Light headed, pins and needles, headaches

[Lost_Girl]

Hi

Struggling with light headedness for several months and my tinnitus has got louder … or maybe I’m just not coping as well with it! Pins and needles in my hands and underlying headaches. I feel a bit ‘foggy’.

I’m currently on 75mcg/100mcg Levothyroxene on alternate days, plus 15mcg Liothyronine (split as 10mcg am, 5mcg around 3pm). In addition I take HRT - oestrogen (topical), progesterone and testosterone. I am under a ‘menopause specialist’ for those meds.

GP ran my annual thyroid bloods. I requested the additional ones. I was asked to record daily blood pressure - it’s on the low side so she then did a Cortisol blood test - at 9am. I don’t understand the result and there is no range given. She said everything is ‘normal’. Based on the ‘normal’ results I have started to supplement again with Vit D (K2,K3), and Thorne Basic B Complex. Can I please have your thoughts - many thanks. I don’t feel right and I’m worried that there’s something more going on with me. I’ve posted my results below with ranges in brackets 😊

TSH 0.01 mU/L (0.27 - 4.5)

FT4 14.8 pmol/L (11 - 23)

FT3 4.97 pmol/L (3.1 -6.8)

Ferritin 80.1 ug/L (20 - 260)

Folate 3.0 ug/L (2.0 - 18.7)

B12 492 ng/L (197 - 771)

Vit D 60 nmol (<50 insufficiency)

Cortisol 243 nmol/L. There is a comment from lab - the result is in expected limits for the day but does not exclude a degree of deficiency. Consider first-line stimulation or suppression test if suspicion is high

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Lost_Girl

Your post appeared twice so I have deleted the duplicate.

[Lost_Girl in reply to SeasideSusie]

Hi - thank you. I thought I’d used the edit function to change a typo (K2,D3) but must have got that wrong and it posted twice. 😊

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Was test done as early as possible in morning before eating or drinking anything other than water and last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test, and last 5mcg dose T3 approx 8-12 hours before test

Obviously folate and vitamin D need improving as first steps

Do you know if you have autoimmune thyroid disease

Looking at previous posts couldn’t see any thyroglobulin antibodies test result

TPO negative

Have you had ultrasound scan of thyroid

Are you on strictly gluten free diet

Have you considered splitting T3 as 3 x 5mcg …..

5mcg waking, 5mcg mid afternoon and 5mcg at bedtime

Do you always get same brand levothyroxine at each prescription

Do take levothyroxine waking or bedtime

Have you considered splitting levothyroxine into 2 smaller doses waking and bedtime

Only make one change at a time

[Lost_Girl]

HiWhen I was under endocrinology I was informed that I only needed 1 lot of antibodies testing and when I asked about a scan he felt my neck and said my thyroid was atrophied so scan would show nothing relevant. I was diagnosed originally with severe primary hypothyroidism - no mention of hashimotos. I think I’m correct that there wouldn’t be any differences in my treatment so my gp I’m sure wouldn’t test these.

I was actually feeling good up until a few months back. Nothing has changed other than I had my gallbladder removed in September. But this light headed feeling is concerning, I still work in a fairly active job and at times have had to grab hold of a table until it passes.

I will obviously boost my folate - will Thorne Basic B be ok, I’ve got some left from when I boosted before? Re vitD, I had used the Better You VitD with K2 - is there tried an tested alternatives to this spray as I think I read it’s expensive for what you get? Many thanks.

[Jillymo]

It might be an idea to request that you B12 levels are tested. I hope you get to the root of the problem as to why your feeling out of sorts.

[Lost_Girl in reply to Jillymo]

Hi - I did - B12 was ‘in range’ - 492 (197 -771) so no action taken.

[serenfach]

Sometimes the cause of vertigo is the displacement of small calcium carbonate crystals, or canaliths, within the inner ear. Have a look at Canalith Repositioning Procedure - no harm in trying the exercise. It worked for me once, and I just do it now when I am feeling dizzy (when it is not the effect of red wine!).

[Lost_Girl in reply to serenfach]

Thank you. I will look this up 😊