ok back from doctor today...thyroid 3.2 totally normal, i am in shock. progesterone 0.7 in the post menopause range but still have raging periods.....but estrogen completely normal. hemoglobin 8.5 very low. and vitamin D 11 waaay low. Any interpretations???????

Sweet,

What is the thyroid range? Ranges can vary from lab to lab, from country to country........to me at the moment, it seems a bit low, more at the hypothyroid end. I have thyroid issues, multinodular goiter with cysts(my last TSH was 0.80 ......range 0.40-4.00). I am more hyper end but STILL within range......the problem is that anyone with hyper or hypo will say that each person is different.......that people feel better at different levels of TSH......Oh babe......I been going through this for 4 years......at the moment I am waiting to see if thyroid gets bigger to the point of surgery......yep, just want it to be sorted. Have you had your thyroid antibodies done?

As for progesterone.......an expert on this one, please?........sorry babe.......I have been in peri for the last 4 years as well......eostrogen still normal and probably will be while I am still having periods(when they decide to come!). You probably need some iron supplements with co-factors(mine too!!) and Vit D......KNOW that one. I am at 35 (range 50-200). If you can stomach vit d supplements, I would take them. If not, my doc told me to sit in the sun for 3 months everyday for half an hour in the morning sun(it is not as strong). Do not put sunscreen on........bit risky but supplements do NOT agree with me. Low vit D will effect your cholesterol levels(increase) and absorption of calcium.......very important.

Hope that helps.......it is all a mystery is it not? Gosh......so confusing

Take good care, babe

Michah

My E was normal too and my P very low. I take Progesterone and have felt pretty darn good since the early part of the year. Progesterone supplementing isn't for everyone all you can do is try it and hang on for a month or two to get leveled.

Hi Suz

I can't comment on the E or P levels.
My Vitamin D was 68 two months ago. After 5000 IU's a day for 2 months I am now at 148. I don't recommend that dosage, I think it's a bit high. My Doctor and ND are at odds as to what is a safe dose...now I am not taking any at all. I will likely do the sun thing while we have it here in Canada!

Hi:
Can I ask your advice as you are on Progesterone as well, I have been on P for 1 month, the Dr had increased it from 40mg to 60mg as I am still having some symptoms. How much do you take, and did they keep changing it for you?
Jpie

Hi Pete:
I saw you were on board, I just wondered too, why she didn't add small amount of testerone, as I am low on that too
Jpie

Hi,

Is 3.2 the TSH? That is in the "normal" range but from what I've read, some doctors treat anyone who is above 3 and symptomatic with low dose thyroid meds. If they help, then probably there's your answer. I feel hypothyroid but my TSH hovers around .75 -- not even close to hypothyroid, even though my T4 is low end and I have thyroid nodule. It's very confusing. My doc wants to put me on thyroid meds but I don't think my TSH warrants it. However, if my TSH were above three, I think I'd consider it.

Good luck
Missy

What day of your cycle did you have the P measured? Its normal for it to be low in the first half of the cycle prior to ovulation. To see what is happening with P you need to have it measured around day 21 (which can be tricky to do if periods are irregular).

Are you using transdermal or oral? If it is oral then that is quite a low dose if it is transdermal then that is way to high. Oral dosing is good to start out slow with and you can go upwards of 250 ish mg an evening if needed. For transdermal I believe the average is 20ml tops.

I take oral oil caps and we started at 150mg that seemed to work very well for me. Then he upped me at two months (after a blood test) to 225mg in order to get me to his "optimal levels". This did not agree with me, I got heart palps and a bit of mild anxiety again. So we backed down to 175mg and I am okay but still don't think I feel as good as I did on the 150mg. It takes a while to find the correct dose. I felt better within a few weeks and felt great by the second month. Just wish we had left my dose alone in all honesty. I knew however going into this that there was going to be a trial and error stage. I keep Xanax on hand just in case because P does cause anxiety in some. I have had to take 1/4th of a pill twice during my changing of doses. All together now I have been on them for about 8 months and I feel 80% better right now than I did a year ago. So any improvement is okay with me lol.

Blood was drawn on cycle day 8, when my dr said it should have been headed toward the upswing, or at very least should have been higher than 0.7.

no, tsh was 2.3
T3 was 3.2
T4 was 1.1
thyroid perioxidase was 14
thyroid antithyrogobulin antibody <20

all within normal range

I read in my Elizabeth Vliet book that there is very little P at all during the first 2 weeks of the cycle. She has a menstrual cycle diagram which shows the P levels as being 0.3 - 0.9 ng/ml until just before day 14 when it starts to rise. So, according to her, you are still in the zone. I also checked a couple of web sources and both said that normal pre-ovulatory levels are < 1. At any rate, I am just spouting off what I have read, I don't have the clinical experience a Dr would have. What can happen in perimenopause is that when cycles shorten, ovulation can occur earlier than day 14, so maybe that is what the Dr is thinking. Still, the best time to check for P is in the luteal phase at around day 21 when it should be at its peak. (Again, this can get tricky with cycle irregularity). Another thing you can do to see if and when you are still ovulating is to keep a basal body temperature chart and monitor cervical mucus. There is a lot of info as to how to do this on the web.