Aa
Pregnant and need help with test results
Hi All,
I have Hashimoto's and I am 10 weeks pregnant. I've been on Synthroid 25mg for about 2 months before getting pregnant. I was feeling MUCH better since I started Syhtroid (fatigue, muscle aches gone), until about week 7 of my pregnancy. I am testing my TSH and T4 free every four weeks. Based on my test results, the endo told me to increase my Synthroid to 1 and a half of the 25 mg pills a day in week 4 of my pregnancy.
In week 7 I started to have nasty heart palpitations and shortness of breath, but in the evenings I had attacks of very sudden hypothermia- especially at night- was waking up shivering and totally frozen despite normal room temperature and sleeping under a comforter and a blanket. These symptoms have totally confused me- the heart palps and shortness of breath sound/feel like going hyper, but the cold attacks are consistent with a hypo. I went to my endo and asked to be tested again, including T3 free, which she typically does not test.
I need help intepreting my test reusults, in comparison to earlier labs, because there has been quite a change in my TSH. I still can't figure out if my symptoms are caused by too much Synthroid or too little- please look at these labs and give me your opinion:
Before I got pregnant, 4 weeks after starting Synthroid: TSH= 2.95 range: 0.35- 3.74
Free T4= 1.06 range 0.76-1.46
4 weeks pregnant: TSH= 3.3 Free T4= 1.1 - Was told to increase meds by 12.5mg
7 weeks pregnant (when my symptoms started) TSH= 3.15 Free T4= 1.24
3 weeks later - 10 weeks pregnant TSH =2.08; Free T4= 1.26; Free T3 = 2.42 range: 2.19-3.98
While the last test seems the most normal, it was a big change from 3 weeks earlier, and I continue to have heart palps and shortness of breath.
Based on the rapid change in the last test my endo suggested that I cut down on Synthroid. But I am scared to do so- my baby still depends on me for t4 till the second trimester.
Any thoughts on my lab results and what might be causing my symptoms?
Greatly Appreciate any input!
I have Hashimoto's and I am 10 weeks pregnant. I've been on Synthroid 25mg for about 2 months before getting pregnant. I was feeling MUCH better since I started Syhtroid (fatigue, muscle aches gone), until about week 7 of my pregnancy. I am testing my TSH and T4 free every four weeks. Based on my test results, the endo told me to increase my Synthroid to 1 and a half of the 25 mg pills a day in week 4 of my pregnancy.
In week 7 I started to have nasty heart palpitations and shortness of breath, but in the evenings I had attacks of very sudden hypothermia- especially at night- was waking up shivering and totally frozen despite normal room temperature and sleeping under a comforter and a blanket. These symptoms have totally confused me- the heart palps and shortness of breath sound/feel like going hyper, but the cold attacks are consistent with a hypo. I went to my endo and asked to be tested again, including T3 free, which she typically does not test.
I need help intepreting my test reusults, in comparison to earlier labs, because there has been quite a change in my TSH. I still can't figure out if my symptoms are caused by too much Synthroid or too little- please look at these labs and give me your opinion:
Before I got pregnant, 4 weeks after starting Synthroid: TSH= 2.95 range: 0.35- 3.74
Free T4= 1.06 range 0.76-1.46
4 weeks pregnant: TSH= 3.3 Free T4= 1.1 - Was told to increase meds by 12.5mg
7 weeks pregnant (when my symptoms started) TSH= 3.15 Free T4= 1.24
3 weeks later - 10 weeks pregnant TSH =2.08; Free T4= 1.26; Free T3 = 2.42 range: 2.19-3.98
While the last test seems the most normal, it was a big change from 3 weeks earlier, and I continue to have heart palps and shortness of breath.
Based on the rapid change in the last test my endo suggested that I cut down on Synthroid. But I am scared to do so- my baby still depends on me for t4 till the second trimester.
Any thoughts on my lab results and what might be causing my symptoms?
Greatly Appreciate any input!
Unfortunately I don't have any member recommended doctors in those areas. The best I can do is to give you this link to the Top Thyroid Doctors site.
http://www.thyroid-info.com/topdrs/
For those areas, I went through the listings and found several that sound like prospects, based on their patients' reviews. I will send the names by PM.
Regarding T3 supplementation, common symptoms would be elevated pulse rate, anxiety, shaky hands, heat intolerance, etc.
http://www.thyroid-info.com/topdrs/
For those areas, I went through the listings and found several that sound like prospects, based on their patients' reviews. I will send the names by PM.
Regarding T3 supplementation, common symptoms would be elevated pulse rate, anxiety, shaky hands, heat intolerance, etc.
Gimel,
I'm located in Augusta, Georgia. Other cities I could travel to to see a doctor- Atlanta, GA, Columbia, South Carolina, and anywhere else within a 2-3 hour radius from Augusta.
Very interesting post about the little girl with heart palps. Sounds very similar to what I am experiencing...
Regarding T3 supplementation- I imagine there are some potential risks during pregnancy..? What are the most common symptoms of too much T3?- All the hyper symptoms, or something in addition to those?
I'm located in Augusta, Georgia. Other cities I could travel to to see a doctor- Atlanta, GA, Columbia, South Carolina, and anywhere else within a 2-3 hour radius from Augusta.
Very interesting post about the little girl with heart palps. Sounds very similar to what I am experiencing...
Regarding T3 supplementation- I imagine there are some potential risks during pregnancy..? What are the most common symptoms of too much T3?- All the hyper symptoms, or something in addition to those?
Sorry, but your Endo does not sound like the kind of doctor you want to go through Hashi's with. Where are you located? The reason I ask is that I have been compiling a list of good thyroid doctors based on members recommendations. Who knows, you might be lucky enough to have one close by you.
AS far as the FT3 level, I have read that low levels of zinc, iron/ferritin, and selenium inhibit the conversion of T4 to T3. So a last resort might be to get those tested and then supplement as necessary; however, this is not a short term effect, like you would get from adding T3 to your meds. It also might never have the total impact you will eventually need. So, in my opinion you do need to find a good thyroid doctor to replace your Endo.
I have heard from numerous members in the past that have experienced heart palps, for which they were concerned about being hyper. Of course being hyper can cause heart issues, but so can being hypo. I dug out this one post that I thought you might like to read. There are others with the same theme.
by magpieannie
Blank
, Apr 28, 2010 10:47AM
To: blsdnsvd and everyone else
My daughter (nine and born without a thyroid) was diagnosed with PVC's (holter moniter study) last year while on Synthroid. Her T4 was way too high and her freet3 was way too low (conversion issue). Her thyroid hormones were very imbalanced then and her TSH was always around 3.5. I switched doctors and changed her to desiccated thyroid to get the freet3 higher in the range and the freet4 down to mid range or slightly above. This of course lowered her TSH to under 1 (close to 0). She no longer has the PVC's which always happened when she would try to exert herself in even the smallest way. She felt it as rapid/fast beating, like she just ran the 50 yrd. dash. For her getting the available t3 was the answer to the weird heart beats. Now that the freet3 and freet4 are kept more closely balanced (with the freet3 slightly higher then the t4)and both are on the upper half of the bell shaped curve for normal range, the PVC's that she was diagnosed with are no longer happening (gone/resolved for over 1 year now!)( By the way- the pediatric endo. said it wasn't related to her levels as she was in normal range-only problem was that she never checked her freet3 level AND the pediatric cardiologist was a total bafoon and had no idea how not having a thyroid could effect her heart and could only recommend that my low metabolic daughter lose 30 lbs.) I fired both of these doctors on the spot!!!!! Hope our experience with idiot doctors/specialist and with this scary SYMPTOM of thyroid hormone imbalance will be of some help to all who need to figure this out and hopefully get it to cease as our hearts have to last us a life time! Good luck and God Bless!
AS far as the FT3 level, I have read that low levels of zinc, iron/ferritin, and selenium inhibit the conversion of T4 to T3. So a last resort might be to get those tested and then supplement as necessary; however, this is not a short term effect, like you would get from adding T3 to your meds. It also might never have the total impact you will eventually need. So, in my opinion you do need to find a good thyroid doctor to replace your Endo.
I have heard from numerous members in the past that have experienced heart palps, for which they were concerned about being hyper. Of course being hyper can cause heart issues, but so can being hypo. I dug out this one post that I thought you might like to read. There are others with the same theme.
by magpieannie
Blank
, Apr 28, 2010 10:47AM
To: blsdnsvd and everyone else
My daughter (nine and born without a thyroid) was diagnosed with PVC's (holter moniter study) last year while on Synthroid. Her T4 was way too high and her freet3 was way too low (conversion issue). Her thyroid hormones were very imbalanced then and her TSH was always around 3.5. I switched doctors and changed her to desiccated thyroid to get the freet3 higher in the range and the freet4 down to mid range or slightly above. This of course lowered her TSH to under 1 (close to 0). She no longer has the PVC's which always happened when she would try to exert herself in even the smallest way. She felt it as rapid/fast beating, like she just ran the 50 yrd. dash. For her getting the available t3 was the answer to the weird heart beats. Now that the freet3 and freet4 are kept more closely balanced (with the freet3 slightly higher then the t4)and both are on the upper half of the bell shaped curve for normal range, the PVC's that she was diagnosed with are no longer happening (gone/resolved for over 1 year now!)( By the way- the pediatric endo. said it wasn't related to her levels as she was in normal range-only problem was that she never checked her freet3 level AND the pediatric cardiologist was a total bafoon and had no idea how not having a thyroid could effect her heart and could only recommend that my low metabolic daughter lose 30 lbs.) I fired both of these doctors on the spot!!!!! Hope our experience with idiot doctors/specialist and with this scary SYMPTOM of thyroid hormone imbalance will be of some help to all who need to figure this out and hopefully get it to cease as our hearts have to last us a life time! Good luck and God Bless!
gimel,
Thank you so much for your answer and the links!
As far as adding T3 unfortunately, I think it will be impossible to convince my endo to add T3 now. She is generally against it, unless lab results show that it is out of range low, and she told me that she would not "dare" to prescribe it to me during pregnancy.
Regarding heart pals- they are the worst in the morning, until early afternoon. Seem to get better in the evenings. The way I experience them is feeling as if my heart is straining to perform normal activities. For instance, I have stairs at my house which when I feel well I can run up and down and not have a significantly increased heart rate. When I get these palps- I would walk upstairs SLOWLY and at the top of the staris I feel my heart pounding. However, the pounding happens occassionally outside of physical activity.
As far as other hypo symptoms- no, so far so good. I am fatigued in the evenings but I think it is a pregnancy symptom because I used to be fatigued when I was really hypo and it was very different- a whole day exhaustion with severe muscle aches and stifness and flu like symptoms. All those are thank goodness gone.
Question- you mentioned my T3 should be higher. My T4 is in the upper normal range, does that mean that I have problems with conversion? Is there any other way to remedy this- like certain vitamins or minerals that help the conversion from T4 to T3?
Thank you so much for your answer and the links!
As far as adding T3 unfortunately, I think it will be impossible to convince my endo to add T3 now. She is generally against it, unless lab results show that it is out of range low, and she told me that she would not "dare" to prescribe it to me during pregnancy.
Regarding heart pals- they are the worst in the morning, until early afternoon. Seem to get better in the evenings. The way I experience them is feeling as if my heart is straining to perform normal activities. For instance, I have stairs at my house which when I feel well I can run up and down and not have a significantly increased heart rate. When I get these palps- I would walk upstairs SLOWLY and at the top of the staris I feel my heart pounding. However, the pounding happens occassionally outside of physical activity.
As far as other hypo symptoms- no, so far so good. I am fatigued in the evenings but I think it is a pregnancy symptom because I used to be fatigued when I was really hypo and it was very different- a whole day exhaustion with severe muscle aches and stifness and flu like symptoms. All those are thank goodness gone.
Question- you mentioned my T3 should be higher. My T4 is in the upper normal range, does that mean that I have problems with conversion? Is there any other way to remedy this- like certain vitamins or minerals that help the conversion from T4 to T3?
Are you experiencing any other hypo symptoms like those in this link?
http://endocrine-system.emedtv.com/hypothyroidism/hypothyroidism-symptoms-and-signs.html
Just from looking at your labs I would expect that you are hypo, due to the Free T3 level being in the very low end of the range. Free T3 is the most important thyroid hormone because it largely regulates metabolism and many other body functions. Scientific studies have shown that FT3 correlated best with hypo symptoms, while FT4 and TSH correlated very poorly. Unfortunately many doctors think that a FT3 result that falls anywhere within the so-called "normal" range is adequate. That is far from correct. the ranges hare far too broad, since they have never been corrected as was done for TSH over 8 years ago by the AACE. that is why we hear from many members that symptom relief for them required that FT3 was adjusted into the upper part of its range and FT4 adjusted to midpoint of its range. If you want to read more about clinical treatment, rather than just by test results, have a look at this link.
http://hormonerestoration.com/files/ThyroidPMD.pdf
Members have reported having palps with both hyper and hypo conditions. When do yours typically occcur? The reason that I ask is that I have what I thought was palps/A Fib for the past year and a half. I have been on a Holter Monitor twice and an event monitor for three weeks. No palps or A Fib were ever identified. Based on the area where I feel it occasionally, and some reading I have done, I have come to the conclusion that mine (and one other member I know about) seems to be diaphragm flutter. The only thing I have ever read that suggested something to relieve this condition, was to take magnesium for a while. I have yet to prove that out.
Your Endo may have a good idea to reduce your Synthroid slightly. Along with that you should ask about adding a source of T3 to increase your FT3 level. Many of them act like taking T3 is an automatic heart attack and osteoporosis, but that is not the case, as noted in the second link I gave you above. For the sake of you and your baby I think you need to get your FT3 level to at least the midpoint of its range, regardless of the resultant TSH. TSH is a pituitary hormone that is affected by so many variables that it is very unreliable even when not taking thyroid meds, and when taking meds it is almost useless, even as an indicator. far better indicators are symptoms and also levels of FT3 and FT4.
Hopefully you will hear from other members with direct experience. Please stay in touch and let us know how things go and we will be glad to review additional test results, or whatever, and try to give you our best input.
http://endocrine-system.emedtv.com/hypothyroidism/hypothyroidism-symptoms-and-signs.html
Just from looking at your labs I would expect that you are hypo, due to the Free T3 level being in the very low end of the range. Free T3 is the most important thyroid hormone because it largely regulates metabolism and many other body functions. Scientific studies have shown that FT3 correlated best with hypo symptoms, while FT4 and TSH correlated very poorly. Unfortunately many doctors think that a FT3 result that falls anywhere within the so-called "normal" range is adequate. That is far from correct. the ranges hare far too broad, since they have never been corrected as was done for TSH over 8 years ago by the AACE. that is why we hear from many members that symptom relief for them required that FT3 was adjusted into the upper part of its range and FT4 adjusted to midpoint of its range. If you want to read more about clinical treatment, rather than just by test results, have a look at this link.
http://hormonerestoration.com/files/ThyroidPMD.pdf
Members have reported having palps with both hyper and hypo conditions. When do yours typically occcur? The reason that I ask is that I have what I thought was palps/A Fib for the past year and a half. I have been on a Holter Monitor twice and an event monitor for three weeks. No palps or A Fib were ever identified. Based on the area where I feel it occasionally, and some reading I have done, I have come to the conclusion that mine (and one other member I know about) seems to be diaphragm flutter. The only thing I have ever read that suggested something to relieve this condition, was to take magnesium for a while. I have yet to prove that out.
Your Endo may have a good idea to reduce your Synthroid slightly. Along with that you should ask about adding a source of T3 to increase your FT3 level. Many of them act like taking T3 is an automatic heart attack and osteoporosis, but that is not the case, as noted in the second link I gave you above. For the sake of you and your baby I think you need to get your FT3 level to at least the midpoint of its range, regardless of the resultant TSH. TSH is a pituitary hormone that is affected by so many variables that it is very unreliable even when not taking thyroid meds, and when taking meds it is almost useless, even as an indicator. far better indicators are symptoms and also levels of FT3 and FT4.
Hopefully you will hear from other members with direct experience. Please stay in touch and let us know how things go and we will be glad to review additional test results, or whatever, and try to give you our best input.
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