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| Fri, 02-18-2005 - 5:25pm |
OK so I have been taking levoxyl for several months and while I am not as drop dead tired as I was before I started taking it...I still feel pretty dang tired through out my day. I was told I needed to take this because my TSH levels were too low...but I am not even sure if this means I am hypothyroid....I was just given this info over the phone by my gyn's nurse. I have never really had a discussion with the doctor about this whole thing. I guess they think its no big deal??? Do I need to see another doctor to get a better explanation? I still feel tired!! Also I am only 38...does this mean I am going through early meno pause?? Any suggestions?

Hi marcellait,
My advice to you is definitely see another doctor! Thyroid problems aren't something to play with (hypo just makes you feel like crap, hyper can actually be dangerous to your heart) but they are usually easily controlled with the right dosage of medication. You need to find a doctor who will talk to you (not just the nurse delivering sketchy messages over the phone) and who will answer your questions and explain things to you. Hopefully you will find a doctor who will treat YOU and not just your numbers (from the blood test).
If I remember correctly a LOW TSH usually indicates being HYPERthyroid...but the tiredness usually is a symptom of HYPOthyroid.
Here's a link to some general information on thyroid problems:
http://health.ivillage.com/diabetesthy/thyroid/0,,nwhrc_75hm0x7l,00.html
Check it out to see if your symptoms sound familiar...
If you feel your family doc isn't answering your questions, the specialist for thyroid problems is an endocrinologist. If your health insurance allows you to see a specialist without a referral, I would suggest going to one of those first.
I'm 38 too and was diagnosed hypothyroid over a year ago...and I don't think pre-menopause is necessarily a reason for the way you feel...particularly if someone is treating you for possible thyroid problems.
One last thing, you have the right to ask the doctors to provide you with a complete copy of the TSH test results...get them, then come post your results here and there are lots of informative folks here who can help you understand what they mean! With thyroid problems, it's very important that you know what is going on with your body, and at what TSH level you feel your best!
There's more info, but I don't want to overload you. If you feel like you want to do some research on your own, do a google search for "Mary Shomon" she's written some really good books about living with thyroid problems.
Come back and let us know how you are doing, okay? And good luck to you! :)
Dazed
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