I thought I would give update after posting previously and all the help I received.
After all your advice I booked a consultation with an Endocrinologist from recommendations accessed through this site. He was great and explained that he wasn’t concerned about my suppressed on Thyroxine
TSH 0.04 ref 0.4-5.0
He has asked me to consider T3 which he will prescribe for me. I’ve never even thought about this before. What are the benefits? I have been feeling rubbish for so long I don’t know what normal is anymore! I just don’t want to rock the boat and end up feeling worse.
I’m due for a follow up with him soon so will need to decide if I want this or not.
Furthermore he asked for a TPO test results are
8.4iu/ml normal range <5.5
My question is as I have long term Hashimotos wouldn’t the antibody count be raised anyway? Or is this result anything of concern?
Opinions please 😊. X
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M1ssmolly
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If you felt well on increased levo then I would start with that. As tattie says it is easier to obtain.
If you do decide to try adding t3 be aware that it is not a quick fix. It has taken 10 months of dose adjustments of levo and lio for me to begin to feel better. As doses are adjusted it means 2 monthly blood tests which must include Ft3.
T3 is something to add if you need it but it comes with its own problems too.
No twice a month is too soon for the body to settle. I do them every 2 months. That is every 8 weeks after a change.
It is usual for it to take time to adjust doses as you can only change one thing at a time and then wait 8 weeks to see what happens. Others here have also taken a year or more. It needs patience.
I guess , since you felt better on more Levo before it was reduced , you could ask to try increasing it back again before trying T3, to see how you go. Since if it is possible to feel ok on just Levo it makes life much cheaper/simpler, and without the worry of continuing T3 supply.
But personally , if i had the option, i'd try adding the T3 to get balanced FT4/Ft3 results, rather than end up with over range Ft4. Do you know where your FT4 result was in the range before the dose was reduced?
I'm stuck with just Levo for now , but would love to give some T3 a go.
But don't forget about the advice on optimising other tests (B12 /Folate etc etc) Ask here if you haven't already got that info.
And check back on here regarding the instructions you get on starting dose of T3. Some Endo's seem a bit heavy handed with their instructions when starting a trial of Levo +T3
Not as Ok as i was last year before the GP lowered my levo, but a bit better since i've put it half way back up.
Really annoying isn't it. having someone interfere with your life when you didn't ask em to.
I felt i'd better do as told though, at the time, since my FT4 had slowly climbed it's way up to 240%
I wish they'd be honest and say "we don't understand this , so let's discuss the risks and decide what to do together" instead of arrogantly laying the law down.
I totally agree. It’s absolutely rubbish isn’t it? To get to a place of feeling good only to have Gp lower dose because the bloods don’t tally is completely demoralising. Especially as they won’t consider any other evidence and just look at TSH and blame the menopause!
I hope you are soon back in some sort of balance. X
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 as you have autoimmune thyroid disease (Hashimoto's) diagnosed by raised Thyroid antibodies
What vitamin supplements are you currently taking
Ask GP to test vitamin levels or test privately
Recommended on here that all thyroid blood tests should ideally be done as early as possible in morning and before eating or drinking anything other than water .
Last dose of Levothyroxine 24 hours prior to blood test. (taking delayed dose immediately after blood draw).
This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip, best not mentioned to GP or phlebotomist)
Private tests are available as NHS currently rarely tests Ft3 or thyroid antibodies or all relevant vitamins
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