This is my first post on here although I've been following the threads for a while now. I was diagnosed hypo in January 2016 and have since taken the usual GP route of slowly increasing the levo to get my TSH down. I was doing just fine on 125 daily until last October when symptoms started to return with a vengeance, prompting my GP to raise me to 150 daily. In my opinion this has not made a scrap of difference and 6 months on I still feel awful most days.
I feel I am hitting my head against a brick wall with my GP who won't test for anything other than TSH and so, prompted by all you lovely people on here I have just had my bloods done privately. Could anyone assist me with these readings please and tell me if there's something glaringly obvious...?
hs-CRP 0.69 (<5.0)
Ferritin 26.5 (13 - 150)
TSH 0.14 (0.27 - 4.20)
T4 Total 105.0 (66 - 181)
Free T4 22.00 (12.0 - 22.0)
Free T3 4.35 (3.1 - 6.8)
Anti-Thyroidperoxidase abs 600 (<34)
Anti-Thyroglobulin abs 1916 (<115)
Vitamin B12 430 (145 - 600)
Serum Folate 19.70 (8.83 - 60.8)
Should I be concerned about the high level of antibodies? (I've never been diagnosed with hashi's). I want to help myself but I'm really not sure where to start.. iron?
I should also mention that I was diagnosed Vitamin D deficient (18) a couple of months ago following a melanoma (thankfully now gone). I have finished my loading dose and I am now taking my own liquid vit D3 supplement (3000 i/u daily) to get my levels up as the prescribed 800's were making no difference at all. I will be testing my vit D again in a couple of weeks.
Thanks everyone x
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hyporeb
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Your antibodies are very high this is Hashimoto's, (also known by medics here in UK more commonly as autoimmune thyroid disease).
About 90% of all primary hypothyroidism in Uk is due to Hashimoto's
Medics tend to ignore antibodies as they don't have any treatment to offer
Hashimoto's affects the gut and leads to low stomach acid and then low vitamin levels
Low vitamin levels affect Thyroid hormone working
Obviously your vitamin D was dire
Ferritin is also too low. Eating liver once a week should help improve this.
B12 and folate are ok, not brilliant
Poor gut function can lead leaky gut (literally holes in gut wall) this can cause food intolerances. Most common by far is gluten.
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)
Changing to a strictly gluten free diet may help reduce symptoms, help gut heal and slowly lower TPO antibodies
I started my strictly gluten free diet one week ago. A long way to go but I will stick at that and supplement my vitamins and minerals at least until they are optimal.
Can anyone advise how much Iron (Ive bought Viridian liquid iron) I should be taking daily - I really don't think I can bring myself to eat liver!
Also, I would like to top up my B12 and folate. I'm thinking B12 spray but how much folate is safe to take and which supplement is recommended?
My vitamin (nutri advanced) D3 oil apparently contains K2 so I assume I don't need to worry about that, I have also looked at magnesium oil that you rub in (similar effect to epsom salt I imagine)
Recommended on here to take a good vitamin B complex with folate in, rather than just folate
You may need sublingual B12 or spray B12 as well. But perhaps just start with B complex.
If you are taking vitamin B complex, or any supplements containing biotin, remember to stop these 3-5 days before any blood tests, as biotin can falsely affect test results
Iron is complicated and isn't always as easy as taking iron supplements.
I've seen it said that ferritin needs to be at least 70 for thyroid hormone to work, also a bit more, also a bit less.
It would be a good idea to have a full blood count and iron panel done.
The full blood count will show if there is any anaemia and that would need treatment prescribed by a doctor.
The iron panel will show your serum iron level, transferrin saturation, total iron binding capacity and Ferritin. They all have their optimal levels which you can see here rt3-adrenals.org/Iron_test_...
If they are not optimal quite how you go about optimising them ALL isn't something I have knowledge of, which is why I don't just suggest just taking iron tablets for low Ferritin. As liver is classed as a superfood then eating a reasonable amount regularly is a good idea and will help raise Ferritin. It doesn't have to be a meal of liver, there's liver pate, also you can mince/chop small liver and put in curry, casserole, bolognese sauce, cottage pie, etc., or even cut small and freeze cooked liver and take like tablets.
Hi hyporeb. What is glaringly obvious is your antibodies are high, which means you have Hashimoto's, as SlowDragon stated. The other thing is that your FT4 is at the top number of the range, and your FT3 is too low. Your continued symptoms could very well be from this high FT4 and your FT3 being too low. Top of the range FT4 can be too high for some people. Too low in the range and too high in the range is where more symptoms live than having your FT3 and FT4 in optimal ranges.
It is recommended that for FT4 to be optimal, it is over half range and no more than 3/4 of the range, or between 17 and 19.5. Your level is 22, the top range number. Optimal FT3, is close to 3/4, or around 5.875. Your level is only 4.35.
You might feel better lowering your Levo back to 125 to get your FT4 down, and starting some T3 to get your FT3 up where is should be.
I have Hashimoto's too. If my thyroid hormone levels were as yours are, I know that I would personally be feeling very poorly. The key is for every thyroid disease patient is to find out which levels make them feel their best and where they have little or no symptoms. Personally, I keep both my levels optimal by taking T4 and T3 and I have either no symptoms or barely detectable ones. When my levels were not at their best, I had symptoms.
Hi ShootingStars. What you say is very interesting because my FT4 was at 15 when I upped to 150 last October. By January this year it was 19 and now it is 22. Its only shot up in the last 6 months when I've been on 150.. however, I wasn't feeling brilliant in October - hence the Levo increase.
Maybe T3 is the answer - or NDT.. I do everything else properly, although you wouldn't think it from my vitamin readings!! I'm reaching the end of my tether now.
Can I ask, did you see an Endo in order to get on T3 or have you self medicated? I'm quite prepared for the trial and error part of it all and I've even got to the point where I will see someone privately if it means I can be prescribed the right thing.
Hi hyporeb. This is because the medication you are taking contains only T4. You increased from 125 to 150, so your FT4 levels also increased. What was your FT3 back in October and back in January when you had those levels of FT4?
T3 could very well be. NDT contains some, but not a lot of T3. The problem (there are several) with NDT is that if you need more T3, because it is a compounded (combined) pill, in order to get more T3 your are also increasing your T4.
I think some people in the UK on this site see endos for T3? I've read that many have to order their own lab tests because their doctors don't order the right ones and that some people have to order their own medication because of their bad doctors. I do not see endos because the one's I've seen didn't know what they were doing when it comes to thyroid disease and Hashimoto's. I have doctors who prescribe my T3 and T4. When it's been time for me to increase, I ask for the increase that I need and they prescribe it.
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Help with blood results please! 
Help with blood test results please...
Blood test results- help please?
