Confused on NO treatment for Hypertyroid

[kendak906]

Hi: I am new here and have recently been diagnosed with "mild" hyperthyroidism. I recently quit smoking and 5 days later, my thyroid was enlarged pretty good. I made an appointment with the doctor and he did blood tests, the initial test was of my TSH it was 0.01 and I think it was T3 was 5.0. I then had an antibody test done and he said that was within normal limits. The ultasound was good. So, I have symptoms of  shakiness, weak legs, eyes are swollen in the morning and ache, and I am losing weight. My heart rate has been right around 80 each visit. He says that I should just come back every 6 weeks for blood test to monitor it, unless I develop a rapid heart rate then he will perscribe Beta Blockers. He never mentioned anything about medicine, only ablating the thyroid if it would come to that. My question is if my antibody test was within normal limits then why do my eyes ache like I have Graves Disease? Is it ok to just monitor this with my numbers?

[kendak906]

Ok here are my numbers TSH 0.01, FT4 is 5.79 and T3 is Greater than 28 is what they told me, so they really dont know what the number is. They only test to 28. According to the reference ranges TSH is low, and FT4 is slightly high and T3 is high.

I am scheduled for a Iodine uptake test on the 21st of January and the ablation the on the 28th of Jan.

My only problem is that I cannot swallow pills, and they said they are both in capsule form , I guess I will crunch them a little before swallowing them (secretly in my mouth). LOL It shouldnt hurt, they use liquid.... This whole thing is really scary! AND I CANT WAIT UNTIL ITS OVER.

How long before all of you became hypo? Did it happen sooner than 6 weeks?

[kendak906]

I will be going to an endo tomorrow. This past Friday, I went to the doc. because my heart rate jumped to over 100. The did prescribe Atenolol for me. I feel wonderful on this. We will see what the endo says tomorrow. I am going to start getting copies of my labs to keep track of my numbers.

[armywife92]

Also please list ref ranges on your labs concerning your T3&4, b/c every lab has diff ranges.

[armywife92]

Sounds like she had the TSI test done. I'm just reading inbetween the lines of common mistakes doctors/endo's make, when he told her it was within ''normal limits''. Op if you tested positive for the TSI antibody, you have graves, regardless of the ref range. The mnistake endo's/gp's make is that they don't realize the ref range is only used to see if someone with graves is in remission yet. The fact taht your eyes are bothering you, and your tsh is less than one, leads me to believe it's grave. Your doc is already talking about ablation without even treating you first. RUN RUN RUN, to your nearest EXPERIENCED, AND KNOWLEDGEABLE ENDO!!!!!!!!!

Your pulse has been in the 80's which is why they didn't prescribe a beta blocker. It may be high for you and me, but again, if a doc see's the number  within range then there's not a problem. I know I'm the type of person that feels like my heart is racing when my hr IS IN THE 80'S.

I have a mild case of graves and had to learn a lot on my own b/c quite frankly most of them are just there to pay the mortgage. A listening endo, and one that will take the time to educate you(with correct info) is rare. Trust me, I've talked to 100's of graves ppl online, and we all have similar experiences with endos!!

[Barb135]

It depends on which numbers they are monitoring.  If they are looking at Free T3 and Free T4, along with the TSH, that might be okay...........

You need the antibody test that redhead mentioned - TSI - that will diagnose Graves Disease. You need to find out if that is the antibody test they ran.  

If your doctor won't do it, find another............

Also, what redhead said - if you begin having symptoms of hyper - either call your doctor or go to an ER........

Please don't be afraid, just be aware of how you feel and don't waste time getting help if you begin feeling badly.  It's much better to get help than to wait.............

[kendak906]

I meant the medication that suppresses the thryroid hormones, the meds for hyperactive.

[redheadaussie]

If you have hyperthyroidism/Graves, you won't be taking any thryoid replacement medication. That's the last thing you want! That will make you worse!

Did the doctor do a test called TSI? That would show that you have Graves. They often only do one test called TPO antibodies and that on it's own is not enough to show Graves.

Do you know if they did a Free T3 and Free T4 test? T3 only shows the TOTAL amount of the thyroid hormone which is in your body. You need to know the reference ranges too.

If your symptoms worsen, then of course, go back or if you feel really over the top with heart rate or other symptoms go to an ER. Grave's disease can 'dump' huge amounts of thyroid hormone into your system and that can be life threatening. It may not be that you are at that point, but forearmed is forewarned.