Daily routines and work

[Mona2001]

I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism in 2006, and just a few days ago I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's. I have a daily work routine ( even though it is very hard to even get the day started being so tired and joint pain), and if it thrown off in any way, like my shift gets changed even by an 30 minutes to an hour, I am lost for the rest of the day. Even if my shift starts at 8:00am I'm still at my job by 6:45am. I'm not sure if its because I have always worked early shifts.  Does this happen to anyone else or is it just me?

[Barb135]

Okay.... good that you're supplementing the vitamin D; that's very important.

Your FT levels are very low.  Rule of thumb is to have FT4 at/near mid range; yours is only at 34% of its range.  Rule of thumb for FT3 is to have it mid range to upper third of the range; yours is only 21%.  It's no wonder you aren't feeling well.  

How long has it been since your med was increased?  It takes 4-6 weeks for a med change to reach full potential, so I'm sure you have a way to go, but some people do start feeling slight improvement sooner than that.  Are you noticing any difference in the way you feel?  

I'm wondering if you are adequately converting the FT4 to FT3. Are you scheduled for blood work again in a few weeks?

"Also, how is being on a gluten free diet important with this disease?"  It's not.  Many people believe that if they go gluten free, it will reduce the antibodies; some have even gone so far as to insist that going gluten free will "cure" Hashimoto's........ THAT is totally untrue and there are no scientific studies to support the idea that gluten free will reduce antibodies.  The only reason one would need to go gluten free is if there is a bonafide intolerance or allergy to gluten.

Most of us haven't made any diet changes, except in my case, I've gone to  more veggies and lean protein, because I'm trying to maintain a low glycemic diet, to counteract insulin resistance.

[Mona2001]

Yes, for my vitamin D I am on 5000 IU. ok here are the labs again with ranges...  Tyroxine total 9.3 (4.5-10.9 ) Thyroxine free 1.20 (0.89-1.76) Free T3 2.7 (2.3-4.2)  Vitamin D 18 (30-100) TSH 4.580 (0.350-5.500) Co2 30 (22-28) Sed Rate 26 (0-20).

Also, how is being on a gluten free diet important with this disease?

[Barb135]

We need to know the reference ranges for the tests.  Ranges vary from lab to lab and have to be posted with results.

Just glancing at your results and going by what we normally see, it appears that you might still be pretty hypo, but then we know your  med has been increased, also.

For sure your Vitamin D is WAY too low; have you been told to supplement that?

[Mona2001]

Ok so these are for date of service 6/19/13:  thyroxine free 1.20, thyroxine total 9.3, t3 free 2.7, tsh 4.580, sed rate (not sure what that is) 26, co2 30, vitamin d 18. Is the other things I added on there, usually abnormal with hashimotos, or hypothyroid? I never had them abnormal before.

[Barb135]

Will look forward to seeing your labs...........

[Mona2001]

I do not have copies of the labs, but I will get them and post them. Thank you so much for your help Barb, I do appreciate it.

[Barb135]

Do you have copies of your current thyroid labs, including the antibody tests?  If not, you should always get a copy of every test that's done, so you can keep a running record of your condition.  On every lab sheet, I write the thyroid medication(s) I was on, the dosages(s), and what, if any symptoms I had at the time of the blood draw.  That's become the running record of my journey with Hashimoto's; I can look at any of my labs and know which numbers to target to feel my best.

In case your doctor didn't explain a lot about Hashimoto's, it's an autoimmune disease that attacks and destroys the thyroid.  The thyroid destruction is progressive, meaning that as healthy thyroid tissue is destroyed, the thyroid produces less and less, until eventually, you are completely dependent on the replacement hormones.  Throughout the destruction process, replacement meds will have to be adjusted periodically, to accommodate the the loss of thyroid hormone production.

Hashimoto's will NOT move to other organs, though once a person has one autoimmune disease, the chances of having/getting another are greater.

With Hashimoto's, once the thyroid no longer produces and levels are stabilized, most people do quite well on the replacement medications.  

If you have copies of your current labs, please post them, so we can see where you are with whole thing.  It's easiest for us when we can actually see your lab results and the reference ranges, so we can see where your levels fall within those ranges.  Many doctors think that "in range" is good enough, when it isn't.

[Mona2001]

Thank you for your reply. I did forget to mention that I did get my Synthroid adjusted from 150mg Mon-Fri and 175mg Sat -Sun  to 175mg daily Mon-Sun a few days ago by my Endocrinologist when she gave me the news about Hashimoto's. Sorry for the lack of information, this is new to me and I am trying to find out as much info about this disease as I can, I haven't told my family member yet because I'm not sure how to explain something I'm not even sure about. And I know that they will have lots of questions as my Dad was just cleared from head and neck cancer on 6/18/13, even though it's not the same (not even close), still I know my family and their concerns. That is how I came across this community, which I am thankful for. I can relate to others, and to know I'm not alone feels great.

[Barb135]

I think once we get into a routine, it's hard to get out of the rut.  I used to have to get up at 3:30 am every day, to be at work by 6:00 (later changed to 5:30), and after I retired, it took quite some time, before I got out of the routine of waking up at 3:30.  When I woke up, I had to  just lie for a while and hope I'd drift back off to sleep. I've been retired for almost 2 years and it's still not unusual to wake up around 3:30-4:00 am, but if I lay quietly and make my mind be still, I can often go back to sleep.  There are even some days that I sleep right through to around 6:00 am, which is time to get up anyway.

Since you're still so tired and have joint pain, I'd have to wonder if your thyroid med is adjusted properly.  If you have current levels, please post them, with reference ranges, which vary lab to lab and have to be posted with results.  That will allow members to comment more fully on your situation.