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...
I have a copy of my labs and I'm scheduled to see a good doctor in about a week for hopefully a diagnosis (yay!) but while I've been waiting I've been tracking my symptoms and I'm a little confused about something. I've noticed that I seem to swing between different states and I'm wondering if that's normal for hypothyroid problems.
Sometimes I'm:
EXTREMELY anxious, to the point of being in a constant state of panic. Jittery, hyper emotional, heart palpitations, have hot flashes, tension headaches, TMJ, difficulty falling asleep, bad dreams all night and then wake up earlier than usual (usually the moment my eyes snap open I'm having a panic attack). Spacey and can't concentrate. Very irritable. And that's when I get the sensation of something being stuck in my throat.
Then I might have a few days of feeling moderately ok, then I become:
EXTREMELY tired. Like so tired I'm surprised I don't fall asleep while standing. Sometimes dizzy and nauseous. Very cold - I wrap myself in sweaters and blankets all day. I feel sluggish and have no energy. Feel very flat emotionally about everything. I can't seem to think very well, like my brain is too tired to try.
I seem to be either one or the other...I have very few good days these days. I was just wondering if that's common for thyroid disorders. Maybe my levels are jumping around?
Sometimes I'm:
EXTREMELY anxious, to the point of being in a constant state of panic. Jittery, hyper emotional, heart palpitations, have hot flashes, tension headaches, TMJ, difficulty falling asleep, bad dreams all night and then wake up earlier than usual (usually the moment my eyes snap open I'm having a panic attack). Spacey and can't concentrate. Very irritable. And that's when I get the sensation of something being stuck in my throat.
Then I might have a few days of feeling moderately ok, then I become:
EXTREMELY tired. Like so tired I'm surprised I don't fall asleep while standing. Sometimes dizzy and nauseous. Very cold - I wrap myself in sweaters and blankets all day. I feel sluggish and have no energy. Feel very flat emotionally about everything. I can't seem to think very well, like my brain is too tired to try.
I seem to be either one or the other...I have very few good days these days. I was just wondering if that's common for thyroid disorders. Maybe my levels are jumping around?
T3 (2.5 - 3.9) 3.2
T4 (0.6 - 1.7) 0.9
TSH (0.4 - 3.0) 1.41
The reason I was wondering about fluctuating symptoms was it made me wonder if that would also cause changes in the lab readings. When I had a made an appointment for the lab draw I was having a very bad time with anxiety, but it took several weeks for them to get me in and by that time I was bouncing back to feeling a bit better.
Very glad to hear you have a long standing doctor that you trust, you are ahead of the game!!!
You must have the Frees, the others are pretty useless. Re-test then repost. Your doctor can't tell what your status is by testing your TSH and T's.
And thank you GageL - I suspected that they might not have done the correct test. Ugh. That's ok - I'm sure the new doctor will order the correct tests.
I can only agree with what's been said already.
However, I'm confident those are FreeT3 and FreeT4 test results you shared.
I say this because of the reference ranges you posted.....they are typical ranges for the FreeT3 and FreeT4 respectively.
The "plain" T3 test usually has ranges like 71-180 and the "plain" T4 test usually has ranges like 4.5-12.0.
Since you did get the preferred tests done, I'm sure you recognize that your FreeT4 level is a lot closer to the bottom of the range than the top.
Healthy people have FreeT4 levels in the upper quarter of the range. Based upon your lab's ranges, this means FreeT4 1.5 and up.
It's clear you need treatment for hypothyroidism. Please let us know what the doctor says.
If you are on meds, the constant is the medication, but sometimes your thyroid works and sometimes it doesn't... If you aren't on medication, there is no constant, but it's pretty much the same thing...