After reading post

[Gillybabe48]

After reading your post in which you said most people have between 100 to 200 mcgs of levothyroxine. I have levelled at 75 mcgs. Is this okay. My last test with fasting was TSH 0.18 range 0.35 - 5.0 and T4 12 on ranges 7.50 - 20. Doctor was a bit worried about 0.18 TSH but I feel okay. I am 70 so think he is watching for hyperthyroidism. Also I had an ectopic heartbeat for a while. What do you think.

[NWA6]

How do you feel? Your T4 is in the lower range so if you don’t feel optimal you still have wiggle room. Don’t worry about TSH, try to smile at your GP and tell them how fabulous you feel and that your quite happy as you are Thank you very much 😬

[BadHare]

Best to take what YOU need rather than the amount that suits someone else as we're individual.

I take more than my friend's hubby who's over a foot bigger than me, both ways, & he has no thyroid.

[greygoose]

Is this post directed at anyone in particular? Or is it a plural 'you'?

What I think is that your FT4 could be higher, but you really need your FT3 tested. It's low T3 that causes symptoms, because it's the active hormone.

Tell your doctor that you cannot 'go hyper' because you are hypo, and that it's a physical impossibility to switch from one to the other. You could be over-medicated, but he won't know unless he tests the FT3. The TSH on its own tells him nothing.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

For full Thyroid evaluation you need TSH, FT4 and FT3 plus both TPO and TG thyroid antibodies tested. Also extremely important to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12

Low vitamin levels are extremely common, especially if Thyroid antibodies are raised

Recommended on here that all thyroid blood tests should ideally be done as early as possible in morning and fasting. This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip, best not mentioned to GP or phlebotomist)

Last Levothyroxine dose should be 24 hours prior to test, (taking delayed dose immediately after blood draw).

Ask GP to test FT3 and FT4 plus a TSH , Thyroid antibodies (if never been tested) and vitamins

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

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 special offers, Medichecks usually have offers on Thursdays, Blue Horizon its more random

Medichecks currently have an offer on until end of May - 20% off

thyroiduk.org.uk/index.html

[shaws Administrator]

A dose of thyroid hormones is an individual thing and the main point is that the patient feels well again and has no clinical symptoms whatsoever.

Many GPs think that a TSH alone is indicative of the patient's health and thinks that if the TSH is somewhere in the range that the patient is on a sufficient dose, but it is not

If the patient's TSH is 1 or lower with a Free T4 and Free T3 in the upper part of the ranges and feels well and energetic is on the correct dose. The latter two are rarely tested.

Many GPs think that a patient will be hyPERthyroid if it is below 1 but that isn't true if we've already been diagnosed as hyPO.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/thyroi...

Your blood test was not a Full Thyroid Function Test so is not informative enough and ranges always have to be stated after the results.

Did you have blood drawn at the earliest possible? Fasting? (you can drink water) and allow a gap of 24 hours between the last dose of levo and the test and take afterwards? If not your results will not be accurate.

A Full Thyroid Function Test consists of:

TSH, T4, T3, Free T4, Free T3 and thyroid antibodies.

Doctors usually don't test the Frees which are the most important.

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

If you wish a private FTF (full thyroid function test) is available through recommended labs who send you the equipment and if you decide to do this make sure you are well-hydrated a couple of days before blood draw. Also that hands arms are warm so blood draw is easy.

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

Always get a print-out of your results, with the ranges for your own records. You can post for comments.

[Ruby1]

As others have said, 75mcg is fine if you feel well. Like others here, my TSH is also below 1, but my GP is happy with that.