Newbie

[Blue9]

Hi I am a 25 year old female do I have hypothyroidism? Thankyou!

TSH 62.33 (0.2 - 4.2)

Free T4 10.2 (12 - 22)

[bantam12]

Yes, why isn't your dr treating you !

[Blue9 in reply to bantam12]

I don't know why he isn't treating me. He wrote comments against the results saying no action required.

[Blue9]

I went to one GP after these tests came back and he told me I have health anxiety

[bantam12 in reply to Blue9]

If they think a TSH of 62.33 when top of the range is 4.2 is ok then they are dangerous doctors, you need to find one who can read thyroid results correctly. I would also talk to the practice manager as he/she needs to know the GP concerned is failing to treat patients.

[Blue9]

List of symptoms

Constipation

Pins and needles

Sugar and salt cravings

Dry skin

Tiredness

Confusion

Forgetfulness

Tinnitus

Weight gain

Insomnia

Heavy periods

Sweats

Feeling cold

Anxiety

Depression

Hair loss

Headaches

Bone pain

Eyebrow loss

Eyelash loss

Puffy ankles and eyes and wrists

Feeling slowed down

Slow movements

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Blue9

You have a dangerous idiot for a doctor, and if you've seen more than one doctor with these results and none have started you on Levo then they are all dangerous and you need to find a new surgery.

You are clearly very hypothyroid and need to start Levo immediately, no less than 50mcg unless you are elderly or have a heart condition. Then you need retesting 6 weeks later and an increase of 25mcg Levo. Retesting/increasing needs to take place every 6 weeks until you are well and symptoms abate. 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.

Has the diagnosis of Health Anxiety been placed on your records? If so insist that it is removed immediately, state that you are overtly hypothyroid and that is the diagnosis that is requied on your records. Any diagnosis of mental health issues (such as Health Anxiety) need to be made by the appropriate specialist, not a GP who cannot see that those results mean hypothyroidism.

[Blue9 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thankyou yes health anxiety has been added to records

[shaws Administrator]

Change your doctor or doctors as their knowledge is nil and you could be put into a dangerous situation.

You need, immediately, a dose of 50mcg of levothyroxine, a blood test every six weeks with the addition of 25mcg levothyroxine until your TSH is 1 or lower.

Ask GP to test B12, Vit D, iron, ferritin and folate. Deficiencies can also cause problems but priority at present is levothyroxine at 50mcg.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...

Priority at present is to get levothyroxine.

All blood tests for hypothyroidism has to be at the very earliest possible, fasting (you can drink water) and allow a gap of 24 hours between your last dose of levothyroxine (levo for short) and the test and take afterwards. Levo should be taken, usually when we get up, with one full glass of water and wait an hour approx before eating. Food interferes with the uptake.

At your next blood test also ask for thyroid antibodies, B12, Vit D, iron, ferritin and folate to be tested as deficiencies can also give us clinical symptoms.

Phone your surgery now and ask for a prescription to be left for you to pick up for 50mcg of levothyroxine and also make an appointment for six week, following advice above.

You can say you've been advised by Healthunlocked Thyroiduk.org.uk who are the NHS Choices for help/advice.

Always get a print-out of your results with the ranges. I hope you feel better quite soon as you must be awful at present.

[Blue9 in reply to shaws]

Thankyou

Ferritin 25 (30 - 400)

Folate 1.8 (2.5 - 19.5)

Vitamin B12 138 (180 - 900)

Vitamin D 14.3

TPO antibodies >1000 (<34)

[shaws Administrator in reply to Blue9]

I will add in SeasideSusie as your results are woeful.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Blue9]

Make an urgent appointment with different doctor tonight or tomorrow

These all need treatment urgently

Definitely make an official complaint to practice manager and insist that the note about health anxiety is removed from your record.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to Blue9]

Blue9

TPO antibodies >1000 (<34)

For a start, your high mean that you are positive for autoimmune thyroid disease aka Hashimoto's which is where antibodies attack the thyroid and gradually destroy it. The antibody attacks cause fluctuations in symptoms and test results.

Most doctors dismiss antibodies as being of no importance and know little or nothing about Hashi's and how it affects the patient, test results and symptoms. You need to read, learn, understand and help yourself where Hashi's is concerned.

You can help reduce the antibodies by adopting a strict gluten free diet which has helped many members here. Gluten contains gliadin (a protein) which is thought to trigger autoimmune attacks so eliminating gluten can help reduce these attacks. You don't need to be gluten sensitive or have Coeliac disease for a gluten free diet to help.

Supplementing with selenium l-selenomethionine 200mcg daily can also help reduce the antibodies, as can keeping TSH suppressed.

Gluten/thyroid connection: chriskresser.com/the-gluten...

stopthethyroidmadness.com/h...

stopthethyroidmadness.com/h...

hypothyroidmom.com/hashimot...

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/about_...

**

Hashi's and gut absorption problems tend to go hand in hand and can very often result in low nutrient levels or deficiencies and yours are absolutely dire. If these results have been ignored, then again this is gross negligence by your GP and you really need to make a formal complaint. Throw the book at him. This doctor needs to have his license removed before he kills someone.

Ferritin 25 (30 - 400)

For thyroid hormone to work (that's our own as well as replacement hormone) ferritin needs to be at least 70, preferably half way through range.

As you are under range, you need an iron supplement and as your level is so low you should ask for an iron infusion which will raise your level within 24-48 hours, tablets will take many months.

You can also help raise your level by eating liver regularly, maximum 200g per week due to it's high Vit A content, and including lots of iron rich foods in your diet apjcn.nhri.org.tw/server/in...

Low ferritin often suggests iron deficiency anaemia and you need an iron panel and full blood count. If confirmed then the treatment is 2 or 3 ferrous fumarate daily and you should take each iron tablet with 1000mg Vitamin C to aid absorption and help prevent constipaton. Always take iron 4 hours away from thyroid meds and two hours away from other medication and supplements as it will affect absorption.

**

Folate 1.8 (2.5 - 19.5)

Vitamin B12 138 (180 - 900)

You are both folate and B12 deficient. Check for signs of B12 deficiency here b12deficiency.info/signs-an... then post on the Pernicious Anaemia Society for further advice healthunlocked.com/pasoc Quote your folate/B12/ferritin results, iron deficiency anaemia information if you already have that, and list any signs of B12 deficiency from the list linked to.

You will probably need testing intrinsic factor antibodies testing, you very likely have Pernicious Anaemia and you likely need B12 injections. You will need folic acid prescribing for the folate deficiency but don't start that until other investigations have been carried out and B12 started.

I have read (but not researched so don't have links) that BCSH, UKNEQAS and NICE guidelines recommend:

"In the presence of discordance between test results and strong clinical features of deficiency, treatment should not be delayed to avoid neurological impairment."

And an extract from the book, "Could it be B12?" by Sally M. Pacholok:

"We believe that the 'normal' serum B12 threshold needs to be raised from 200 pg/ml to at least 450 pg/ml because deficiencies begin to appear in the cerebrospinal fluid below 550".

"For brain and nervous system health and prevention of disease in older adults, serum B12 levels should be maintained near or above 1000 pg/ml."

**

Vitamin D 14.3

You have severe Vit D deficiency and need loading doses of D3. Don't leave the surgery with a prescription for 800iu, it must be the loading doses - see NICE treatment summary for Vit D deficiency:

cks.nice.org.uk/vitamin-d-d...

"Treat for Vitamin D deficiency if serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) levels are less than 30 nmol/L.

For the treatment of vitamin D deficiency, the recommended treatment is based on fixed loading doses of vitamin D (up to a total of about 300,000 international units [IU] given either as weekly or daily split doses, followed by lifelong maintenace treatment of about 800 IU a day. Higher doses of up to 2000IU a day, occasionally up to 4000 IU a day, may be used for certain groups of people, for example those with malabsorption disorders. Several treatment regims are available, including 50,000 IU once a week for 6 weeks (300,000 IU in total), 20,000 IU twice a week for 7 weeks (280,000 IU in total), or 4000 IU daily for 10 weeks (280,000 IU in total)."

Each Health Authority has their own guidelines but they will be very similar. Go and see your GP and ask that he treats you according to the guidelines and prescribes the loading doses. Once these have been completed you will need a reduced amount (more than 800iu so post your new result as the time for members to suggest a dose) to bring your level up to what's recommended by the Vit D Council - which is 100-150nmol/L - and then you'll need a maintenance dose which may be 2000iu daily, it's trial and error so it's recommended to retest once or twice a year to keep within the recommended range. You can do this with a private fingerprick blood spot test with City Assays vitamindtest.org.uk/

When you buy your own D3, due to the fact that you have Hashi's it will be best to get an oral spray for better absorption, eg BetterYou.

Your doctor wont know, because they are not taught nutrition, but there are important cofactors needed when taking D3

vitamindcouncil.org/about-v...

D3 aids absorption of calcium from food and K2-MK7 directs the calcium to bones and teeth where it is needed and away from arteries and soft tissues where it can be deposited and cause problems.

D3 and K2 are fat soluble so should be taken with the fattiest meal of the day, D3 four hours away from thyroid meds.

Magnesium helps D3 to work and comes in different forms, check to see which would suit you best and as it's calming it's best taken in the evening, four hours away from thyroid meds

naturalnews.com/046401_magn...

Check out the other cofactors too.

BetterYou do a D3 supplement and they also do a combined D3/K2-MK7.

**

You need to address the absorption problem so that the supplements you take can actually be absorbed, because your nutrient levels need to be optimal for any thyroid hormone to be able to work. Check out SlowDragon 's reply to this post for information and links to help healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...