Post partum thyroid disease/ hashimotos

[sunflower25]

Hi I'm new to the thyroid UK community page. I'm 52 and had post partum thyroid after having my second then third baby. My thyroid got worse a year later with me feeling so so I'll i literally was stumbling around like a drunk. I don't drink at all by way. I would walk my 2 month old, 2 yr old ,and 4 yr old to nursery / school. And would make sure they were safe watching tv and baby asleep while I literally collapsed on the sofa and slept. I was no good for anything. My hair was calling out and my eye brows thinning and my waist like a free trunk. I went to my doctor who was very good and recognised my symptoms as I was also cold all the time. He started me on 50mcg thyroid straight away that day and took blood tests. When they came back 10 days later he put me on 100,mcg of thyroid and said i could of gone into a coma at any time if I had not gone doctors when I did. I was only 27 when I was diagnosed. I have blood tests every 6 months and am still tired a lot but learned to get on with it. In the beginning of was very tough. Hope you all get answers from your GPS on thyroid conditions. Goog luck. And many blessings to you all x

[Marz]

Hi and Welcome ! - so how are you feeling now ? Are your vitamins and minerals optimal - B12 - Folate - Ferritin and VitD ? How much T4 are you taking now ?

Like so many of us you have had a thyroid journey - so thank you for sharing. Just want to make sure you are feeling Top Dollar

[sunflower25 in reply to Marz]

Hi mate I am ok as such. I'm still on 100mcg t4 , and have been having rapid palpitations. My children are now grown up and still have blood tests yearly. I have had 24 ECG machine on and echocardiogram but they still can't find any apart from thyroid disease.I have anaemia yearly.take care mass was nice to of met you.

[Marz in reply to sunflower25]

Please read and follow the advice given by SlowDragon and shaws . You need a plan of action. If you are unsure then ask a question.

How are you treating the anaemia ?

Post your results with ranges so people can comment.

What other meds are you taking ? Supplements ?

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Do you have Hashimoto's also called autoimmune thyroid disease diagnosed by high thyroid antibodies?

For full Thyroid evaluation you need TSH, FT4, TT4, FT3 plus TPO and TG thyroid antibodies.

Plus very important to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12

Private tests are available. Thousands on here forced to do this as NHS often refuses to test FT3 or antibodies

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

Medichecks Thyroid plus ultra vitamin or Blue Horizon Thyroid plus eleven are the most popular choice. DIY finger prick test or option to pay extra for private blood draw. Both companies often have money off offers.

All thyroid tests should ideally be done as early as possible in morning and fasting.

If on Levothyroxine, don't take in the 24 hours prior to test, delay and take straight after

This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip, GP will be unaware)

If antibodies are high this is Hashimoto's, (also known by medics here in UK more commonly as autoimmune thyroid disease).

About 90% of all hypothyroidism in Uk is due to Hashimoto's. Low vitamins are especially common with Hashimoto's. Food intolerances common too, especially gluten. So it's important to get antibodies tested.

[shaws Administrator]

I hope you read the responses and you can get well. A blood test every six months may not be adequate for you. Especially being a Mum who has young children to care for.

You state 'am still tired a lot but learned to get on with it' is now the time to put yourself first and try to enable your health to improve to 'normal' but we have to ask questions.

The very first thing you should do is get a new blood test. It should be for TSH, T4, T3, Free T4, Free T3 and thyroid antibodies.

All blood tests for thyroid hormones has to be at the very earliest, fasting (you can drink water) and allow a gap of 24 hours from your last dose of levothyroxine and the test and take afterwards. Levo should always be taken with one full glass of water and wait an hour before eating.

Most doctors only look at the TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) and if it is somewhere in the range (up to 5 mainly) they stop increasing dose. The ideal is a TSH of 1 or lower with Free T4 and Free T3 in the upper part of the range. Unfortunately these are rarely tested.

Levothyroxine is an inactive hormone. It has to convert to T3 (liothyronine) which is the only Active Thyroid Hormone and it is needed in our millions of T3 Receptor Cells.

So a Full Thyroid Function Test consists of TSH, T4, T3, Free T4, Free T3 and antibodies. If GP or the lab wont do all of them, you can get a private one from our two recommended labs who do home pin-prick tests. If you decide to do this you must be well hydrated a few days before blood draw which should be at the earliest etc etc.

Your GP should test B12, Vit D, iron, ferritin and folate. If deficient it can also cause symptoms.

Always get a print-out of your results with the ranges for your own records and post if you have a query. The following is a list of clinical symptoms and if optimally treated you should have none at all.

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