# Please Help



## momrhino (Oct 5, 2016)

Hello all,

I know this has probably been asked a million times, but I really need help.

Four years ago I was diagnosed hypothyroid but not treated and in fact the Dr didn't notify me of the diagnosis.

Over the past four years things have gotten progressively worse with every symptom known to hypothyroid sufferers. I've been diagnosed with IBS, CFS, depression, and Chronic Anxiety. I've tried desperately hard to lose weight and I'm currently 45 lbs overweight. I've been fighting for months for someone to help and everything on labs is "normal", so no luck. I'm beginning to think it's all in my head so I need advice as to whether to keep pursuing this path or let it go.

Here are my lab results all the way back to 2012 -

2012

30 May

TSH 2.48 mcIU/ml (0.27-4.20)

T4 Free 13.8 pmol (10.0-23.0)

T3 Free 3.9 pmol (3.5-6.5)

Vitamin D3 - 19.0 ng/ml (20-70)

14 June

TSH 1.59 mcIU/ml (0.27-4.20)

T4 Free 16.6 pmol (10.0-23.0)

Free T3 3.5 pmol (3.5-6.5)

Vitamin D3 41.4 ng/ml (20-70) after supplementation

Diagnosed Hypothyroid - no treatment offered and I was not notified of diagnosis

31 May *2016*

TSH 2.63 mcIU/ml (0.36-3.72)

T4 Free 0.88 ng/dL (0.67-1.43)

Vitamin D 22.18 ng/mL (31-99)

Ferritin 19.8 ng/mL (24.4-281.8)

No T3 run in this series

22 June *2016*

TSH 2.02 uU/ms (0.27-4.20)\

FT4 1.1 ng/dl (0.9-1.7)

FT3 2.9 pg/ml (2.0-4.4)

Vitamin D3 53.78 ng/mL (31-99) after supplementation began

22 Sept *2016*

TSH 1.73 (0.4 - 4.9 mU/l)

FT4 0.9 (0.7 - 1.5 ng/dl)

FT3 2.7 (1.7 - 3.7 pg/ml)

Thyroglobulin (TAK) 3.0 (<4.1 IU/ml)

TPO <3 (<6 IU/ml)

TSH <0.3 (<1.8 IU/l)

Vitamin D 71.2 ng/ml

Ferritin 40 (5 - 200 ng/ml)

Also, in June 2016 it was discovered by ultrasound that I have two nodules on my thyroid. No one appears to be concerned by these.

Two sets of tests show no antibodies.

I've been tested for everything to include Lupus, Rheumatoid, Celiac. The only antibodies that show up in a higher reference range are for Epstein Barr Virus.

It seems to me my thyroid just isn't producing hormones anymore?

Any thoughts?

I'm an American currently living in Germany and using military medical facilities. I've been referred to two different German endocrinologists that say because I'm in the "normal" range for hormones I don't need treatment. They just tell me to eat less and exercise more.

I just don't know what to do now.

Thanks,

S


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

So you're not currently on any thyroid medication at all?


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## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

You definitely have labs to support being hypo but if the doctors do not agree you will have to keep looking until you find one willing to listen.

Consider going to a OBGYN - they tend to be more compassionate and often identify hypothyroidism.

You should ask for an ultrasound of your thyroid - how do you know you have nodules?


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## BurntMarshmallow (Feb 26, 2016)

Like you, I was hypothyroid for a few years and had normal TSH. It's definitely not all in your head! There are a few things that can depress TSH while leaving you hypothyroid.

Zinc deficiency - you need zinc to make TSH. Do you have thinning hair? White shadows on your fingernails? Acne? Lack of sense of smell or taste? Could be a zinc deficiency. Zinc deficiency also impairs the activation of B6 - which you need to get iodine into the thyroid. Low B6 will cause a functional iodine deficiency. Low B6 is also associated with higher incidence of breast and thyroid cancers. My mother-in-law was able to shrink her thyroid nodules with B6 and iodine. I was able to get rid of three breast lumps which I had for four years.

(Low B6 will also cause joint pain, muscle pain, depression and sleep problems)

Drinking tea - the tea plant (camilla sinensis) has a lot of fluoride in it, and will reduce thyroid function while keeping TSH low as well.

My TSH jumped from 2.9 to 9.5 in two months after I stopped drinking tea, and after a trip where I ate a lot of oysters which are VERY high in zinc. Try supplementing with 50mg zinc (and 3mg copper) every night, and then the next time you get your blood work done, you may see a jump in your TSH.

Vitamin A works closely with zinc and has been shown in studies to help those with "subclinical hypothyroidism", which is where you have symptoms but a TSH within range. In the study, they used 25,000 of retinal palmitate. Vitamin A is as important as vitamin D, but not as popular in the medical world right now. You can ask for your levels to be tested.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23378454

I see that your ferritin was low back in May Have you been started on any iron supplements? If yes, do you feel any better with the iron? Low iron can have similar symptoms of hypothyroidism: cold feet, fatigue, headache, muscle and joint pain. But iron supplements in large doses every day will interfere with zinc and copper absorption. And then you'll have low TSH because of zinc deficiency. Iron can also increase your requirements for other nutrients which are involved in the metabolism of iron, like B6, B2, B12, folate and vitamin A.

I was able to get better by treating my symptoms alone, with supplements. It hasn't been easy. You can probably tell I know way more than a normal person should about what vitamins do in the body. I think doctors should be the ones learning it so they can help us, but I haven't found any doctor who knew even a tiny bit of the most basic information.

This is a site that has helped me a lot to treat myself:

http://www.stewartnutrition.co.uk/nutritional_assesment/deficiency_symptoms_and_signs.html

Watch out for anti-nutrients. Things that block or use up vitamins. Alcohol and sugar being the two obvious ones. Tea and coffee have anti-thiamine compounds. Many medications deplete vitamins.

http://www.drwhitaker.com/drugs-that-make-a-nutritional-supplement-necessary/

Here's a website with more extensive information. Take a look at all the depletions from just using something like Flonase, for allergies: http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/depletion/antiinflammatory-medications-inhalant-systemic-and-topical-corticosteroids

In general, it's never good to only take a few vitamins in isolation. They all work together. A strong and complete multivitamin, plus a b-complex with each meal, a digestive enzyme, and lots of protein, are the best general advice.


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