# Frustrated with doctor



## mrsmcw918 (May 12, 2018)

Hi!

I'll try to keep this as short as possible. I am going to post my lab results and hopefully get some advice or suggestions.

In the past 3 1/2 years, I have gained about 40lbs. About 80% of this time, I have been actively trying to lose weight. Last year, a few friends suggested that I get my thyroid checked. I went to a new doctor, who was recommended by a friend(family dr). She seemed great at the first appointment. When she mentioned setting up routine blood tests, I asked about the thyroid tests. I started bawling and told her about all of my symptoms and about the weight issues. I listed all of the diets/changes that I had made and that nothing was working for me. She said it definitely sounded like thyroid. She ordered tests. Then she felt my thyroid and felt a nodule. She ordered an ultrasound. I walked out of there feeling so hopeful.

Within a week I had the blood tests and ultrasound done. A week after that I get a call from her assistant. It went something like this:

"The nodule is benign, but she wants you to get another ultrasound in 6 months. Your thyroid tests all came back normal, but she wants you to get them again in 3 months. She is concerned about the antibodies, and wants to keep an eye on that. She also said your cholesterol is a little high and she would like for you to lose a few pounds". That last part felt like a kick in the stomach.

I did the blood tests again(but not the ultrasound) and they came back normal again. I noticed though that the antibodies weren't tested again. Not sure why. I only found this out last month when I realized that my test results were on the patient portal, this was the first time I saw the results.

So, after a year of trying to lose weight again, I gained an additional 12lbs or so. I decided to send the doctor a message through the patient portal before making an appointment and explained the additional weight gain, and asked if there was anything else that she could check. Her response was "Sorry, but I can't do anything else for you. Women your age generally start gaining weight and have trouble losing. I suggest you visit with one of our dieticians, as you're probably not eating as healthy as you think you are". Another kick in the stomach.

I had been a vegetarian for about 10 years or so and ate a lot of soy products. I decided to stop eating all soy and started eating chicken again. I also started taking Selenium, Iodine and vitamin D. I feel slightly better, but the weight is still not coming off. I eat pretty clean(except for the occasional piece of chocolate or handful of Goldfish crackers) and I exercise almost daily. I'm so frustrated. Thanks if you got this far. lol Here are my lab results:

May 2017

TSH 2.600uIU/mL 0.450-4.500uIU/mL

T3 124 ng/dL 71-180ng/dL

T4,Free (direct) 1.20 ng/dL 0.82-1.77 ng/dL

THYROGLOBULIN ANTIBODY 29.7 IU/mL 0.0-0.9 IU/mL

TPO Ab 33 IU/mL 0-34 IU/mL

August 2017

TSH 1.970 uIU/mL 0.450-4.500 uIU/mL

T3 118 ng/dL 71-180 ng/dL

T4, Free 1.16 ng/dL 0.82-1.77 ng/dL

I feel like I'm going crazy. I know that something is not right with my body. And I find it frustrating that the doctor was sure it was thyroid related...concerned about the nodule...concerned about the antibodies...then results come back and it's "no, you're normal, just old".

Any help or advice is much appreciated. Thanks!


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## blackngold (Oct 28, 2011)

do you have any recent labs to share ?


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## Pamzilla13 (Sep 9, 2013)

It looks like your May 2017 test THYROGLOBULIN ANTIBODY test shows an autoimmune issue such as Hashimoto's....

Your TPO Ab test result is at the very top of the range which is another indicator of an autoimmune issue. (I am not well versed in Hashi's. Someone else will chime in to further explain..?)

This may explain why you are not feeling like yourself.

Do you have any recent labs?

Find another doctor for a second opinion...That's what I would do.

Talk to your local pharmacist and ask what doctors are prescribing thyroid hormone...or try a gynecologist...or a doctor that deals with women's health and bio-identical hormones...your pharmacist should be able to tell you.


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## mrsmcw918 (May 12, 2018)

Thank you for your replies. I do not have any other labs because I kind of gave up when the doctor said that there was nothing else that she could do for me.

A friend had suggested asking my gynecologist. Should I just call them and make an appointment to discuss my issues and see what they think? (Sorry that sounds dumb, but I really don't go to the doctor very often) Before I went to see my current doctor, I had asked my gyno at my yearly appointment. My appointment was with the nurse practitioner. She didn't run any tests or anything and prescribed a bio-identical hormone. It was expensive, and not covered by insurance, and I had to go to a special pharmacy to get it. I used it for a few months and gained more weight, so I stopped using it. That was around the time that I first started to hear/read about thyroid issues.


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

Ugh, I hate medical professionals who prescribe anything without first testing to see if you even need it.

You can definitely ask your gyno if he/she will run thyroid tests. You were darn hypo at your last labs and I'm guessing it hasn't gotten any better. I would ask if the gyno would run TSH, Free T3 and Free T4; also ask to have your antibodies run again, if they're open to it.


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## mrsmcw918 (May 12, 2018)

I just realized that when I copied these results that I did it backwards. So, the numbers went up, not down. And the antibodies were only done in May. ughhh...lol


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