gigimac
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 33353
posted
I had some labs done yesterday including thyroid test. The nurse called me and said everything looked good. I asked for the exact number and she said:
My Tsh number was 0.658 and normal was within the range 0.450 - 4.500.
Is it possible that my number is in the low normal range and i could still benefit from supplementation or medication?
Posts: 1535 | From Greensboro NC | Registered: Aug 2011
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Sammi
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 110
posted
More important tests are the Free T3 and the Free T4 (not T3 and T4). Were these tested?
It is also important to have the thyroid antibodies tested. If positive, it can indicate Hashimoto's Thyroiditis. Some people who have this, including me, have results in the normal range but treatment is warranted.
Regarding the Free T's, there is a lot of room to work within the normal range.
Posts: 4682 | Registered: Oct 2000
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WPinVA
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 33581
posted
Gigi - I haven't really paid close attention to my numbers, but I think the answer is yes. At my last appt my LLMD said that my thyroid #s are now within the normal range but that they are still not optimal and he increased my meds again (we've been slowly building). It made such a huge difference - I feel better than I've felt since getting Lyme.
Posts: 1737 | From Virginia | Registered: Aug 2011
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posted
the number being in the lowish range is actually the opposite..meaning you have alot..not a little of the thyroid stimulation hormone. so thats good. if it was closer to the 4.500 range then it would make you tired..so a big no..you don't need meds with that number.
Posts: 38 | From USA | Registered: Jun 2012
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posted
Dr.'s nowadays believe that that if TSH is in the low normal range, it means the thyroid is responding to that stimulation appropriately and nothing is wrong; I don't believe this is true. Years ago, before the current TSH test was developed, Dr.'s based their decision to treat for hypo or hyper thyroid conditions on the patients clinical presentation. That means that someone who was tired, depressed, cold, constipated, and overweight would get a treatment trial for hypo, as would someone who was wired, anxious, hot, thin, hypertensive and had voracious appetite would be evaluated for hyperthyroid. I believe the current approach is leaving many people feeling unwell alot of the time.
If clinical symptoms warrant, total T4, free T3, and reverse T3 should be looked at and sometimes Antibody testing should be done.
People with dental amalgams who've died and been autopsied have been found to have high concentrations of mercury in the pituitary.
People who take pure iodine have been shown to excrete more mercury in their urine and stool after starting it.
Thyroid balance, as well as adrenal balance are extremely complex processes...
Posts: 60 | From Maine | Registered: Jan 2012
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posted
Interestingly, hypothyroid people tend to have high cholesterol, and cholesterol is one of the things not mentioned in my previous post that Doc's used to use to help decide on thyroid treatment. The adrenal glands take cholesterol and modify it to make cortisol, which declines with adrenal fatigue or burnout. Thyroid-adrenal link or just coincidence?
Posts: 60 | From Maine | Registered: Jan 2012
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sixgoofykids
Honored Contributor (10K+ posts)
Member # 11141
posted
quote:Originally posted by gigimac: My Tsh number was 0.658 and normal was within the range 0.450 - 4.500.
Is it possible that my number is in the low normal range and i could still benefit from supplementation or medication?
As others have said, being in the low part with thyroid is really being in the high part. My LLMD wanted to get my number to about one. You're below that, so higher functioning than I was at 1.
As Dr. Luddite said, there are a lot of other things to consider.
-------------------- sixgoofykids.blogspot.com Posts: 13449 | From Ohio | Registered: Feb 2007
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sammy
Frequent Contributor (5K+ posts)
Member # 13952
posted
An easy way to understand TSH, this is the body's way of saying that it has enough thyroid hormone or not enough. Since your TSH is low, your body says that it has enough, it does not need more. If your TSH is high, your body is screaming for more thyroid hormone.
T3, T4, free T3, free T4 levels are easier to interpret. If they are low then usually you will feel hypo symptoms and you will probably need treatment. If they are high enough then you will feel hyper symptoms.
This is the extremely simplified way to remember and understand TSH and the T's. Hope your thyroid tests make more sense.
As others have said, adrenal fatigue, iron deficiency, and other problems can cause the same symptoms as hypothyroidism. You need to work with your doc to figure out what's causing the symptoms in your case.
Posts: 5237 | From here | Registered: Nov 2007
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gigimac
Frequent Contributor (1K+ posts)
Member # 33353
posted
I am getting a copy of the labs and maybe there will be more info. I am not sure if they tested for T3 and T4 or free T3.
I have mixed symptoms of hypo and hyper.
I am always hungry, I am overweight, always soo hot, yet occasionally get cold hands and feet,
I am not tired as in "oh, I wish I could just go to bed," more like fatigued and I just feel unwell and my body feels so heavy and weak I don't want to do anything.
I guess it could be the tbi or mold issues and not my thyroid.
Posts: 1535 | From Greensboro NC | Registered: Aug 2011
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posted
Your closer to hyper then hypo. So I wouldn't take any thyroid meds for TSH.
Kathy
-------------------- You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have. Posts: 807 | From South Dakota | Registered: Jul 2005
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posted
I second the fact you need a FT3 and FT4 and possibly antibodies. TSH alone won't tell the whole story.
With lyme you can have thyroid hormone resistance. This was one of my first symptoms. I was in the ER one time with a slightly elevated TSH of 3.6. My frees were high, doesn't make sense.
When my TSH was in the lower range, 0.7, my frees were at the lower limits of normal.
The values should be inverse, not in concert.
Posts: 478 | From Third Coast | Registered: Feb 2011
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posted
koo, when you are ill there is a phenomenon called Non-thyroid illness, and the numbers can look weird (and be weird) while it lasts.
Posts: 366 | From Europe | Registered: Nov 2008
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