I am hoping you can help me please. I am recently diagnosed with Hashimoto's disease and so far and only on 50MG of Levothyroxine. I was thinking some of my symptoms could also be B12 deficiency but now I'm not so sure. I have neurological symptoms and wondering if anyone else with Hashimoto's might have similar ones:
Tingling, cold and numb feeling in feet although feet are not actually numb just feel like it
Right hand tingly and loss of grip this causes me to drop things frequently
Walking sometimes painful on soles of feet and trip up experience is like foot drop.
Have been told in neurological exam have upper limb dyspraxia and brisk reflexes.
Cognitive problems especially with conversations as struggle to think of things to say.
I have plenty of other symptoms but these are the ones that are worrying me.
Please could you offer me advice on if these symptoms seem related to Hypothyroidism or something else please.
Thanks for reading and I look forward to any help provided.
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Cn13
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Symptoms might improve when you are optimally medicated. The aim of a treated hypo patient generally is for TSH to be 1 or below or wherever it needs to be for FT4 and FT3 to be in the upper part of their respective reference ranges when on Levo.
As you've been diagnosed with Hashi's are you strictly gluten free and supplementing with selenium l-selenomethionine 200mcg daily to help reduce the antibodies?
Yes low B12 and folate is very common. Ask GP to test
Do NOT take any B vitamins of any sort before being tested
Hashimoto's very often affects the gut, leading to low stomach acid, malabsorption causing low vitamin levels and leaky gut.
Low vitamins that affect thyroid are vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12. When they are too low they stop Thyroid hormones working.
According to Izabella Wentz the Thyroid Pharmacist approx 5% with Hashimoto's are coeliac, but over 80% find gluten free diet helps significantly. Either due to direct gluten intolerance (no test available) or due to leaky gut and gluten causing molecular mimicry (see Amy Myers link)
But don't be surprised that GP or endo never mention gut, gluten or low vitamins. Hashimoto's is very poorly understood
Changing to a strictly gluten free diet may help reduce symptoms.
You should be retested after 6-8 weeks on starting dose, increased in 25mcg steps, retesting after each step, until TSH is around one and FT4 towards top of range
All thyroid tests should be done as early as possible in morning and fasting and don't take Levo in the 24 hours prior to test, delay and take straight after. This gives highest TSH and most consistent results
Thank you SeasideSusie and SlowDragon for your great responses I will be busy reading all those links. I have been trying hard to reduce the gluten from my diet but admit I sometimes slip up with it.
The GP seems to be very cautious with my Thyroid medication she started me on 25mcg which I was on for 7 weeks and I'm only on 50mcg for the last 2 weeks. This was my recent Thyroid test:
Serum free T4 level 13.2 pmol/L [9 - 19]
Serum TSH level 2.06 miu/L [0.35 - 4.94]
My last ferritin result in July was low ferritin level 46.6 ug/ml 13.0 - 150.0
I have some Gentle Iron 20mg but I'm not really sure how many of these I should be taking.
I am supplementing Vitamin D with K2 MK7. My folate levels have also been low but I haven't taken anything for that yet.
I will buy the Selenium as you have suggested Thank you.
My last B12 test is showing high now and I have been posting for help with it on the PAS site but the GP practice I'm with are not too helpful really.
I am already worried this Gp is going to leave me on some low dose of Levothyroxine that is not going to help much.
I will get the Selenium though and hopefully that might help is there any other supplements I should be taking. Unfortunately I can't really afford private testing at the moment. I will read the links so thanks to you both for posting.
I will try to arrange these tests. I will also arrange for another Thyroid blood test at the GP's and take your advice about early morning and no levothyroxine beforehand.
I'm still feeling very unwell so am sure an increase would be good. Thanks.
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