My long journey
I (Male) want to share my story just in case anyone can give me some advice.
- At age 16, diagnosed hyperthyroid, treated with radioactive iodine (RAI), and then turned into hypothyroid, and started taking Synthroid
- At age 26, stopped taking Synthroid after about 10 years of intake, as my blood work showed thyroid numbers in a normal range. Actually, I had not felt good, despite Synthroid. So, it was an easy decision to quit Synthroid at that time. Since then, about every 3-5 year, my blood work still continued normal range.
- At age 50, my blood work showed, for example,:
- TSH: 3.7 (0.3-5.6) (at age 47, TSH was 4.4)
- Free T4: 1.19 (0.93-1.7)
- (total) T3: 1.04 (0.8-2.0)
So, clearly 34 years ago, the RAI did not completely destroy my thyroid, right? Maybe, partially destroyed. However, the thing is, I have NOT felt great over the decades. These are the symptoms I often experience daily: tight jaw, lower and effortful voice, tense headache, hearing my own voice echoing in my ears, mild cold intolerance, not feeling sharp, etc. (My weight and vitamin D are in the normal range, though).
Do you think I can benefit from starting Levo (Synthroid or any other), again? I am not sure because my blood works are still in the normal range, although they are not in the ideal range. Also, I remember that a long long time ago when I was on Synthroid, I was always tired... What would be the most reasonable path forward for me? If you have any insights or tips, I would appreciate it.