TSH down, also free t3 & free t4

[marbet]

i am a 54 yr old female and have been on Armour thyroid for 10 months.  For the last 5 months my dose has been 60-90 -60 on alternating days. The last test results were TSH-.019 (range 0.40-5.50) free t3-256 (range 230-420) free t4-.09 (range 0.8-1.8).  My Dr. is fine with the TSH level, but the odd thing is that the free t 3 & 4 are also going down as the TSH has gone down, in fact the free t4 is lower than before I started with any medication.  I have an appointment next week and would appreciate any insight or any other tests that you think might be needed.  My Dr. is open to my input, so more knowledge is good.  I am not feeling too badly, much better than before the Armour, but concerned about the test results.  Thank you for your help

[marbet]

thank you for your information, it gives me something to research and know about before I see the Dr.  I do appreciate your time.

[GravesLady]

This a little out of my norm.

For adrenal fatigue, your doctor will know which test. However, normally, Cortisol and DHEA - Saliva test (adrenal hormone test) is preferred as it measures the amount of free and circulating hormones instead of the binded hormone commonly measured in blood test.
Taking saliva samples at set times throughout the day at home and sending them back to the lab for analysis. several samples are needed at different times as adrenal hormone levels naturally rise and fall during the day. These tests indicate levels of cortisol and DHEA/DHEA-S (the sulfur salt of DHEA) and a result indicating low levels would indicate that therapy aimed at increasing adrenal activity may be beneficial. These tests are easy to complete and relatively inexpensive.
Home adrenal function (stress check) tests available at stores

pituitary function test is performed to check the function of various hormone productions of the pituitary gland. It includes three different stimulation tests. LHRH, TRH, Insulin Stress Test
Your doctor will decide which test or tests need to be performed and to do it in combination or separately depending on the clinical assessment and the requirement of the tests.

Hope this helps.

[marbet]

thank you for your ideas, I will mention them to my Dr.  We all know that as the TSH gets lower, the others should go up, very odd that they are going down too!
Are there some specific blood tests that will check for adrenal fatigue and low pituitary function?

[GravesLady]

Armour dose might be too high.

OR

Adrenal fatigue issues.

OR

Hypothyroidism due to low pituitary function.


I'm not a doctor, so these are just ideas, not a diagnose/treatment.