Thyroid Labs - Low TSH and side effects?

[Tom82]

Hey Guys,

I recently had my Thyroid tested off of the back of discussions in this thread: How to tell if E2 is getting high without access to sensitive test?

Basically I started TRT four weeks ago so I know I'm still in the phase of letting everything stabilise. I have however been on Armour Thyroid now since the June. As discussed in the thread above I still have the brain fog thing going on and it was mentioned that this could also be a Thyroid symptom. So I'm hoping to get a bit feedback on my test.

Previous tests were only carried out for TSH and T4. These were:

First Test Pre Starting any treatment (11/05)
TSH - 1.49mIU/L
Free T4 - 17 pmol/L
Free T3 not tested

second test - 31/08
TSH - 0.5mIU/L
Free T4 - 15.8 pmol/L
Free T3 not tested

3rd Test above
TSH - 0.245mIU/L
Free T4 - 13.9 pmol/L
Free T3 - 6.53 pmol/L (4.25pg/mL)

Questions:
1. Is it normal to have low TSH when on thyroid medication?
2. The lab report stated that the low TSH indicated that I may be overmedicated. Thoughts?
3. Would you attribute the brain fog thing to thyroid based on the above?

Cheers
T

 

[Vince]

What is your exact thyroid protocol. When your on thyroid meds you can throw out your TSH number. Did you do Labs before or after taking your thyroid meds. Have you ever had your reverse T3 check.

 

[Tom82]

What is your exact thyroid protocol. When your on thyroid meds you can throw out your TSH number. Did you do Labs before or after taking your thyroid meds. Have you ever had your reverse T3 check.

Hi Vince,

Thyroid protocol is 75mg Armour Thyroid first thing in the morning and at least an hour before food.

Blood was taken in the morning prior to me taking any medication.

No, haven't had reverse T3 checked.

 

[Vince]

Because your free thyroxine is somewhat low, you could try some Synthroid. I definitely would get my reverse T3 checked just in case it's high.

 

[OMI100]

NDT (Armour) has both T4 and T3.
When one is on NDT your TSH will be suppressed as the pituitary sees the Armour and thinks your thyroid is putting out too much thyroid hormone and tells the thyroid to pull back.
Low TSH is telling the thyroid to stop putting out thyroid hormone.
High TSH is telling your thyroid that it is not putting out enough so it needs to ramp up.
I am on NDT and my THS is near zero....
Here are some reference sites that are a wealth of information on the thyroid.:
1. http://www.tiredthyroid.com/
My view one of the top 3 sites.
Easy to read and navigate.
Barbara has a book out. Get it if you want to learn more. Easy to read.
The book is on par with ANY Doctoral Thesis on the Thyroid.....
2. Blog - Dr. Westin Childs | Thyroid & Health Supplements That Work
Dr. Childs has a ton of articles that cover all things thyroid.
Another of the top 3 sites...
He also has a YouTube site with a lot of the blog articles covered in short YouTube segments.
Dr. Westin Childs
I highly recommend his "Thyroid Beginner Series & Lessons" as a starting point in learning more about the thyroid.
3. The Old standby here:
Stop the Thyroid Madness™ - Hypothyroidism and thyroid mistreatment
BTW when looking at thyroid labs you also need the ranges and where you sit within the ranges.
Most DRs treat to "RANGES" and NOT symptoms. That means if you are at the top or bottom of RANGE they say you are O.K.
Majority of people feel best at mid range to around 75% of range. The first and third link above have some great articles on "TSH" that explain thjis.....

 

[1Draw]

Hey Guys,

I recently had my Thyroid tested off of the back of discussions in this thread: How to tell if E2 is getting high without access to sensitive test?

Basically I started TRT four weeks ago so I know I'm still in the phase of letting everything stabilise. I have however been on Armour Thyroid now since the June. As discussed in the thread above I still have the brain fog thing going on and it was mentioned that this could also be a Thyroid symptom. So I'm hoping to get a bit feedback on my test.

View attachment 5954
Previous tests were only carried out for TSH and T4. These were:

First Test Pre Starting any treatment (11/05)
TSH - 1.49mIU/L
Free T4 - 17 pmol/L
Free T3 not tested

second test - 31/08
TSH - 0.5mIU/L
Free T4 - 15.8 pmol/L
Free T3 not tested

3rd Test above
TSH - 0.245mIU/L
Free T4 - 13.9 pmol/L
Free T3 - 6.53 pmol/L (4.25pg/mL)

Questions:
1. Is it normal to have low TSH when on thyroid medication?
2. The lab report stated that the low TSH indicated that I may be overmedicated. Thoughts?
3. Would you attribute the brain fog thing to thyroid based on the above?

Cheers
T

I would follow Vince's advice and get your Reverse T3 tested. Brain fog is a symptom of high RT3 along with fatigue, low libido, feeling cold, unable to lose weight, etc.....

 

[Vince Carter]

Reverse T3 yes, and I would add in Iron and Ferritin. I tend to only look at Free T3 as thats the active hormone, T4 you can make the assumption that even when reported as "low" that it is fine because it's reflected in the FT3 value. Obvious T4 production and conversion so I discount the T4 when it looks low as not being a problem, per se. But if the FT3 is pooling then you can narrow that down.