Thyroid Experience out there?

[DVCTiff]

Calling all "experts" .... I've been seriously watching my carbs/calories since last Spring, exercising enough, and the scale will not budge. In the past, when I've really been committed, it has always paid off. Long story short, my blood work shows my thyroid function is normal EXCEPT that my thyroid antibodies are very high. I have all the symptoms of hypothyroidism except for the irregular periods (and I have ovarian cysts, but not diagnosed with POCD b/c my bloodwork was normal, go figure). I'm doing a detox program through my chiropractor's office right now so I've been eating super healthy and taking supplements. Not that it matters, but everyone's losing weight and I'm just treading water (I know it's health that's important, not weight loss, but I'm afraid I'm not going to be able to stay motivated if the scale stays in the same place forever).

Any advice, experience with doctors, etc.?
Thanks in advance!

 

[chimera]

Tiff,

I'm an endocrinology physician assistant. I've taken care of a lot of thyroid patients in the past couple years

Thyroid function in the normal range can be hard to define. Do you know what your TSH number is? Different doctors will treat at different levels.

Are there thyroid problems in your family? That's the likely reason that your antibodies are high. They may not mean that there's a problem with your thyroid NOW...but it could develop in the future and should be watched yearly.

Polycystic ovary disease doesn't always show up as abnormal blood work.

Both of these conditions have a lot of nonspecific symptoms that can be difficult to pin down. The symptoms you're having may have nothing or everything to do with your thyroid.

We send all of our weight management patients to a dietitian, no matter how well they're eating. Sometimes there's subtle things that you might miss 'cause you're living it. If you haven't tried keeping a food diary or seeing a dietitian, I'd recommend it.

If you have any other questions, I'd be happy to help!

 

[Christine]

I don't know if I'm an expert, but I have had thyroid cancer, had my thyroid removed, and now deal with medication issues. At the time my thyroid gland was removed, I also had Hashimoto's thyroiditis but I was asymptomatic and didn't know it until the gland was removed. When you mention antibodies, I assume that these antibodies indicate that you have this condition?

As for weight problems with thyroid...that is a tough one. I have spent weeks were my TSH is around 100-150 which is EXTREMELY hypothyroid. During that time, I have only ever put on about 6 lbs.

I have read several reports that hypothyroidism or thyroid "troubles" can really only account for a 10 lb weight gain. Most overweight people who are treated with thyroid meds only drop about 10 lbs if they do nothing else at all.

So, I think I would agree with Chimera that you should probably first look at what you are eating. I know you think you are doing well or all the right things (I know I thought I was), but often times we aren't. Journaling your food into www.fitday.com is the perfect way to see what your caloric intake is. I thought I was eating right but when I logged it in I was at about 2,300 calories. And that was after I started my "diet". I've since fixed it and am now at about 1600 calories and the weight is coming off. It may not be enough to just get your carb to protein ratios right. Calories still count.

I think if you really track your food and are honest about it and can still prove that you are intaking few calories, you can then probably get an M.D. to give you some thyroid meds. They don't just like to arbitrarily treat the thyroid because excessive thyroid hormone causes its own problems. Also, according to my endo, most people who have too much thyroid hormone have a ravenous appetite and end up gaining weight. I know when they've increased my dosage of meds, I thought I was going nuts and was eating everything in sight.

Additionally, my best friend was kind of in the same boat as you. She is 5'8" and weighed about 180 lbs. She would exercise every day and thought she was eating well. Couldn't shed a pound. She found a new GYN that believed that thyroid troubles ailed the world. She tested my friend and her TSH came back as a 2.0--which is really ideal. She put my friend on thyroid meds. She did not lose weight, but she was very cranky.

Edited to add: My friend stopped the meds because we all told her how mean she was. She then started weight watchers and went on to lose 35 lbs which she has maintained for a year.

 

[DVCTiff]

Thanks for the good advice.

Chim, my TSH is .70, fwiw. I just got so freaked out about the anti-body count. It really scared me that that is going on.

Regarding my diet, I've been having problems losing even when I've been on controlled calorie plans, i.e. Nutrisystem, where I know the calorie count. Now maybe that's not enough calories, though it's worked in the past. I only have 10 pounds to lose but I've been working on it seriously with one plan or another since last Spring, like I said, with no results. I'm going to ramp up the exercise and see if that does the trick.

Christine, from what I've read, it would sound like I have Hashimoto's, and I will just continue to monitor it. Good luck with your recovery. You must have gone through a very scary time.

In the meantime, I'm going to finish up the detox with my chiro and see what she says about boosting my thyroid naturally. I really appreciate you taking the time to share your info with me.

Tiffany

 

[Christine]

A TSH of .7 is very good. On the low end of normal, meaning you are closer to being HYPER rather than HYPO. But if you have Hashimoto's your TSH can vary.