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Extreme TSH level and trying to conceive
Hello Doctor,
My husband and I (he's 32 and I'm 25) have been trying to conceive our first child for 6 months now. On two occassions I have been almost certain that I've fallen pregnant, only to have an extremely heavy and painful period that month, leading me to suspect a chemical pregnancy.
At my insistence, my doctor ordered a blood test and also test my thyroid.
My results came back as follows:
TSH: greater than 100
T4 freeL 5.1
Free T3: 2.3
I have been overweight my whole life, but in the last three years have gained about 3 pounds despite not changing much in my life. I am currently at about 34 BMI. I have bad insomnia, so am often feeling a little tired. But my personality is really upbeat and energetic, so no one would ever characterize me as "fatigued". I've definitely learned to cope.
I have some hairs (about 20) that grow on my neck and chin. I can't tell the quality of my finger nails because I bite them....and my hair seems to be of decent quality. My skin sometimes gets a bit dry.
With respect to my period, it has always been as regular as a machine. Before i was on the pill it was very regular. Of course, while on the pill it was also regular. Now that I'm off the pill, it was regular for several months, but suddenly went a bit haywire...
Hypothyroidism runs in my family, although in very different way than what I'm experiencing. My mother had a tumor on her thyroid, so had half of her thyroid removed. She has been on thyroxine ever since and seems fine. The same thing happened to my great grandmother and my aunt as well. No one has just had poor thyroid funtion..it always seems to be the result of a tumor. The doctor has not checked me for tumors on my thyroid and I don't feel anything odd...but then again, I'm not a doctor!
My doctor started me on a dose of 0.1 of l-thyroxine (eltroxin?) and I've been taking it for 1 week now. I don't feel different at all. My doctor has asked me to do another blood test in 7 weeks.
I really feel that this approach is not agressive enough, especially since my husband and I are SO eager to start a family.
Is it possible that the blood test results were wrong? What do you think of these results and my symptoms?
My husband and I (he's 32 and I'm 25) have been trying to conceive our first child for 6 months now. On two occassions I have been almost certain that I've fallen pregnant, only to have an extremely heavy and painful period that month, leading me to suspect a chemical pregnancy.
At my insistence, my doctor ordered a blood test and also test my thyroid.
My results came back as follows:
TSH: greater than 100
T4 freeL 5.1
Free T3: 2.3
I have been overweight my whole life, but in the last three years have gained about 3 pounds despite not changing much in my life. I am currently at about 34 BMI. I have bad insomnia, so am often feeling a little tired. But my personality is really upbeat and energetic, so no one would ever characterize me as "fatigued". I've definitely learned to cope.
I have some hairs (about 20) that grow on my neck and chin. I can't tell the quality of my finger nails because I bite them....and my hair seems to be of decent quality. My skin sometimes gets a bit dry.
With respect to my period, it has always been as regular as a machine. Before i was on the pill it was very regular. Of course, while on the pill it was also regular. Now that I'm off the pill, it was regular for several months, but suddenly went a bit haywire...
Hypothyroidism runs in my family, although in very different way than what I'm experiencing. My mother had a tumor on her thyroid, so had half of her thyroid removed. She has been on thyroxine ever since and seems fine. The same thing happened to my great grandmother and my aunt as well. No one has just had poor thyroid funtion..it always seems to be the result of a tumor. The doctor has not checked me for tumors on my thyroid and I don't feel anything odd...but then again, I'm not a doctor!
My doctor started me on a dose of 0.1 of l-thyroxine (eltroxin?) and I've been taking it for 1 week now. I don't feel different at all. My doctor has asked me to do another blood test in 7 weeks.
I really feel that this approach is not agressive enough, especially since my husband and I are SO eager to start a family.
Is it possible that the blood test results were wrong? What do you think of these results and my symptoms?
Thanks for your response. Just a note...I don't have to worry about co-pay for a specialist, because I'm Canadian. Free healthcare, remember? So....that means that all I have to worry about is the referral taking 8-10 months. Great, isn't it???
Ok...I'm done with sarcasm now.
Seriously...I had an appointment wiht an OBGYN yesterday (who was less than helpful), and the appointment was exactly three days shy of 10 months since the referral was made. You could die waiting for a specialist in this country!
Ok...I'm done with sarcasm now.
Seriously...I had an appointment wiht an OBGYN yesterday (who was less than helpful), and the appointment was exactly three days shy of 10 months since the referral was made. You could die waiting for a specialist in this country!
My experience with my thyroid ( i have a goiter), if your levels are off that severe then you should suggest to your doctor that you want to see an endocrinologist, they specialize in these disorders! Did they do any type of ultrasound of your thyroid to see why your levels are off so much?
Alot of times you wont know that your levels are off, i didnt even know that i had a goiter until they ran my yearly levels and there was a papation of my thyroid! I had no symptoms except i was having alot of hair in my shower drain !! All of the bodys functions run like a clock if one is off then they all can't function properly, i work with a nurse that was trying to get pregnant for 8 yrs , her thyroid was through the roof, she had weight gain and she went to a fertility specialist after starting on her thyroid medications, he had her pregnant within the year, now she has 2 boys (there only 11mths apart so i guess the medication that the fertility doctor gave her worked), she still struggles with her TSH and its level, but i have seen TSH that where 178 and higher in my line of work!
Seek the advice of the endocrinologist, then see if they recommend a fertility specialist, it may be your thyroid causing a low egg count or it may be something simple!! Don't give up on it, I have 2 boys 15 and 17 and there worth the Co-Pay for the specialists!! Good luck!!
Alot of times you wont know that your levels are off, i didnt even know that i had a goiter until they ran my yearly levels and there was a papation of my thyroid! I had no symptoms except i was having alot of hair in my shower drain !! All of the bodys functions run like a clock if one is off then they all can't function properly, i work with a nurse that was trying to get pregnant for 8 yrs , her thyroid was through the roof, she had weight gain and she went to a fertility specialist after starting on her thyroid medications, he had her pregnant within the year, now she has 2 boys (there only 11mths apart so i guess the medication that the fertility doctor gave her worked), she still struggles with her TSH and its level, but i have seen TSH that where 178 and higher in my line of work!
Seek the advice of the endocrinologist, then see if they recommend a fertility specialist, it may be your thyroid causing a low egg count or it may be something simple!! Don't give up on it, I have 2 boys 15 and 17 and there worth the Co-Pay for the specialists!! Good luck!!
BTW you would know if you felt like **** - because most of us do on a TSH just higher than 2.5!!! We would have insomnia, headaches, heel pain, hair loss, vision problems, weight problems, be very irritable, be fatigued, have brain fog. You WOULD know. So something else must be going on and so you should be referred immediately.
...Julia
...Julia
Your really need to have that test repeated quickly and a 2nd opinion sought. That is a HUGE tsh unless your lab ranges are very different to the norm - do u know the ranges??. Your FT3 is very low and I'm guessing it's below the range. Why don't you get a copy of your results (hypoT people have learned to keep copies - its your right too) and check things out for yourself. I wouldn't wait 7 weeks and I'd be asking to be sent straight to an endocrinologist. Act now. Don't wait.
...Julia
...Julia
Thanks so much for answering my post.
The thing that puzzles me, though, is that I don't feel that crappy! I mean, this comes as a shock to me. Maybe I'm just so used to feeling badly that I don't notice it....but honestly, i feel normal!
The thing that puzzles me, though, is that I don't feel that crappy! I mean, this comes as a shock to me. Maybe I'm just so used to feeling badly that I don't notice it....but honestly, i feel normal!
I suspect that if your TSH was over 100, your going to be feeling crappy for a while. That was my experience. The doctor warned me to. I actually experienced worsening symptoms until I finally got "level". I'm not sure what that was about or if it's a normal reaction. My TSH at initial diagnosis was 144. I started feeling good after 3-4 months on the medication.
As I understand it, they have to start you on a low dosage and build you up to a dosage that will get you level. This stuff affects all your bodies systems including your hormones. I don't know anything about thyroxine, I take Lavoxyl and function best at 175 mcg. Everyone's different though.
As I understand it, they have to start you on a low dosage and build you up to a dosage that will get you level. This stuff affects all your bodies systems including your hormones. I don't know anything about thyroxine, I take Lavoxyl and function best at 175 mcg. Everyone's different though.
Sorry...there were a few typos in my post, I just realized now.
It should have said that in the past three years, I've gained about 30 pounds, not three!
It should have said that in the past three years, I've gained about 30 pounds, not three!
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