t.s.h and t.4 levels

[lavender123]

my doctor put a perscription in the chemist for levothyroxine 25 micrograms as he sent me for a blood test. he said that that my levels were a ting bit under active but as i am always saying i am tired and weak, which he has put down to anxiety, he thought it would help , he said tht it was so ting that it wouldnt cause symtoms, i am totally confused. i took two tablets one a day an d felt worse, my anxiety was worse and dizzy. my t.s.h. levels were 6.8 my t.4 was 11.7 my vitamin b.12 ws 445. and my iton was 8.6. thankyou if anybody could explain. he said my vitamin b.12 were normal and my iron. i am going to a anxiety workshop this week.

[Pinktel]

TSH values (thyroid stimulating hormone) measure the levels in your blood of a particular hormone that is made by the pituitary gland in your brain to control your thyroid. The pituitary constantly samples the amount of t4 (actual thyroid hormone) in your blood and if it feels the thyroid isn't making enough it releases more TSH into your blood to stimulate the thyroid into cranking up it's production of T4.

In this country a normal TSH level can fall anywhere between 0.3 (not much TSH so pituitary clearly not feeling it needs to stimulate the thyroid much at all, if it did you may manufacture too much T4) and 5 (quite a lot of stimulating hormone so for some reason the pituitary is sensing it needs to shout at the thyroid to tell it to make more t4).

In addition to this there are your actual t4 levels which are part of this chemical relationship. Normal values are between 9 and 23. 9 meaning you are at the lower end, not as much thyroid hormone and obviously 23 being quite a lot.

In the states and many countries on the continent, they have decided that TSH values of above 3 are not normal and the pituitary is having to use too much stimulating hormone in that scenario.

My endo likes my TSH to be around 1.

Your TSH is 6.8 so is reasonably above normal levels, your pituitary is certainly feeling the need to ask very loudly that your thyroid gland make more t4. And what levels of t4 are you getting as a result of all this stimulating? 11.7, well I guess that is towards the lower end of the spectrum of normal, yet it is certainly still well within normal range.

So in summary your pituitary is having to speak very severely to your thyroid in order to get a normal amount of t4. Technically ou could argue you don't need levothyroxine, but 25mcg us almost a homeopathic dose! Why not just start taking 25 mcg daily then retest your levels in 6 to 8 weeks and see if your levels are a bit better.

I don't think taking the hormone in such small amounts for one day will have done much to help your levels yet, it took me months before I began to acheive corresponding improvements in my blood results. I currently take 100mcg daily.

---------- Post added at 16:30 ---------- Previous post was at 16:28 ----------

Your iron is low if it is 8, it should be over 12 I think!

[footballking]

TSH values (thyroid stimulating hormone) measure the levels in your blood of a particular hormone that is made by the pituitary gland in your brain to control your thyroid. The pituitary constantly samples the amount of t4 (actual thyroid hormone) in your blood and if it feels the thyroid isn't making enough it releases more TSH into your blood to stimulate the thyroid into cranking up it's production of T4.

In this country a normal TSH level can fall anywhere between 0.3 (not much TSH so pituitary clearly not feeling it needs to stimulate the thyroid much at all, if it did you may manufacture too much T4) and 5 (quite a lot of stimulating hormone so for some reason the pituitary is sensing it needs to shout at the thyroid to tell it to make more t4).

In addition to this there are your actual t4 levels which are part of this chemical relationship. Normal values are between 9 and 23. 9 meaning you are at the lower end, not as much thyroid hormone and obviously 23 being quite a lot.

In the states and many countries on the continent, they have decided that TSH values of above 3 are not normal and the pituitary is having to use too much stimulating hormone in that scenario.

My endo likes my TSH to be around 1.

Your TSH is 6.8 so is reasonably above normal levels, your pituitary is certainly feeling the need to ask very loudly that your thyroid gland make more t4. And what levels of t4 are you getting as a result of all this stimulating? 11.7, well I guess that is towards the lower end of the spectrum of normal, yet it is certainly still well within normal range.

So in summary your pituitary is having to speak very severely to your thyroid in order to get a normal amount of t4. Technically ou could argue you don't need levothyroxine, but 25mcg us almost a homeopathic dose! Why not just start taking 25 mcg daily then retest your levels in 6 to 8 weeks and see if your levels are a bit better.

I don't think taking the hormone in such small amounts for one day will have done much to help your levels yet, it took me months before I began to acheive corresponding improvements in my blood results. I currently take 100mcg daily.

---------- Post added at 16:30 ---------- Previous post was at 16:28 ----------

Your iron is low if it is 8, it should be over 12 I think!

My TSH was 0.8 which is on the lower side of normal. But a blood test from 2000 showed 0.8 also and then in 2005 1.2 and now in 2013 it's 0.8

My iron Level is on the upside of normal at 32. My T4 is also normal at around 14 or 15. Can't quite remember.

Is there anything you would suggest? I hate over thinking, but maybe this could be a cause?

Thanks a lot.

[Pinktel]

Footballtalking I would think your thyroid fine from those readings, if you were to dip below 0.3 then I think it would need investigating as basically your pituitary gland would not be asking your thyroid to make any t4 at all, and you would have to ask why at that point.

We all like to lay the blame for our neuroses at the feet of physical maladies if we can, but more often than not our bodies are not to blame I am afraid.

[footballking]

Footballtalking I would think your thyroid fine from those readings, if you were to dip below 0.3 then I think it would need investigating as basically your pituitary gland would not be asking your thyroid to make any t4 at all, and you would have to ask why at that point.

We all like to lay the blame for our neuroses at the feet of physical maladies if we can, but more often than not our bodies are not to blame I am afraid.

Thanks for the reply