Hello, I am here on behalf of my 31 year old daughter, I am very worried about her health. I am concerned about her mental symptoms too, I have made a list of them. She was diagnosed hypothyroid in 2013.
Mental symptoms
Short term memory loss
Inability to retain new information
Forgetfulness
Misplacing items
Confusion
Problems with sleep
Problems speaking
Anxiety
Paranoia
Irritability
Physical symptoms
She looks ill
She looks depressed
She looks pale, almost white
Yellow tinges to her skin
Tiredness
Slow movements
Goitre
Considerable weight gain - she went from 56.1KG to 56.9KG within a day and no change in her eating pattern.
Please, if anyone could help, I would appreciate it. Thank you
OK, so he was dosing by the TSH. That is to be firmly, but politely, discouraged. It's the best way to keep the patient sick! Her TSH may have been low, but her FT3 was also low, and that's the most important number.
Besides, he decreased by too much in one go. Decreases should be done exactly the same as increases - i.e. 25 mcg every six weeks.
How did she feel on 150 mcg? Did she feel well? If so, then she should insist that her dose is put back up to 150 mcg.
OK, well, there's a reason for that. She doesn't convert T4 to T3 very well. So, what she needs is some T3 added to her T4. Would her doctor be agreeable to that?
OK, so if she bought her own T3, would her GP agree to monitor her? Then she could drop the useless endo, because he obviously doesn't know much about thyroid.
I'm not entirely sure. She told me the GP agreed with the use of T3 in her treatment and I can only hope the GP will agree to monitor her. Her GP's view on T3 wasn't exactly clear.
Her antibodies are 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
She is currently very under medicated. She needs immediate 25mcg dose increase and bloods retested in 6-8 weeks
All thyroid tests should be done as early as possible in morning and fasting and don't take Levo 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)
Essential to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12. Always get actual results and ranges. Post results when you have them, members can advise
Hashimoto's affects the gut and leads to low stomach acid and then low vitamin levels. Low vitamin levels affect Thyroid hormone working
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)
Many, many people on here with Hashimoto's find strictly gluten free diet essential
Changing to a strictly gluten free diet may help reduce symptoms, help gut heal and slowly lower TPO antibodies
Ideally ask GP for coeliac blood test first, plus vitamins tested if not been done
Taking high enough dose of Levothyroxine to bring TSH down under one, FT4 towards top of range and FT3 should then be at least half way in range.
Dr Toft, past president of the British Thyroid Association and leading endocrinologist, states in Pulse Magazine,
"The appropriate dose of levothyroxine is that which restores euthyroidism and serum TSH to the lower part of the reference range - 0.2-0.5mU/l.
In this case, free thyroxine is likely to be in the upper part of its reference range or even slightly elevated – 18-22pmol/l.
Most patients will feel well in that circumstance. But some need a higher dose of levothyroxine to suppress serum TSH and then the serum-free T4 concentration will be elevated at around 24-28pmol/l.
This 'exogenous subclinical hyperthyroidism' is not dangerous as long as serum T3 is unequivocally normal – that is, serum total around T3 1.7nmol/l (reference range 1.0-2.2nmol/l)."
Getting vitamins optimal and trying strictly gluten free diet will help improve conversion of FT4 to FT3
Selenium supplements can help improve conversion too
Always take Levo on empty stomach and then nothing apart from water for at least an hour after. Many take on waking, but it may be more convenient and possibly more effective taken at bedtime.
Many people find Levothyroxine brands are not interchangeable. Once you find a brand that suits you, best to make sure to only get that one at each prescription. Watch out for brand change when dose is increased. Unless she is lactose intolerant best to avoid Teva brand of Levothyroxine, it upsets many patients
After dose is increased, vitamins optimal and gluten free, if FT3 remains low then, like many with Hashimoto's she may need addition of small dose of T3.
Email Thyroid UK for list of recommended thyroid specialists, some are T3 friendly
please email Dionne at
tukadmin@thyroiduk.org
Outrageous price charged by pharmaceutical companies to NHS for T3 is causing inappropriate restrictions on NHS prescribing of T3. Private prescription enables access to cheap EU T3
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Blood test results advice please!! Unable to convert T4 to T3!! 
Blood test result advice
Auto-Immune Disease
Lab results in from Blue Horizon, could somebody help me interpret them? I don't really understand.
