This is the first time i have ever fasted for the thyroid test. Surprisingly they are the same. However, I need help as i learned on this site some additional test that are needed but i had never had. Anyone tell me thoughts based on results please. As no Dr here would be able to
I am on :
20mcg Cytomel in the am and 15mcg Cytomel in the PM
125mcg synthroid
Test results
T4 Free 1.0 - .8-1.8
T3 Free 2.6 - 2.3-4.2
TSH .02 - .40-4.50
Thyroglob.Antibodies <1 <or=1
Thyroid Per. Anti./thyroid Perox. 2 <9
Thanks in advance...im learning so much from this group
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Pittsburgh
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No I do not self medicate. I have a MD of natural medicine that has had me on Cytomel for 10years. But, I dont not think he knows as much as you guys do. He has never tested my Free T3/T4 or antibodies. Best I have ever felt. I am a 48 yr old marathon runner with 2 kids, hubby and I run my own company. I have Pituitary Dysfunction/Hypoadrenal .
It such a part of my life. I run one in the spring and one in the fall. Last year though i ran 2 back to back and had to take cortisol because my adrenals crashed. Do i need more T3? Im confused b/c Pam stated i was on a lot of t3 but my test was low for t3?
Get your vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12 tested.
But as Hidden says......many of us would be pleased to be able to run for even 15mins. It may not be possible to medicate to enable intense sport & prolonged high energy output.
My vit D is 60...my ferritin is 21. I know that is super bad. But the only way I was able to raise it was getting IV Iron. I did that for a year. It was too much and I didnt feel any different.
It's an all round picture that needs to be looked at to get you well. May be ease back on the exercise to something more gental, walking or swimming but try to see if that allows FT3 to rise. If it does then you will have to concider that all the running is not good for you in terms of health.
Do you have the units of measurement and the reference ranges for these results? Do you know any results for iron, hemoglobin, transferrin saturation, total iron binding capacity (TIBC)?
Do you have results for vitamin B12 and folate?
How do you take your thyroid meds?
They need to be taken with plenty of water on an empty stomach, an hour before food or two hours after food to maximise absorption. Various supplements can reduce your absorption of thyroid meds. Most supplements and prescribed medicines should be taken 2 hours away from thyroid meds, but calcium, iron, vitamin D supplements, magnesium and oestrogen should be taken 4 hours away from thyroid meds.
A healthy person with a healthy thyroid would create T3 as and when they needed it. But you have limited amounts of T4 (because your thyroid doesn't create enough and you have to augment what you create with pills), and limited amounts of T3 in your body.
I suspect that your Free T3 is low in range because you exercise a lot and you are using up what you create or take faster than less energetic people would do. So you might want to increase your dose of T3. But if you feel well with your current dose, don't change it.
I'm surprised no one has commented that your freeT3 is fairly low. The rule of thumb is that it should be at the top third of the range, and yours is at the bottom.
But symptoms are more important. I'm not sure whether I misunderstand, but did you say you feel better than you ever have? If so you could leave the dosage where it is. If I were you I'd be tempted to experiment with an increase and see if it feels better or worse, but that is probably a naughty thought, and you always risk feeling worse as well as feeling better.
In terms of the exercise, I wonder if you do a similar amount every day, or at least a similar amount every week. T3 has a very short half-life, which means what you take in a day is what you have to use in that day. I am a lot more ill than you, so I walk a little every day, still a lot less than a well person would do. I've already got to the point where if I rest in bed for a few days and don't do my walk, I will start to feel a little hyper. When we dose T3, we are dosing it to a specific level of activity, body weight, fitness level, ambient temperature, etc of our body. Many people take a larger dose during the winter months, because they find they're more well in Summer. But also some people take more T3 on days when they're very active.
Thanks so much for the reply. I do exercise and compete intensely on a daily basis. 2-3 hours 5 days a week...Running, cycling, lifting, boxing. I think i have learned to adapt to how i feel. This is all I know. Not sure if i can tell you that i know what a "normal" person would feel like. How would I feel with all this exercise and not having the medical issues? I dont know. The fact that i can, and it sounds like most others cant exercise at all?? Wish i knew what it would feel like to do the same w/o any medical issues. Maybe I would actually win the marathons?? LOL So, maybe I should ask my Dr to incr, the t3, cytomel dose?
But as you said...you get hyper when you dont have your walks. I would go insane with out exercise. Its what keeps me mentally sane. It's where i find my peace.
In terms of these blood tests, you can increase if you want to.
By hyper, I mean hyperthyroid, overmedicated. Theoretically if you were to stop all your exercise your body would suddenly need far less hormone, so you would become overmedicated. In practice I'm not sure whether people are sensitive enough to the medication for this to be noticeable.
Although both friends and I have fluctuations in our freeT3 blood tests that seem to correspond to activity level. For the friend it was the difference between working full-time and part-time, for me it's the slow increase in activity I've had as my fatigue reduces.
Had to go to conventional endo today to be tested for Diabetes Insipidus not the MD that treats my thyroid. She scared me to death. She freaked about the amt of sythroid (125mcg) and the .02 TSH. She told me I was very likely to suffer severe osteo.. heart issues . Can some one help me with this....im so scared. She was furious at the t3 as well. Is 20mcg in the am and 15 mcg in the PM a lot with these levels T4 Free 1.0 - .8-1.8
T3 Free 2.6 - 2.3-4.2
Im so worried that she is right... PLEASE ANY ADVICE:)
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