Hi, I've piled on the weight in the last 18 months specifically having always been a bit chunky, never waif like! I've always been pale and with itchy flaky skin. Always been a bit constipated and just figured it was normal for 'me' and make sure I eat a high fibre diet and psylum supplements to help. My life style has not changed in years Im 50 next year (healthy) and Im active and dont smoke, or drink to excess (often!) I eat right and look after myself.
About a year ago my cholesterol spiked at 7.2 and previously had always hovered around 4 to 4.5. So I made more adjustments to my lifestyle to try and reduce it, including more exercise and even though my weight was creeping up I limited myself to 1200 calories a day and my clothes have got tighter still. Being the age I am I figured it was all part of the aging process as was my hair thinning, and my weight gain was down to that also. To compound the issue I am more tired than I can ever remember being, and even when I've slept well - I never feel rested or ready for the day ahead. I cant say I've got energy at any point and want to go for a run like I used to, not even a brisk walk. I cycle for exercise and even thats a chore now, im starting to resent it which is something Ive never done before. Everything is a struggle. My bones ache and Ive been less than sharp mentally for some time now. I also put that down to tiredness and aging, but I dont even have the concentration to read for pleasure anymore or follow a TV programme with a complex plot.
At 8pm I am struggling to stay awake and would happily take a nap in the PM if i can at the weekends!
I had a cyst on the back of my neck that needed to be ultrasound scanned, and during this they kindly did a whole neck ultrasound and picked up what they termed as an anomaly on my throat. I was asked if Id got a cold or sore throat and i hadn't. I was then told my results would be sent to my doctor and he would be in touch to discuss it. Subsequently I have had a letter from my doctor asking me to go for a blood test which was yesterday and I had no clue what it was for. My mind was obviously going to some dark places about what it could be having a parent that had throat cancer. So I asked the nurse what it was they were testing for and she said it was thyroid function and maybe Hashimotos. I suppose im angry about being kept in the dark about what they are looking for and wonder if my symptoms are similar to others. I would also like to know what i should be asking the doctor about if the diagnosis is confirmed. What can I expect regarding recovery and feeling better if thats the case. The other thing thats puzzling is why? Have I always had this and its just got worse over time. There is no history of this in either side of the family so is it something that just happens?
Anyway I think this post is long enough right now ha ha. Please let me know if you've got any advice for me to follow - thanks in advance <3 <3
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Clara999
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Well, those symptoms certainly sound like hypo. And that high cholesterol would more or less clinch it for me - high cholesterol has nothing to do with life style, no matter what they tell you.
The problem is that doctors are very, very bad at diagnosing hypo, so make sure you get a copy of your results - if you live in the UK, it is your legal right to have a print-out. Then, you can post them on here, with the ranges, and we can take it from there. There's not much anyone can say until we've seen the ranges. And, as you are new to all this, we need to take it one step at a time.
In the meantime, don't over-do the exercise, that could make things worse. And, my advice would be to eat more, you're not getting enough calories, and hypo weight has little to do with what you eat.
Dearest Greygoose thank you for your super speedy reply. You've already made me feel a little easier about things. I'll knock the exercise on the head for a few days and eat a bit more as you suggest until I know for sure whats going on. I just want to feel better, Im worn down with it all and been managing symptoms and blaming it on my age for so long. Although i guess nobody wants a confirmed diagnosis as such. It would certainly explain a lot of things!
Having a diagnosis to hang your problems on is a great relief, I know.
In a way, you're not wrong about blaming symptoms on your age, because that's what growing old is, the slowing down of hormone production. But, when you're hypo, it goes much quicker, and you age much faster, so you need to replace those hormones to keep you well.
Right then I have a diagnosis of sorts now, and it seems my levels are within 'normal' range according to my doctor. Whatever that means, I shall be asking for the detail so I can post them ask you guys if that is actually the case however! As GreyGoose has said, and with so many other posts Ive read on here some doctors don't seem to understand what all this is about.
I have also discovered what the mad panic was about the 'nodules' they saw on my thyroid whilst being scanned. They assumed by the state of it that I was in trouble with my general health and wanted to confirm with a test. I've been told that because of what they picked up on the scan that its only a question of time before it gives up. Because of this they want to monitor it with blood tests periodically until that happens, then medicate me accordingly. The doc says my symptoms are likely due to other hormonal changes ie menopause which is odd since im already on HRT so I questioned that. I was told then they want to test for ferratin and B12 levels but I'm not sure what that all means really. or conversely what it proves regarding my health in general terms. Maybe someone has a view?
Oh dear. Sounds like they're really struggling to find something intelligent to say! They really don't know what it's all about!
OK, so this is the way I interpret what they've said - in their inimitable way! They suspect Hashi's. Only they don't call it Hashi's, they call it Autoimmune Thyroiditis. Which does mean that it's only a matter of time before it gives up completely. But, that is such a silly statement because everything is just a matter of time. And, with Hashi's it could take 40 years or more. But, it happens slowly. Not all in a rush. You don't have a euthyroid thyroid one day and a dead one the next. Your thyroid just becomes smaller and smaller and les capable of making hormone, so you get more and more hypo. But, it's very good that they are monitoring it.
As for your levels being 'in-range', that is not the point. The ranges are usually so wide that 'in-range' is rarely the same as 'optimal'. You are hypo when your TSH hits 3 - but that's not what they're taught in med school. So, they don't consider you hypo until your TSH hits 10 - which is very cruel and unnecessary, but that's the way it is on the NHS. So, be interesting to see those results.
I have the latest blood tests now so heres the results. I did notice they haven't done T3. Is this normal? Its only because of my meanderings around this forum I understand this might be important? The numbers in the brackets are the 'range' I believe also.
T4 13.5pmol/L (9.0-26.0)
TSH 2.60mu/L (0.27-4.2)
My Vit D levels are low and they have put me on Vit D tablets. My cholesterol is not great also and I have the detail on that too. With the recent changes to my diet this is down a wee bit but nothing of any significance
Total Cholesterol 7.0 this is down from 7.2 a year ago
HDL 1.3
Triglycerides 2.3mmol/L above ref limit (0.4-1.9)
Calculated LDL 4.6 mmol/L
I got Ferratin in the tests too and thats 221 ug/L (15.0-350)
Really hoping this means something to you guys on here, Im a little lost but am reading more and more each day to understand this.
Is it normal not to do an FT3? Well, depends on your definition of 'normal'. If you mean 'is that what normally happens'? Then the answer is 'yes'. They do not understand the importance of the FT3 result. Does that make it OK/normal? Then, no, it doesn't. The FT3 is actually the most important number, but they wouldn't understand it if they had it. They just don't learn about T3 in med school. Why? Complicated. But, one reason is to save money!
So, your TSH is too high. It's 'in-range', yes, of course it is. But that doesn't make it good. It tells us - well, those of us that know something about thyroid, so that rules out doctors - it tells us that your thyroid is struggling. However, it's not quite high enough to class you as hypo by anyone's standards. Your FT4 is very low - it should be around mid-range in a healthy person. BUT, it's not T4 or TSH that causes symptoms. If you have hypo symptoms, the odds are that your FT3 is low. And, once again, a doctor is going to say that your FT4 is 'in-range' so it's got to be fine/OK/perfect. So, you're not going to get a diagnosis of hypo on the basis of those results.
You said you were having your B12 tested, do you have a result for that? Doctors are very quick to blame hypo symptoms on 'something else', but they don't even know that having low B12 - and by low I mean under 500 - will cause hypo-like symptoms. So, important to know about that.
Cholesterol, as I said before, will be high if you are hypo. It is caused by low T3, not life-style. Absolutely no surprise that changing your life-style did not reduce your cholesterol. How could it? It won't increase your T3, so your cholesterol will stay high.
The surprise is that your ferritin looks good. BUT, did you have your CRP tested? That is probably high, which will mean that your ferritin isn't actually as good as it looks. So, another result we need to give the full picture.
And, just as a matter of interest, what was your vit D result? And, what did the doctor put you on, exactly? How much?
Thank you for your amazingly super quick reply again <3
No clue what CRP is and ive looked though the printouts i have and there is nothing in there that looks like that test unfortunately.
Below is the additional detail.
B12 + folate
Serum Vit B12 (XE2pf) - 388ng/L (191.0-663.0)
Serum Folate level (42U5.) - 8.9ug/L (3.3 - 19.3)
Vit D is 19nmol/L and the prescription says colecalciferol 3,000 unit capsules. One daily for 12 weeks.
I've recently been taking a Vit B12 supplement because I figured that may help. I don't eat masses of vit B12 rich foods like meat (because of the cholesterol thing) I don't eat boxed fortified cereals either. I kinda knew that might be lacking in my diet especially with the recent changes. Trying to cut sugar and excess fats.
I think I might have to survive on a diet of Kale soon, steamed, Kale, baked Kale, Kale Curry anyone? hahahahah
Forget the cholesterol. Cutting down on things like fat because your cholesterol is high is going to do more harm than good. High cholesterol won't hurt you. It doesn't cause heart attacks or strokes. Cholesterol is made in the liver and has very little to do with what you eat - it has nothing to do with how much meat or fat you eat! Cholesterol and fat are two entirely different substances and fat does not miraculously turn into cholesterol when you eat it! Avoiding fat will make you very unhealthy, will cause depression and all sorts of things. So, just forget the cholesterol and eat normally.
Your vit D is very low, and the little that your doctor has given you won't help much. I'm not an expert on vit D, so I suggest you read through some of SeasideSusie 's responses to get an idea how much you actually need.
Your vit B12 is a bit low. But, were you taking a B12 supplement when that test was done? If so, the result doesn't mean much. Are you also taking a B complex? The Bs all work together and so need to be kept balanced. Just taking B12 in isolation is not going to help much. You need both sublingual methylcobalamin (B12) - 1000 mcg - and a B complex. Get a B complex with at least 400 mcg methylfolate, and that will bring your folate up nicely, because that's a bit low, too. But, you won't find either of those in the High Street. Have a look on amazon.
Vit D is 19nmol/L and the prescription says colecalciferol 3,000 unit capsules. One daily for 12 weeks.
So that is Vit D deficiency (I'd personally call it severe deficiency). The NICE Clinical Knowledge Summary for treating Vit D deficiency states to prescribe loading doses of D3 totalling 280,000 - 300,000iu over a number of weeks. What you have been prescribed totals 252,000iu so that will be classed as loading doses. However, it's a fairly slow way of doing it but you may get there.
Once the loading doses have finished it's essential to retest. Many doctors wont retest as they say it's an expensive test, and they may just prescribe 800iu as a maintenance dose, they may prescribe nothing, they may say buy your own. Whatever happens, you must retest your level, even if it means doing it privately. You can do this with a private fingerprick blood spot test with an NHS lab which offers this test to the general public:
The Vit D Council recommends a level of 125nmol/L (50ng/ml) and the Vit D Society recommends a level of 100-150nmol/L (40-60ng/ml). Once you have reached this level then you'll need a maintenance dose to keep it there, which may be 2000iu daily, maybe more or less, maybe less in summer than winter, it's trial and error so it's recommended to retest once or twice a year to keep within the recommended range. You can post your new level on her and I will point you in the direction of how to work out how much you need to take.
With severe Vit D deficiency, you'll need to supplement for life but you will still need to test regularly and adjust dose of D3 if necessary.
Your GP won't know, because they're not taught much about nutrients, but there are important cofactors needed when taking D3 as recommended by the Vit D Council -
D3 aids absorption of calcium from food and K2-MK7 directs the calcium to bones and teeth where it is needed and away from arteries and soft tissues where it can be deposited and cause problems such as hardening of the arteries, kidney stones, etc.
D3 and K2 are fat soluble so should be taken with the fattiest meal of the day, D3 four hours away from thyroid meds if taking tablets/capsules/softgels, no necessity if using an oral spray
Magnesium helps D3 to work. We need Magnesium so that the body utilises D3, it's required to convert Vit D into it's active form. So it's important we ensure we take magnesium when supplementing with D3.
Magnesium comes in different forms, check to see which would suit you best and as it's calming it's best taken in the evening, four hours away from thyroid meds if taking tablets/capsules, no necessity if using topical forms of magnesium.
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'Chance' diagnosis of Hypothyroidism
Awaiting thyroid scan for nodules etc...
No diagnosis, yet, but why? 
New diagnosis of underactive thyroid
