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Inquiring minds are wondering . . .

Posted , 8 users are following.

JamieSHamy
JamieSHamy

In a recent post, I shared a little bit about myself.  I'm a 51 year old wife, mother of 5 grown children (yippee!), personal trainer, USA Swim Coach, and an athlete at heart.  I love competing, especially in the pool at swim meets.  But with that said, it hasn't always been that way.  Sure, I was a lean, athletic girl until I got married and began having kids.  I took great care of my husband and kids, but not myself.  My weight ballooned to over 260 lbs.  I was miserable, but wasn't motivated to change.  It wasn't until our oldest announced that she was getting married that a lightbulb went off that NOW was the time.  I'll tell you one better . . . I have never heard the audible voice of God, but if I had it sounded like His voice that day.  "Now is the time to make some lasting changes to your life.  You never know when the opportunity will come around again."  Friends, I took this seriously.  Long story short, it took 4 years of learning to eat right and regular exercise, but I lost 115lbs.  The sad side of this story is the unexplainable weight gain (along with other thyroidish type symptoms) that I have experienced in the last 24 months.  I have gained around 25lbs and YES, I'm terrified and depressed.  Doctor after doctor treats me like I'm crazy.  I have been offered a sleep study, anti-depressants, and the latest . . . a prescription for weight loss pills with a note asking me if THESE will make me happy.  So, what is my inquiring mind wondering about??  Can losing significant amounts of weight like I did OR menopause cause or trigger our thyroid to not operate properly?  Maybe can cause an interference with a T4 to T3 conversion?  First, my TSH is 2.2, but my T4 is high normal and my T3 is low normal.  I won't mention how horrible I feel, but it's been a gradual horribleness.  I was giving some thought to my weight loss journey and my hubby reminded me of how strange it was.  My body would just hold on to weight big time, and then "all of a sudden", I would drop 10lbs.  It was weird and I remember the trainer who was working with me was always baffled.  So, what does everyone think??  Can changes in our bodies produce crazy issues with our thyroid?  Could I be a vicitim of this?  

Jamie

1 like, 21 replies

21 Replies

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  • mags1909
    mags1909 JamieSHamy

    Posted

    Hi Jamie, It is now 3 years since I had the Radioactive Iodine Treatment, since then I was on Levothyroxine, but since I responded badly to this medication my GP ( I live in the UK) has taken me off all my thyroid medication and insists my blood levels are within the "Normal Rage", I am at the low end of normal, but still within the normal range. Since having the Radioactive treatment I have found it impossible to lose weight and when I was on Levothyroxine my weight ballooned. I have now gained over 3 stones. Every attempt i have made to lose weight has failed, I have been back to my GP as I feel despite the blood results that I am underactive and guess what I am now waiting to go for a sleep test and have just been prescribed a mild anti depressant despite the fact I do not feel depressed or stressed at all. I have not been offerred weight loss pills, but I don't think they will do that here. The most frustrating part of this all is not being heard or listened too. I know my own body, I know that somehow my metabolism is broke, living everyday with the tiredness, brain fog etc etc tells me it is broke, but yet again I am met with doctor's who will not accept what I am saying and I am treated like it is me that is the problem. I do hope you find a solution and soon.
  • melody93815
    melody93815 JamieSHamy

    Posted

    Sorry to hear your not well. When my first Thyrids problems started It took a couple of years to show my  Ths levels were high.. In that time i refered myself to a pain specialist who did bloods and nothink like you came up. One bit of advice he gave me was to try alternative medicine he said he didnt no how they worked but they worked for him. I did Reflexology and Homieopathy  which didnt cure but really helped my conditionx Anything worth a try when you feel badx
  • sweetmelissa
    sweetmelissa JamieSHamy

    Posted

    I see that you only had your Tpoa tested?  You should also have your Tgab tested.  They are other antibodies that your makes with Hashimoto's.  For myself..  my Tpoa was normal and my Tgab was very high, which means Hashinoto's.  So, you can have one normal while the other can be positive.  So, yes, have your Tgab levels checked also.
  • JamieSHamy
    JamieSHamy

    Posted

    First - A big thank-you for  everyone's reply.  I read everything and moved in a direction.  I decided to pay out-of-pocket myself and order some blood work.  I know there were lots of tests recommended, but I chose a few that I felt would be helpful working within my finances.  It was cheaper for me to order a comprehnesive panel.  Here are the results.  Drum role . . . . . . 

    TSH - 2.750

    Total T4 - 9.6

    Free T3 - 2.6

    Free T4 - 1.3

    Reverse T3 - 21.8

    I've spent a better part of my day reading and analyzing these results, especially in relation to how I feel AND the fact that I am dealing with rheumatoid arthritis.  I think the information that I read about the Reverse T3 brings concern to me as well as some possible answers as to what might be going on.  My understanding is that Reverse T3 blocks the action of T3.  This happens due to stress/inflammation.  Any autoimmune disease qualifies as a chronic stressor.  I started taking Thiroyd (1 grain) 3 days ago to see if I felt any different.  Actually, I do feel less fatigued and less brain fogged for a while and then it returns.  Does anyone have any thoughts?  My experience going to "regular docs" has proven to be very frustrating.  They base EVERYTHING on my TSH, but do not care about anything else.  I decided that I needed to do some of my own investigative work as this is MY health and well being.  I have read so much and am a firm believer that there is more to the thyroid story than just a TSH test.  Seeing a good doc would be optimal, but I haven't found that person yet.

    • shellyC19
      shellyC19 JamieSHamy

      Posted

      Hello Jamie:

      My name is Shelly and I am a nurse in the USA.  I have Hashimoto's thyroid disease since 1987.

      Your blood work looks good and on a scale I have RT3 should be 9.1 to 24.1 and you are at 21.8.  You may want to give us the scale  *reference ranges" used by the lab you used.  FT3 should be 2.3 to 4.2 and yours is 2.6 so that is good. TSH is also good at 2.7 with normal being 0.45 to 4.50.  T4 should be 9 to 19 and yours is 9.6 so you are okay on paper, and you seem to be feeling better from what you say.

      Autoimmune diseases do make things harder with the synthetics and I am glad you are on the naturals now.  It is better for most of us with autoimmune problems.  So keep it going.

      Regards,

      Shelly

    • cindy30745
      cindy30745 JamieSHamy

      Posted

      Hi Jamie

      Sorry to hear that you are having a tough time.

      I was wondering if anyone had advised having a food intolerance tst done. I read on here that gluten can attack the thyroid gland causing an auto immune condition.

      I take it that you are in the UK.

      ​It would be interesting to see if you do have any antibodies present. I am surprised that whoever did your bloods did not suggest doing antibody testing.

       

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