TSH levels

[luv2dance]

most recent tsh is close to a 4 I am currently on levothyroxine 25mcg, which is a baby dose. my hypo symptoms made a comeback, symptoms come & go, but not at the level they were before treatment when I was over 11 several months ago, at that number I actually thought i was dying! So someone hellp me out here. my current endocronologist does NOT think i need a dose increase but i strongly disagree, he did have me go for another tsh & free t4 last week (the results i will know monday, a copy will faxed to my primary also) to see where i'm at, then will will see what his decision is. I weigh too much to be on such a tiny dose (im actually on the heavy side) & my dr knows how much I weigh but does not even bring that up & i actually need to lose about 20-30 lbs & just cannot seem to do it on my own no matter what diet i chose. Dont get me wrong, i am not in any way looking for a quick weight loss fix, levothyroxine is not a weight loss drug,(where i work there are 250-300lb residents who are hypothyroid & they are 100 lbs overweight!) But I think that being on the right dosage of levothyroxine & correct lifestyle changes & eating habits (i have been religious in recent months!)i should be able to finally lose weight. I am strongly considering changing endo drs, he has not even checked my t3 levels & i have been a patient for almost a year. As everyone is well aware of these dr visits are not cheap & i think this dr is just waiting my time.

[Presmom77]

I had a baby about 4 months ago and I work at the hospital....it was so weird all of the sudden (and maybe it was there prior but i had just noticed it) i had this swollen neck and I had never had a problem (that I knew of) with thyroid so since I work at the hospital the docs drew my blood and sent the levels off.  Next thing you know chemistry calls with a critical on my TSH levels. From what I have read, normal is about 3...mine was 53.5.  So i kinda panicked but they just prescribed me synthroid .05mg....You know I had wondered why for the past few weeks I felt sooo badly.  When I read all the symptoms everything made sense!

[deliveriesrus]

Hi there,
I'm new to this forum.  I suffered a bout of subacute thyroiditis about 10 years ago and have been hypothyroid ever since.  After 2 kids and 5 years of a grueling residency I find myself about 65 lbs overweight.  I am horrified to admit that I haven't been taking care of myself, no exercise, awful diet, way too much stress and noncompliance with my meds.  So much so that my last recorded TSH was 234, one year ago.  Yes, I typed in 234, no typo there.  The lab even repeated it.  My dose is 0.2 mg of synthroid, which I have been taking now.  I am confused by the info that Atkins will actually slow your metabolism.  I want to start an exercise and diet program and would really appreciate any advice.  Thanks

[andy_jr_2001]

my t4 level was .9 and for tsh 6.04 in feb.
in may it for t4 it was 1.1 and tsh it was 6.42
doc says i could be showing precursor to hypothyroism but doesnt want to give me anything until i get checked again in 3 months, so i went to another doc to get checked for something else and she say my chart and she got worried and asked me why i wasnt on meds. so should i be worried or start on meds? one doc says wait and see if it levels and another one says you need meds.

[LizGem]

Nikim- I wanted to tell you what happened to me because you sound exactly like me!!  I thought that I without a doubt had a thyroid problem (dry skin, cold all the time, hair falling out, tired all the time, etc.) so I went to our family doctor.  He tested my thyroid levels and said that I was perfectly fine.  I felt stupid for going to the doctor and just figured it was all in my head. About 1/2 year later I found out I was pregnant (meanwhile, the symptoms I was having never went away) My OB (best doctor in the whole world) found a lump in my neck at my first prenatal visit and ordered an ultrasound and a biopsy.  Turns out- I have thyroid cancer.  They said I have had it for quite some time- 7.5cm tumor on one side of my thyroid and a bunch of little tumors on the other side.  I had surgery to remove my thyroid, the tumors, and lymph nodes because they had cancer in them too.  I still have some cancer left that they couldn't remove, but sometime this month I will be having the radioactive iodine treatment.  Please go to the doctor again.  Get an ultrasound done of your neck.  Let me know.

[inagalot]

sorry if this a repeat question, but I don't understand the levels of TSH and T4.  2 years ago I had a TSH of 2.96 and a T4 of 7.4.  Are those on the low side? I was prescribed 5mcg of Cytomel by female hormone doctor Erika Schwartz.  A year later, my TSH was 2.62 and my regular internist wanted me off the meds.  I said that I didn't get my PMS depression since on the cytomel but I still have muscle aches and arthritic like joint pain upon rising in the morning.  Also, and I think this may be important, I have been exhausted every morning, on the couch until about 1 pm after 8 hours of sleep and by 4 pm to 11 pm, I'm zipping around the house like I'm on speed that I need to take a valium at times to shut my brain down. My facial skin has also gotten very oily with enlarged pores and blackheads. I saw a Discovery program last night regarding a woman with elevated evening cortisol levels which eventually was diagnosed with Cushings. I've gained about 20 lbs (abdomen mostly although I have uterine fibroids) in a relatively short amount of time and high blood pressure.  My overall cholesterol has gone up 20 points in 6 months and I'm exercising more and eating better. I'm just wondering if I don't have a cortisol problem.  All my problems started about 3 years ago when I had marital problems and had adrenaline running thru me most of the time and I was taken of birth control pills because all of the sudden I had high blood pressure. (One week after getting of the BC pills, my weight went up 7 lbs.) Did I burn out my adrenals? I'm on blood pressure meds but my diastolic is still quite high. Help!!!!!

[luv2dance]

I'm back folks, here's my recent labs: TSH 0.75, total T3 1.17, total T4 6.90, free T3 3.00. I must say I am feeling pretty good with the exception of sweating i've been having (for the past 2 weeks)but now to a lesser degree which had me worried, thank god no heart palps, chest discomfort or brain fog, if I start to notice those then i will decrease the levothyroxine, one thing for sure i WILL NOT increase! For now I think I have found the right dose which is 50mcg, if i lower it i will go back to a 37.5. I'm also having more labs done in 6 weeks. Best of luck to all of you as well.