[GoBecGo]

So, i mentioned over in the other thread about my thyroid...?<br><br>
Basically i have hashi's and take thyroxine. While pregnant i take extra meds to keep my bloods normal since hypothyroidism isn't good for the pregnancy or the baby.<br><br>
But because pregnancy suppresses the immune system my hashi's tends to go into remission and here i am with 3 weeks to my due date and feeling jittery, anxious, having weird episodes of panic-attack like symptoms (VERY unlike me and with no emotional cause) and it seems clear to me, i'm over-medicated. Other signs include the baby's heartrate being very high when it was wriggling at my MW appointment.<br><br>
So i called my GP (who is watching my levels, so long as everything stays normal) and told him, and he approved me dropping my meds a little, which i did, yesterday. I was already scheduled for a blood test yesterday so i went in for it - TFT's, TSH and a full blood count.<br><br>
He called me back this evening, my TSH is "normal" and he'd rather keep me on the higher dose of thyroxine - normal is apparently 0.2 now!? Maybe that's a pregnancy thing, because when i was dx the lab ranges for normal was 0.5-5.0. Anyway, my TSH is 0.6, which while "normal" still seems low enough to me for it to be feasible that my symptoms are related to it - it's the lowest TSH i've ever had, "normal" for me (as in medicated so i have no symptoms and feel good) is about 2.7ish. So anyway i told him i was staying on the lower dose and i'd get another BT done within 2 weeks of the birth so he could stay on top of my levels for nursing, which he agreed to grudgingly.<br><br>
My FBC is another story. My haemoglobin was 11.3 at 24weeks, which was deemed "satisfactory" though it's lab-low (11.5 is "normal) because i am pregnant. So nothing needed action. Now it's 10.9 and he wants me on triple iron from Monday! I sms'd my MW, who confirmed i don't need triple iron for a drop of 0.3, nor for being 0.1 below "normal" for a pregnant woman. I can't tell if he really thinks it's a problem or if he just wants to be "doing something" for me. He's a really good gp, and in general i trust him, but still, that seems knee-jerky to me. He did say he was prescribing the triple iron because i was having a home delivery - 10/10 for belief in the home delivery happening and being normal, but about 1/10 for not thinking that if i DID have a PPH i would transfer!<br><br>
I kind of know that a) end of pregnancy is a time when things do come up, in terms of it being the most strain on your body and approaching a big "event" in terms of the physicality, and b) some of you other ladies are dealing with WAY more difficult and dangerous issues than i am, but geez, i am NOT excited about dealing with this!

 

[mediumcrunch]

.6 and symptomatic?? I wouldn't be happy. Ideal TSH for someone on HRT is between 1-2. If you felt fine and had a .6 then whatever but you feel like crap. A solution may be to drop your dose on alternate days. DD does this. She alternates 88 and 100. It is less drastic than dropping your daily dose. Do watch your labs closely postpartum as that can be a very volatile time and can really wreak havoc with PPD etc.....<br><br>
Have you looked at Floradix instead of traditional iron supplementation or upping your dietary intake via leafy greens etc..... I can tell you any trad iron, let alone a triple dose would annhilate by digestive system and seems pretty drastic for a relatively minor drop in HGB.

 

[LisaSedai]

My endocrine guy is ok with my TSH being 2.something. I'm on 0.075.

 

[Sweetflyfishfeel]

Iron - at 28 wks, my hemaglobin was at 10.9, too. I found some store brand "Easy Iron" at my local health food store, and it's only 25mg of iron. I started taking it 2-3 times a day, and when I saw my OB again 2 wks, she didn't even bother testing me because it wasn't that low to begin with, and said I could drop down to taking it once a day.<br><br>
Sounds to me like your doctor is just wanting to be in charge. He's not really thinking about what it's like to be near the end of pregnancy, nor about what meds and supplements do to your body. Bravo for following your own common sense, like you are, and just keeping him informed.

 

[GoBecGo]

Thanks ladies.<br><br>
Mediumcrunch that's what i've done, i'm getting 75mcgm by doing 50 one day, 100 the next (they don't prescribe 88's in the UK as far as i know, it's 25/50/100 and you make up your dose based on that). I did tell my GP that because i was symptomatic i wasn't going back on the higher dose until either i had established the thyroxine wasn't the problem (i.e. by 4weeks on lower dose and still not feeling good) or my labs really forced it (my TSH was 26 after i had DD!) and he accepted that. I am planning on having 4-weekly blood tests after the birth too as i had supply problems last time due in part to the crazy hormone levels. To be fair, it's only been 6 days on the reduced dose and i already am having anxiety episodes less often and when i have them they're less severe. I also picked up some Rescue Remedy gum at the weekend which i can chew if i feel it coming on which is helping some.<br><br>
I am totally not sold on the triple iron, but i picked up the script and had it filled today out of respect to the GP. It turns out "triple iron" is one iron pill, 3x/day, one 5mg Folic acid 1x/day and 2 ascorbic acid (vit C) 2x/day. I was like a walking pharmacy on the bus home as i'd picked up 3months worth of thyroxine too! I do think if nothing else it'll be handy if i DO go hypothyroid again postpartum, as it certainly made me anaemic last time.<br><br>
He is not a bad doctor, honestly he is the BEST doctor i've ever had, i think he just felt he should do "something". He did keep saying "i mean, it IS over 10" on the phone, and finished with "maybe it'll do something for you anyway". So it's not as if he insisted i take it or i'd die or anything. He always listens to me, i didn't argue about the triple iron, i felt like he already felt i'd tied his hands over the thyroxine and i don't want to get into one of those situations where he's really frustrated because his medical advice is being ignored and i'm feeling frustrated that he's not listening and driving over my own beliefs. He's really a very good doctor in some ways - incredibly conservative with AB's, vaxes his own kids on schedule but really open to delayed vaxing and supportive of no-vaxing too, and the sort of man who if i'd said "i won't take that" would normally have suggested other things until we found a solution, rather than just saying "well i think you should" and leaving it there. I think he's possibly over-concerned about me because his OWN wife had a baby 2 weeks ago, so it's all in his face still, iykwim.<br><br>
Anyway, i just took one dose of the triple iron to see how it went down, i'm going to talk with my midwife about it tomorrow. I already eat lots of red meat, fruit and LOTS of grean leafy's, so i don't know how much difference i could make in my diet. To be honest i have always been the lower-end-of normal with Hb except in my last pregnancy. And then i can imagine my body was building my blood (24weeks was 12.5Hb, don't know what the 36week one was) because i was un-dx with the thyroid issue, and bleeding is a big risk with a hypothyroid birth - i really believe our bodies do their best to protect us even when things are malfunctioning.<br><br>
Anyway i'm feeling calmer today and hopefully can recover my zen before labour starts. Thanks for listening!