Tiredness and weight gain

[pammy758]

I am 56 years old and have been a size 8 and weighed 8 stone for around 2 years. I have in the last few weeks put on weight aroung my middle only, and clothing is very tight now. I an also very very tired all the time, and do not want to get out of bed in the morning. I have always worked and have been up early for years. What might be causing this.

[Barb135]

TSH of 0.005 is very low and indicated hyperthyroidism, but the T3 and T4 are the most important.

What are the reference ranges for the T3 and T4 and are they "Free" or "Total"?  Reference ranges vary lab to lab and have to come from your own report.  If your lab report doesn't specify "Free", then they are total and will considered of little value since those tests are obsolete.  

[tixiedixie10]

I was diagnosed last august and am very frustrated i have let my healthy body down and now suffering from hyperthyroidism. Tyhe specialist called yesterday and upped my dose from 4 pills of methamazol to 5 now and that really makes me sad. also taking propranolol and now crazy about that either. Can anyone explain my levels to me. I'm so dumb when it comes to understanding it. Tsh - .005 T4-24 T3-10.3... I would appreciate any input on what it means. Thank you for now :(

[Barb135]

First have to ask if you are really male, as your profile shows? I'm guessing you forgot to change the gender, which defaults to male, when you joined MedHelp, but do correct me if I'm wrong.

Your symptoms could be caused by a thyroid condition called hypothyroidism, which is an under active thyroid (doesn't produce enough hormones); could also be caused by menopausal issues, if you're female.

You need to get some simple blood tests done.  Those would be for thyroid function, TSH, Free T3 and Free T4, along with antibody tests, Thyroid Peroxidase Antibodies (TPOab) and Thyroglobulin Antibodies (TGab).  The TSH, Free T3 and Free T4 will determine if you have hypothyroidism; the antibody tests will determine if you have an autoimmune thyroid condition, in which the body sees the thyroid as foreign and produces antibodies to destroy it.

I do see by your profile that you are in UK.  I'm sorry to say that we've had numerous members from UK that could not get adequate testing and/or treatment due to NHS guidelines.  Many of them have had to go private in order to get the testing/treatment they need.

Try to get the testing recommended, along with tests for reproductive hormones, then get a copy from your doctor and post them here, along with reference ranges, which vary lab to lab and have to come from your own report.  Once we can see your labs, we can help determine your issue.