Thyroid or Menopause

[Owenbeg]

I have symptoms that may be thyroid or Menopause ...Insomnia ( sleep for the first 3 hours then on and off sleeping), aching joints/muscles all over my body that started out in my neck , feeling very warm and so stressed.. I have tried a host of vitamins since April this year - Magnesium, zinc, copper, b complex, vitamin d3, and glucosamine sulphate... I have had some form of relief but still no sleep and very sore all over.. What blood test would be suitable ?

[Nanaedake]

What thyroid condition have you got? What treatment have you recieved and what are your latest thyroid test results? Have you got results for vitamin levels?

[SlowDragon Administrator]

For full Thyroid evaluation you need TSH, FT4, FT3 plus TPO and TG thyroid antibodies and also very important to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12

Add results and ranges if you have any of these and some background information

Low vitamin levels can cause symptoms in themselves or affect Thyroid

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, take last dose 24 hours prior to test, and take next dose straight after test. 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 are very common too, especially gluten. So it's important to get TPO and TG thyroid antibodies tested at least once .

Link about thyroid blood tests

thyroiduk.org/tuk/testing/t...

Link about antibodies and Hashimoto's

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

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

List of hypothyroid symptoms

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

[TPee]

Have you had any weight loss or tremors? I suffered from what I thought was very bad menopause only to be diagnosed with Graves disease or hyperthyroidism.

[silverfox7]

If you have only been taking a multivitamin then if things are low then it won't have helped a great deal. By proper testing then you can see where the individual levels lie and can treat each one accordingly. Also if you did have a multivits and it contained iron then I'm sorry to say it won't have helped as iron has to be taken well away from the rest so they are a waste of money.

[annegal]

Hi there.

I have exactly the same symptoms- you could have described me. I take 150 then 175 Levo alternate days. Have had the full range of blood tests and have optimised my vitamin levels. Whilst I feel good in myself during the day - I too have the same sleep pattern and bad aches. And I’m what the Dr termed “peri-menopausal”. I was told I couldn’t think about HRT being hypothyroid.

I will be very interested in your progress and any nuggets of information your get.

Regards.

[sarosent]

You could be experiencing both. Look up Estrogen Dominance - often when we start menopause, progesterone (calming hormone) plummets and estrogen does not or not as fast, so the ratio of estrogen to progesterone is excessive.

Then, some say excess estrogen blocks conversion of thyroid hormones.

I went hypo a year after menopause. I now take Chastetreeberry to help increase progesterone.

[Hidden in reply to sarosent]

Try talking to your Endo about thyroid and menopause and all you hear is "crickets" My menopause is surgical induced and I have no thyroid and Endo has told me repeatedly that one has nothing to do with the other and keeps reducing my meds...sure it doesn't. I do believe they get their medical degree from a cracker jack box.

[BRENK]

I am going thru the same exact thing.My PA says its menopause because my thyroid levels are fine.I have been wondering about that and thought I was the only one going thru this.I get a little dizzy too sometimes when I get really hot.

[Hidden in reply to BRENK]

I had a pretty trouble free menopause except for hot flushes (which have carried on ever since - the last 20 years or so!). Dizziness could also be menopausal. But heat and dizziness could also be due to thyroid problems! A friend of mine had to have a hysterectomy when pre-menopausal - because one of her ovaries started playing up - sometimes producing hormones and sometimes not, which "Confused" the other ovary and it became erratic too. She said that one day she went upstairs and her son (just a baby) was downstairs. She got so dizzy she had to phone her husband to come from work because she was afraid to try going downstairs in case she passed out!

[BRENK in reply to Hidden]

Thats the way I get,feel like I'm going to pass out.I go lay down for about 10 minutes and I'm ok again but feeling hot is in my forehead the worst.Its hard to tell what is causing any of the problems we all are having because the thyroid regulates so much in our bodies.I really don't think doctors know either because it does regulate pretty much everything in your body.I think thats why doctors have such a hard time figuring out what issues we are having.