Friday, May 19, 2017

Pesky thyroid

Last week I'd gone for a so called "check up 35" at my doctor's practice. It's basically a general health check up covered by your insurance here once you turn 35. Anyway I asked to get my thyroid tested during it. When I phoned to ask the results a few days later they said everything was fine. I then asked what exactly my TSH value was. The nurse answered "3.11". I think my reaction was just shock! That is not a good value when you are trying to get pregnant. You really want between 1 and 2, under 2.5 at any rate.

Seriously, what the hell is going on with my thyroid? Last year when I got the extensive blood panel done it had been 2.3 so then I was put on meds for six weeks. It went up a little during IVF last year, which I read is quite common due to the IVF hormones so then my does of Levothyroxine was then increased (from 50mg to 75mg). By the end of February the packet of meds ran out and Dr. Peppy at the fertility clinic gave me another blood test after our appointment early march. She didn't tell me the exact numbers just that my thyroid was perfect so at that stage I went off the meds. Or rather, I wasn't prescribed anymore. I thought my thyroid was fixed but it seems like it has been gradually increasing since then!

I emailed Dr. Peppy about the latest blood test results. I think she may be regretting giving me her email now, haha! Actually she's been very good at emailing me back and really helpful which is nice. I've been trying to not abuse that fact and keeping questions and emails to a minimum.

She said that I should take the thyroid meds again and she would test my blood at my next appointment. So during my lunch break ch break I went to the pharmacy to buy Levothyroxine only to be told that I need a prescription. As soon as I could I emailed the doctor again asking if she could possibly scan the prescription and send it by email. She hadn't replied by the end of that day so then the following morning before work I spoke to the receptionist at the clinic to explain the dilemma. We came up with a solution. I would be sent the prescription by post. In the meantime, she would fax it to my local pharmacy so I could start taking the meds sooner. Perfect! However when I got to the pharmacy no fax had arrived. They tried phoning the clinic several times but couldn't get through. I waited around for awhile then eventually went to work.

Luckily when I went back on my lunch break I was able to collect the thyroid meds so I'm back on 75mg of thyroxine again the past few days. Let's hope my thyroid will be back within the normal range before I get to the IVF transfer stage.

15 comments:

  1. I'm praying that your thyroid is healed IJN and the tests will show values within the reference ranges. BTW - I love that image. I'm going to think about that meme when I take my two thyroid pills in the morning. Ha ha.

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    1. Yeah I thought that picture was so funny! Thanks, I'm hoping that the next blood test will show a big improvement.

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  2. Can this sort of thing cause a delay in your transfer? One more surprise, glad you caught it!

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    1. It was really stressing me out but I spoke to the doctor about it again and she is happy for me to still go ahead. I'll have another blood test and then I guess if the value were really bad they would probably increase the dosage, or maybe delaying a transfer. Just gotta hope the meds are taking effect now

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  3. I have the same problem with my thyroid hormones. I was taking the pills for a year and recently increased the dose due to increased need for the baby. I would recommend you insist on staying on the pill if your doctor tell you to stop next time. Hopefully it will all work out for you

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    1. Yea I'm a bit annoyed with myself that I went off the meds for a few months. I think my fertility doc might have assumed I was still taking it but since she hadn't given me a prescription I thought it was fine. Some sort of mix up anyway! Sorry you are having thyroid trouble too.

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  4. Argh sorry for this spanner. Got everything crossed it sorts itself out in time. XXX

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  5. Aargh, not what you need. Fingers crossed everything sorts itself out.

    My TSH value was 2.75, so very slightly too high. But the doctor doesn't want to do anything yet, other than another blood test to see whether the value has changed.

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    1. Well I'm glad your doctor is monitoring it though I think it sounds like it would make sense for you to take thyroxine. I think it has quite recently been established that the TSH should be between 1 and 2 ideally for pregnancy (though as close to 1 as possible). I know initially my GP thought my value was fine but when I went back a month later she had changed her mind! Made me think she must have done some more research.

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    2. This was the fertility doctor. He did say he would like it to be lower, but I think he wants to make sure it wasn't a one off before prescribing anything. My prolactin was high as well so he also wants to check that again.

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    3. ah I see. Well sounds like he is on top of it then, which is good! Really hoping you will find an easy fix and not end up having to go down the IVF route

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    4. High prolactin can be a symptom of a low-functioning thyroid.

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