause high cortisol so I suppose it's trying to figure out which is the one initially at fault and if there's anything else involved - like enough calories/blood sugar levels, nutrional levels, stomach issues etc which could effect both lol. Even caffeine can increase cortisol so have a good google on how to lower cortisol and you'll see hundreds of lists.
You may also want to make sure no exercise shortly before blood tests and shortly after may lower results temporarily in people even without thyroid probs.
sorry might take a while but just look at each thing and try looking further or ruling out
It's all so complicated and confusing especially with no/very little sleep! You've pretty much summed up what I have just been thinking..which came first, my sluggish thyroid or high cortisol and because I'd never had tests done for either of these until recently so therefore I can only go by my symptoms. In my 30's and 40's I had panic attacks (insomnia started in early 40's) and I generally felt really anxious much of the time. About 6 years ago I really upped my exercise (cos found it made me feel more relaxed) and only stopped a few months ago doing 2 hours daily of working out extremely hard ie. with heartrate at 160bpm for most of it. Low thyroid symptoms appeared within the last 18 months i would say. Thank you for helping me think through this properly!
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