(((hugs)))

I know how you feel - the meds titration process is the pits.

But, there is light at the end of the tunnel and, with regular labs and appropriate dose adjustments, you can look forward to being free from thyroid symptoms 99% of the time.

Hang in - we're rooting for you!!!

So sorry, Doc could check your Ft4 at least with TSH. But some are stubborn aren't they?

That's terrible they won't check your FT3 and FT4 (and RT3). It wasn't until I had those checked and posted on this board that I learned my levels were suboptimal. (Thanks cd!) I fortunately had a doctor to run the right tests, but unfortunate in that she didn't understand that low normal is not ok!!!!

I got my TSH results today....it was 22.3...can we say YIKES???? i have an appointment with my endo tomorrow and am going to ask about the t3 and t4 tests. Will update here tomorrow.

Well that explains alot. Hang in there....it's a TOUGH battle.

It sounds like your doctor has never optimized your levels.....your actual thyroid hormone levels NOT pituitary hormone TSH.

One of the main problems with using only TSH to guide treatment is that today's TSH level is "old news".

What I mean by this is that TSH is the last level to change in response to changes in the actual FT4/FT3 thyroid hormone levels.

For example, if your FT4/FT3 levels start to drop too low for your body's needs, your TSH will *start* to rise about 6 wks. AFTER the FT4/FT3 levels have already fallen too low.

By the time we start to have symptoms, our FT4 and/or FT3 levels have already dropped too low for us (and TSH could still be looking "good").

That is why I get labs every 6 wks. This way, my doctor and I can "catch" any changes in my FT4/FT3 levels usually before symptoms "hit".

A prime example is my labs on 12/28....both my FT4 and FT3 levels had dropped below the low end of my "comfort zone".....I had NO symptoms at this point but, asked my doctor to adjust my doses and she did.

Ironically, the day after labs (and before I had the results), I started feeling tired. I wasn't sure if it was post-holiday fatigue or related to some family stress.

I got my lab results on 12/31 and increased my T4 and T3 a little bit.

By 1/2, I started waking once/night (hypo symptom for me) and had a couple of moments of brain fog (another hypo symptom for me).

I imagine that many people wouldn't have thought anything about the minor issues I had but, I know my body and knew they were hypo symptoms.

By this past Friday, I was completely back to normal.

This is what regular labs/appropriate dose adjustments can accomplish.

Your doctor is having you wait too long for labs......and with a TSH as high as you've just had, it's clear that your FT4/FT3 levels have never been optimized.

I hope you can convince your doctor to consistently test your FREE T4 and FREE T3 (any other test is useless).

If you can't, I suggest you find another doctor because the one you're seeing will never help you achieve wellness.

I saw dr today. I asked about t3 t4. It was a no go. She blames it on the fact that i am not on the brand name. She wants me to have only tsh checked again in a month. I have enough samples of the brand name for like 9 weeks. I am frustrated beyond belief and just feel like giving up. I feel like he@$ , i feel like crying all the time. I weigh 323 and have no energy to do anything, everything hurts. I can't see anyone else because i live in a small town and that dr is it. I feel like just giving up. I am really in a bad frame of mind. I survived two rare, serious cancers just to live like THIS??? i am beside myself.