Depression not me but thyroid

[lynnejeant]

I have hypothyroidism for nearly 10 yrs and despite being on 75 mcg of Levo the symptoms have not altered much. Particularly feeling depressed and brain fog. Over the years I have psychological addressed any issues I genuinely did have and accepted the outcome. However, I am still getting low feeling episodes when I shouldn't be. Other than the illness my daily life is settled and complete as it can be.

How can I convince my GP to investigate my thyroid further? I don't ever get to see my blood test results. It's been in the normal range for some years. However the blood test form shows only test for TSH and nothing else. Does this measure T4 and T3?

Very grateful for any time someone has to give a bit of advice.

[BadHare]

That's really sad. Can you change GP to someone who is competent?

[Hidden]

Do you have the means for private lab testing? Its often suggested here when these roadblocks occur. Better yet find another GP! This one sounds like they are not acknowledging your concerns at all! Depression and brain fog are common symptoms, and you deserve better than this subpar "treatment". Hopefully this is the start of a turning point in your care. X Rusty

[Heloise]

Hi Lynne, it's so unnecessary for you to suffer. Depression is a thyroid symptom. I'll post a short video describing the effect on serotonin and dopamine. Your brain needs T3, so does your heart, so the blood test for FT3 is really essential. If you are in the UK, I understand they prefer just a TSH test and I thought a free T4 test. Is that not correct? Anyway, the way this works is that you take your Levo which is T4 (your own thyroid would produce mostly T4 but also T3, 2, 1 and calcitonin). The T4 needs to go through the liver and be processed into FT3. You have to be pretty healthy for this to occur and FT3 is the active part of the hormone and when it gets into every cell of your body (including your brain and heart) you should get rid of your symptoms. NDT has thyroid more like humans so is often preferable.

youtube.com/watch?v=nZ_CP7l...(Not working as expected?)

[Nanny23 in reply to Heloise]

What an excellent video. Thankyou so much for sharing that.

[Heloise in reply to Nanny23]

So glad, Nanny. He really highlights almost all of the possibilities causing low thyroid. Go to You Tube and find the rest. 20 Reasons for Low Thyroid by David Clark.

[Heloise]

Lynne, it's illegal not to let you see your results. I'm not in the UK but others here can tell you how to go about it. Would you consider getting your own testing? You can ask about that, I think all the thyroid function tests can be done privately. medichecks.com/thyroid-health

[lynnejeant]

Thanks everyone who has written a reply here. I have found it really useful and going to investigate seretonin supplement further. As for changing GP and going private. Too many other commitments to make time and not on the sort of income to go private.

[Heloise in reply to lynnejeant]

lynne, I think he advises that if you find the cause of being hypo, the serotonin issue will resolve itself. Straightening out the gut will help because that is where the serotonin is made. The idea is that functional medicine tries to get your body back to normal. Some people use 5HTP.