Hello first post but been registered here a while,
A bit of background (trying to be brief, will probably fail!)- I've had symptoms of hypothyroidism since my late teens and my GP at the time said it was likely to be thyroid and it will need monitoring. I've never reached anywhere near the NHS TSH threshold (usually 3 to just over 4) so have never been diagnosed or treated.
My longtime GP admitted he was no specialist but said that my thyroid hormones seemed a little low (he tested t4 and t3 not just TSH) and said he couldn't prescribe anything on the NHS but would monitor my blood if I wanted to try and source medication myself. I didn't as sources seemed dodgy at best and he encouraged me to find a private endo for advice. I found one via this site but the experience was rubbish- he knew less than my GP (who admitted he didn't know much!) and didn't seem interested.
Since 2019, my weight has shot up depsite no diet or exercise changes- my diet is healthy and I've had a PT for years. My GP retired and the new one won't listen, they just tell you that your body slows down in your 30s and to go to Weight Watchers but I've made no changes to my diet. It's not just the weight, I am an active person and I struggle to make it through the day and many other issues.
I tried a private GP and they said insulin resistance without doing a blood test?! Seems like something you'd need a blood test to confirm? The only test they did was body composition and I have above average muscle mass and body fat which they said was odd.
I've used advice from here about how to take blood tests, supplements etc (thank you!) and was wondering if you think it could be thyroid or whether I'm barking up the wrong tree as the original GP did say he's no expert in the field- I'm a bit at the end of my tether and hoping you can help point me in the right direction. These were from end of March (stopped supplements that this forum says to prior to test, took fasting before 9am etc) I feel worse since these were done but these are reasonably typical for me. Old tests I could find are attached in pics.
TSH: 3.09 (0.27-4.2)
Free T3: 4.33 (3.1-6.8)
Free thyroxine: 15.5 (12-22)
Ferritin: 71.6 (13-150)
Folate- serum: 17.86 (>3.89)
Vitamin b12- active: 117 (>37.5)
Vitamin D: 72 (50- 175)
CRP HS: 1.71 (<5)
Thyroglobulin antibodies: 12.2 (<115)
Thyroid peroxidase antibodies: 9.46 (<34)
Not coeliac, gluten-free made constipation worse but weirdly I do seem to have a problem with white potatoes!
I'd just be grateful for any help really- could it be thyroid? Is it worth persuing? If so, any doctor recommendations who could help?
Many thanks if you've waded through this!
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RAB161
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Most feel good if TSH is nearer 1 so if you increase your medication then TSH will fall and your others will increase. Sounds easy but the thing to do is raise your meds very slowly by 25mcg’s and leave to stabilise. It takes a full 6 weeks to get each full dose into your body so at 7, or 8 weeks if readings aren’t optimal you can increase. Basically you need to repeat remembering the 6-8 weeks to retest till TSH, FT4 and FT3 are all in good places.
RAB161 isn't on Levo .. has never had a diagnosis . due to TSH not going over range. and T4/3 not going under range.
RAB161 unfortunately it will be a struggle to get anyone to treat at these levels, especially since your thyroid antibodies are also in range.
So there doesn't seem to be an autoimmune cause for hypothyroidism.
(doesn't mean there isn't though , since some people have autoimmune thyroid disease without any antibodies.. ..the damage can be seen on a Thyroid ultrasound though)
I think SlowDragon has a contact detail for a private ultrasound scan costing approx £150 ish... don't know if this might help.
If you look at the graph here healthunlocked.com/thyroidu... you will see that it is unusual to have a TSH of 3/4.. most people have it nearer 1 and on the result you have where TSH was 4.1 you fT3 was also very low in range.. so it is quite possible that your thyroid is struggling.... unfortunately it's not struggling enough (yet?) to allow the NHS to consider treating it.
But hopefully someone will be along to have a look at your vitamin results to see if there's anything you can improve there.
it gets a bit busy , and so many posts are so similar... by the time you've gone back and found a blood result and what they're taking, it's a miracle any replies are to the right person.
Thanks for the reply, it's just been quite frustrating to try and find what it is. Someone mentioned Dr Glenville on here before so I've been trying to follow her advice on nutrition.
Thanks for the detailed reply. I am taking 300mg magnesium, selenium ug(?) , b complex, omega 3 and vit d3- I've upped that to 3000ui a day currently as I'd like it a little higher in range and that's the one that I struggle with getting towards the upper part of the range.
No real trigger for the weight gain, I did change jobs a bit before but it wasn't a career move just a different place although I didn't enjoy it!
My PT did suggest cortisol too actually so that might be worth looking at, thanks for the links.
Both my resting heart rate and body temp are low, my PT jokes about checking that I'm alive!
My diet is very boring as I worked on it with the PT to get in whole grains, healthy fats like avocado although haven't gone to fully organic meat. I'm also not sweet-toothed at all. My weight had been stable for years hence it was strange and came with horrible fatigue and brain fog. Thanks for all the links, I will try some of the other tests- you've given me more avenues to explore, thank you.
Hi RAB161Sounds like my story. No diagnosis from GP as all blood results are ‘in range’. It was soul destroying. You have all the symptoms and they treat you like it’s in your head 😞
I found a great Endo from this forum who diagnosed central or secondary hypothyroidism and I am on the way to recovery.
Keep going, try another Endo from here and perhaps suggest central hypothyroidism?
In addition, the kind people on here have been invaluable in providing all sorts of help and advice.
Thanks for the reply, it is frustrating just not knowing isn't it? 1 GP suspecting it is, others not- you reach the point where you just feel if it it is thyroid related then please treat it or please find out what it is if not thyroid! I have had some recommendations from here which I will follow up and will find out more about central hypothyroidism. Thank you everyone for your suggestions, definitely have a bit more to go on now.
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Latest blood results...any help appreciated 
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