Hello again Grace. Yes, Barb is right, it probably won't do much good to tell off the Endo. I absolutely agree with your plan to get your other doctor to handle your thyroid stuff.
Re your racing pulse. You should get your doctor to order an electrocardiogram or 24 hour Holter Monitor. It sounds an awful lot like what I have, which is atrial fibrillation. It can be caused by low thyroid (as well as high). So you should look back thru your diary. When did the racing heart start? Did you have it when you were on 100+15? Did it increase after you went on 2 grain NDT? If it seems to be related to the 2 grains, perhaps you could increase slightly or go back to 100+15.
Hi Grace,
These test results definitely do not indicate that you are hyper. However I'm sure that you have seen here that doctors often misinterpret a very low TSH as indicating hyper when the patient is taking Armour.
Two grains Armour (containing 76 mcg T4 and 18 mcg T3) is quite a low dose and in fact many people are distinctly hypothyroid on 2 grains.
If your doctor says that you should take less Armour, I suggest that you remind him that in 2018 you took 100 mcg T4 plus 15 mcg T3 and you were not hyper, so how the heck can you be hyper on 76 +18? If that does not change his mind, go on to tell him in no uncertain terms that you will not take less two grains. If he still does not relent, make a scene in his office that he won't soon forget.
good luck.
Both of your TSH levels are below the lab range of 0.27, so you're right, it's likely your doctor will assume you're hyper, since that seems to be what most doctors do.
You said your heart rate "revs up" - I assume you mean it beats more rapidly than normal; how fast does it actually become? Does it seem to be irregular and is it uncomfortable?
In the January tests, both your Free T4 and Free T3 are near the bottom of their ranges, so it's pretty obvious that you weren't hyper. Did you have any hypo symptoms then? In the April tests, your Free T4 is only at 26% of its range and your Free T3 is at 52% of range. It's recommended that Free T4 be maintained at/about mid-range and Free T3 be maintained in the upper half to upper third of its range. Your current levels still do not indicate over-medication in spite of the low TSH.
It's quite common for TSH to be low/suppressed when one is taking replacement thyroid hormones, particularly one with a T3 component such as desiccated hormones, so I'd resist having the dosage decreased if I were you.
You said you had hives and had to take Prednisone prior to "this" test - which test was that and did you/your doctor determine the cause of the hives?
How long have you been on the 2 grains of Armour?
Do you know the cause of your hypothyroidism - Hashimoto's, thyroid removal, etc?
Have you had Vitamin B-12, D and Ferritin tested? If so, could you please post those results? If not, can you get them tested? All three of these vitamins/minerals are necessary for proper metabolism of thyroid hormones.