Thyroid and Miscarriages...

I have been reading up on thyroid problems and pregnancy. Disease of the thyroid gland is extremely common. In my situation my thyroid doesn't produce enough hormone. When your thyroid is out of wack it can cause complication in a pregnancy. My T4 levels are low ( which is called hypothyroidism) and that probably explains why I have been extremely tired, have experienced weight gain (packing on the lbs.) my increased feelings of anxiety and my really dry skin. I am sadden to think that I played a big role in my miscarriage.

I didn't realize how much your T4 can fluctuate and affect your health. In 2007 I had my TSH tested and I was at a 4.45 and now (as of July 9th) in 2008 I am at a 4.79. You might be asking what is the normal range? Good question. I have been having a hard time finding out what is truly normal. Some sites that I have visited say one thing and the next site says another.

As of early 2006, at most laboratories in the U.S., the official "normal" Thyroid Stimulating Hormone (TSH) blood test range runs from approximately .5 to 5.0. [The way they gather this range or normal is by using a] reference range [that] is obtained by taking a large group of people in the population, measuring their TSH levels, and calculating a mean value. Supposedly, these people should be free of thyroid disease. What experts are now coming to understand, however, is that the upper TSH normal range has included people who actually have mild thyroid disease, and their higher TSH levels skewed the standard curve. The new guidelines narrow the range for acceptable thyroid function, and the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) is now encouraging doctors to consider thyroid treatment for patients who test the target TSH level of 0.3 to 3.04, a far narrower range. AACE believes the new range will result in proper diagnosis for millions of Americans who suffer from a mild thyroid disorder...

If we use my new and old TSH results with the old guidelines I don't have a problem. If we use the new guidelines from both new and old results I am over the new range of normal. Yesterday,7/16, I went to the Dr. to have a physical completed (everything looks good) and I also had blood work done. They are rechecking my thyroid and cholesterol so that my Dr. can properly diagnose me and treat me with the proper medicine. It will be interesting to hear what he says is the normal range is or what normal range he uses.

Now I want to address why I think I played a big part in my miscarriage. As soon as I found out I was pregnant I stopped taking all of my medication because I didn't want to harm our baby. I was on Lexapro and thyroid medicines. My first Dr. appointment wasn't unit July 14th, so I figured that I would ask the Dr. about the medicines I had stopped taking and he or she would tell me to stop all together,continue or alter the dose. Shortly after finding out I was pregnant I started to experiencing some spotting, some bleeding, heavy bleeding and then spotting again along with lower back pain and lower abdominal cramps. I called the Dr. on the 9th and told them that I need to come in right away. The first thing they did was they gave me a pregnancy test and shockingly it came out negative. What?? I had taken three home pregnancy test that all came out positive, had a blood test done that should my Hcg levels of a women that was 3 to 4 weeks pregnant. I was so sad. My mom was sitting in the room with me when the Dr. told me and I could tell that she was sad too. I don't know why but I didn't let myself cry in front of my mom. I don't think I would have been able to handle seeing my mom cry because I was crying. After receiving my blood work results I spoke with the Dr. that's when she told me that my TSH levels were ate 4.74. I asked her what could have caused the miscarriage and that's when she told me about my thyroid levels being too low. So in a way I blame myself for the miscarriage because I stopped taking my thyroid medicine.