thyroid misery

Amazingfun

Blingy wrote: »

If you don't mind me asking what was your actual iron level? I always seem to have quite low iron. Usually around 30 and can't see to increase it. Thanks.

Isn't this funny, I am just in the door with my iron supplements, lol.

I just got my blood results and to be honest, I'm a bit confused as I thought my Iron was sorted as I took supplements for a couple of months back and figured it was fine now but no.

Here are my results:
haemoglobin 12.3 (11.5-16.5) This one is good, which I find confusing, but the next two are low:

haematocrit : 0.351 (0.370-0.470)
Ferritin: 56 (8-247) not out of range but 56 is low, so I need to up it.


Concerning to me was an elevated ALT (GPT) 78 (11-58)
I googled that and it says it's a possible sign of bloody liver disease!

But the good news is my TSH is wayyyyyyy down from two months ago:
0.01 (0.35-4.94)
Yes, it is "below range" but that is fine as I already knew NDT can suppress the TSH due to the T3. So even though my GP was worried about this, I wasn't, in fact, I am delighted as it was 12 two months ago
I was annoyed there was no T3/FT3 reading included, or Rt3, but my Free T4 was good: 15.3 (9.0-20.0)

I am still new to all this 'blood test reading' lark, so if anyone has more experience feel free to chime in!

Amazingfun

mother of 4 wrote: »

Hi Bingy
They didnt say what my levels were but the reason for the injection is because i cannot take iron orally. So injections are the only way to get the iron into me. Ive always been low on iron so anaemia is common with me.
Are you taking iron tablets/supplements??

On the 'stopthethyroidmadness' site, the two major issues listed as being very problematic for us are
1. Iron
2. Adrenals

Apparently the NDT won't work as its supposed to without them being right.
It's a pain, but I think our problems stem from an inability to absorb nutrients properly through food, etc. Gut problems are why we are recommended to skip Gluten if at all possible.

Anyways I am glad you will be getting treatment again, and I hope the Eltroxin works for you!

cyning

donnbradman wrote: »

I was told by my doctor that my recent blood tests showed that I had an over active thyroid. I have been suffering from an eating disorder for the last 9months, could this have caused my over active thyroid? And would going back to normal eating habits cure my thyroid? I know the forum isn't marked with doctors but anyone who's had a similar experience to me could offer me advice would be brillant. My life had really been a struggle this year.

I don't know about an eating disorder causing a thyroid problem: tbh I would imagine that's something you need to be discussing with either your GP or a specialist.

Having an overactive thyroid is hard. I hate hate hate going over active (which I am at the moment). For me I can get quite weak, get palpitations and can get very anxious (to the point of having panic attacks) although thankfully that hasn't happened this time. My skin gets dry and I gain (not lose which most people do) Weight. Although at the moment im losing weight which is exceptionally frustrating as im pregnant. For every one the symptoms can differ. The best thing I can recommend is getting a decent endocrinologist and getting your thyroid antibodies checked to see have you Graves Disease, or is their a possibility you have a transient form of hyperthyroidism. If you have any questions ask away

donnbradman

cyning wrote: »

I don't know about an eating disorder causing a thyroid problem: tbh I would imagine that's something you need to be discussing with either your GP or a specialist.

Having an overactive thyroid is hard. I hate hate hate going over active (which I am at the moment). For me I can get quite weak, get palpitations and can get very anxious (to the point of having panic attacks) although thankfully that hasn't happened this time. My skin gets dry and I gain (not lose which most people do) Weight. Although at the moment im losing weight which is exceptionally frustrating as im pregnant. For every one the symptoms can differ. The best thing I can recommend is getting a decent endocrinologist and getting your thyroid antibodies checked to see have you Graves Disease, or is their a possibility you have a transient form of hyperthyroidism. If you have any questions ask away

Thank you very much. I didn't think I was going to get a response. It really is hard my life has been a misery for ages. When I look back now I seriously overtrained so that could be more the reason for my overactive thyroid. Is there any food I should cut out and should I continue training.

cltt97

donnbradman wrote: »

Thank you very much. I didn't think I was going to get a response. It really is hard my life has been a misery for ages. When I look back now I seriously overtrained so that could be more the reason for my overactive thyroid. Is there any food I should cut out and should I continue training.

I think you need to ring your GP and find out if they tested for antibodies. Until you know whether you have developed an autoimmune disease or whether your condition is transient no one will be able to give you any advice really, as the treatment of the two would be different.

In terms of cutting anything out - I'd say the fact that you have been suffering from an eating disorder suggests that you may be lacking in some nutrients so I think a well balanced diet for the time being would be the way forward to get the system to stabilise and normalise again. The only thing to maybe avoid would be foods potentially very high in iodine, such as seaweed, kelp etc.

I also don't think you need to stop training - but again you mentioned that you over-trained, so a sensible approach to it would be a good idea. It sounds like you spiralled a bit into an extreme world of training and starvation, so taking a step back and taking care of your body might be a good idea for the time being.

871Mars

Hi guys,

I'm looking for some advice.

I got my bloods taken this time last year because I had been reading up on the symptoms of hypothyroidism and it was like everything just clicked into place. Suddenly the extreme tiredness, being cold all the time (and I mean COLD!), eczema, hoarse voice, severe headaches, irregular periods, brain fog etc seemed to have a reason behind them. However, my blood tests all came back normal, with my cholesterol being lower than normal. I was given tablets for my headaches/migraines and cream for my eczema and sent on my way.

I then went back in March of this year and asked to have my bloods repeated as my Vitamin D and B12 levels were not done the first time. My doctor was reluctant as it had only been 6 months since my last tests. However, I insisted that I needed an answer as to why I was feeling so bad and she eventually gave in and ran the blood tests. Again, everything came back normal and she questioned whether I could be suffering from depression. I told her that I couldn't honestly answer her because I'd been feeling down and short tempered lately but didn't know if that was because of the stuff I mentioned above or if I was actually just depressed. I understand that the symptoms of depression and hypothyroidism are very similar. If it is depression so be it because at least I'd have an answer and could start doing something about it but how do I know? My doctor doesn't know me well enough to see any changes in me and when I've asked my family they just tell me that I'm the same old moody, sarcastic person I've always been.

I left the doctor's that day with no specific answers. I've since asked for a copy of my blood results and found out that she still didn't request that my Vitamin D and B12 levels be tested. The only results I know for sure are my TSH and Free T4. If these are normal does that mean it has nothing to do with my thyroid?

I am due to have my gallbladder removed on the 25th of this month and I was wondering if there was any relationship between hypothyroidism and gallstones? I also suffer from GERD and a hiatus hernia.

Sorry for such a long post but if anyone could offer any words of wisdom I would be truly grateful. I'm not sure if I'm so preoccupied with the idea that it has to be my thyroid that I'm completely overlooking something else.

mother of 4

Hi 871Mars
The symptoms you described sound very like mine before i was diagnosed with vitamin b12 deficiency. The headaches, brainfog, tiredness etc. But i also had these symptoms with untreated underactive thyroid.
Im not up to par with TSH and Free T4 levels so im no help there.
I would definitely request the vitamin. B12 test just to rule it out........or not.
I really hope u get some answers. The symptoms are bad enough without having an answer to them and treatment for them.

871Mars

Hi mother of 4,

Thanks for the advice. I'm going to head into my doctor's on Monday and request that she checks my Vitamin B12 levels. I really appreciate your feedback.

cyning

donnbradman wrote: »

Thank you very much. I didn't think I was going to get a response. It really is hard my life has been a misery for ages. When I look back now I seriously overtrained so that could be more the reason for my overactive thyroid. Is there any food I should cut out and should I continue training.

As Cltt97 said that's why you need your thyroid antibodies checked. If you have antibodies it's an autoimmune disease, but you really need to speak to either your GP or an Endocrinologist.

A balanced diet and exercise are both a very good idea.

donnbradman

cyning wrote: »

As Cltt97 said that's why you need your thyroid antibodies checked. If you have antibodies it's an autoimmune disease, but you really need to speak to either your GP or an Endocrinologist.

A balanced diet and exercise are both a very good idea.

Thanks. My life has really been a complete misery for a while. Without going to the doctor it looks like my overtraining (I severely overtrained for nearly 6 months) which inevitably led to an overactive thyroid which has led to my depression

cltt97

donnbradman wrote: »

Without going to the doctor it looks like my overtraining (I severely overtrained for nearly 6 months) which inevitably led to an overactive thyroid which has led to my depression

I would be careful making these associations. I am more knowledgeable on underactive thyroid, but I have certainly never heard that training too much will lead to an overactive thyroid. Or that the latter causes depression. It is quite common to get depressed (or the symptoms of depression) with underactive thyroid, but I'm not sure if that holds with overactive as well. Again, I would urge you to check if you were tested for antibodies. No eating or not eating, training or not training will help if you have the auto-immune form. Regarding the depression, I think from what you have said - the fact that you are overtraining and have developed an eating disorder would suggest that you have other issues going on as well and you might benefit from some professional advice there, too?

Morninglory

cltt97 wrote: »

I would be careful making these associations. I am more knowledgeable on underactive thyroid, but I have certainly never heard that training too much will lead to an overactive thyroid. Or that the latter causes depression. It is quite common to get depressed (or the symptoms of depression) with underactive thyroid, but I'm not sure if that holds with overactive as well. Again, I would urge you to check if you were tested for antibodies. No eating or not eating, training or not training will help if you have the auto-immune form. Regarding the depression, I think from what you have said - the fact that you are overtraining and have developed an eating disorder would suggest that you have other issues going on as well and you might benefit from some professional advice there, too?

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/drsquat15.htm

Makes comparision with overtraining and the thyroid

donnbradman

Morninglory wrote: »

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/drsquat15.htm

Makes comparision with overtraining and the thyroid

How reliable is this? I can see a lot of similarities to me in that

cltt97

Well, you never stop learning. I'm not sure how reliable the bodybuilder information is - I had a very quick look on pubmed and there are several peer reviewed studies reporting a link between overtraining and hormone systems. These two articles are free full text ones, so might be worth a read. I didn't do a full proper literature search or anything, so this is just a couple of articles that are out there... although on a very first glance - and I didn't read all the thyroid ones in detail (on pubmed, most are not free, so only abstracts available) - it appears that the thyroid system gets depleted rather than the other way round, but as I said, I didn't really go looking in great detail

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3648788/
http://www.hormones.gr/752/article/article.html

Morninglory

cltt97 wrote: »

Well, you never stop learning. I'm not sure how reliable the bodybuilder information is - I had a very quick look on pubmed and there are several peer reviewed studies reporting a link between overtraining and hormone systems. These two articles are free full text ones, so might be worth a read. I didn't do a full proper literature search or anything, so this is just a couple of articles that are out there... although on a very first glance - and I didn't read all the thyroid ones in detail (on pubmed, most are not free, so only abstracts available) - it appears that the thyroid system gets depleted rather than the other way round, but as I said, I didn't really go looking in great detail

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3648788/
http://www.hormones.gr/752/article/article.html

I think its balsonic ( or something) overtraining that would make the thyroid overactive. I would get it checked though. Never trust the internet!

Orla K

I wouldn't trust the bodybuilding site, loads of bro science in the articles. The forum isnt too bad.

Overtraining is more associated with an underactive thyroid than an over active one.

I think the best thing to do is not to jump to any conclusions without more information. Get antibodies checked and I'd try go for a 24hr saliva cortisol check, your doctor mightn't do the saliva cortisol so you may have to organise it yourself.

Orla K

Don't know if its my thyroid or the weather but I'm freezing, fire is lit (for the past few hours) and I'm still kinda cold.
At this rate my turf isn't going to last me long.

I've also got my appointment with the endo (Kevin Moore, think that's his name) next Monday.

cyning

I wouldn't trust that bodybuilding site either. Regardless that's why you NEED to know if its autoimmune or not.

Orla I'm frozen through and my thyroid is over active and I'm running on hot for the last 2 months. It's the weather

inocybe

cyning wrote: »

Orla I'm frozen through and my thyroid is over active and I'm running on hot for the last 2 months. It's the weather

Me too, it's definitely the weather.
After a 6 month wait I have my first endo appointment coming up. Does anyone know if I need to fast, do they do a full blood screen including blood sugar? It's a clinic so I could be there a long time and I don't want to pass out unnecessarily

Orla K

That's good that it's normal cold not thyroid cold. I started to wonder when I saw a loon outside in a tshirt and a few more in light clothes. I hate lighting the fire when it's just thyroid cold and I think I've been getting worse, talking to a friend in lidl I noticed my fingernails were blue(wasn't that cold that day) and my hairbrush is gathering far to much hair.

RubyGirl

inocybe wrote: »

Me too, it's definitely the weather.
After a 6 month wait I have my first endo appointment coming up. Does anyone know if I need to fast, do they do a full blood screen including blood sugar? It's a clinic so I could be there a long time and I don't want to pass out unnecessarily

On my first visit I did'nt need to fast, they did a full blood screen. I did ring to check before my app though. I was Galway.

Blingy

Have had underactive thyroid for 7 years and take eltroxin which is tweaked every 6 months. Lately tweaked to bring meds down to 775mg per week.

Just wondering of anyone has out of the blue gotten a feeling like there is something stuck in your throat/neck?
Got this feeling on Wednesday and it's not gone yet and feels awful. Wonder is my thyroid enlarged or something.

dollydishmop

Blingy wrote: »

Have had underactive thyroid for 7 years and take eltroxin which is tweaked every 6 months. Lately tweaked to bring meds down to 775mg per week.

Just wondering of anyone has out of the blue gotten a feeling like there is something stuck in your throat/neck?
Got this feeling on Wednesday and it's not gone yet and feels awful. Wonder is my thyroid enlarged or something.

Oh good gosh, I misread your dose as 775mg/day and thought WOWSERS!!!

It might just be something like a sore throat, but it also could be your thyroid having a moment.
Sometimes with my goitre it used to feel like I had a brick wedged sideways in my throat, and that when I ate my food was struggling to get down past it.
Keep an eye on how it looks/feels from the outside, as well as how it feels internally.
My goitre was predminantly on the left side, with the right side being much smaller....but out of the blue, and in the space of a week the right side started to grow, and enlarged itself to almost match the left side.
How is your voice? Any changes there?
As always, if you are concerned that something is going on, the best policy is to get it checked out with your GP.
Best of luck.

Blingy

dollydishmop wrote: »

Oh good gosh, I misread your dose as 775mg/day and thought WOWSERS!!!

It might just be something like a sore throat, but it also could be your thyroid having a moment.
Sometimes with my goitre it used to feel like I had a brick wedged sideways in my throat, and that when I ate my food was struggling to get down past it.
Keep an eye on how it looks/feels from the outside, as well as how it feels internally.
My goitre was predminantly on the left side, with the right side being much smaller....but out of the blue, and in the space of a week the right side started to grow, and enlarged itself to almost match the left side.
How is your voice? Any changes there?
As always, if you are concerned that something is going on, the best policy is to get it checked out with your GP.
Best of luck.

Thank you for the reply. It's quite annoying but hopefully will go soon otherwise I'll get it checked out.

Rosie1983

Hi everyone.

I thought I posted this yesterday but it doesn't seem to have shown up. Just wondering if anyone knows any chemist in Dublin that might have Erfa in stock? I've nearly run out and my chemist is having trouble getting it back in quickly.

Thanks a mil.

cltt97

Since it's not licensed they cannot stock it. They can only order it on prescription and only sell it to you. With Erfa I find you have to order it at least a month in advance to make sure you get it in time, as there always appears to be problems with availability. I ended up having to take Armour once because I just couldn't get it in time.

Rosie1983

cltt97 wrote: »

Since it's not licensed they cannot stock it. They can only order it on prescription and only sell it to you. With Erfa I find you have to order it at least a month in advance to make sure you get it in time, as there always appears to be problems with availability. I ended up having to take Armour once because I just couldn't get it in time.

Thanks for replying so quickly. When you had to take Armour instead how did you find it? Any difference?

cltt97

Not really. Took it for about a week or two. It just doesn't dissolve as nicely under your tongue and it takes quite chalky. A lot of people don't like it, they say they find it less effective, but I don't think I would have noticed only taking it for two weeks. I am also taking T3, so maybe if I was only taking NTH I might have noticed something. Do you have to wait long for your supply?

Rosie1983

cltt97 wrote: »

Not really. Took it for about a week or two. It just doesn't dissolve as nicely under your tongue and it takes quite chalky. A lot of people don't like it, they say they find it less effective, but I don't think I would have noticed only taking it for two weeks. I am also taking T3, so maybe if I was only taking NTH I might have noticed something. Do you have to wait long for your supply?

The chemist said 7-10 days but I wouldn't be surprised if it took longer. Apparently there's a delay with the manufacturer. Good to know you had no trouble on Armour anyway. Thanks for the info!

lovelystuff

Hi all, I have been doing well for a while but woke up today feeling like I have been run over, I'm so tired and achey. Definitely a thyroid day! Does anybody have any tips for how to get through the day (I have work today)when feeling like this? Thanks