Back to the U.K. and NHS in Lincolnshire

[Topkitkat]

I had a welcome appointment yesterday with a GP at my new practice now that I am back in the UK. You could have knocked me down with a feather when he suggested a referral to an endocrinologist straight away!

He then took my pulse, said it was a little fast and that may be a sign of over-medication. I’m now dreading that they’ll reduce my dose of T4 from 150mcg; it’s taken me a while to reach a point where I feel symptoms have improved. Any words of wisdom on how to tackle this at the appointment after my blood test results?

Is there a support group in Lincolnshire at all? I saw some older posts suggesting it and wondered if it had got off the ground at all?

Many thanks for any help.

[MCP80]

I am in Lincolnshire. The Endo's that I have seen so far in Lincoln have listened to me but do not seem to have much experience with problematic patients that can't stabilise their levels. They have taken everything I have said into consideration and contemplating a trial of T3 which I am waiting for. Try not to be too worried. Make sure you go in with your story and don't be afraid to say you don't agree if they want to lower your dosage just explain your reasons. What were your last results?

[Topkitkat in reply to MCP80]

Thank you for the reassurance. My last blood test was in March when on 100mcg so increased to 125mcg by my Turkish endo. No improvement with that dose so another increase. I’ve seen mention of GPs worried about the effect of meds on the heart on the forum and wondered if there was any basis for this.

I think I’ll gather together all of my blood tests to take with to compare.

[MCP80 in reply to Topkitkat]

That would be good as they won't have your previous results on your NHS record. They will probably request FT4 and FT3 blood tests too as these haven't been done for a while. I have been on varying ranges between 150mg to 300mg per day.

[fortunata in reply to Topkitkat]

I’m in Nettleton in Lincolnshire. I take 60mcgs of Liothyronine a day and am doing really well on it. I saw an endo in Lincoln for almost two years. He then referred me to one in Sheffield, who said he could see mine wasn’t a simple case and he would be willing to keep me on 60mcgs a day as long as I was aware of the risks. I feel far, far better on it than I ever did on Levo.

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Topkitkat

I imagine anyone's pulse could be fast when having a consultation. Why not try taking your resting pulse at home and keep a record of it, produce it if ever a doctor tells you that again when having a consultation. My blood pressure is always higher at the doctor's, I suffer from white coat syndrome, but a week's recording of BP at home and I was told it was normal.

[MCP80 in reply to SeasideSusie]

I have a Fit bit which has been helpful (you have to take the readings with a bit of variance) but my heart rate is all over the place, thankfully they have done an ECG in clinic and it is regular so they are not worried but my daily read outs from my fitbit are quite alarming. However I have tracked it to show that when my medication is increased so does my heart rate and when my TSH has gone haywire my heart rate falls dramatically so it has been a help But I agree with Seaside Susie my resting rate does tend to go up in the Doctors room.

[silverfox7 in reply to MCP80]

I was going to say the same thing. I step foot inside a hospital and even when visiting someone my BP goes through the roof! My GP understands this and gives me a chart to fill out over a week. Even then I do a few days before recording my official week so I'm more used to it!

[Topkitkat in reply to MCP80]

I’m now looking at mine on my watch! It has gone up but I don’t think it’s abnormal at all. I’ll keep an eye on it for the next week. Thanks for the tip!

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Topkitkat]

A Fitbit gives great record of your daily heart rate, especially if worn at night in bed

Helpful in showing not over medicated if your TSH is suppressed