TSH levels "satisfactory" at 3.2??

[Lolahound]

Hi All,

I've been TTC for 8 cycles now. Went to the GP after cycle 6 (because I'm over 35) and just had my blood test results back. I got a text from the GP saying simply that ovulation was confirmed -nothing more. But being the inquisitive/obsessive scientist that I am, I logged into my surgery account to see the test results for myself. Everything was normal, but my TSH levels were 3.2 and the GP had put a note saying "satisfactory - no further action". It took me 2 minutes of Googling to become extremely paranoid (or not?) that 3.2 is far from satisfactory if you're TTC, and is in fact too high. Fellow science nerds, check out this 2018 paper www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29272395.

My questions to you all are: 1) has anyone conceived with a result this high? 2) should I push it with the GP to investigate further? If they think it's normal then should I just trust them? On the other hand, time's running out for me...

Thanks

p.s. first time using Mumsnet :)

I'm sorry no one has replied to you.

There is another (active) thread on thyroid that you should take a look at. The answers are simply that no one knows if your result is what's stopping you from conceiving.

My own history is: ttc for 2+ years. Had two chemicals during the first 11 months of ttc and then nothing. I'm 34. My tsh was tested 18 months ago and was 2.3 (a non-issue according to my gp, despite me wanting it lower). I'm going to be starting ivf and has my tsh tested last minute. It's now 3.8 and I was given 25 mcg levothyroxine but told it wasn't a big deal, they wouldn't monitor me, it was only slightly elevated and only doing it because of ivf blah blah. I've now postponed ivf for a cycle to give meds a chance to help.

But I now suspect that I personally need to have much lower tsh levels to conceive and maintain a pregnancy (as my history might suggest). But then again, I think lots of people are fine with higher levels!!

My TSH is usually between 3 and 4. When I lived abroad I was on thyroid medication but when I came back was taken off it. I think you’re likely to find more information about people with a TSH in this range who have difficulty conceiving, because it’s an easy test to do and think about when you’re looking for an explanation of the problem. I did worry about it myself, because I stopped taking the medication about a year before we started TTC. But fell pregnant within two months both times (in late 30s) and had uneventful pregnancies. Was also a bit worried about TSH being 3 during first trimester but NHS didn’t treat and all was fine.

Actually I felt worse when I was on the medication, so in this case I think the NHS might have the range right. What is your free T4? Is that in normal range? If so, I would try not to worry too much about this.

I would feel quite rough with a TSH of over 3 and my miscarriage specialist would agree you need a tsh of between 1-2 for pregnancy and conception. My preferred level - having lived with thyroid disease for over 20 years - is about 1.

Some doctors will use a normal range of anything up to 5 and some 3. It’s very frustrating. I don’t know about conception at that rate as I’ve always tried to keep my tsh lower. I’ve never had a problem conceiving but did have 5 miscarriages (and now two children).

Just for some context I developed thyroid disease when I was 21 so am used to dealing with it. The miscarriages were attributed to a high level of natural killer cells (although like with thyroid this is an area of medicine some doctors don’t agree on - I was treated for this and had two children).

Not sure if that helps at all! It’s hard to know if you should be treated with a tsh that is only ‘just’ over the normal range (the normal range that myself and many other people who have done a lot of research on it feel is best - see Mary Shomon or Thyroid UK for more info about this). Maybe ask a specialist? My doctor is Mr Shehata from the miscarriage clinic and he also specialises in conception too.

Hi All,

thanks so much for your messages and sharing your stories with me. Sorry for my late reply - I read this on the train on the way to Liverpool on Sat morning, typed out a really long response on my phone, pressed send, went through a tunnel...and then my screen froze and I couldn't recover it!

I've been thinking this through over the weekend and decided my next course of action is to wait and see what happens when I have my scans. Until I know that there's no blockage, or other anatomical thing then there's no point pursuing it. If these come back as clear then I'll raise it with my GP so that they can at least explain to me why they think it's satisfactory (if not do further tests), because it's going to prey on my mind otherwise. Hopefully it's nothing to worry about too much, but I just want make sure all bases are covered.

physicskate, I really hope it works out for you!! Will you be posting updates anywhere?