Re: Bloodwork Lagging When Drawn

[Guest guest]

I hope that's not true!!!

> Has anyone ever heard of thyroid hormone bloodwrok lab results

> lagging by 6 months? A friend of mine has a GP who is a bit of a

> thyroid " expert " , and this GP said that the results you get when

you

> have the blood drawn are what was going on with your thyroid 6

months

> ago?!? Any comments on this? Thanks, Nick

[Guest guest]

If he's talking about what I think he is, he could know a little more than

some. However, I don't know about 6 months time! I do know that this is

another good reason why the TSH stinks because it absolutely does lag behind

the Free T3 and Free T4 readings,i.e., meaning that it takes several wks, at

least to stop hammering on the thyroid and to get the message that there is

more hormone going in than there was when it first started nagging the

thyroid. I don't really know how long this period of time is, but I don't

think it's 6 months. I posted an article months ago about this, but I'm not

quite sure where I put it or if I even kept it. I will hunt for it. It

definitely does lag behind though. Six months? I don't think so.

Tx

Bloodwork Lagging When Drawn

> Has anyone ever heard of thyroid hormone bloodwrok lab results

> lagging by 6 months? A friend of mine has a GP who is a bit of a

> thyroid " expert " , and this GP said that the results you get when you

> have the blood drawn are what was going on with your thyroid 6 months

> ago?!? Any comments on this? Thanks, Nick

[Guest guest]

As an after thought, I'm thinking that he meant 6 wks. In order for testing

to be accurate for a particular dosage of thyroid hormone, we have to be on

that dosage for around 4-6 wks. That's the reason why I'm saying this.

Tx

Bloodwork Lagging When Drawn

> Has anyone ever heard of thyroid hormone bloodwrok lab results

> lagging by 6 months? A friend of mine has a GP who is a bit of a

> thyroid " expert " , and this GP said that the results you get when you

> have the blood drawn are what was going on with your thyroid 6 months

> ago?!? Any comments on this? Thanks, Nick

[Guest guest]

I would say he's a bit off....

The labs are going to show

Free T4: T4 levels build up in your system over a period of 4 to 6

weeks... That means that it would take that long to show how much of the

T4 is building up in your body from a dose that is started 4 to 6 weeks

previously...

Free T3: The T3 available in the system would include that which your

body has converted from the T4 as well as any T3 that you have taken,

such as Armour..... that is why you should not take any Natural or combo

(T4 T3 med) before a blood draw because it would be showing what you just

took and not what is available in your blood.

TSH: Is the Thyroid Stimulating Hormone that is sent out by the Pituitary

Gland... which I really doubt would be 6 months delayed.

Topper ()

On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 14:57:45 -0000 " rdhnick "

writes:

> Has anyone ever heard of thyroid hormone bloodwrok lab results

> lagging by 6 months? A friend of mine has a GP who is a bit of a

> thyroid " expert " , and this GP said that the results you get when you

> have the blood drawn are what was going on with your thyroid 6

> months

> ago?!? Any comments on this? Thanks, Nick

[Guest guest]

You know, ... after reading this, you got me to thinking....

After I had my RAI they tested me every two weeks for 6 months, watching

to see if my thyroid was producing anything... but it turned out that we

just watched me go extremely hypo as all the hormone that was in me got

used up.... I wonder if there may be something to a 6 month time frame

after all.... that some docs have it in their heads from some

reference????

After I bottomed out and was started on Synthroid I was tested once a

month... eventually going to once a year....

Topper () *who sometimes wishes she'd kept a diary of those years*

On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 13:28:07 -0600 " " writes:

> If he's talking about what I think he is, he could know a little more

> than

> some. However, I don't know about 6 months time! I do know that

> this is

> another good reason why the TSH stinks because it absolutely does

> lag behind

> the Free T3 and Free T4 readings,i.e., meaning that it takes several

> wks, at

> least to stop hammering on the thyroid and to get the message that

> there is

> more hormone going in than there was when it first started nagging

> the

> thyroid. I don't really know how long this period of time is, but I

> don't

> think it's 6 months. I posted an article months ago about this, but

> I'm not

> quite sure where I put it or if I even kept it. I will hunt for it.

> It

> definitely does lag behind though. Six months? I don't think so.

>

>

> Tx

[Guest guest]

I've not seen a 6 month reference period anywhere, in my searches, just the

lagging TSH. I figure that when you've had your thyroid removed or had a

big dose of the RAI, then your tests are not going to show where it will

eventually end up until months later, but I've heard that some people lose

all the hormone really fast. With thyroid hormone dosing, though,

everything I've read says not to test until around 4-6 or 8 wks because it

takes so much time for the TSH to stop stimulating and for the other thyroid

hormones to be where they're going to be with THAT dose.

Tx

Re: Bloodwork Lagging When Drawn

> You know, ... after reading this, you got me to thinking....

>

> After I had my RAI they tested me every two weeks for 6 months, watching

> to see if my thyroid was producing anything... but it turned out that we

> just watched me go extremely hypo as all the hormone that was in me got

> used up.... I wonder if there may be something to a 6 month time frame

> after all.... that some docs have it in their heads from some

> reference????

>

> After I bottomed out and was started on Synthroid I was tested once a

> month... eventually going to once a year....

>

> Topper () *who sometimes wishes she'd kept a diary of those years*

[Guest guest]

At the time I was told that since I'd been hyper for years and in storm

for about a year that I had a very high concentration of hormone in my

body.. I was told that because of that that I could still die of

complications of being hyper even after the RAI...

The testing every two weeks was to follow the hormone levels going down

and to see if, once then levels dropped, if my thyroid would kick in

again.... it never did so it was declared totally destroyed by the RAI.

... the six month thing just kinda struck me, though... coincidence maybe?

Topper ()

PS I decided I'm not going to sugar coat this.... so that no one else has

to go through what I did. I saw a doc about my symptoms and was sent home

after being told that I was 'too fat to be sick' those words were also

entered on my patient chart... 10 months later I went back to see another

doctor who recognized my symptoms within just a few minutes of talking to

me and confirmed that with tests. She sent me to the hospital with hours

of my seeing her and I was given the RAI. I was chewed out at the

hospital for waiting so long to be checked (I had gone in in plenty of

time, that doc said I was fine and never tested me, even though he made

notes in my chart of my very 'text book symptoms' of hyper) I was told

that I was so bad that even after the RAI that I could die of a heart

attack while sitting in a chair watching tv. I was told to take six

months off work or I could die. If I had to take off work for six months

I wouldn't have any insurance and would die anyway... so I kept

working.....

For all of you. If you KNOW something is wrong, DO NOT let some

egotistical doc with personal issues (the one I saw hated fat women -

oh... I was a body builder with only 21 percent body fat before I stormed

and had lost 40 pounds in 30 days before going in AND had lost so much

weight that my boss actually ordered me new uniforms for work TWO sizes

smaller than what I was wearing). If you know something is wrong and the

doc says you're fine, go home. Call him a jerk and demand to see a real

doc.

DO NOT let them do to you what they did to me!

Hmmmmm... is it still soap boxing if it's a PS?

On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 15:01:26 -0600 " " writes:

> I've not seen a 6 month reference period anywhere, in my searches,

> just the

> lagging TSH. I figure that when you've had your thyroid removed or

> had a

> big dose of the RAI, then your tests are not going to show where it

> will eventually end up until months later, but I've heard that some

> people lose

> all the hormone really fast. With thyroid hormone dosing, though,

> everything I've read says not to test until around 4-6 or 8 wks

> because it

> takes so much time for the TSH to stop stimulating and for the other

> thyroid

> hormones to be where they're going to be with THAT dose.

>

>

> Tx

[Guest guest]

Yes, , I haven't experienced exactly what you have, but I've

experienced 4 different jerky doctors, who owned all mine up to quote

" anxiety, midlife changes, depression, dissatisfaction with my life " , i.e.,

you're a woman, so that means that it must all be in your head and you need

to pull yourself up by the bootstraps, take your medicine and shut up.

Sometimes, when I'm trying to convince someone to change doctors, after they

have been through hell and back, at the hands of a doctor who doesn't have

the proper info or really just doesn't have his/her heart in their practice,

I am accused of being " negative " . This IS a negative situation, and no, I

don't have a doctor right now, and we know why. It's not that I don't

believe that there are knowledgeable caring doctors out there, it's just

that there aren't as many as we'd like for there to be, and it's like a mine

field trying to find one or afford one, when you do find one. Many times,

when I was sitting face to face with a doctor, I felt like death would

frankly have been better, the way I have felt at times, physically and

mentally (this disease plays with your brain chemistry), and all the idiots

would do is throw a tranquilizer or another antidepressant at me because

they simply didn't want to deal with, i.e., I was a " hysterical " woman,

without legitimate complaints. Or he just didn't know what to do, and

instead of saying that his knowledge was limited on this, would rather

degrade my attitude t'wd what was wrong with me than to admit it. If this

is negative, so be it. I now carry a feeling of wanting to reach in and

grab another person from the fire, so that they don't have to walk thrui it

and get burned.

Tx

Re: Bloodwork Lagging When Drawn

> At the time I was told that since I'd been hyper for years and in storm

> for about a year that I had a very high concentration of hormone in my

> body.. I was told that because of that that I could still die of

> complications of being hyper even after the RAI...

>

> The testing every two weeks was to follow the hormone levels going down

> and to see if, once then levels dropped, if my thyroid would kick in

> again.... it never did so it was declared totally destroyed by the RAI.

>

> .. the six month thing just kinda struck me, though... coincidence maybe?

>

> Topper ()

>

> PS I decided I'm not going to sugar coat this.... so that no one else has

> to go through what I did. I saw a doc about my symptoms and was sent home

> after being told that I was 'too fat to be sick' those words were also

> entered on my patient chart... 10 months later I went back to see another

> doctor who recognized my symptoms within just a few minutes of talking to

> me and confirmed that with tests. She sent me to the hospital with hours

> of my seeing her and I was given the RAI. I was chewed out at the

> hospital for waiting so long to be checked (I had gone in in plenty of

> time, that doc said I was fine and never tested me, even though he made

> notes in my chart of my very 'text book symptoms' of hyper) I was told

> that I was so bad that even after the RAI that I could die of a heart

> attack while sitting in a chair watching tv. I was told to take six

> months off work or I could die. If I had to take off work for six months

> I wouldn't have any insurance and would die anyway... so I kept

> working.....

>

> For all of you. If you KNOW something is wrong, DO NOT let some

> egotistical doc with personal issues (the one I saw hated fat women -

> oh... I was a body builder with only 21 percent body fat before I stormed

> and had lost 40 pounds in 30 days before going in AND had lost so much

> weight that my boss actually ordered me new uniforms for work TWO sizes

> smaller than what I was wearing). If you know something is wrong and the

> doc says you're fine, go home. Call him a jerk and demand to see a real

> doc.

>

> DO NOT let them do to you what they did to me!

>

> Hmmmmm... is it still soap boxing if it's a PS?