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Newly diagnosed Hashimoto's
At beginning of Feb I saw my internist for routine physical. I mentioned to him a lot of fatigue and cold intolerance. He ran a thyroid panel and my TSH was slightly elevated with normal F3/F4. At that same time he tested my Vit D, B12, and ferritin. Which showed I'm deficient on Vit D, and have iron deficiency anemia (ferritin= 12). Went back for more labs to check for antibodies. Thyroglobulin was normal 1.5 (0-4.0) but my Thyroid Peroxidase is sky high 2491 (0-9). So he said I have mild hypothyroidism caused my an autoimmune disease. Started me on Synthroid 25 mcq daily with blood redraw in 8 weeks. So far after 2 weeks on Synthroid I don't feel much different, but I know it takes some time for it to work.
I am really worried about this new diagnosis. I am 34, work full time, with two small kids. I've been pretty healthy most of my life, rarely get sick with colds or whatever my kids pick up. The only symptoms I've had for a while is the fatigue and cold intolerance. I eat pretty healthy and exercise regularly, I was even able to lose 20 lbs last year. I don't really know what to expect with this diagnosis for the future. Is there anything else I should get tested for? My antibody count is so high, am I to worry about this? Should I follow a special diet to help my immune system? I've read about "gluten" free diet and the "anti-inflammatory" diet' or low-carb diet. Would these help? I already eat pretty clean, wholesome diet. I hate to stress myself more regarding food if it won't help. I don't smoke, drink rarely, coffee is my only vice and I must have it in afternoon to get through the day. What about supplements? Should I be taking something more?
Supplements now. Good MV, Flaxseed oil caps, Bcomplex, Iron with extra Vit C. Probiotics, Vit D 5,000 u
I like my internist but should I seek out referral to an endo? So many questions but if anybody has any advice or words of wisdom or your own experience with this disease I would very much appreciate it.
Just for reference
TSH 6.03 (.350-5.5)
F4 1.0 ( .77-1.5)
F3 241 (230-420)
Thank you
I am really worried about this new diagnosis. I am 34, work full time, with two small kids. I've been pretty healthy most of my life, rarely get sick with colds or whatever my kids pick up. The only symptoms I've had for a while is the fatigue and cold intolerance. I eat pretty healthy and exercise regularly, I was even able to lose 20 lbs last year. I don't really know what to expect with this diagnosis for the future. Is there anything else I should get tested for? My antibody count is so high, am I to worry about this? Should I follow a special diet to help my immune system? I've read about "gluten" free diet and the "anti-inflammatory" diet' or low-carb diet. Would these help? I already eat pretty clean, wholesome diet. I hate to stress myself more regarding food if it won't help. I don't smoke, drink rarely, coffee is my only vice and I must have it in afternoon to get through the day. What about supplements? Should I be taking something more?
Supplements now. Good MV, Flaxseed oil caps, Bcomplex, Iron with extra Vit C. Probiotics, Vit D 5,000 u
I like my internist but should I seek out referral to an endo? So many questions but if anybody has any advice or words of wisdom or your own experience with this disease I would very much appreciate it.
Just for reference
TSH 6.03 (.350-5.5)
F4 1.0 ( .77-1.5)
F3 241 (230-420)
Thank you
Yes, you'd feel it... many people have a feeling of tightness or fullness in the neck when the thyroid swells.
"This high antibody count is just worrying me that I'm making it worse." The goitrogens don't make your antibody count any worse, but they can cause irritation directly to the thyroid. As flyingfool said, don't worry about the numbers. The antibody tests are considered pretty much positive or negative. Actual numbers don't mean much.
"This high antibody count is just worrying me that I'm making it worse." The goitrogens don't make your antibody count any worse, but they can cause irritation directly to the thyroid. As flyingfool said, don't worry about the numbers. The antibody tests are considered pretty much positive or negative. Actual numbers don't mean much.
if you don't know what Hashimoto's is, then here is a quick lesson.
Hashi's is an autoimmune condition where for some reason your body's immune system believes that your own Thyroid gland is a foreign invader. And like a good immune system is supposed to do, it is supposed to go out an attack and kill the foreign invaders. So your body's own immune system is slowly and progressively attacking and trying to kill your thyroid.
What that means is that over time your Thyroid will produce less and less Thyroid hormone. You make up for this loss of hormone by taking medication.
So you really don't need to worry about the antibody level too much. Knowing that you have Hashi's and knowing that it is progressive are the important things to concentrate on. What that means is knowing that you will most likely be on Thyroid medication for the rest of your life. And since it is a progressive disease, it means that over time the natural thyroid production from your thyroid gland will reduce which in tern means that your dosage of thyroid hormone from medication will have to increase. So you need to understand that regular testing will need to be done and you need to keep focus on how you feel and symptoms.
The medication you are on is common and the most common method of treatment to start. Which is a T4 only medication.
T4 is a storage hormone. Which means that it is not actually used directly by your body. It remains in the blood stream and then when the body calls for the need for Thyroid, the T4 is converted into T3 hormone. It is the T3 hormone that your body cells actually use.
T4 as a storage hormone takes several weeks to ramp up and stabilize. As mentioned about it takes about 6 weeks to stabilize. So with each dosage change you'll want to wait at least 6 weeks. Also understand that because of this long time to stabilize, to not expect dramatic changes in symptoms in a couple of days.
One last point I'd like to explain is the term "free". You will here us talk about testing for the "Free" T4 and "free" T3.
In the body there are two states that the thyroid hormone can be in. One is where the hormone is stuck together or attached to a protein molecule. The other is the isolated hormone that is all by itself or "free" from any attachment.
Your body ONLY uses the FREE hormones. The body will ONLY use the Free T4 hormones to convert into T3. The T4 that is attached to a protein is useless. And then the T3 can be either "free" or become attached to a protein. Again the body at the cellular level ONLY uses the FREE T3 hormone. The T3 that is attached or combined with a protein is useless.
This is why it is SO VERY important to demand and make sure that you are being tested for the FREE T4 and FREE T3 hormones because that is the only thing your body uses.
Hashi's is an autoimmune condition where for some reason your body's immune system believes that your own Thyroid gland is a foreign invader. And like a good immune system is supposed to do, it is supposed to go out an attack and kill the foreign invaders. So your body's own immune system is slowly and progressively attacking and trying to kill your thyroid.
What that means is that over time your Thyroid will produce less and less Thyroid hormone. You make up for this loss of hormone by taking medication.
So you really don't need to worry about the antibody level too much. Knowing that you have Hashi's and knowing that it is progressive are the important things to concentrate on. What that means is knowing that you will most likely be on Thyroid medication for the rest of your life. And since it is a progressive disease, it means that over time the natural thyroid production from your thyroid gland will reduce which in tern means that your dosage of thyroid hormone from medication will have to increase. So you need to understand that regular testing will need to be done and you need to keep focus on how you feel and symptoms.
The medication you are on is common and the most common method of treatment to start. Which is a T4 only medication.
T4 is a storage hormone. Which means that it is not actually used directly by your body. It remains in the blood stream and then when the body calls for the need for Thyroid, the T4 is converted into T3 hormone. It is the T3 hormone that your body cells actually use.
T4 as a storage hormone takes several weeks to ramp up and stabilize. As mentioned about it takes about 6 weeks to stabilize. So with each dosage change you'll want to wait at least 6 weeks. Also understand that because of this long time to stabilize, to not expect dramatic changes in symptoms in a couple of days.
One last point I'd like to explain is the term "free". You will here us talk about testing for the "Free" T4 and "free" T3.
In the body there are two states that the thyroid hormone can be in. One is where the hormone is stuck together or attached to a protein molecule. The other is the isolated hormone that is all by itself or "free" from any attachment.
Your body ONLY uses the FREE hormones. The body will ONLY use the Free T4 hormones to convert into T3. The T4 that is attached to a protein is useless. And then the T3 can be either "free" or become attached to a protein. Again the body at the cellular level ONLY uses the FREE T3 hormone. The T3 that is attached or combined with a protein is useless.
This is why it is SO VERY important to demand and make sure that you are being tested for the FREE T4 and FREE T3 hormones because that is the only thing your body uses.
This inflammation/swelling of the thyroid, would this be something I feel? Like a tightening in my throat of some sort or trouble swallowing/pain. At this time I don't have any symptoms or have any nodules on palpitations. My neck seems perfectly normal as is my swallowing. I really like my green smoothies and I would love to keep drinking them. This high antibody count is just worrying me that I'm making it worse.
Also, does anybody know if endometriosis has any relation to thyroid hormones. I've recently been having increased pain in my pelvic region. I've been told I have stage II endo and I have a growing endometrioma on my right ovary. That probably needs to come out surgically sooner than later.
Also, does anybody know if endometriosis has any relation to thyroid hormones. I've recently been having increased pain in my pelvic region. I've been told I have stage II endo and I have a growing endometrioma on my right ovary. That probably needs to come out surgically sooner than later.
As I said, they don't bother me at all, and I eat them all the time. Goitrogens usually cause inflammation and swelling of the thyroid, so if that doesn't happen when you eat them, you don't have to stop...they're so good for you. If you have pain or swelling in the thyroid, you might curtail them a bit, but otherwise enjoy!
Goolarra thanks for the great info. As it relates to goitrogens, I received a new blender for Xmas and have been drinking green smoothies daily (base of green veggies spinach, kale, arugula) and fruit (strawberries being my fav). The intent was to help with my anemia, which I've had for a while. Some of them are on the goitrogen list. It is probably better to stop drinking as much or make them with different ingredients.
Don't be too freaked out by your TPOab count. We very frequently see antibody counts in the high hundreds or even thousands. Just to give you some perspective, when I was diagnosed, my TPOab was 900+, and my TGab was 3,000+.
Your FT4 is on the low side. Midrange is where many people find symptom relief, and you're quite a bit below that. Your FT3 is extremely low in the range. 25 mcg is a pretty conservative starting dose, but that's a good thing, since starting too high or increasing too fast can cause side effects. It takes a meds dose 4-6 weeks to reach its potential in your blood. After that, you have to re-test (which you are scheduled for) and adjust as necessary. It sometimes takes a few repeats of this process before your levels get back to optimal. It's not unusual for symptom relief to lag lab improvement a bit, too.
Just be sure your doctor keeps adjusting your meds until you feel well.
It's also best to dose meds conservatively until ferritin levels go up. Low iron and ferritin levels can cause difficulty metabolizing thyroid meds.
Many of us haven't changed our diets at all. If you eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, you should be fine. One class of foods, goitrogens (cruciferous veggies, etc.), contain a substance (when raw only) that can cause thyroid inflammation, so they'd be best avoided raw if you notice any reaction to them. I, personally, have no problem with them at all.
Once we have one autoimmune disease, we are more likely to get another than the general population is to get their first. So, be aware of that, but also be aware that many of us don't develop another.
Many people find that vitamin D has to be well up into the range before they feel well, not just on the bottom of the range.
Your FT4 is on the low side. Midrange is where many people find symptom relief, and you're quite a bit below that. Your FT3 is extremely low in the range. 25 mcg is a pretty conservative starting dose, but that's a good thing, since starting too high or increasing too fast can cause side effects. It takes a meds dose 4-6 weeks to reach its potential in your blood. After that, you have to re-test (which you are scheduled for) and adjust as necessary. It sometimes takes a few repeats of this process before your levels get back to optimal. It's not unusual for symptom relief to lag lab improvement a bit, too.
Just be sure your doctor keeps adjusting your meds until you feel well.
It's also best to dose meds conservatively until ferritin levels go up. Low iron and ferritin levels can cause difficulty metabolizing thyroid meds.
Many of us haven't changed our diets at all. If you eat a healthy, well-balanced diet, you should be fine. One class of foods, goitrogens (cruciferous veggies, etc.), contain a substance (when raw only) that can cause thyroid inflammation, so they'd be best avoided raw if you notice any reaction to them. I, personally, have no problem with them at all.
Once we have one autoimmune disease, we are more likely to get another than the general population is to get their first. So, be aware of that, but also be aware that many of us don't develop another.
Many people find that vitamin D has to be well up into the range before they feel well, not just on the bottom of the range.
There are a number of human clinical trials published in medical journals that shows 200mcg of selenium daily lowers thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOAb). The human clinical trial results vary eg: 21% TPOAb reduction in 1 year to 30% TPOAb decrease in 3 months. There are a few studies showing no benefit. The most bio-available form of selenium in supplement form is L-selenomethionine. Brazil nuts average about 70 - 90 mcg of selenium per nut.
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