Re: Hello, newbie here

[Guest guest]

Hi there and welcome.. it would be great to know

your name?

In short... from what you've told me, your suspicions

are right on the money -- these doctors are idiots!!

What an outrageous ordeal, I'm so sorry.

1 - If she has a high TPO, she has Hashimotos. If she has

Hashimotos, she may swing hypo or hyperthyroid.. but

will eventually end up hypo. From her symptoms, she

certainly sounds hypo already as you suspected.

2 - Did this guy test her TSH, free T4 or free T3?? You

don't say he did, which I find astounding. Even the most

incompetent endos tend to test these... most put way too

much emphasis on the TSH which can easily get skewed

for us (see article in our Links section).. but all these tests

are done to form a baseline for diagnosing what state of

the disease your ex is in. The best docs know that the

only true measure to go by is how a patient feels.

3 - I think I remember someone on here saying that we

are indeed more prone to sleep apnea?? I just remember

the discussion... hypothryoidism affects every organ in the

body, including lungs... maybe that is why your endo tested

for Hashis, but it's an odd correlation to make straight off --

are you sure he didn't test because of her fatigue and other

symptoms?

4 - I haven't a clue what this guy was thinking giving her

meds for hyperthyroidism if the TSH, free T4 and free T3

weren't done and she wasn't having symptoms. That is just

dangerous. As far as the fish oil, B12 shots and multivitamins..

the only one in that group that I've heard others discuss is the

B12. And someone in here actually takes it to improve her

condition. I know B12 is a funny vitamin though and affects

everyone differently.. I have a suspicion that my Hashi's makes

me less tolerant to it because of it being in things I've tried

that make me feel not so good.

5 - Referring her to psychiatrist because of his abject

incompetence is beyond ludicrous.

6 - She desperately needs a new doctor (not even necessarily

an endo... I see a GP). Look in the archives here and you will

quickly see that few of us have had really great experiences

right off the bat with endos, but yours really take the cake.

Go to www.thyroid-info.com and click on Top Docs to find

a patient-reviewed doc for her in her area. This isn't full-proof,

but a good place to start. I don't know anything about her

Tranverse Myeletis, but she certainly sounds extremely hypo

to me, and these damn docs don't understand this is nothing

to fool around with. If she is as hypo as she sounds, she needs

meds, now.

I really hope you can help her and things iron out for the both

of you. Untreated Hashi's can indeed make us swing emotionally

pretty bad, so there is hope if she starts treatment. Ask her to

drop in here any time, if she needs to hear it from us.

~

-- In Thyroiditis , copeland.cole@a... wrote:

> I wanted to introduce myself to the group and ask for some guidance.

>

> My quasi-girlfriend (probably due to Hashimoto's) has been diagnosed with

Hashimoto's. She had been experiencing many of the symptoms of hypothyroidism

(fatigue, lethargy, weight gain, depression, low heart rate, emotional problems,

etc.), and I

finally got her to go to an endorinologist.

>

> Let me say that I, unfortunately, have had much experience with chronic

illness and

dealing with the medical community. I contracted Lyme Disease in the early

1990's and

was misdiagnosed with Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS) until

finally

testing positive for Lyme in 1997. By that point, the infection had been in my

body so

long that I actually *did* have immune dysfunction which continues to this day.

So I know

a lot about the inabilitiy of the medical community to diagnosis and correctly

treat illness.

>

> The first test that suggested any problem was an extremely high TPO-ab reading

(750+)

that was ordered by her ENT. I still don't know why he ordered the test, as she

was

preparing to have surgery for a deviated septum and other nasal and sinus

problems that

were causing a severe case of sleep apnea. This led me to suggest she see an

endo after a

little Googling and reading about the fact that 95% of patients with high TPOab

readings

develop hypothyroidism.

>

> The first endo, believe it or not, gave her thyroid medication for

hyperthyroidism!! I

begged her to stop taking it after about a month or so as her condition grew

worse. My

laymen's opinion can be described in one work....Duh.

>

> She did improve a great deal after stopping this medication. Again.....Duh.

>

> She then saw another endo, who did an ultrasound on her thyroid and found a

goiter.

Now, he confirms she has Hashimoto's. This is where it gets funny and I hope I

can get

input from the group.

>

> He does not prescribe any medication. He tells her to discontinue *any* fish

oil (for her

heart), B12 shots (her immune system is dysfunctional also due to Tranverse

Myeletis....she was misdiagnosed with MS...do you see a pattern here?), and

*any* multi-

vitamins!!!!!!!

>

> Can anyone tell me what this doctor is thinking???? She is not scheduled for

another

appointment until February. In addition, he advised her to see a psychiatrist,

I suppose to

get anti-depression medication. Now, wouldn't it make sense to treat her

thyroid first to

see if any of her emotional problems are caused by the Hashimoto's??? Along

with that, he

advised her to go to a Landmark Research class, which seems to be some form of

improvement / self-esteem course, but she described as being like a " cult " after

speaking

with a representative.

>

> As you may have guessed, she and I have dealt with *many* incompetent doctors

in our

medical journeys. The only reason we found out she did not have MS is that I

used to

volunteer for the MS Society and I knew that her symptoms did not suggest MS,

though

there was some overlap.So, I have very little faith in doctors these days unless

you can

lead them down the path. I am afraid that this physician is delaying treatment,

for what

reason I have no idea.

>

> I believe this Hashimoto has damaged our relationship, perhaps beyond repair.

She was

prone to irrational rages, jealousy, anger, physical fighting, etc. which really

made it hard

to stay close to her. At this point, I have moved out, but still see her as

needed and just

try to help her since her surgery. Trust me, I know how it feels to be sick and

have a non-

supportive wife (now ex). I just try to draw the line now.

>

> *Any* input would be welcome. I thank all of you in advance for your help,

and I hope

each and every one of you can offer at least a short response. Too many of

these groups

(again from experience) have everyone reading and no one responding. I need

your

feedback.

[Guest guest]

Copeland -- did the docs test her *frees* as opposed

to *totals*? Free T4 and T3 give a more accurate idea

of what's going on compared to total T4 and T3.. most

docs test totals.

In any case, it doesn't make an ounce of difference if

all tests are normal... subclinical hypothyroidism does

exist and needs to be treated. You've got to go by how

you feel, especially if those antibodies are high. It's a

shame she won't open her mind to this possibility...

severe hypothyroidism can be serious, not to scare you,

it's often not as damaging long term as severe hyper-

thyroidism, but like I said it's nothing to fool around with.

You mentioned trying to get her to see a doc whose has

family members w/Hashis... that is an excellent idea, as

that's usually when docs start to appreciate how complex

it can get... even a family pet w/Hashis can be our best

allies

~

>

> -------------- Original message from " suuzin " <suuzin@y...>: --------------

>

> She tests normal on all these other tests...having Lyme and CFIDS, they always

test my

thyroid just in case thyroid supplementation helps....so I am familiar with the

tests. She is

completely normal testwise *except* for the TPOab...which, as you know, you have

to go

by how the patient *feels* and the fact that a high TPOab means 95% of the

patients go

hypo.

[Guest guest]

Yep, that panel is good. Be careful with

the Armour.. it actually can hurt if your

body doesn't really need it... just be

sensitive to the symptoms of going

hyper... that is a fairly low dose though.

I can't see why those vitamins would

affect thyroid readings and never heard

of such a thing. What book did this guy

write?

~

> Well, she has agreed to see my DO to check her out, the one whose sister has

Hashimoto's.

>

> And the panel she runs is also from Great Smokies Lab, and includes TSH, Free

T4, Free

T3, Reverse T3, Anti-TG, Anti-TPO......anything else she needs? That seems to

be a pretty

comprehensive panel.

>

> BTW, I am trying Armour 30mg, just to see if I have anything subclinical that

is causing

my fatigue. Can't hurt.