Hypothyroidism and raised Estradiol - advice needed

**Lee_1978** · 09-12-2014, 06:51 PM

Hi,

I've just received the results of some BW I had done by my Endo and its findings are interesting.

My Endo has diagnosed me with 'significant hypothyroidism' and has prescribed 50 mcg of Thyroxine to be taken ED. The rest of my results are as follows; I don't have ranges as they weren't included on the results page.

Creatinine 103
Beta-HCG <1 (I have no idea what this means)
TSH - 35.24
Free T4 - 8.9
FSH - 6
LH - 7
Estradiol - 191 - slightly raised as quoted by Endo
Testosterone -19.3
Cortisol - 510

From what I've gathered from my research, hypothyroidism is characterised by weight gain, low energy, dry skin and low mood. With the exception of occasional low mood, I have none of these symptoms, but I wondered if having this condition could explain my difficulty in gaining weight and my natural ecto stature?

I'm also confused about my Test reading which has gone down significantly from the reading that was taken three months ago, which came back as 26.9 nmol/L (whilst I was on a cut, I may add) now I'm bulking, (body utilising GH and Test more) my levels have gone down?? To be honest, I feel pretty shit about this, like I'm less of a man or something. Can any of you guys kindly offer some perspective/insight on this? Am I still safe to cycle?

**Lee_1978** · 09-17-2014, 08:21 PM

Any thoughts peeps?

**Baxter35** · 09-18-2014, 03:10 AM

Do you have any input on why your estradiol was raised? And, more importantly, is that a sensitive E2 assay? Have you cycled before and/or are you on TRT right now? I don't think you're on trt from your comments and tests results, but just want to be sure. There are others on here, myself included, who are both hypothyroid and on trt and everything is fine. I can't say for sure about cycling though if hypo and not on trt. My concern would be that since hypo is often a contributing factor to low T, it may me more likely that your natural HPTA system may be less likely to restart properly since it's already a bit compromised from the low-thyroid function. That would be my biggest concern. Hopefully someone else can chime in as well.

BTW, it's not uncommon to be hypothyroid and still not have many symptoms. I never displayed much for the classic symptoms either. Good Luck.

**thisAngelBites** · 09-18-2014, 04:29 AM

That's an extremely high TSH, and especially in someone with no symptoms. It is common to not have symptoms, as Baxter said, but I think it gets less common the higher the TSH.

Can you post the reference range for the T4 and the cortisol? We use different units here, and I don't have the foreign ones memorised. If you post them I might have further thoughts to share.

Hypothyroidism would not contribute to difficulty gaining weight.

If it was me, I would not start the levothyroxine, but would test again in a month, unless I started getting hypothyroid symptoms in the interim, then I would consider starting the T4 treatment. My concern would be that the TSH result might be off due to some artifact or anomaly, and so I would want to make sure because given that things are fluctuating, I wouldn't want to introduce some potentially unnecessary further fluctuation (in case it turns out on retest that thyroid function is ok). An exception to this would be if I had previous TSH results that showed my levels had been rising.

If I were you, I would not cycle now. I would consider the important thing to get an understanding of what is happening with my thyroid, and I would worry next about T and estradiol once thyroid was sorted (as sorting the thyroid might change your sex hormone levels). Things seem a bit in flux perhaps due to previous cycles, and it's not clear what's going on, so why introduce things that could make things worse, or make things more difficult to understand? I prefer to be conservative about health, but that's me.

Someone a little less conservative could take the T4 and then go back and test and see where things are.

**Baxter35** · 09-18-2014, 06:09 AM

Do you have T3 results as well as T4? It seems odd to me that your tsh is so high out of range yet your free T4 is on the high end of normal. I'd be interested to see T3 to see if the T4 is converting properly. I also agree waiting and repeating your blood tests a few times to confirm the diagnosis since you are still feeling well. I waited and had mine retested over a 6 month period to confirm my levels were steadily getting worse before starting the levothyroxine, nothing wrong with being conservative.

**thisAngelBites** · 09-18-2014, 06:19 AM

Originally Posted by Baxter35

Do you have T3 results as well as T4? It seems odd to me that your tsh is so high out of range yet your free T4 is on the high end of normal. I'd be interested to see T3 to see if the T4 is converting properly. I also agree waiting and repeating your blood tests a few times to confirm the diagnosis since you are still feeling well. I waited and had mine retested over a 6 month period to confirm my levels were steadily getting worse before starting the levothyroxine, nothing wrong with being conservative.

We're on the same page. I suspected the T4 level does not reflect the TSH, another reason I was wondering if that super high TSH is a mistake.

**Lee_1978** · 09-18-2014, 05:20 PM

Originally Posted by Baxter35

Do you have any input on why your estradiol was raised? And, more importantly, is that a sensitive E2 assay? Have you cycled before and/or are you on TRT right now? I don't think you're on trt from your comments and tests results, but just want to be sure. There are others on here, myself included, who are both hypothyroid and on trt and everything is fine. I can't say for sure about cycling though if hypo and not on trt. My concern would be that since hypo is often a contributing factor to low T, it may me more likely that your natural HPTA system may be less likely to restart properly since it's already a bit compromised from the low-thyroid function. That would be my biggest concern. Hopefully someone else can chime in as well.

BTW, it's not uncommon to be hypothyroid and still not have many symptoms. I never displayed much for the classic symptoms either. Good Luck.

Thanks mate.

I have no idea why the Estradiol was raised, my Endo ordered specific tests as I have mild gyno and he wanted to make sure my Estrogen levels were 'healthy'. No, my Estradiol test wasn't sensitive and perhaps it should be as I know it makes a difference. I'm not on TRT and I've never cycled AAS. Although my thyroid levels are severely lacking, what do you think of my T levels - cause for concern?

**Lee_1978** · 09-18-2014, 05:30 PM

Originally Posted by thisAngelBites

That's an extremely high TSH, and especially in someone with no symptoms. It is common to not have symptoms, as Baxter said, but I think it gets less common the higher the TSH.

Can you post the reference range for the T4 and the cortisol? We use different units here, and I don't have the foreign ones memorised. If you post them I might have further thoughts to share.

Hypothyroidism would not contribute to difficulty gaining weight.

If it was me, I would not start the levothyroxine, but would test again in a month, unless I started getting hypothyroid symptoms in the interim, then I would consider starting the T4 treatment. My concern would be that the TSH result might be off due to some artifact or anomaly, and so I would want to make sure because given that things are fluctuating, I wouldn't want to introduce some potentially unnecessary further fluctuation (in case it turns out on retest that thyroid function is ok). An exception to this would be if I had previous TSH results that showed my levels had been rising.

If I were you, I would not cycle now. I would consider the important thing to get an understanding of what is happening with my thyroid, and I would worry next about T and estradiol once thyroid was sorted (as sorting the thyroid might change your sex hormone levels). Things seem a bit in flux perhaps due to previous cycles, and it's not clear what's going on, so why introduce things that could make things worse, or make things more difficult to understand? I prefer to be conservative about health, but that's me.

Someone a little less conservative could take the T4 and then go back and test and see where things are.

Thanks for the input, You are completely right, those TSH levels are crazy, I'm actually starting to worry. Could a mistake have been made? Unfortunately, I don't have reference ranges for these results, although I did for some initial tests i had a few months back. I've never cycled AAS, so I'm not sure as to why my Estradiol would be high. Also, as I touched on before, is it common for T levels to drop from 26.9 nmol/L to 19.3 nmol/L? Something just seems to be amiss?

Your advice is sound - thanks! I think I definitely need to ascertain what's going on with my thyroid before cycling.

As an aside, I suffer from persistent dizziness - could this be a symptom of hypothyroidism?

**thisAngelBites** · 09-19-2014, 02:31 PM

Originally Posted by Lee_1978

Thanks for the input, You are completely right, those TSH levels are crazy, I'm actually starting to worry. Could a mistake have been made? Unfortunately, I don't have reference ranges for these results, although I did for some initial tests i had a few months back. I've never cycled AAS, so I'm not sure as to why my Estradiol would be high. Also, as I touched on before, is it common for T levels to drop from 26.9 nmol/L to 19.3 nmol/L? Something just seems to be amiss?

Your advice is sound - thanks! I think I definitely need to ascertain what's going on with my thyroid before cycling.

As an aside, I suffer from persistent dizziness - could this be a symptom of hypothyroidism?

Sampling blood is subject to contamination of the sample, mishandling, various problems at the lab, etc. I've no idea what the statistics are as to how often it happens, but all procedures and equipment are subject to failure, so if there is an unusual result, I think it is worth considering.

Is the dizziness persistent, or does it happen just when you get up after lying down or squatting?

I have not heard a lot of hypothyroid people complain of dizziness/vertigo, but I have read that it occurs sometimes in people with high TSHs, but as I have heard so few complaints about it (and have less experience with TSHs that are that high), I'm afraid I can't say anything helpful. Do mention it to your doctor though.

**kelkel** · 09-19-2014, 09:48 PM

Labs make mistakes.....

**Lee_1978** · 09-19-2014, 10:16 PM

Originally Posted by thisAngelBites

Sampling blood is subject to contamination of the sample, mishandling, various problems at the lab, etc. I've no idea what the statistics are as to how often it happens, but all procedures and equipment are subject to failure, so if there is an unusual result, I think it is worth considering.

Is the dizziness persistent, or does it happen just when you get up after lying down or squatting?

I have not heard a lot of hypothyroid people complain of dizziness/vertigo, but I have read that it occurs sometimes in people with high TSHs, but as I have heard so few complaints about it (and have less experience with TSHs that are that high), I'm afraid I can't say anything helpful. Do mention it to your doctor though.

Yes, the dizziness only occurs moving my head up and down or after I get up from lying down. I'm beginning to think it's a symptom...