I've suspected for a while I had a thyroid condition and joined here last week after doing the Thyroid Check Ultravit. After reading about how many people are fobbed off I wanted to come somewhere where there are people who are experienced. Thyroid Function
Could anyone help me with these please. It seems that THYROID STIMULATING HORMONE, THYROGLOBULIN ANTIBODY , and FERRITIN are all high, especially the latter two. I'd be grateful. I've never seen a doctor regarding any of this before.
Thanks in advance. If a screenshot would be better please let me know and I will upload one.
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Gypsophelia
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Due to your very high antibody levels you have an Autoimmune Thyroid Disease called Hashimoto's. The treatment is the same as hypothyroid as the antibodies attack your gland (they wax and wane until you are hypothyroid). Going gluten-free can reduce the antibodies a lot which might help prevent/reduce attacks.
Others will respond to your other results
Doctors are told in the UK that we shouldn't be given levothyroxine until TSH is 10 but if we have antibodies we should be prescribed levothyroxine. The fact that your TSH is just above the range and you have antibodies he should prescribe 50mcg levothyroxine to start with.
Blood tests should always be at the very earliest, fasting and if taking thyroid hormone replacements (levo usually) allow a gap of 24 hours approx between last dose and the test and take afterwards. Levothyroxine should be taken first thing with one full glass of water and wait about an hour before eating. Food interferes with the uptake. If you prefer you can take it at bedtime, as long as you've last eaten about 2.5 to 3 hours previously. If taking at bedtime, you miss this dose if having a test next a.m. and take afterwards and at night as usual.
I've never taken any type of thyroid medication. I'm self diagnosed and decided to do the tests after coming on here. I'm already looking at the gluten free diet. I'd love to have some energy again and my waist back. Thank you for your help, I'm not sure whether to go to a GP or cut to the chase and find a private practitione who specialises
If you live in the UK it might be worth going to your GP first as once diagnosed hypothyroid and needing levothyroxine, you get free medication supplied by the NHS although this is restricted to what the CCG's allow it seems.
As Nanaedake suggests, make an appointment to see your GP. Hypothyroidism is classed as a serious condition if untreated. You can tell him you've taken advice from the NHS Choices for advice/help about dysfunctions of the thyroid gland and because you have very high antibodies you should begin on 50mcg of levothyroxine. and as your TSH is now just over -range. If he doesn't agree email louise.roberts@thyroiduk.org.uk who has a Pulse online article by a Doctor who was President of the British Thyroid Association in which he says antibodies should be treated.
Once diagnosed we do not pay for any other diagnoses or any other conditions or prescriptions.
I am not medically qualified as are most on this forum. It is only our personal experiences before being diagnosed or afterwards that brought us to search for information. Most have recovered - by that I mean they are on an optimum of thyroid hormones to relieve all clinical symptoms. You cannot recover from hypothyroidism as our prescriptions will be life-long.
What concerns me is the merry go round I may be getting on if I go to my GP. I had a DVT a few years ago and it took them weeks and weeks of fobbing me off before anything got sorted out. Are they likely to take the medicheck results at face value or am I likely to face a whole new load of tests/disbelief/ignorance of the facts. Can I just visit and present the results? Thank you again.
I would take along Medichecks (they'll probably want to do their own).
You will find they want to do TSH and T4 first so remember to have early test, fasting etc. Doctors in the UK have been told not to diagnose until TSH is 10 which is the highest in the world. I have no idea where they plucked this figure from because if our TSH starts to rise above 4 we will have clear symptoms but they know none. Other countries diagnose around 3.
You can say you are feeling so bad and not getting anywhere with the NHS that you took the advice of the NHS Choices for help/advice and followed their instructions and that with high Antibodies you should be given 50mcg of levo to start and 25mcg increases every six weeks until you feel well.
Your TSH is high (as are TG antibodies) but your free T4 and free T3 are good - a bit strange. Has GP suggested an ultrasound or any other investigation for nodules? Something is raising your TSH, but it isn't low thyroid hormones
I've not seen a GP, I'm not registered and moving soon so I would rather go private and get it sorted out quickly. Thank you for your help. I've got not clue as to why my results are so up and down.
Thank you for your advice. Who would you recommend that I see. I can't imagine the local doctor taking me at all seriously with this. I'm taking your concern seriously and would like to go the quickest route.
It might be nothing - you might be one of the small percentage of people with naturally high TSH.
Really don't know. Perhaps an endo on louise's list of endos with a clue or ask GP for an endo referral and mention fear of thyroid cancer (doesn't have to be true) and exaggerate symptoms (eso any other pituitary-type symptoms if you have them)
Your high ferritin is rather worrying. You need to mention it to a doctor and ask for the relevant checking to be done for haemochromatosis (or hemochromatosis - US Spelling). I'm sure it isn't the only cause of high ferritin, and there could well be other conditions which need to be checked for.
I agree. Haemochromatosis/high levels of iron can also damage the pituitary gland that produces TSH which might be why your TSH is high but your T4 and T3 look OK. As others have said there may is also the possibility of a tumour so please give the results to a GP as soon as possible and push for further investigation/referrals. It could get very expensive going private. If one GP doesn't help, go and see another one. Keep making appointments until they do something! A GP would have to be quite foolhardy to ignore results like this.
Please do come back and let us know how you get on.
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