Underactive Thyroid & TTC

[Mammabear31]

Hi all,
DH & I have been ttc no.2 for over a year. Have been to see GP and had blood test results this morning - apparently my TSH is high (5.7) and Anti TPO is 266 (should be a max of 30!!). All this points to an underactive thyroid, which I had not suspected or even thought about.

Has anyone had any experience of having problems TTC with an underactive thyroid? All my other bloods came back fine (progesterone, testosterone, LH etc.) and this has knocked me for 6 a bit. I know it's nothing major to worry about, lovely MIL had the same and eventually had her thyroid out last year but obviously has no experience of ttc while on tablets or treatment.

I have a telephone consultation booked with my GP tomorrow so will know more then, just after any opinions or experiences anyone may have had.

Hi I have and underactive thyroid and had difficulty ttc no 2. I was diagnosed before I had dc1 and it got more underactive after I had her. It took a while to get the right dosage Im now on 125 of thyroxine. The issue could be that if you have an underactive thyroid you may not be ovulating every month-I think this was the case with me. It took a while and had a few chemical pregnancies but after over a year of trying we welcomed dc2 last november.
Best of luck to you, hope this helps.

The anti-TPO means that your body has attacked your thyroid, so it won't work as well as it should. I think for conception/pregnancy the TSH level should be under 2 (roughly) so your GP might start you on thyroxine to get you to that level. Great news that it's been spotted now as if it's untreated it can lead to miscarriage or difficulty conceiving.

I'm on thyroxine for the same reason, kept my TSH around 2 and conceived no problem, and I'm due in 6 weeks. Apart from regular blood tests and some extra growth scans (yay) all has been fine! So not necessarily anything to worry about.

My consultant said there is one study showing that if you concieve, there is a possibility of the anti-TPO antibodies passing through the placenta and affecting the baby's thyroid function, but she's only seen one possible case in 20 years and is completely unconcerned. Other than that if your hormone levels are controlled there is no increased risk of adverse outcomes. Good luck

Hello. Don't panic. I struggled to ttc and eventually got diagnosed with underactive thyroid, my tsh was about 6 so similar (but not that bad in the scheme of things).
Whereas doc said there wasn't definite evidence of a link, in my case I now realise it messed with my cycles because although ovulating my luteal phase was only about 8 days long so embryo would have little chance of implanting IMO.

Anyway there also other factors but I conceived about 2 months after starting thyroxin. I had to be consultant-led due to the TSH being initially high but it soon came down and stayed down, caused no issues with pregnancy and consultant discharged me half way through.

And I conceived dc2 immediately.

Still taking thyroxin and never had issues with it.

Thank you all so much for your replies- they're very reassuring!! I'm talking with my GP tomorrow so will go from there. I have no idea what to expect but in a way I'm. Glad it's something that can be "fixed" - or at least managed!!

Under active thyroid can mess with your cycle and make conceiving much more difficult.

My endocrinologist has kept my TSH under 1 while pregnant.

You'll need thyroxine, especially if trying for a baby.

Also ask your gp to test for vitamin b12 and vitamin d levels, mine were non existent which is apparently common.

Take supplements of those two vitamins at the very least.

Good luck z

GP has started me on 25mcg levothyroxine so will start there. Need to have a repeat blood test in 6 weeks, and an appointment with him a few days after to discuss results. Once TSH levels have reduced and we still have no luck conceiving after 2-3 months, we'll get a referral.

DH is still having a semen analysis which will be next week. I feel so much better knowing why it wasn't happening for us.

My level was 13 when I was diagnosed! It was discovered when I began my fertility testing. We did end up with iVF treatment; although the unexplained fertility has never been linked to he thyroid issue.

My TSh is currently 3.7 and I'm on 150mg and I'm 4.5 months pregnant.

Keen for my consultant to re-review though as I do feel it should be lower.