thankfulheart
07-31-2012, 10:54 AM
This is going to be long...I need help figuring out my labs and what they mean.
I was diagnosed with PCOS probably 18 years ago and up until 5years ago when my Bug was born I just suffered with the gastro symptoms of the glucophage that never did anything for me anyway. I stopped taking it and really just ignored it for awhile. Which I know was not the right thing to do. I found the worrying about the symptoms just frustrated me. Recently I started seeing a holistic doctor because the symptoms of the PCOS were getting worse. Especially the hursitism. I've also been having such stiffness in my feet and legs for several years that I just can hardly walk in the morning or after sitting for a time. My old doctor just said I needed to lose weight and that would go away. Well...I can't seem to lose weight. I went in last week and he did some labs and we talked about all my issues and my depression. I am so ready to do something...I am so tired of feeling lousy! About a month ago I started taking Inositol about 2000mg a day for the PCOS and am still taking that. It has helped with the crazy cravings I have all the time. Hoping it will help lower insulin levels too.
One thing he thought maybe we should check after getting these labs was for Non Classical Adrenal hyperplasia, which around 15% of women with PCOS also have. It would explain why my hursitism is getting so bad.
Anyway, we went over the labs and I'm still trying to figure out what it all means. I didn't get them drawn in the morning...he forgot to mention that so I had them drawn at 12:30pm when I went to town that day. It was a 12 hour fast.
Here are some of my labs:
D3 33
Total testosterone was 43
Free testosterone was 5.2
Free T3 330
Free T4 1.1
TSH .68
Insulin 22
Cortisol 3.6 (this one is one I think was thrown off by not drawing in the morning. He thinks I'm still low on the Cortisol. )
The reference was 8-10am 4.6-20.6 mcg/dl
4-6pm 1.8-13.6 mcg/dl
DHEA 305 (optimal 700)
There is more form the basic metabolic panel, but don't know if those are important or not.
I did a test for Zinc deficiency where you swish stuff around in your mouth...I didn't taste anything so he says that means I'm really deficient and he painted my arm with Iodine and that was gone in 3 hours. So I guess that's not good either.
I have been reading how Iodine deficiency can cause goiters and nodules on the thyroid, which I have, so all this really makes sense.
I'm waiting to get the money to do some more testing, in the mean time I'm just taking adrenal support tablets by Nature's Sunshine that he had in the office. One pill with a meal twice a day and taking a D3 supplement.
I know I should be doing more and as soon as I get the money I will.
I guess one of my questions is if anyone knows about the cortisol level, if that's low or not based on my draw time and what over the counter would be good for the zinc/iodine problem. I have been vegetarian for about 6 months now and wondered if that's what caused this part, but I've had the goiter and nodules for years...so probably not.
Is there anything I can be eating to help build these up in my diet?
Thank you for reading and any information. I really don't know much about adrenal or thyroid stuff except what I've been reading the last week or so I appreciate any advice from those who know more than me!
I was diagnosed with PCOS probably 18 years ago and up until 5years ago when my Bug was born I just suffered with the gastro symptoms of the glucophage that never did anything for me anyway. I stopped taking it and really just ignored it for awhile. Which I know was not the right thing to do. I found the worrying about the symptoms just frustrated me. Recently I started seeing a holistic doctor because the symptoms of the PCOS were getting worse. Especially the hursitism. I've also been having such stiffness in my feet and legs for several years that I just can hardly walk in the morning or after sitting for a time. My old doctor just said I needed to lose weight and that would go away. Well...I can't seem to lose weight. I went in last week and he did some labs and we talked about all my issues and my depression. I am so ready to do something...I am so tired of feeling lousy! About a month ago I started taking Inositol about 2000mg a day for the PCOS and am still taking that. It has helped with the crazy cravings I have all the time. Hoping it will help lower insulin levels too.
One thing he thought maybe we should check after getting these labs was for Non Classical Adrenal hyperplasia, which around 15% of women with PCOS also have. It would explain why my hursitism is getting so bad.
Anyway, we went over the labs and I'm still trying to figure out what it all means. I didn't get them drawn in the morning...he forgot to mention that so I had them drawn at 12:30pm when I went to town that day. It was a 12 hour fast.
Here are some of my labs:
D3 33
Total testosterone was 43
Free testosterone was 5.2
Free T3 330
Free T4 1.1
TSH .68
Insulin 22
Cortisol 3.6 (this one is one I think was thrown off by not drawing in the morning. He thinks I'm still low on the Cortisol. )
The reference was 8-10am 4.6-20.6 mcg/dl
4-6pm 1.8-13.6 mcg/dl
DHEA 305 (optimal 700)
There is more form the basic metabolic panel, but don't know if those are important or not.
I did a test for Zinc deficiency where you swish stuff around in your mouth...I didn't taste anything so he says that means I'm really deficient and he painted my arm with Iodine and that was gone in 3 hours. So I guess that's not good either.
I have been reading how Iodine deficiency can cause goiters and nodules on the thyroid, which I have, so all this really makes sense.
I'm waiting to get the money to do some more testing, in the mean time I'm just taking adrenal support tablets by Nature's Sunshine that he had in the office. One pill with a meal twice a day and taking a D3 supplement.
I know I should be doing more and as soon as I get the money I will.
I guess one of my questions is if anyone knows about the cortisol level, if that's low or not based on my draw time and what over the counter would be good for the zinc/iodine problem. I have been vegetarian for about 6 months now and wondered if that's what caused this part, but I've had the goiter and nodules for years...so probably not.
Is there anything I can be eating to help build these up in my diet?
Thank you for reading and any information. I really don't know much about adrenal or thyroid stuff except what I've been reading the last week or so I appreciate any advice from those who know more than me!