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[Wrensong]

Oh, you'll want to get that ferritin up.  I hope you absorb well from the supplements.  Mine was considerably lower than that when tested recently & I think it's definitely something to bear in mind with our low T3, coldness & fatigue issues.
Wx

[SarahT]

Hi,

I am trying to work out if my symptoms do indeed seem to be linked and worsened with my hypothyroidism.

In brief, I am 56, still peri and if  didn't have mirena coil I would still be getting periods every 4 weeks. (Still have pms\light bleed anyway)
Am on an ever increasing estradot  patch, now at 100 in an attempt to suppress my natural cycle to improve cyclical moods\pmdd symptoms.

I was diagnosed as hypoyhyroid about 30 years ago. Last December I had bloods taken and thyroxine was increased to 125.

Whilst  at I am seeing some improvements in moods, using  topical treatment for VA,, brain fog still ongoing etc , my real worry is I am struggling with worsening symptoms of fatigue, joint pain and my hands and feet are nearly always very cold. I am struggling to do much more than function some days.

It is hard to work out if these are worse due to hormones, or thyroid, or both as they seem so similar in many symptoms. Also have been diagnosed with arthritis in both hips, and seems peri can worsen this pain too. Feel attacked at all angles.

Looking at previous posts, I seem similar in that I also have a very low .pulse rate, and have been prescribed iron much of my adult life and my levels are always on the low side even on two tablets a day, been anaemic several times in the past.

I have a phone appt with my dr next week as I want to discuss the extreme fatigue and joint pain (both much worse on week prior to and on period week)

I want to be as concise as I can when I speak with her, but am getting muddled as to how to ask things. With everything going on with symptoms I don't want to sound like a hypochondriac.

Can anyone suggest what questions I should ask and what blood tests I should request. I admit to just accepting in the last that I  have an underactive  thyroid, and previous posts on this thread with the various levels and talk about antibodies has confused me!

My g.p is good and interested in meno but I want to 'present my case' as clearly as I can. I believe vitamin d is also a good check to have.

Hope someone can suggest a few pointers

Many thanks

[Keep On Swimming]

Hi SarahT,

I can't advise on the HRT because I haven't much of a clue how it all works yet.

I just wondered if you need to increase your thryoid dose? Do you know where you need to be in the range to feel well? I think you call it the "sweet spot" in the UK. We say "setpoint" over here in France!

For example, when my TSH is over 3, I am horribly hypothyroid. I need to be around or under 2 to be on the "right" dose. A friend is hypo when her TSH goes past 1.5.

So, for your GP appointment, ask for TSH/T4/T3 obviously but really, if you tell her all your symptoms, she should be the one making the list of blood work to do. It's terrible how we all seem to be scratching our heads, wondering what we should do/take to feel better when NONE of us have medical degrees and it's actually not our jobs to be finding solutions to our symptoms!

[She says, after a year of feeling horribly unwell and spending most of that year wondering what ails her and how to fix her symptoms...!]

xxx

[SarahT]

Yes but sometimes it appears some ladies g.p's week pretty clueless on Peri\meno and ask their patients for help!! As if we should indeed diagnose ourselve s.  Baby girls should be handed a guide to hormones and the crap it can lead to at birth so we would  have a teeny tiny idea of what to expect!

Luckily mine is a good one, she has set up team video talks with women to discuss hormonal concerns and treatments and also patiently waited 5 mins for me to stop crying in my last appt with her....

Tbh, so have no idea about ranges at all, even the T3 and TSH has be flummoxed. I never thought to ever ask about the actual results, just always accepted it my dose needed upping.  But you are right. I need to concentrate on telling her the actual symptoms and letting her work out bloods first, then after results are in, working through what needs to be done to try to relive them.

I guess I was trying to work out the peri hormone and thyroid connection and got myself a bit overwhelmed.

Keep it simple Sarah. St ick to the point, explain symptoms,and my concerns about thyroid levels mixing with the hrt and go from there.

Thanks chere, you have helped settle my panic. I am the patient not the  doctor after all.

And looking at your last line.... you have an appt soon yourself, but here we all are trying to fix ourselves. It's natural to look for info, but in my case here I got in too deep too soon.

Take care, bon soir. X