Possible to be both Hyperthyroid & Hypothyroid?

[Totoro25]

Hi guys,

So have just been to my GP and as advised on my last post I requested to increase my Levothyroxine by 12.5mg to see if I'd feel any better.

My GP said that as my TSH is 1.44 I'm in the sweet spot and an increase isn't required.

She then went on to inform my that I had been Hyperthyroid initially and now Hypothyroid.. is that even possible?

I have attached my previous Blue Horizon test results again so you have an idea what I'm referring to.

[greygoose]

Not exactly, no. But, you have Hashi's, and Hashi's often starts with a false 'hyper' phase.

Hashi's is an autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks and slowly destroys the thyroid, mistaking it for the enemy.

During an attack, the dying cells leaks their stock of thyroid hormone - T3 and T4 - into the blood stream, causing levels of FT4 and FT3 to rise sharply, and the TSH therefore to drop, making it look very much like hyperthyroidism.

But it's only transient. The excess hormone is eventually used up/excreted, and you become hypo.

Unfortunately, doctors do not tend to know this - I cannot imagine why! And often diagnose Graves' instead of Hashi's.

Were you treated as hyper in the beginning?

[Totoro25 in reply to greygoose]

Hi GreyGoose,

Thanks for your quick response 😊

To be honest I am not 100% certain but she did say today that I was Hyper initially and became Hypo.

It may be that she understands completely and used this phrasing to explain my results but on the other maybe she didn't 🤷‍♂️

But she was adamant I was in the perfect range /sweet spot and that increasing my dosage would do me more harm than good.

I did ask so what is causing my mood fluctuations.. and got no answer.

However she added thyroid to my blood labs and I mentioned that that I hadn't fasted or delayed my Levo.. this apparently doesn't make any difference. But I know different from this group chat.

[greygoose in reply to Totoro25]

Only you can know if you've reached your sweet-spot. It's not up to her to tell you! And, if you still have symptoms, you're not there yet. Doubt she knows much about thyroid - not enough to think it through intelligently, in any case.

[suetatt68 in reply to Totoro25]

I feel so much better when my TSH is below 1

[Totoro25 in reply to suetatt68]

I so wish there was some updated guidance for Scottish GPs regarding this as when I mentioned my TSH was 1.44 she said it was perfect.

[FallingInReverse]

And did you ever get AB tests for those indicative of Graves? Or just the 2 above?

[Totoro25 in reply to FallingInReverse]

Hi FIR,

Not that I'm aware of.. The test you see here is Blue Horizon Gold and is I believe one of their best.

[FallingInReverse in reply to Totoro25]

gg explains it well regards to common “hyper” phases in early Hashis.

I just looked back at your posts and maybe I missed it but I don’t see anything that even reflects an initial hyper phase for your hashis.

Out of curiosity, do you have the test results that your GP was referring to when saying you were hyper?

Sometimes there might be difficulty for some out of the ordinary cases where hashi/graves hypo/hyper is harder to discern… but in my layman’s opinion I don’t think I see that in your history at all. Even you GP gave you 75-100 Levo as treatment which wouldn’t happen if they thought you were hyper?!

I haven’t read all your posts carefully so might be missing something, but just curious so thought I’d reply.

[Totoro25 in reply to FallingInReverse]

Thank you for your response it's appreciated 😊I have none of the test results with regard to my thyroid but I suppose I could request them.

In fact that may it be a good idea and I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be a problem to request them.

[TiggerMe Ambassador]

Are you taking Vit D? With it this low it can make you feel awful and you need good levels for levo to convert well, aiming for 100+

grassrootshealth.net/projec...

[Totoro25 in reply to TiggerMe]

Hi TM,

Thank you.

Yes I have only just started taking Better Me Spray with K2 as advised on this forum and after calculation using the link from Grassroots.

The red bottle. x 3 sprays.

So you believe that could be the reason I'm feeling rather teary and low?

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to Totoro25]

Might be worth taking a loading dose for a week or two to kick start you as 3 sprays will take quite a while to raise your level.

Yep, low Vit D makes you gloomy, achy and fatigued

[Totoro25 in reply to TiggerMe]

That just had me crying.. but only because it makes me realise it's real and a possible reason. For years prior to a diagnosis and not for the want of asking for a thyroid test. They were trying me on several different anti depressants which made me feel like hell.

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to Totoro25]

I'm sorry to hear that but it does seem to be a thing with them to ignore the basics of good vit and min levels and hand over the drugs 😕... I too didn't have a clue until I found this forum

[Totoro25 in reply to TiggerMe]

So I'm on 3000iu at the moment.

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to Totoro25]

I find that I need 4000iu summer and 5000iu winter and that is to maintain a good level around 125... you have good levels of magnesium which helps vit D uptake, you could double your dose and see if that helps? What did the Grassroots calculator suggest for a loading dose?

[Totoro25 in reply to TiggerMe]

This is what it calculated for me. However I was advised to try 3000iu for a while then get tested again.Would you consider going higher just to load and see if I feel better asap?

Text

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to Totoro25]

So plenty of headroom to take a higher dose for a short time to get things moving 🤗

There doesn't tend to be any issue with a quick boost

[Totoro25 in reply to TiggerMe]

Thanks for the advice it's much appreciated 🤗

[Larai]

According to What my docs have told me recently.. While I'm Congenital Hypothyroid (as in born w/out a thyroid gland), it is possible to be over medicated, "making you hyperthyroid".. Do I believe it, Not sure anymore, the medical profession here in the states is lazy at best.. Absolutely Dismissive at worst.. I know doc's seem to have a hard on for goin by the numbers, but WE are more than just lab results.. Everyone is different.. for me, I was at my optimal and prime at .150 mcg.. However, over the last 8 years my docs have lowered me as far as to .75mcg.. I feel sluggish, my hair is brittle nails are brittle.. head aches, IBS.. though my mood is oddly ok.. not overly sad or happy, just kinda Meh.. but semi motivated, so it's an odd conundrum! They call it "Practicing Medicine" for a reason.. I'm sorry If I seem flippant, I'm not, I'm just seriously disgusted on the total lack of doctor's attention to someone, who's lived with this condition for 63 years, and know Way more about my body than ANY doc. . Endo or otherwise.. So it's frustrating, But as I said, as it pertains to being hypothyroid/hyperthyroid, most docs will tell you you are hypo, but over medicated enough to say hyper.. I hope that makes sense.. Also, for the record, in my opinion, doctors tend to err on the side of Low dose, as too much say, levothyroxine, can produce Osteoporosis.. which we all would like to avoid.

At least here.. If I feel like being labelled a "combative/non-compliant" patient, I could tell them that I am payin the freight (bill) Including imaging labs etc.. so they should really be listening to me.. but.... Hmmmm....