Advice Please, Borderline TSH

[amy3567]

Hello. My TSH level is 5.44 which is described as 'borderline' and my GP feels this is unlikely to be what I making me tired all the time (all other blood tests were normal for vitamins etc...). I'm aware of the Nice guidelines for treatment of subclinical hypothyroidism however I'm just wondering if anyone has actually managed to persuade a GP to prescribe medication for such a borderline result? I'm getting another test in 3 months time to see if it has changed. Is it worth paying for a private Endo consultant or will they likely say the same thing? My main symptom is being tired all of the time which is having a big impact on my life. Thanks for any advice you can offer.

[klr31]

It is a common symptom of hypothyroidism. Ask your GP for a trial of thyroxine. Lots of people do this but it's a matter of persuasion or a private endo may help.

Karen

[elat]

Hi. I'm in a similar position to yourself. I recommend that you create a new post with all your blood results on it,including reference ranges,so others can comment.

[Lucky14]

I was told i was borderline too about 16 years ago. I pointed out my family history, IE most of all females including my Mother & Sister all had an under active thyroid, so my Dr agreed to treat me. Started with 25 levo and 16 years later I'm on 150 levo and 20 T3. Don't give up, my Dr's kept trying to fob me off, until i found one who would actually listen. My main thing was extreme fatigue too. Good luck.

[eeng]

It is normal to wait until you have two high TSH results, 3 months or so apart, before starting treatment. (unless you have a really high TSH eg over 20). This is because a high TSH can be due to something transient like an infection. Next time you have a blood test get it done first thing in the morning because TSH is highest then and varies during the day. Also get your Vit D, B12, Ferritin, Folate and iron tested (or as many of them as the NHS will do) because thyroid issues very often cause problems absorbing these nutrients from food. If you have already become below average for these you will feel pretty below par.

As for your doctor saying a TSH of over 5 is unlikely to cause your symptoms, I bet he/she has never had hypothyroidism. Don't bother with paying for a private endo until you get your second test done. Even then it's probably worth saving your money and using it to get a private blood test if your doctor doesn't get all the important tests done or if your doctor eventually leaves you undermedicated. It will be cheaper (£100 v £250) and probably a lot more informative. You can get the results interpreted here. There are a lot of very knowledgeable people on this forum.

[dtate2016]

I was told I was borderline for almost 10 years various doctors general practitioners and Endo. Finally went to a functional doctor - we didn’t use that name back then but that’s what we call them now. They referred me to a very special endocrinologist who even in the early 90s was aware of the increasing Hashimotos. He prescribed a urinalysis which found the antibodies and I was diagnosed officially with Hashimoto’s. The urinalysis was extensive collecting urine for one week and then taking it all in for laboratory tests.

Finally my borderline was diagnosed and I was prescribed levothyroxine which didn’t really work. NowI have been on Armour Thyroid nature through aid for over 20 years.

My advice? is definitely worth going to a private endocrinologist. I believe I most certainly would not be alive by now if I had not received that earlier diagnosis .

[LAHs]

Amy, a TSH of 5.44 is not borderline it is positively hypothyroidism. Frankly, if I had a TSH that high I would be in a coma. Get a sensible and informed doc or self medicate until the medical profession has decided to teach endocrinology of the thyroid system (which is hard) to it's medical students instead of just diabetes (which is easy).

[amy3567 in reply to LAHs]

How do I self medicate?

[LAHs in reply to amy3567]

First of all get the baseline of your thyroid state. You have TSH but get it again while, you measure (via a blood test) Free T3, Free T4 and the two antibodies thyroglobulin and thyroid peroxidase. You say that your vitamins are up to par, that is good, you may want to measure your selenium level since that is a very important catalyst for the T4 to T3 conversion - but we will get into that when we see your levels. If your doctor will not do these blood tests then get them done through Medichecks or some other private lab. btw, get your blood tests done first thing in the morning, on an empty stomach.

While you are waiting for all this to be done start reading up on this whole subject, get all you can from the internet and ask questions on this forum. When your results come back post them here so that the very clever people here can advise you and give their opinions. When you have all of this information the first thing is to take it to your doctor and see if s/he will cooperate, if so, great, if not, try another doc (it took me 5 docs before I got a sensible one!) . If you have no luck at all then perhaps we can put you on a better track.

Please put a lot of emphasis on educating yourself on this subject. For what it is worth, I had to go manic on it for about 6 months before I could get it through my head but I realized that my life depended upon getting this right, so I kept at it. I am far from the best resource on this site but I got it right for myself with help from people on this site and from sheer doggedness of going after what I needed.

[amy3567 in reply to LAHs]

Thanks, I've just ordered a kit from Medichecks. So many helpful people on here x