hypothyroid?

[curly_kate]

anyone been diagnosed with hypothyroidism? I'm pretty much spot-on with symptoms (tiredness, "brain fog", muscle aches, etc.), but my TSH is normal, according to my doc. Now I've been having a sensation of a lump in my throat, altho he says my thyroid feels normal on the outside.

Anyway, I have read online that a TSH is not always the most accurate way to dx hypothyroid, but I'm not sure of the reliability of the source. Anybody else have any experience in this area?

 

[buckeye lady]

Insist that your Doctor do a T3, T4 and TSH. I am hypothyroid and it took several years for the Doctor to diagnose. Actually my PCP wasn't paying attention to my labs and it was my Rheumatologist that noticed the abnormal levels. They weren't way off, But I definately had symptoms. I felt so much better after just a few days of synthroid! What a difference. I now take a small dose daily and it is on the pharmacys $4.00 plan.
If you do an internet search for "hypothyroid" you'll get a ton of info.

 

[DrakeMaiden]

I tested as having hypothyroidism, but after reading that soy products can cause hormone imbalances, and since I was eating a good deal of soy at the time, I cut the soy out of my diet all together and have since tested as being normal. Go figure.

Oh . . . lots of store purchased breads contain soy, as do many packaged foods, FYI.

 

[mandieg4]

I'm have Hashimoto's and when my symptoms come back my TSH is usually normal, but my T3 is off. I always make sure they run a full panel every time or it's just not worth my time and money. If you have this problem see if you can find a doctor that will give you Armour Thyroid instead of synthroid. It has made a HUGE difference for me. Also this book is a great source of information.

 

[mandieg4]

Also, if you drink diet pop or use Splenda, stop. Apparently the Splenda converts to another chemical in your body which blocks the absorbtion of the iodine that your thyroid needs. My doctor told me something about the aspertame doing something, but I don't remember what it was. I'll have to ask him again when I see him next week.

 

[Ldychef2k]

I was diagnosed in 1962 and have been on thyroid replacement ever since. I cannot afford medical care, so I can't get a prescription to take to WalMart for $4. I order three months worth of double strength tablets from England for $54. Then I break each one in half and they are the correct dose and last for six months.

That is still more than if I had a doctor, but they require so much testing before they believe that you need the medication. The first time I had a T3, T4 T7 (seldom used anymore) and a TSH, it cost $50 for the panel. The LAST time --and believe me it WAS the last time-- it was $750.

I did try to go without the medications a few years ago, but ended up sitting in a chair most days, staring straight ahead. Won't do that again! Other parts of me were going gangbusters, though, because the pituitary was working so hard trying to get the thyroid to kick start!!!!

I have heard it is not hereditary, but four people in our family are hypothyroid.

 

[Henrietta23]

I have borderline thyroid issues and my naturopath has me completely off soy for that reason.

 

[Javamama]

I am just ascending into testing heck to figure out my fatigue problems. I have put it off for so long, thinking it would get better once the kids were letting me sleep but it hasn't. Expecting results sometime this week, but I just know they are going to come back normal. Doc just wanted a starting point and said we will go from there. I hope this gets figured out quickly. He believes there is something chemically wrong since my diet is good and I get as much exercise as I can manage. He's a D.O., so I feel my chances of figuring it out are good.

 

[Wifezilla]

They just drew blood yesterday to test my son for it

 

[me&thegals]

I just started back on Synthroid again. My TSH goes up and down over the years.

My friend has a normal TSH, but she and her mom have out-of-this-world T3 or T4, so have a full panel checked.

Also, labs vary a fair amount in what they call "normal" for TSH values. My doctor prefers to have her patient's TSHs around 1.0.