Last week I posted the following message (in italics), and took on board the advice to go and get my test results. On enquiring with my doctor, it became clear that not only do they give the impression that they are not overly concerned by my symptoms etc. but they haven't been doing the T4 test - only the TSH test.
Therefore I have had my test done at medichecks.
Here is last weeks post as my back ground:
"Hi everyone, I’m just signing up hoping that I can share some of my frustrations with you??
I was diagnosed with under active thyroid in Feb 2014, after the birth of my boy. However I wasn’t diagnosed for 8mths, so by the time I got to that stage my face was starting to swell and a coma was not far around the corner. To cut a very long story short, and after a continuous fight with my doctor I was on 125mcg for about a year and eventually managed to loose 3.5stone which I had retained after being pregnant. For a time I felt ok - hard to tell with a young baby but things did improve.
However as of September 2017, I started to feel like my “levels” may not be quite so settled, so I went for a blood test. Surprisingly, my T4 levels had spiked so the doctor reduced me to 100/125mcg alternating days. On return to the doctors 8 weeks later, my T4 levels had gone even higher, so at the end of December they reduced me to 100mcg and I am yet to have a test to see what has happened to the levels.
Since I felt the difference in my levels in September, I have also gained a lot of weight very quickly, peaking at around quarter of a pound a day before Christmas. Since January 1st I have returned to the diet that I originally lost 3.5stone on (so it’s tried and tested by me already!) and in the last 5weeks I have only managed to loose minimal weight, and in the last 2 weeks I have remained the same on the scales. I don’t understand why??? I can’t try any harder - I am trying harder than the first time I lost the weight!!!
I’m sick of this issue and really just want myself back...not wanting to sound dramatic but I feel so alone - hence I thought I would write!! Since having this I have lost my self esteem, I have acne, mood swings, tiredness that I can only describe as hurting my bones, and no immune system (tonsillitis, chest infections, 3 colds and pneumonia in the last four / five months - although doctors say that my lack of immune system has nothing to do with my thyroid - I remain unconvinced on that!)
I’m not the kind of person that gives up or gets beaten by something, but this is getting the better of me and I think that I’m getting sick of feeling sick in one way or another....
I just don’t know how to tackle this - my doctors just seem to think that they should get you to a certain level and there we go that will do....but it won’t do??? I feel like I’m going mad 😡
Sorry for the rant..... any advice really welcome!! 🙏🏻 "
I am 6/7 weeks into reducing my dose down to 100mcg from 125mcg under my doctors supervision. My current concerns are stagnant weight loss, acne, dull skin, exhaustion, low mood/slight anxiety and a very poor immune system.
My results were as follows (three in bold were picked out by the team):
THYROID STIMULATING HORMONE 0.358 mIU/L 0.27 - 4.20
FREE THYROXINE 18.8 pmol/L 12.00 - 22.00
TOTAL THYROXINE(T4) 100.0 nmol/L 59.00 - 154.00
FREE T3 4 pmol/L 3.10 - 6.80
THYROGLOBULIN ANTIBODY *547.000 IU/mL 0.00 - 115.00
THYROID PEROXIDASE ANTIBODIES*334 IU/mL 0.00 - 34.00
ACTIVE B12 75.400 pmol/L 25.10 - 165.00
FOLATE (SERUM) 7.74 ug/L 2.91 - 50.00
25 OH
VITAMIN D *30.8 nmol/L 50.00 - 200.00
What's the best course of action for the above?
Does the above explain my symptoms?
Would a diet change help?
I will do anything that's needed, I cannot go on living my life like this!
Thankyou so much to all you lovely people who are willing to take time to help people like me.