Help with Blood Test Results again please.

[Griffin43]

Hello again, I would really appreciate feedback on my last test results please. Thanks to your previous advice I managed to convince an Endocrinologist to increase my Levothyroxine from 75mcg to 88mcg which I have been taking since last April. At the time of the last results I had been on that dose for about 4 months. I am also taking Vit B, Vit B Complex and Vit D since April except for some periods recently. I still don't feel great. The tiredness, very painful back and neck tension aches, often very short night sleeps and periods of brain fog. But as I am also sharing the care of my elderly and seriously ill mother, and doing it with as much of a 'light manner' as I can in order not to show her my worry and fear, it's hard to tell what is natural anxiety in the current situation and what it is increased by my Hashimoto's.

Anyway, here are the results of the tests I did, prior and post the Levothyroxine increase, for any comments you might want to make, thank you.

Looking closely I realised that the 2 different labs (in Portugal) I used indicate slight different reference values so I will include them too.

In March 2024 on 75mcg

TSH - 3,22 uUI/ml (0,27 - 4,20)

Free T3 - 2,02 pg/ml (2,0 - 4,4)

Free T4 - 1,29 ng/dl (0,93 - 1,70) 16,6 pml/l (12,0 - 22,0)

Vit D -12,06 ng/ml (Deficiency <20)

B12 - 357,4 pg/ml (191 - 663)

Ferritin - 96,10ng/ml (20 - 280)

Creatinin - 0,63mg/dl (0,50 - 1,10)

And in July 2024 on 88mcg

TSH - 2.87 mUI/L (0.35 - 4.94)

Free T3 - 3.3 pmol/L (2.4 -6.0)

- 2 16pg/mL (1.56 - 3.90)

Free T4 - 15.0 pmol/L (9.0 - 19.1)

- 1.16 ng/dL ( 0.70 - 1.48)

I have also just realised that there was no request from the doctor to test vitamin levels and I was too preoccupied with mother's health to notice so Ihave no recent results. And I have also had periods of forgetting to take them in my days of sole carer...

Thank you so much again for any input which is much appreciated.

[TiggerMe Ambassador]

Sounds like a really tough situation and low hormone levels certainly won't be helping

So your results show that you could really do with another increase to try and get your TSH nearer to 1 and get your free levels up

TSH 2.87 mIU/L (0.35 - 4.94) 54.9%

Free T4 (fT4) 15 pmol/L (9 - 19.1) 59.4%

Free T3 (fT3) 3.3 pmol/L (2.4 - 6) 25.0%

T4:T3 Ratio 4.545 

Supplements can be a pain to remember, mine live next to the kettle and bed

I'd suggest adding in magnesium glycinate to help relax tense muscle or a magnesium complex, this will also help with Vit D uptake

Waking early 2-4am is often linked to adrenal fatigue and at the moment your adrenals are trying to make up for the lack of thyroid hormone to keep you functioning

[Griffin43 in reply to TiggerMe]

Hello TigerMe, hope you're feeling well and having an easy and as happy as possible day. Thank you for your helpful reply. It all seems so complicated to my confused tired mind and I do find it difficult to understand the full thyroid malfunction and medication dosage. With a GP that only cares that the values are within range and brushes aside symptoms that he sees are part of an anxious woman... your explanation will help me to ask for an increase to 100mcg. And am I right in thinking that the Levothyroxine supplies T3 and T4 which then lower the TSH values? The ratio I really don't understand. Interesting the connection with sleep patterns too.

And regarding Vit supplements, what Magnesium dose would you advise? It has proved hard in the past to find the Glycinate type and have been taking Magnesium CitraMate (55mg citrate, 80mg malate) but will search again.

Vit D I take in drops. In a solution of Colecalciferol. Try to take 4 drops day which seems to correspond to 2.6 U.I of D3.

And part from the Basic B Complex I try to take Vit B12 with 1000ug methycobalamin.

Could you suggest best dosage and brand? Thank you again for your help.

Take good care 🌸

[TiggerMe Ambassador in reply to Griffin43]

It is all a struggle when levels are low, yes levothyroxine supplies T4 and your body then needs to convert some of it to fT3, this will lower your TSH when you have the correct amount of fT4 but it won't necessarily mean you are converting enough of it to fT3 😬 hence the need to check all of the levels

Magnesium is a bit of a personal thing but Citramate sounds good are you taking 1 as you could take up to 3?

Vit D levels could do with you increasing your dose to 4000ui or to get things moving you could opt for a loading dose week of 10,000ui and then continue with 4000ui 🤗

[Griffin43 in reply to TiggerMe]

Thank you TiggerMe, I will do that and wish me luck with my doctor... Keep well

🙏🏻🌸

[SlowDragon Ambassador]

push for next increase to 100mcg daily

work on improving low vitamin levels

B12 too low

No folate result?

[Griffin43 in reply to SlowDragon]

Hello SlowDragon, hope you're feeling well and having a good day.Thank you again for your help and will definitely be requesting the increase of Levothyroxine.

Any advice on how much B12 to take and a brand of supplements I could try and find online as I am in Portugal at the moment? (Although I am sometimes in the UK so, even if only available there, I could still try to get some when I'm there).

Folate I didn't get a request from my doctor and forgot to ask... even Vitamin and Ferritin testing he's reluctant to request as I have "no history of anaemia" according to him.

Could you advise on what argument I can use regarding the retesting of Vitamins and in particular Folate when I next have blood tests. This hoping he'll accept my request and prescribe 100mcg. And how long after an increase should test again, please?

All advice much appreciated.

Take good care 🌸

P.S. I am sorry, I have just found your previous reply of 6 months ago re. vitamin supplement information. Will read it again and the information in the links. Didn't want to ask you to repeat yourself... and will still be grateful for any brief/ simple answer if possible.