Finally got my adv. thyroid results back from medichecks. My TSH was 4.7 last time and, as advised I upped all my vitamins and iron to try and improve that. Results follow:
--------------------4thFEB----------- 10thMAY-------- RANGE
Thyroid Peroxidase less than 9 ------------11.3 ------------------------------0-34
antibodies
I am very pleased that I have managed to raise my vitamin levels but I still feel horrible with aches and pains, swollen face, bags under my eyes, thinning hair, brain fog like you won't believe, anxiety (though quelled a bit by the antidepressants they put me on 10mths ago)....and cold all the time. Feel 'out of it' and not sure how much of that is the horrible antidepressants. I also lost 2st before the meds and now put back more than that since being on them. Hard to tell which symptoms are due to them.... I'm starting a slow taper off them on Friday. The advice from the medichecks doctor was to go to GP as two raised TSH tests now. I will but I don't hold out much hope. Any advice that may help would be appreciated. Sorry it's so long. I tried to include everything...Thanks
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ukred
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Thyroid Peroxidase less than 9 ------------11.3 ------------------------------0-34
antibodies
CRP - Optimal for CRP is < 1. Your result is very good, and is only a tiny smidgen away from optimal.
Ferritin - Your result was optimal in Feb but has dropped quite a bit. Optimal for many people is around mid-range or a little bit over i.e. around 80 - 120 with your range.
Ferritin not only rises in response to increasing iron intake, but also rises in response to inflammation and infection. So if you had higher levels of inflammation or infection in February then improved these it could suggest a reason for your ferritin dropping.
I wouldn't suggest supplementing iron on the basis of your current ferritin result - that could seriously backfire on you. However, if you wanted to incorporate more iron-containing foods in your diet then you might find this website of interest :
Folate - Your result is absolutely fine. If you are supplementing folate you might want to reduce your dose very slightly. Optimal is upper half of the range.
Active B12 - Optimal is > 100. Your result is very good.
Vitamin D - Optimal is roughly 100 - 150 nmol/L, but personal preference comes into this (in my opinion). I feel best with my result being about 100, some people prefer 150 nmol/L. Your result is pretty good.
TSH / Free T3 / Free T4 - Your TSH result suggests you are under-medicated by quite a lot (assuming you are medicated at all) with an over-range TSH. Free T3 is 57% of the way through the range, Free T4 is only 30% of the way through the range. These results suggest that your body is converting T4 like mad to keep your T3 levels up, but I suspect it is fighting a losing battle and your Free T4 and Free T3 will drop lower. In your shoes I would want to be treated for hypothyroidism.
Many people on this forum feel at their best when Free T4 is roughly 60% - 80% of the way through the range, and when Free T3 is 50% - 70% of the way through the range. But these numbers are not a target - they are just a suggestion, and how you feel is the most important thing. You may feel at your best with both of them being mid-range, or you might feel best with almost zero T4 and taking T3 only, or just about any other combo. Free T3 is usually the best measure of how well or ill people are, but just because one person likes their level at 60% and another person requires 90% to feel well, means that we each have to work out for ourselves where our levels suit us best.
Antibodies - Your antibody levels are in range, suggesting that you don't have autoimmune hypothyroidism. But as antibodies fluctuate a lot another test done a week later might have given entirely different results. The only way to tell for certain whether you have Hashi's is by ultrasound scan of your thyroid (as far as I know). But I don't know what your chances are of getting such a thing done.
Anti-depressants - I've been on four different SSRIs since the 1990s, but never got any benefit from them and would never take them again. About ten years ago I read about an OTC anti-depressant called 5-HTP. You can buy it from Holland & Barrett and online from sites selling supplements. Go to Amazon and read some of the reviews. I found it worked extremely well for me (but doesn't work for everyone), and I only take a tiny dose of 50mg. For many years I took it every night before bed (it helps some people with sleep). But now I take it three or four days a week. I wrote a post about it here :
Be aware that mixing anti-depressants of any kind is potentially dangerous, whether they are prescribed or are bought over the counter.
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Based on your results I would say that you are most likely hypothyroid and need treating. If you could optimise your thyroid results with prescribed thyroid hormones it will probably reduce your symptoms and you might not need anti-depressants at all. But if you have to rely on a doctor to prescribe it can be difficult to get treatment started.
Cortisol - One thing that gets mucked up by low levels of thyroid hormones is cortisol. That could be adding to your symptoms too.
Diet - Do you eat enough, and does your diet contain enough protein and fat? A diet high in carbs is not good for anyone, as far as I can tell.
Thanks for your amazing in depth answer. I haven’t been diagnosed with a thyroid issue just anxiety. I am going to taper the antidepressants very slowly as they make me feel achey, spaced out and I’ve gained weight.
Also, over the last few days I have noticed something that has been happening on and off for a while but more pronounced. A tightening and ache in my neck and it feels swollen on either side of the trachea under my chin.
Knowing I wouldn’t get through on the phone, I composed a letter to my GP a few days ago. I included the blood tests and an explanation and asked if I could have a face to face assessment so she could feel my neck. This morning I have just received a call from the receptionist explaining they were not allowed to book face to face appointments. I would need a telephone appointment first. Then the GP will decide if I need seeing.
I wonder what percentage of telephone appointments get "converted" into face to face appointments? After all, patients struggle to get doctors to acknowledge their existence at the best of times. What are the chances that doctors will speak to them once, then agree to see them in person which means speaking to the patients a second time?
Good luck with speaking to and/or seeing your doctor.
Thanks. I've decided to ring back Monday and say I need a same day telephone appointment. The next telephone appointment being nearly three weeks away is ridiculous! When the GP rings I'll tell them I want an examination on my neck. It's quite painful now and me being me I always put everything down to me being hysterical....but what if it's something serious after all? The NHS is a service we pay for but it seems the only people benefitting from it any more is a corrupt government!
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I'm starting a slow taper off them on Friday. The advice from the medichecks doctor was to go to GP as two raised TSH tests now. I will but I don't hold out much hope. Any advice that may help would be appreciated. Sorry it's so long. I tried to include everything...Thanks
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