Aa
Desperate and at a loss...
I had a hysterectomy 10 years ago and have been going down hill since then. Test showed high testosterone, high estrogen, and darn near no progesterone. Prescribed est. and prog. and those are supposedly good now...but if I'm normal how come i feel AWEFUL? I'm exhausted, wake up 3 or 4 times throughout the night, am gaining a LOT of weight (30 lbs in the last 6 months) and while i admit i dont always eat healthy...there is NO way im eating enough to warrant that...I am ALWAYS freezing to the point that my hands and feet are numb most of the time, I have NO sex drive at all which is a complete 360 of where i used to be, my skin is so dry its scaly, I can barely function anymore and have a hard time focusing, my hair has started falling out, the front of my throat is swollen and it hurts to swallow..my thyroid test came back completely in all the normal ranges:
B12: 574 (211-946)
Vitamin D: 41.9 (30-100)
Ferritin: 87 (15-150)
TSH: 2.18 (.45-4.5)
T4: 9.6 (4.5-12)
T3:142 (71-180)
FT3: 3.4 (2-4.4)
Reverse T3: 14.2 (9.2-24.1)
FT4: 1.22 (.82-1.77)
TPO Ab: 14 (0-34)
Anti-TG Ab: <1.0 (0-.9)
Thyroglobulin, serum: 32.3 (1.5-38.5)
I'm so so tired...is this all in my head like the doc. says? I'm 42 and feel like I'm 82. I cant live like this anymore...
For the past 3 months I've been taking B12 and D supplements, fish oil, adrenal support, progesterone, estrogen, magnesium, a multi-vitamin...all per doctor's orders and it is not helping at all...
Doss anyone have ANY suggestions...PLEASE
B12: 574 (211-946)
Vitamin D: 41.9 (30-100)
Ferritin: 87 (15-150)
TSH: 2.18 (.45-4.5)
T4: 9.6 (4.5-12)
T3:142 (71-180)
FT3: 3.4 (2-4.4)
Reverse T3: 14.2 (9.2-24.1)
FT4: 1.22 (.82-1.77)
TPO Ab: 14 (0-34)
Anti-TG Ab: <1.0 (0-.9)
Thyroglobulin, serum: 32.3 (1.5-38.5)
I'm so so tired...is this all in my head like the doc. says? I'm 42 and feel like I'm 82. I cant live like this anymore...
For the past 3 months I've been taking B12 and D supplements, fish oil, adrenal support, progesterone, estrogen, magnesium, a multi-vitamin...all per doctor's orders and it is not helping at all...
Doss anyone have ANY suggestions...PLEASE
Doesn't sound like your hormones are balanced.
"When estrogen is not balanced by progesterone, it can produce weight gain, headaches, bad temper, chronic fatigue and loss of interest in sex – all of which are part of the clinically recognized premenstrual syndrome."
"When estrogen is not balanced by progesterone, it can produce weight gain, headaches, bad temper, chronic fatigue and loss of interest in sex – all of which are part of the clinically recognized premenstrual syndrome."
COMMUNITY LEADER
If you had a complete hysterectomy (both ovaries removed), menopause was imminent at the time of your hysterectomy and you are now post-menopausal. As we get older, we need less of the estrogen and progesterone.
Have you had a thyroid ultrasound to determine if you have swelling/inflammation or nodules on your thyroid?
While both, your FT3 and FT4 are "in range", they could stand to be a bit higher in the ranges. Many of us find that in order to feel our best we need FT4 at about the mid range point; yours is at 42% of the range. Your FT3 is still at 58% of its range, which is still "okay", but it appears that your thyroid function could be declining.
Your vitamin D is way too low. You should try to get it, at least, up to around 60 or higher. You should also ask your doctor to test your vitamin B12 level. Just because you're supplementing, doesn't mean your level is high enough - low B-12 could account for some of the fatigue.
Since you have all the symptoms of under active thyroid, you could ask your doctor for a trial dose of thyroid replacement hormones just to see if that helps. Many doctors would not be willing to try, but it doesn't hurt to ask.
Have you had a thyroid ultrasound to determine if you have swelling/inflammation or nodules on your thyroid?
While both, your FT3 and FT4 are "in range", they could stand to be a bit higher in the ranges. Many of us find that in order to feel our best we need FT4 at about the mid range point; yours is at 42% of the range. Your FT3 is still at 58% of its range, which is still "okay", but it appears that your thyroid function could be declining.
Your vitamin D is way too low. You should try to get it, at least, up to around 60 or higher. You should also ask your doctor to test your vitamin B12 level. Just because you're supplementing, doesn't mean your level is high enough - low B-12 could account for some of the fatigue.
Since you have all the symptoms of under active thyroid, you could ask your doctor for a trial dose of thyroid replacement hormones just to see if that helps. Many doctors would not be willing to try, but it doesn't hurt to ask.
I am taking both the estrogen and progesterone via creams that i put on my skin daily...im pretty sure that i am post menopauseal so im already contending with that. The doc said that even though I was estrogen dominant it wasn't as high as it should be either so put me on a small dose.
Why would you be given estrogen with elevated estrogen? My reasons for weight gain/difficulty losing weight were severe insulin resistance and untreated hypothyroidism. My hip to waist ratio was 0.96 due to insulin resistance.
Causes of abdominal fat:
High insulin
High cortisol
High estrogen
Low testosterone
Low DHEA
Causes of abdominal fat:
High insulin
High cortisol
High estrogen
Low testosterone
Low DHEA
I know exactly what you mean! I had a hysterectomy as well back in 2012 and everything has gone downhill since then. One ovary was left and my surgeon said I won't go into menopause. Guess what!! I found out last week I'm post menopausal!!!
I also developed this awful subacute thyroiditis this past spring which I'm still suffering from, I'm currently on Levothyroxine and acctually start to feel more and more like a human again after being miserable for so long.
Last year I had terrible hot flashes, my libido is zero, my skin is dry, well, I can write a very long list of miserable symptoms. I'm not sure, but I suspect I had thyroid problems already last year as well as being in menopause.
Did you test your FSH? That can tell if your menopausal or not. Menopause and low thyroid symptoms are pretty much identical. Hypothyroidism can also kick you into early menopause, I just read that.
I'm just learning about HRT and bio identical hormones. I started using this plant based progesterone cream that helps balance out all our hormones. We women are usually estrogen dominant due to all the exogenous estrogens were getting exposed to and in menopause we get no progesterone at all.
Progesterone helps offset estrogen, without it it's kind of damaging to our bodies. Someone said that progesterone is like "the conductor at the symphony where estrogen and testosterone plays the instruments, without the conductor it's just no order or harmony"
I bought my cream at Sprouts Market, I recommend you to do some reading.
The synthetic versions that we take orally breaks down to different metabolites in our livers before it reaches the blood stream so we don't get any progesterone from it anyways. And since we most likely have too much estrogen in our bodies, adding to it with synthetic stuff is like adding fuel to the fire.
All I've read so far points towards that they're finding out more and more it's the low/no progesterone that makes us women miserable. Add some thyroid problems to the mix and life's just terrible.
Your thyroid test looks pretty good, maybe someone else here can tell you if some of them look suspect.
You vitamin D can go much higher, low levels can make us feel really bad. I think your ferritin can be better too, but it's not awfully bad. Mind you all of your tests are within the range but I've learned that the ranges are crazy broad and one-size-fit-all is just not true.
But since you don't feel well your doctor should test your FSH levels, that's how I found out I'm post menopausal (I'm only 44)
I also wake up several times at night, usually wide awake at 3 am. It's better now since I'm on the Levo, it kind of comes and goes. I have periods when I sleep better, then I'm waking up all the time again.
I hope you can get your health back and your life back on track.
I also developed this awful subacute thyroiditis this past spring which I'm still suffering from, I'm currently on Levothyroxine and acctually start to feel more and more like a human again after being miserable for so long.
Last year I had terrible hot flashes, my libido is zero, my skin is dry, well, I can write a very long list of miserable symptoms. I'm not sure, but I suspect I had thyroid problems already last year as well as being in menopause.
Did you test your FSH? That can tell if your menopausal or not. Menopause and low thyroid symptoms are pretty much identical. Hypothyroidism can also kick you into early menopause, I just read that.
I'm just learning about HRT and bio identical hormones. I started using this plant based progesterone cream that helps balance out all our hormones. We women are usually estrogen dominant due to all the exogenous estrogens were getting exposed to and in menopause we get no progesterone at all.
Progesterone helps offset estrogen, without it it's kind of damaging to our bodies. Someone said that progesterone is like "the conductor at the symphony where estrogen and testosterone plays the instruments, without the conductor it's just no order or harmony"
I bought my cream at Sprouts Market, I recommend you to do some reading.
The synthetic versions that we take orally breaks down to different metabolites in our livers before it reaches the blood stream so we don't get any progesterone from it anyways. And since we most likely have too much estrogen in our bodies, adding to it with synthetic stuff is like adding fuel to the fire.
All I've read so far points towards that they're finding out more and more it's the low/no progesterone that makes us women miserable. Add some thyroid problems to the mix and life's just terrible.
Your thyroid test looks pretty good, maybe someone else here can tell you if some of them look suspect.
You vitamin D can go much higher, low levels can make us feel really bad. I think your ferritin can be better too, but it's not awfully bad. Mind you all of your tests are within the range but I've learned that the ranges are crazy broad and one-size-fit-all is just not true.
But since you don't feel well your doctor should test your FSH levels, that's how I found out I'm post menopausal (I'm only 44)
I also wake up several times at night, usually wide awake at 3 am. It's better now since I'm on the Levo, it kind of comes and goes. I have periods when I sleep better, then I'm waking up all the time again.
I hope you can get your health back and your life back on track.
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