Med levels and unsteadiness

[Marez210]

Hi, I've been hypo for years and years and years and after a drop in my levels (which was mainly because I had let 2 years go by without being retested), my doctor and I are trying to get my levels back to a place where I feel good. I actually felt really good when they were just a little high, but the doctor lowered my medication dosage and I don't feel as well. Is there any harm in keeping your levels a little high? I've heard that doctors like to do so with thyroid cancer patients, as it's believed to help stave off a recurrence.

My second question is I since I woke up this morning I have felt very "unsteady" on my feet. I also have that feeling that I know is thyroid related, which is that you're not quite inside yourself, and of course the I-need-to-sleep-for-3-weeks-and then-another-3-weeks-after-that feeling.. Could the balance problem be thyroid related too? I've never had that before.

[Barb135]

You should keep try to keep levels at which you feel good.  Just because your TSH is low, doesn't mean you are hyper.  My pcp recently did that to me also and I totally crashed -- felt like "dog doo", until I could get to my endo to raise my med back up.  

My TSH runs right at 0.01 all the time; at last testing my "frees" are each about mid range.  If your doctor isn't testing for Free T4 and Free T3, along with the TSH, s/he is not doing you any favors.  You need to know what the actual thyroid hormone levels are, not just TSH, which is a pituitary hormone.

LazyMoose is right about the fact that keeping TSH suppressed is controversial.  Some studies have shown that it's NOT the low TSH that causes bone loss, it's having T3 levels that are over the range, so it's being hyper that causes bone loss.  

In my case, I've had osteopenia for some years and even with my low TSH, I've rebuilt bone that I had lost previously -- I believe that I was bouncing between hypER and hypO, but mostly hyper, for a long time before I went totally hypo.

I'm on a regimen of calcium and magnesium daily.  

[Super_sally888]

Hi,

did he test FT3 and FT4?

YOu need to medicate to get these levels in the upper half of the reference range.  TSH can be low, but these can still not be  high enough.  So if FT3 and FT4 are not above ragne your are not hyper and you can still increase your meds further.

Geet some more info and you may be able to increase your meds a little.

Also what did he consdier low?

My TSH is now undetectable.  But my FT3 and FT4 are within range.  I feel good!

[Marez210]

Thanks, LazyMoose!
I think I said it backwards: What I mean was I felt better when I was taking a higher dose and so my my TSH results were a little lower than the recommended range, so my doc cut back my dosage a little and now I feel kind of crappy.

Thank you for answering!

[LazyMoose]

"Is there any harm in keeping your levels a little high?" Some docs like to keep levels low (free T's) for bone desity. That is now controversial.

"Could the balance problem be thyroid related too? I've never had that before." - Very much so.