Hypothyroidism Support Group
Hypothyroidism is the disease state caused by insufficient production of thyrohormone by the thyroid gland. There are several distinct causes for chronic hypothyroidism, the most common being Hashimoto's thyroiditis and hypothyroidism following radioiodine therapy for hyperthyroidism. Advanced hypothyroidism may cause severe complications, the most serious one of which is...
FT4: 0.54 0.61-1.12
Obviously still low (back to where I was a couple of months ago).
TSH: 2.99 (Down from nearly 18, but does it really matter?)
Anyone who has good links as to why TSH does not equal viability please send my way. Helps greatly to cut out the middle man in research.
And thanks so much as always for all your help!
Another AND for hoping all of you are doing the best with what we are dealing with!
Have a great weekend.
AND let's not forget to be grateful for what we DO have: Clean drinking water, shelter, food, etc.
Obviously still low (back to where I was a couple of months ago).
TSH: 2.99 (Down from nearly 18, but does it really matter?)
Anyone who has good links as to why TSH does not equal viability please send my way. Helps greatly to cut out the middle man in research.
And thanks so much as always for all your help!
Another AND for hoping all of you are doing the best with what we are dealing with!
Have a great weekend.
AND let's not forget to be grateful for what we DO have: Clean drinking water, shelter, food, etc.
Here ya go:
"The TSH only shows what is going on in your hypothalmus, not in your liver or elsewhere in your body" It's a pituitary hormone - not a thyroid hormone. It (in theory) increases to say "Hey we need more cow-bell!" (aka Thyroid hormones), but your thyroid can't make more because of thyroid disease. The problem with TSH is - it fluctuates wildly in people with auto-immune issues. So it may be 300 one minute and 4.5 a few hours later. (I know this from experience!)
Get ready for the influx of info :)
http://www.anapsid.org/cnd/thyroid/
" reported on in the March 2001 issue of the journal Thyroid. In this study, German researchers reported that use of levothyroxine treatment for cases of Hashimoto's autoimmune thyroiditis where TSH had not yet elevated beyond normal range (people who were considered "euthyroid") could reduce the incidence and degree of autoimmune disease progression.
In the study of 21 patients with euthyroid Hashimoto's Thyroiditis (normal range TSH, but elevated antibodies), half of the patients were treated with levothyroxine for a year, the other half were not treated. After 1 year of therapy with levothyroxine, the antibody levels and lymphocytes (evidence of inflammation) decreased significantly only in the group receiving the medication. Among the untreated group, the antibody levels rose or remained the same.
The researchers concluded that preventative treatment of normal TSH range patients with Hashimoto's disease reduced the various markers of autoimmune thyroiditis, and speculated that that such treatment might even be able to stop the progression of Hashimoto's disease, or perhaps even prevent development of the hypothyroidism." See link below for the entire article:
http://thyroid.about.com/cs/hypothyroidism/a/hashivshypo.htm
http://thyroid.about.com/od/hypothyroidismhashimotos/a/preventative.htm
http://thyroid.about.com/od/hypothyroidismhashimotos/a/treatmentnormal.htm
This medscape article is wordy - and basically boils down to this:
hashimoto's patients have wildly fluctuating antibodies and TSH - while they may not have what doctors consider "typical" symptoms (weight gain) they suffer a great deal from a variety of symptoms even with a normal TSH: BIG DUH
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/760417
http://elaine-moore.com/Articles/SubclinicalOtherThyroidDisorders/SubclinicalHypothyroidism/tabid/75/Default.aspx
THIS ARTICLE YOU WILL WANT TO SEE:
Written by Dr. John C. Lowe whom I highly respect - and is annotated (as all good medical articles should be) explains why "normal testing" may not identify the problem (hypothyroidism). Unfortunately Dr. Lowe passed away, but not before giving us a wealth of info.
http://www.thyroidscience.com/editorials/subchemical%20hypothyroidism.htm
Dr. Honeyman is on to something:
http://www.drginahoneyman.com/documents/Beyond-TSH-Report.pdf
Check out the power point items at the bottom (guy's voice is irritating, but interesting)
http://www.youralternativedoctor.com/hashimotos-thyroid-auto-immune/
http://thyroid.about.com/cs/hypothyroidism/a/hypoandhyper.htm
Ok ...here's another for the road:
http://thyroid.about.com/cs/hypothyroidism/a/notwell.htm
http://hypothyroidmom.com/top-5-reasons-doctors-fail-to-diagnose-hypothyroidism/
You probably already know this, but here we go:
Free T4
Range: 0.610 -1.120
Result: 0.540
Perecent of Target Range: -13.73%
Target Range: 0.92 1.12
I'm sure you feel about as well as I do. My numbers went into the toilet with this last bout with shingles.
The above links may help you understand WHY your levels are fluctuating. And, why you need to be in the upper end of the ranges to suppress the need for thyroid function from a thyroid that obviously doesn't work the way it's meant to. It's also the reason for regular testing and med adjustments.
Gimme a shout if ya got questions.
MB
Greatly appreciated. I hope you are doing as well as you can be.
And yes, sometimes too much so :)
My thoughts are with you...it takes time and everyone is different. TSH, no big deal, mine is all over the place, just as Mbutterfly said (she knows her stuff). My FreeT3 is just about there, but My FreeT4 is still low (although within the range) and it's took over a year and half for me to get here. Slow and steady will win the race...you will get there!