High cortisol and thyroid: Can anyone tell me if... - Thyroid UK

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High cortisol and thyroid

Can anyone tell me if there's a link between hypoglycemia/insulin/thyroid etc.

I have had numbness and water retention in my legs for the last year. Dr said overmedicated on meds. Tah was 0.01 so lower than normal

However t4 was (9-19) 13

T3 (3.8-6) 4.8

I've lowered my t4 dose and kept my t3 dose but water retention and tingling/numbness is still horrendous.

I drink alot but don't wee alot however dr say kidney function bloods are fine.

I'm at a loss with every dr. I'm fed up of being swollen and legs are pins and needles

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jparsss

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15 Replies

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SlowDragonAdministrator1 year ago

please reread your previous 3 posts

On almost any dose of T3 many many people will have suppressed TSH

Free T4 (fT4) 13 pmol/L (9 - 19) 40.0%

Free T3 (fT3) 4.8 pmol/L (3.8 - 6.0) 45.5%

Was test done as recommended?

early morning, ideally just before 9am, only drink water between waking and test and last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test

This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip)

T3 ….day before test split T3 as 2 or 3 smaller doses spread through the day, with last dose approximately 8-12 hours before test

Your Ft4 and Ft3 are low

Many, many members on levothyroxine plus small dose T3 find they need both Ft4 and Ft3 at least 60-70% through range

being under medicated frequently results in high cortisol initially, as adrenals try to compensate for low thyroid levels

buggles84• in reply toSlowDragon1 year ago

Why would you manipulate your regular dose, to artificially get a figure that suits your physician? You're then only kidding yourself too, and it's not going to be conclusive in your search for the problems you're asking........I can never understand why people fo this.

Over medication will also tank adrenals......that's why it's warned on initial thyroid supplementation .

sparkly• in reply tobuggles841 year ago

I'm interested to know how you do your blood test if you are on t3 especially if on t3 only?Personally i don't think there is an adequate blood test developed for t3 testing.

McPammy• in reply tobuggles841 year ago

I dont artificially check my bloods. I take my t3 medication before a test so I know exactly how high it gets 2hrs in. I don’t change my regimen of my doses of levo or lio T3. I don’t understand why TUK promote not to take medication before a blood draw to try and trick Drs. We should be aiming for an in range TSH and in range levels like a healthy person would have. Over range medication can lead to undesired symptoms similar to under medicated.

I have checked my bloods with and without medication just to see where the levels lay. I need to feel confident I’m not going under or over medicated and therefore an in range TSH. Importantly I feel good most of the time without thyroid symptoms.

Bertwills1 year ago

Yes, hypothyroidism increases the risk of pre diabetes & diabetes. If you Google you’ll find lots of references to this. Have you had any blood sugar tests? GPs are generally keen to do them so read up on the symptoms & ask for a test if you recognise symptoms.

I don’t think reducing your T4 will affect the TSH level. Probably just make you feel worse. Your TSH is low because your taking T3 & your body doesn’t need TSH to be produced anymore. Who prescribed your T3? Ideally they should be aware that taking T3 will lower TSH & it is not harmful, just a sign that TSH is redundant in your body now as the medication is providing all the hormones it needs, although looking at your results you probably need more of both hormones.

People keep asking how you do your blood tests as it can affect TSH readings. You haven’t answered yet. It would be helpful to know if your test is taken later in the day & if you ate first.

Reverse T3 is not of any importance. If you’re taking T3 it’s not likely you have high levels anyway. It comes from high levels of unused T4 when the body fails to convert it.

buggles84• in reply toBertwills1 year ago

RT3 is like a brake......it's designed to slow down the metabolic rate in certain tissues/cells to stop excessive energy expenditure, like illness or starvation. This is also why hyperthyroidism can cause diabetes and Insulin resistance.

Your body will rapidly store glucose as fat, for high inconsistent energy consumption.

There's an awful lot of misinformation on here.

Bertwills• in reply tobuggles841 year ago

I’ve never heard anything about RT3 causing diabetes or insulin resistance. Please back up your statements with medical research or something from a respected source

. I also don’t appreciate being accused of misinformation. Please be more specific. All that I have written is accepted main stream advice. RT3 is a problem in severe illness not necessarily thyroid related. It’s highly unlikely that RT3 is involved at all in jparsss’ problems.

buggles84• in reply toBertwills1 year ago

I never said RT3 caused diabetes or insulin resistance......I said high T3 could

Bertwills• in reply tobuggles841 year ago

Your post about diabetes doesn’t mention T3 only RT3

buggles84• in reply toBertwills1 year ago

Why don't you Google it.......you like to suggest others do this, as in your post

Bertwills• in reply tobuggles841 year ago

Why are you being rude?

Bertwills• in reply tobuggles841 year ago

Nothing wrong in suggesting people Google. They have to make their own minds up about information.

buggles84• in reply toBertwills1 year ago

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...