Hello there,I read a lot on here but don't participate much.
With those lab results, do you think I should ask my GP to put me on thyroid medications? I do privately bought some t3, but it would be better if I can have a Doctor helping me.
Tsh: 2,44 (0,35 to 4.94)
Free t4: 12,34 pml (9,01 to 19,05)
9,59pg/ml (7 to 14,80)
Free t3: 4,12 pmol/L (3,53 to 4,88)
2,68 pg/ml (2,30 to 3,18)
Vit d: 80.1 nmol/l (75-200)
32 ng/ml (30-80)
I would love to read your opinion. Thanks in advance for any help.
Lolota, I don't know what your journey is, leading you to have your tests done, but all your results are within your lab's assay range. In UK I would say you would not be offered medication, and refused if you requested it.
I'm not the most knowledgeable on here, so I could be very wrong.
In your shoes, I'd want my Vitamin D levels increased. I know we are in winter so there is less natural Vitamin D in play, so perhaps it could be worth topping that up or topping it up a bit more if you already supplement.
You need to test
Thyroid antibodies for autoimmune thyroid disease
TPO and TG antibodies
Folate, B12 and ferritin
There seems to be two different thyroid results ..but only one TSH result
Please separate test results by date
Were both tests done early morning
Results don’t show low thyroid levels
Come back with new post once you get new test results
"They do show variation" unless i've cocked up the numbers (always possible) , i think the two (T4) and two (T3 ) % 's are actually more or less exactly the same , (see below )
Yes the test was done at around 8h30 am. Thank you for your answer. I don't know if my GP will agree to the other tests like b12, and folate or antibodies. I will try to get an appointment and ask him.
It is very doubtful you would get a doctor to agree to prescribe thyroid hormone with those results, as (in my opinion) they do not currently show a clear thyroid problem .
Compare them to these 10 healthy subjects :
Your fT4 and fT3 levels are better than many 'healthy' people have ..... and IF these are your 'usual' T4 / T3 levels ... (and of course we don't know that) , but if they are usual for you, there is no reason to assume those T4/T3 levels are a problem ...... However , if you 'usually' had T4 and T3 closer to 60/70% than 30/40% then perhaps there is a thyroid problem .
The only indication of a 'potential' thyroid problem from your results is that your TSH is a little bit higher than you might expect , but not significantly so. ... Not yet anyway...
I'd wait until you have better grounds to suspect a thyroid before experimenting with thyroid hormones .. and if/ when you do , i would not advise starting with T3 , i would start with T4.
I'd retest in a few months time and see if TSH has gone up , and/ or T4 gone down .
You could also get thyroid antibodies tested . to see if there is an autoimmune cause for hypothyroidism developing.
TSH: 2.44 ( 0.35 - 4.94) 45.53%
FT4: 12.34 (9.01 - 19.05) 33.17% FT4: 9.59 ( 7 - 14.8) 33.21%
FT3: 4.12 (3.53 - 4.88) 43.70% FT3: 2. 68 (Range 2.3 - 3.18) 43.18%
I do find my tsh too high and my t4 low so that's why I wanted some advice and other opinions.
Do you have any previous result for TSH / fT4/3 ?
if you add them (with time of tests) it makes it easier to work out if there is a problem.
Yes I did test in 2021, my tsh was lower at 1 something.
has the fT4 gone down any ? or was just TSH tested?
assuming same time of day for test.. time of day affects TSH result.
I always do my testing in the morning before 9am. I do the testing once a year.
According to the Ray peat forum the tsh is better below 1.
Graph showing median TSH in healthy population is 1-1.5
But some people are absolutely fine with your TSH level
web.archive.org/web/2004060...
And you need to check vitamin levels are at GOOD levels for thyroid hormones
See this graph healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...
TSH is 'most commonly' around 1 in healthy 'untreated' people (not taking any thyroid hormone) this is true ... but '2' is also very common and so is '2.5' .
In 'untreated' people it is only once TSH goes over about 2.5/3 ish that you would start to consider it a potential early warning sign of thyroid problems developing.
" TSH better below 1 "~ is presumably referring to people who are taking thyroid hormone ,
When people ARE taking thyroid hormone , then that shifts the numbers a bit (due to the complex way the pituitary works with altered T4/T3 ratio's and the reduction of T3 direct from the thyroid ) ,and in that circumstance , "1 or under is better' , is often true ... but it doesn't apply to untreated people.
Ok. Thank you. I am glad my results are not too bad. I will work in having those vitamins tested next and the antibodies as well. I am feeling quite tired and have gained a bit of weight so I was thinking my thyroid might be the problem. I have some t3 that I self medicate when I feel low in energy and mood.
Oh ...... that complicates thing a lot ( and is not a good idea ~ the body likes STABLE T3 levels)
What dose ... how often .....and when did you last take it (in relation to the timing of this latest tests ?
That TSH result (and potentially the fT4 and fT3 results) are not reliable if hormone doses have been changed in the 6 weeks prior to the test .
When we take thyroid hormones , we always have to take a consistent daily dose and wait 6 weeks to see the effect on TSH,
T3 does not stay in the blood for long. It's t4 the long active hormone in the blood. I did not take t3 at least a week before the test. I just have some here that I nibble when I feel low.
According to a scientist/doctor/researcher and expert on T3 took his one daily dose in the middle of the night when he went to toilet. No food as it could interfere with the uptake of T3 hormones.
T3 saturates all of the T3 receptor cells and it then sends out 'waves' for up to three days.
I have trialled this - i.e. took one dose - took none on day 2 or day 3 and I still felt well.
I take one daily dose of T3 when I awake and wait an hour before I eat.
I have no clinical symptoms and feel well and am energetic.
T4 causes me to have awful palpitations and that's what I like about T3 - resolves any symptoms for me.
I hope the following link is helpful and I do know how unwell people can be if hypothyroid. My TSH was 100 and I was still told I had no problems.
Thankfully I found Thyroiduk and Dr John Lowe (scientist/researcher/doctor was also an Adviser for Thyroiduk.
healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...
Dr Lowe had a bad fall that caused a brain bleed and after some days he died.
I have tried a combo t4/t3 and some t3 alone. Dr Ray Peat that I used to follow does not recommend t4 alone, above all if we have difficulty converting it to t3 which is the active hormone.
My body doesn't like levo at all. It just gave me severe palpitations (worse in the middle of the night).
On T3 alone, symptoms have resolved.
T3 is now prescribed.
T4 can make you more hypo if you can't convert it properly. T3 is the active hormone, or a combo t3/t4 is better. I do feel better as well when I use some t3. I don't have the combo now, it was out of stock. Hopefully I can get some soon. I am glad you find a Doctor that listened to you and prescribed what you needed.
Where did u get the T3?. Also what symptoms do you have that makes you think your thyroids the problem. Something is making you want to monitor and test it
I bought the t3 online. I am just feeling tired, I gained weight and have to push myself to do things. My skin is very dry as well which is unusual. Thanks for asking.
true ,it doesn't stay there for long .
T3's 'half life' in the blood is approx 1 - 1.5 days depending on which research you read . ( ie. after 1 day half of it is gone (less any that you used), and after another day , half of that remaining half is gone .. and so on).
However , it's presence (even intermittently) will almost certainly mess with your TSH levels. What that effect would be, and for how long it would last, is extremely difficult to asses.. especially without knowing the doses taken, and the timings in relation to the blood tests.
"i did not take any T3 for week before that test" So you are assuming that there is no 'added' T3 left in your blood .. and that is correct.
~ But you are ignoring the effect of T3 on your TSH .. that effect takes much longer than a week to level out .. that is why '6 weeks' is the minimum for Thyroid blood tests after any change on dose , because it can take the TSH at least 6 weeks to respond, and then settle, in response to new levels of T4/T3.
~ and you are also ignoring the effect of TSH on the thyroid's production of T4 / T3 (and the ratio of T4:T3 that it produces)
~ and you are also ignoring the effect of TSH on the rate of conversion of T4 into T3, (and T4 into rT3 ,and T3 into T2).
...... As the TSH level changes , there are continuing effects on fT4 and fT3 levels , until the TSH level has stabilised... so even though the 'added' T3 has gone , a test taken 1 week after stopping T3 is no use for knowing your TSH level, no use for knowing your fT4 level , and no use for knowing your fT4 level.
Using T3/ testing , in the way you are doing make's it impossible to use blood tests know what your natural/ untreated thyroid status really is.. so you can't use them for diagnosis .
And Using T3 / testing , in the way you are doing makes it impossible to know what your 'treated' level is, so you can't use them to correctly adjust dose .
This will make diagnosis (and dose adjustment) difficult , and if you do have hypothyroidism and do need lifelong thyroid hormone replacement to improve symptoms , it will almost certainly delay your diagnosis and any Gp treatment for it .
It's only a guess , but i would think the most likely effect of taking smallish doses of T3 intermittently over several years is to lower your TSH overall.
if you want to use blood test for 'diagnosis', you would now need several months (probably 3/4months at least , possibly longer) without taking ANY added T3 or T4.
If you want to use blood test to asses the effect of 'added' thyroid hormone , and to adjust that dose correctly , you would need to be taking a constant/ unchanged daily dose of thyroid hormone for at least 6 weeks before the tests.
Thank you for such a complete answer. I didn't know about the 6 weeks on thyroid before testing the level. I will talk to my GP and be more cautious about the timings to test. Have a great day.
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