Graves' Disease Support Group
Graves-Basedow disease is a medical disorder that may manifest several different conditions including hyperthyroidism (over activity of thyroid hormone production), infiltrative exophthalmos (protruberance of one or both eyes and associated problems) and infiltrative dermopathy (a skin condition usually of the lower extremities). This disorder is the most common cause of...
I'm seeing a new endo in two weeks. With my diagnosis in August- I had normal levels of t3 and t4 with a suppressed TSH. So, when seeing this new endo, I'm not going to be shocked if he brings up my TSH. I disagree with what a "normal" level is for me. So, I dug back into my records. Here are the TSH levels I found...
Feb 2002: 1.5 (I was 20 years old)
June 2009:1.7
April 2011: 1.3 (I was pregnant)
August 2012: undetectable- less than 0.02
Flash forward to being diagnosed and medicated and over-medicated, my previous endo said I had normal thyroid function at 2.9 on this past Dec 24th. I certainly didn't feel normal and my symptoms persisted and worsened- jumped up to 6.2 on Jan 15th. Tests were only done because I begged two different doctors. So my question is this, could I approach this new endo with a "baseline" for my TSH and refer to my previous TSH tests? Or does TSH fluctuate throughout a woman's life and are those old tests useless? I don't want to be considered "normal" just because I'm at their "normal" levels. Also, I have never had an ft3 or ft4 test that was out of range. Is it unreasonable to shoot for my TSH to be around 1.5 or less??? With your experience, what will my endo say???
Feb 2002: 1.5 (I was 20 years old)
June 2009:1.7
April 2011: 1.3 (I was pregnant)
August 2012: undetectable- less than 0.02
Flash forward to being diagnosed and medicated and over-medicated, my previous endo said I had normal thyroid function at 2.9 on this past Dec 24th. I certainly didn't feel normal and my symptoms persisted and worsened- jumped up to 6.2 on Jan 15th. Tests were only done because I begged two different doctors. So my question is this, could I approach this new endo with a "baseline" for my TSH and refer to my previous TSH tests? Or does TSH fluctuate throughout a woman's life and are those old tests useless? I don't want to be considered "normal" just because I'm at their "normal" levels. Also, I have never had an ft3 or ft4 test that was out of range. Is it unreasonable to shoot for my TSH to be around 1.5 or less??? With your experience, what will my endo say???
There are studies that show any TSH above 2.0 is bad for a person. I'm too lazy to track down links right now but risk of heart problems increases.
Everyone's feel good levels are different. Where your comfort zone is could be different than mine. Since TSH ranges are now universal a smart Endo would know that the closer you get to 3.0 the more likely you are to feel hypo. If you felt well with your TSH at 1.5 when you were 20 yrs old I think that is a really good level to maintain...but....not at the risk of a low or high FT4. If your FT4 is at a really good place and you have a TSH that follows your FT's then your TSH should be automatically at a good place providing antibodies are in check. That is the way it is for me..Big Hugs...Kathy
Taking a dose of the MMI to lower thyroid levels so much that the patient is too low on hormones for the bodies needs will cause a TSH to appear as the body struggles to correct the situation. This is not a healthy place.
The goal is to have the FT4 and FT3 at a healthy point for you....not the TSH.
When infants are born their TSH is fairly high as the body needs the extra boost from thyroid hormones to grow. Toddlers are still high, but not as high as infants.Girls tend to run a bit lower than boys starting at about 12 years old.
This trend continues till about 18 years old when adult levels of TSH and thyroid levels stay pretty consistent from then on.