New Results In : Good morning everyone. I hope... - Thyroid UK

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New Results In

Aslangal profile image
34 Replies

Good morning everyone. I hope you are all well and coping with lockdown. 🌈

I had bloods done at my GP surgery on the 5th March but only just got my results:

TSH 1.15 (range 0.27 - 4.2)

T4 22.9 (range 12 - 22)

T3. 5 (range 3.1 - 6.8)

TPO Ab 38 (range under 34iu/ml)

Nurse said Dr has put ‘mild’ beside the TPO reading and also written ‘increase Levo dose’

I’m getting a call back today.

Appreciate any comments or advice.

I’ve been taking Vitamin D 3000iu daily since Christmas, 200ug Selenium, 1000ug B12, B6 50mg, Pro Biotic x 1, Curcumin x 1

Levo dose is: 125mcg Teva brand

Nothing with Biotin in. Fasted before bloods.

Thanks in advance!

😀

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Aslangal profile image
Aslangal
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34 Replies
fuchsia-pink profile image
fuchsia-pink

So your T4 is slightly above range and your T3 is crawling along the floor. You're a "classic" poor converter. You don't say whether you are feeling well and I think it's a positive sign that the GP has even tested T3, but I'd say if you aren't feeling good, you would be very likely to benefit from a trial of T3, along with your levo, if that's "allowed" where you live.

See if you can be referred to an endo (lio is only available on a consultant's advice) and email Dionne at tukadmin@thyroiduk.org for the list of lio-friendly endo's if you haven't already got this.

Good luck x

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to fuchsia-pink

Thanks

greygoose profile image
greygoose

Lynn, can you confirm your FT3 reading, please?

T3. 5 (range 3.1 - 6.8)

Is that 0.5 (doubtful, you'd probably be dead!) or 5 (five)? I think fuchsia-pink has taken it to be 3.5, which is why she's talking about it 'crawling along the floor'.

If it's 5, then it's 53.35% through the range. But your FT4 is 109%! So, you are a poor converter. But, how do you feel? And, is an increase in levo really the right way to go?

As for 'mild' Hashi's, that would be like being mildly pregnant. lol Either you are or you aren't, there aren't any degrees. Hashi's antibodies fluctuate and are not an indication of how bad your Hashi's is. But, they are tested to find out if you definitely have it. If they are over-range, you definitely do. If they are within range, you might have it and you might not. You do have it, so be prepared for fluctuating levels and symptoms.

Take care. :)

fuchsia-pink profile image
fuchsia-pink in reply to greygoose

yes I did - well spotted!

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply to fuchsia-pink

It wasn't very clear. :)

SlowDragon profile image
SlowDragonAdministrator

See you had RAI previously, so TSH is particularly unreliable after Graves’ disease

How do you feel?

Are you lactose intolerant? Hence Teva brand?

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SlowDragon

No to lactose intolerant. Teva has just been the brand I have always had. Since seeing others talking about brand differences, I just check the box to make sure it’s the same brand.

SeasideSusie profile image
SeasideSusieRemembering

Lynn193

I’ve been taking Vitamin D 3000iu daily since Christmas, 200ug Selenium, 1000ug B12, B6 50mg, Pro Biotic x 1, Curcumin x 1

In your post 5 months ago when you posted your private test results, these were of concern and I gave some suggestions:

Folate. 2.27ug/L (range >3.89)

B12 active. 45.300 pmol/L (range >37.5)

Vit D. 24.7nmol/L. (Range 50-175)

Did you get tested for B12 deficiency/pernicious anaemia?

Did you see your GP about your folate deficiency and Vit D deficiency?

Did you have loading doses of D3 totalling 300,000iu over a number of weeks, were retested and 3,000iu D3 is your follow on dose based on your new level?

Are you taking a B Complex which is necessary when taking B12?

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SeasideSusie

Yes to all of that Susie. Got the 6 weeks loading dose then they prescribed 800iu Vit D daily but I use the Better You spray 3000iu. No to pernicious anaemia. It was negative. Coeliac negative. I have B Complex but only taking B12. Ive been trying to eat more gluten free food.

SeasideSusie profile image
SeasideSusieRemembering in reply to Aslangal

Lynn193

Got the 6 weeks loading dose then they prescribed 800iu Vit D daily but I use the Better You spray 3000iu.

What was your Vit D result after the loading dose? It's very important to know this because your follow on dose is based on the new level. Are you also taking D3's important cofactors - magnesium and Vit K2-MK7?

No to pernicious anaemia. It was negative. Coeliac negative. I have B Complex but only taking B12.

We need a B Complex when taking B12, it's needed to keep all the B vitamins in balance.

But what about your folate deficiency?

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SeasideSusie

They would not retest Vit D. I asked at the Endo appt in January. He said it was unnecessary. So I took another private Medichecks Test. It was 74.

I asked them, if I was going to be B12supplemented - no he said. Not necessary.

Did I have Graves or do I have Hashimoto’s - he had no answer to that and after much humming and ha’ing, I got my private results sheet out. He looked at it and went ‘Whoa! Yes you DO have Hashimoto’s!’ 😡. See why I am frustrated?! He then wrote to my GP (not to means I did not get a copy) but I saw the letter on the screen when I was in for a smear. Nurse let me read it. He said to my GP: ‘Patient is querying if she has Graves or Hashimoto’s? (There was a ? At the end of the sentence) So the Endo is asking my GP?? It’s getting ridiculous.

SeasideSusie profile image
SeasideSusieRemembering in reply to Aslangal

So 3,000iu D3 is about right for that level. You need to retest in 3 months, the aim is to get your level up to between 100-150nmol then find your maintenance dose by trial and error, then test twice a year to ensure you keep within the recommended range.

You didn't answer the following :

* Are you also taking D3's important cofactors - magnesium and Vit K2-MK7?

* But what about your folate deficiency?

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SeasideSusie

Sorry they said my ‘folate was fine’. No to Vit K2 and magnesium

SeasideSusie profile image
SeasideSusieRemembering in reply to Aslangal

Sorry they said my ‘folate was fine’. No to Vit K2 and magnesium

Folate. 2.27ug/L (range >3.89)

I think it's pretty obvious that your folate is not fine. You have folate deficiency, see cks.nice.org.uk/anaemia-b12...

◦Serum folate of less than 7 nanomol/L (3 micrograms/L) is used as a guide to indicate folate deficiency.

◦However, there is an indeterminate zone with folate levels of 7–10 nanomol/L (3–4.5 micrograms/L), so low folate should be interpreted as suggestive of deficiency and not diagnostic.

Our bodies uses folate to produce heme, the part of our red blood cells that contains haemoglobin, and without enough folate the red blood cells can't mature and this may can cause low haemoglobin level.

*

In reply to your post 5 months ago

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

where Vit D was concerned I said:

When loading doses have been completed it's important to retest so that you know what dose to take next. If GP wont retest then do it privately with an NHS lab who offers a home fingerprick test for £29:

vitamindtest.org.uk/index.h...

Come back with new result after that test for further help and information.

If you had done that I would have given you the information about Vit D's important cofactors:

D3 aids absorption of calcium from food and Vit 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 D3 as 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 magnesium as tablets/capsules, no necessity if using topical forms of magnesium.

naturalnews.com/046401_magn...

drjockers.com/best-magnesiu...

afibbers.org/magnesium.html

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SeasideSusie

Thanks for these. Saved them all to study and absorb. 👍🏻

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SeasideSusie

Sorry I thought I had posted the second Vit D Test result but probably Coronavirus had already hit then and I put it on the back burner. I was ill and in Hospital end of Feb/beginning of March. I don’t know where I would be without the help I have received from yourself and others on this forum. I’d probably be dead and that’s no exaggeration. I am exhausted,mentally, battling this out with the ‘professionals’. I saw something on a Hashimoto’s sufferer’s page the other day ... ‘bring an end to the medical profession gas lighting thyroid patients’ I understand that GPs often don’t have the expertise but I expect Endocrinologists should. I’m writing a letter to the Endocrinologist tomorrow as I rang 3 times today and no response. With Coronavirus, they could be working elsewhere. 😀

SlowDragon profile image
SlowDragonAdministrator in reply to Aslangal

You can’t be almost gluten free..it has to be absolutely strictly gluten free to be effective

Explains Why here

chriskresser.com/the-gluten...

Have you noticed any improvements on less gluten?

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SlowDragon

Apart from less bloating...no. I get conflicting advice about GF. It’s hard to filter.

SlowDragon profile image
SlowDragonAdministrator in reply to Aslangal

Less bloating suggests you are benefiting

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SlowDragon

I’ve saved that to my Kindle thanks. If I have had RAI, does this still apply?

SlowDragon profile image
SlowDragonAdministrator in reply to Aslangal

Yes because you still have Graves’ disease. Just that after RAI your thyroid can’t respond to the attacks

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SlowDragon

So I have both? Graves and Hashimoto’s??

SlowDragon profile image
SlowDragonAdministrator in reply to Aslangal

Yes you can

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal

Nurse just read out ‘5’ and I was writing them down (they just rang me - it is 5)

My TPO on my Medichecks Test in November was 57.4 and TGab was 1090

Not my normal GP who called. She is going to arrange another thyroid panel by district nurse. I was reading your replies as she called so quickly had to scan through and put some things to her like - am I a poor converter? She had no idea and did say it’s not an area she is experienced in. I’m due to see Endo in 2 months but she suggested calling them directly to see if appt booked in.

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply to Aslangal

OK, but be careful with full stops/decimal points. They can totally change a results. :)

So, you are a poor converter, but I wouldn't expect a nurse to know about that. Nor a GP, come to that. They just don't get much training in thyroid and only have a very sketchy, basic knowledge of the subject. Hopefully the endo you see will know more, but unfortunately, most of them are diabetes specialists and don't know much about thyroid, either.

With those high antibodies, there is no doubt that you have Hashi's, whatever anyone might say. Do you know how Hashi's works?

Oh, and BTW, on this forum, when you reply to someone's comment, you need to click on the blue 'Reply' button under the comment, otherwise, the person won't be notified and won't know that you've replied.

Stay safe. :)

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to greygoose

Sorry... trying to do do things at once. She must have used the word ‘normal’ in that conversation about 20 times. She got flustered when I started mentioning % and poor conversion. It’s not her fault. I wasn’t trying to catch her out. She just didn’t know what to advise and admitted the Endo would be best. So if I am a poor converter - what can I do? Yes I have read up a lot on Hashimoto’s. Got Isabella Wentz books etc.,

😀

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply to Aslangal

No, she wouldn't know much about it, I understand that. But, 'normal' is not a word that should be used in connection with thyroid, because everyone's 'normal' is different. When a doctor - or a nurse - says 'normal', all they mean is 'in-range'. But, just because a result is 'in-range', doesn't mean it's the right level for you as an individual. The ranges are too wide. Your FT3, for example, is only just mid-range, and a lot of hypos need it higher than that.

Be carefully with Isabella Wentz, she has some very strange ideas. There is no cure for Hashi's.

I rather doubt that increasing your vit D has made you feel much better. Especially as you don't appear to be taking magnesium and vit K2 with it. And, if your B12 is still low, you certainly won't be feeling 100%. There's a lot to think about with Hashi's. :)

Forgot to say, what can you do about poor conversion? Well, first step is to optimise all your nutrients, but that doesn't always help. The problem is, there can be so many reasons why we don't convert well, it's not always possible to find the cause. I believe you said you're taking selenium? That's a major nutrient for conversion. How about zinc? That's very important too. But, it could just be that you don't convert well due to having Hashi's, and there's not much you can do about that, except to add T3 to your levo.

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to greygoose

Do you think should switch to B Complex?

SlowDragon profile image
SlowDragonAdministrator in reply to Aslangal

Suggest you take vitamin B complex and B12 sublingual lozenges to start with

After a month or so you can start to cut the B12 down .....unless it’s still low at next test

Otherwise just taking vitamin B complex will supplement all B vitamins including B12

If you are taking vitamin B complex, or any supplements containing biotin, remember to stop these 7 days before any blood tests, as biotin can falsely affect test results

endo.confex.com/endo/2016en...

endocrinenews.endocrine.org...

Low B12 symptoms

b12deficiency.info/signs-an...

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SlowDragon

Thanks will look at that again.

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SlowDragon

Last night I ordered B12 sublingual lozenges, Vit K2 MK7, Zinc and Magnesium. I will switch to the B50 Complex I have at home, today. Thank you for the advice. 😀

SlowDragon profile image
SlowDragonAdministrator in reply to Aslangal

Only add one supplement at a time and wait at least 10 days to assess any changes, before adding another

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal in reply to SlowDragon

Will do

Aslangal profile image
Aslangal

I feel better than I did 6 months ago that is for sure but that could be the Vitamin D being rectified? I’m going to gingerly say, I still don’t feel 100%.

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