Does a suppressed TSH lower thyroid antibodies?

[rosserk]

Hi all I’ve been reading some of the posts today and came across a comment about suppressing TSH to bring down thyroid antibodies. Does anyone have any experience of this happening when their TSH went down so did their antibodies? 😊

[greygoose]

That's not exactly right. Lowering your TSH doesn't exactly lower your antibodies per se, it's just that as high TSH stimulates the thyroid gland, it also stimulates the immune system to attack the thyroid. The antibodies are high just after an attack, they come in to clear up the debris, take it away and destroy it. If there are less attacks, there are less antibodies. And less gland activity/stimulation means less immune system activity. That's the way I understand it, anyway.

[rosserk in reply to greygoose]

GreyGoose that’s a brilliant explaination thank you! So it would make sense to lower the TSH level? I’m trying to work out how to use my high antibodies and high TSH to convince doctor to increase my levo. 😀

[greygoose in reply to rosserk]

Well, if your TSH is high, your doctor should automatically increase your dose. Once on thyroid hormone replacement, it should be 1 or under. But doctors don't know anything about antibodies, so I doubt you'd convince him with that argument.

[rosserk in reply to greygoose]

It’s in range GreyGoose, 3.8 so she won’t want to increase levo I’m still on 50 mg!

[greygoose in reply to rosserk]

That really is much too high. In most countries you are considered hypo when your TSH reaches 3, so you are still hypo. It's only in the UK that they like the TSH to reach 10, and then consider anything within the range to be ok. 50 mcg is just a starter dose. But, I don't know how you can convince her of that.

[rosserk in reply to greygoose]

The plan is to throw the mother of all tantrums in the surgery, not sure it will work but breaking down and sobbing uncontrollably doesn’t work either! 😜

[greygoose in reply to rosserk]

Oh! Wish I could be a fly on the wall! lol

[rosserk in reply to greygoose]

It won’t be pretty! Lol 😂

[greygoose in reply to rosserk]

lol Let us know how you get on.

[RedApple Administrator]

rosserk, I can only speak from personal experience... yes, the higher my TSH, the higher my antibody levels. My most recent test showed a suppressed TSH and antibodies were only a little over range, which is the lowest they've ever been to my knowledge. Previously, when my TSH went high over range, antibodies also shot up.

That said, most doctors are not the least bit interested in antibody levels. They don't see it as an issue. At best, to them it just confirms you have autoimmune thyroid disease, and that's all there is to it.

[rosserk in reply to RedApple]

RedApple thank you, that’s encouraging. When I saw how high my antibodies where I nearly had a coronary! My doctor won’t want to dismiss them as nothing or I swear I will loose it! 😂

It’s my understanding that when these antibodies have finished destroying my thyroid they will move on to something else! That’s certainly shouldn’t be taken lightly.

Do you feel worse when your antibodies are high?

[RedApple Administrator in reply to rosserk]

Yes, I feel worse, but I tend to assume that it's because my thyroid levels are too low, and TSH too high. I don't know any way to tell whether how I feel is because of antibodies, or hormone levels, because they seem to go hand in hand

[rosserk in reply to RedApple]

Thanks, it’s interesting isn’t it? My TSH is 3.8 at the moment and my antibodies are 1200! Neither is in range so like you I don’t know which is making me feel like giving up 😩