Hypothyroid and Young, Healthy, Insane?

[CMarie327]

All,

i have been looking into my (newly-ish) diagnosed condition... Hypothyroidism (? ism?) I have quite a few questions and quite a few examples and don't realllllly know where to start but i guess the best place is at the beginning... I am a HEALTHY (for all other means) in shape twenty five year old woman. I work out three to five times a week, am six feet tall and range in weight from 135 - 173 (we will talk about the high range in a bit) So what is the issue? Well, about 9 months ago i went in for my "yearly woman check up" and asked my GP if there was anything she could test me for because my husband and i were potentially thinking about trying to have children within the next year. She told me "no" not until you have been trying and haven't hand any luck... but i can test your hormones.. (i think to myself, why not?) so trying to be as prepared as possible (because that is just who i am) i agree, and move forward with the hormone test. About three days later (after they said it would be about a 7 day turn around) i received a call on my cell phone from an unknown number, i didn't  know this number so did not answer. After listening to the voice message urging me to call the dr's office back right away i was intrigued (not in the good way, curious... learning, broadening your horizons kinda way) in that impending doom, cant look away sort of intrigued. So, i call back. Nurse answers connects me to the Dr. (not my dr. but one who is "filling in" for the weekend while mine is out of town) He (my dr is a she) asks me right off the bat if i am driving and if i am to please pull off the road... OKAY.. you have my attention. (i was in a car, not driving so.. yeah.. moving on) he then proceeds to inform em that my results could not wait until my Dr. returned and the tests they had ran on me came back and he had never seen numbers like min, he didnt know how in the world i was not in a coma.. predeceasing to inform me that "normal levels were between .3 and 3.0... well guess what? you're a winner AT... 211.... WHAT!!!! wait, you are telling me i need to be at a max of 3 but im at 211...??????....OKAY so what does this mean? well this means MEDDS!!! i do have to say thank god for the meds... i was first but on a generic brand of synthroid (levothryox..? something) but after starting on with my specialist (keep in mind my GP is the Dr. who found my TD) she switched me over to synthroid... Long story short... i dont know how long i have had this... i can remember back to high school (10 years ago) and being able to sleep for a SOLID 22 hours! I remember the years leading up to this (lie the past 2) being a crazy person, thinking i was just going through they "typical" college mood/life changes. My poor husband (fiance at the time) was such a trooper dealing with my emotional bust spells and my depression spells. I remember telling him "i dont know why i feel like this, this is not me"  " i wish i could just be normal again" "i am so happy with everything in my life but i cant feel it. all i can feel is sad and overwhelmed" needless to say i am a lucky one.. one of those who found an amazing man that will stick by you even when you say all those cray things and dont have a reason for it... Now reading more into it and understanding my diagnosis a bit more i understand i am very lucky to have someone by me who even though didnt know about my condition supported me non the less. Like i said earlier i am on Synthroid currently.. but i dont know what "normal" feels like (seeing i have probably had this my whole life undiagnosed) so Synthroid feels better than how i felt before... my question is how do i know im on the right meds? How do i keep from becoming a Zombie???... and if i do how can i fix it??? how do i keep my libido up so i love my husband as much as i did the day i met him.. how do i live life with this if i dont know what living with out it feels like? Does didt change anyting? Have any of you tried Organing (non GMO) Diets??Any of you tried a WHOLE30? Anyone Tried PALEO?? health options?

-C

[ahmee]

I encourage you to read some of the other posts on this forum (you can search for specific terms like "high TSH", "thyroid mood swings", or other symptoms you are having too). There is a wealth of information on situations similar to yours, so no need to panic. Also, most of the people on this board have also experienced hypothyroidism, so you are definitely not alone. As far as diets go, personally I have not seen any link between my diet and thyroid symptoms. The only thing that has helped me is supplemental thyroid medication, and now that I am properly treated, the difference is like night and day. That is how you will know you are at an optimum level of meds-- you will feel much, mush better. I, too, could not recall what "normal" felt like, but trust me, you will know what it feels like again when you get there.

[Barb135]

We've seen quite a few TSH results higher than yours, but yours is obviously too high.  As mentioned, TSH is a pituitary hormone and is not really indicative of actual thyroid hormone levels.

The T3/T4 tests should have gotten/need must be FREE T3 and FREE T4.  Please post reference ranges, with any lab results, since ranges vary lab to lab and have to come from your own report.

As Gibbon mentioned, you need to get the thyroid antibody tests.  Those are Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies (TPOab) and Thyrglobulin Antibodies (TGab).

[Gibbon1]

Taking a break from work, read your whole thing one thing,

"predeceasing to inform me that "normal levels were between .3 and 3.0... well guess what? you're a winner AT... 211...."

Just from the ranges and the level those numbers are your TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone, made by your pituitary gland).  TSH can go really high like that with untreated Hashimoto's disease, doesn't hurt anything in and of itself. (A rare cause of numbers like that is test interference from 'mouse antibodies')

You haven't posted what other labs you had done, and how long you've been taking meds.  What friends of mine with Hypothyroidism seem to agree with is, treatment is based on.

Lab Results
TSH with the goal of around 1.0
T4/T3 centered in the middle of the range.
How you feel. Because there are normal for labs, and normal for you.

Diagnosis is usually based on looking at TSH, and T4/T3 (actually thyroid hormones). And thyroid antibody tests, usually thyroid disease is an autoimmune disorder.

You might also ask you friends and relatives if they know someone with thyroid problems. It's very common, esp in women, but people with it usually don't wear it on their sleeve.

PS: People with thyroid disorders often have psychological issues when untreated. A had a friend on anti-depressants for six years before a nurse noticed her thyroid was enlarged. Also libido in women is one of those things that tends to disappear when there is stress or ill health.