Blood tests all okay, sad to say I cried!

[tinkywinkyshandbag]

Had bloods done recently inc thyroid and ferritin for an array of odd symtoms. All normal. GP sympathetic but focussed only on my need to lose weight (yes I know, I know!). Came away from the docs and just sobbed in the car because I was hoping for some kind of explanation. What do I do now??
Symptoms include insomnia (terrible), restless legs, no libido, depressed, weight gain, dry skin/hair, lack of energy, and other odd ones like aching joints. Only thing she could really suggest was being weighed weekly by the nurse and if all else fails she would prescribe orlistat.
I asked if mirena might be causing it and she poo poohed this (sympathetically but still....). Can I just ring up and ask for it to be removed? Who would do it, nurse or doc? Got to be worth a try right??

[PicandMinx]

Not sure how weighing you each week would help your restless legs!

Sounds like the Mirena to me - your GP is obliged to persuade you to keep it in

Get rid - they are called bastards for a reason. (the coil, not the GP)

[SleepyBum]

Did she test your vitamin D levels?

I'm not surprised you feel upset, it's such a downer to get no answers. Keep pushing, make a nuisance of yourself if you have to!

[LemonBreeland]

I feel for you. I had similar blood tests, luckily?! For me it came back that I had an overactive thyroid. I can only imagine the devastation I would have felt at the blood tests returning normal.

If you want your mirena removed you are perfectly entitled to that. Who putt it in? As that will most likely determine who will remove it. They don't deal with them at all in our doctors surgery.

I hope you get some answers soon.

[FuckyNell]

Sounds like my peri menopause symptoms actually.

[TooSpotty]

It might be worth asking for the exact levels. Sometimes the NHS can declare pretty borderline results 'normal'.

[Quangle]

def get the actual results - and then post them on here. NHS often say certain thyroid numbers are ok when a specialist would say they are not.

[CiderwithBuda]

Magnesium deficiency?

[tinkywinkyshandbag]

Hi all, thanks I have ordered some magnesium spray which is for the restless legs, and am going to make a call re. getting the mirena taken out, I do like the lack of periods but need to try something. GP didn't offer or discuss HRT, but suggested I go back in 3 months for a review. Just annoying when I know something is wrong. When I said how bad the restless legs were, she actually googled it - well I am quite capable of doing that myself!

[didireallysaythat]

Has your go suggested the mini pill ? I couldn't get organised enough to have a coil, and I used to be on the regular pill. You can take the mini pill until menopause and you probably won't have periods on it.

DH has twitchy legs. He takes soluble iron (spatone) with orange juice everyday. Cures his anaemia so he feels less tired and maybe it's all in his head but his legs are better. Iron levels take a couple of weeks to sort themselves out.

As for the weight - such a hard thing to do. I'm currently trying to swap chocolate and biscuits for carrots and apples. Rather dull but they are my undoing. I'm still having cake and eating it though !

[tinkywinkyshandbag]

Hi, thanks I'm not very organised either, I did try the mini pill about 5 years ago and kept forgetting it. That's why I like the mirena really but DH is okay about using condoms so we may have to go down that route. I'm 47 so could even be in menopause.

Ferritin levels were okay to be honest but spatone may be worth a try.

Weight wise I know it's all in my head, diets work if you do them but I know I turn to food when stressed and am stressed at the moment so maybe that's where I need to start. Fix the head and the body will follow.

[didireallysaythat]

I know how you feel. Trying to sort out your diet while stressed is just setting yourself up for a fall which will make it all seem worse. Been there, done that, in fact still doing that !

[RockinD]

Never believe anyone who tells you that your results are 'normal'. Always get a print out of the results. They are your data and you are entitled to them. Get the reference ranges as well.

Is your ferritin over 70?
TSH below 2?
B12 over 500?
D over 100?

As others have said, get your results. It may just be menopause, or the Mirena or any number of other things, but it could also be something obvious in your test results that the GP has missed. I speak from bitter experience.

[tinkywinkyshandbag]

Hi all - me again! Am being driven totally insane by my restless legs, I have not had one decent nights sleep in literally months. I am awake most nights between 1 and 2 and it lasts for about 2 hours when I just have to get up. Eating bananas and stretching helps, but does not relieve it totally. I am soooo tired!!

Anyway got my blood test printout from the doc, finally.

TSH 2.1
Ferritin 85
B12 457
Vit D not taken.

I take a multivit and have recently started taking ashwaganda. I am also using a magnesium oil spray for my legs which seems to help a bit but am wondering whether I should supplement (my multivit claims to give me 80 percent RDA but I am not totally consistent taking it if I am honest)

Would it be worth taking an iron supplement?

Anything else? HRT? I am 47 in September, and having hot flushes fairly regularly but that could be the weather!

I am going away for a few weeks and have decided to have my mirena removed when I get back, I didn't want to have to worry about contraception/periods on holiday.

I am doing low carb eating and trying not to eat crap. I have lost a few pounds but it is very very slow going.

Any other ideas for a fat, anxious, irritable, twitchy legged old cow?

[tinkywinkyshandbag]

Hopeful bump

[DoItTooJulia]

Try sublingual b12. Pricey, but could be worth a shot.

Do you take another medication normally?

[tinkywinkyshandbag]

Hi thanks no I take asthma medication (Fostair) but that's it. I am sitting here now and can already feel my legs starting to get restless. I've done a lot of googling and tried different things, no alcohol, lots of alcohol, no caffeine, no carbs, taking valerian, taking sleeping tablets, cold showers, stretching - and still can't stop this awful creeping crawling sensation. I literally cry at night because I am so tired and yet can't sleep. I have also tried listening to relaxation CD's but it's not mental, it's physical. I'm going to go and have an epsom salt bath and see if that helps. Thanks, will look this treatment up.

[RockinD]

If you want to check your vitamin D yourself:

www.vitamindtest.org.uk/

Other than that, your TSH is a tad too high and needs watching, B12 is a tad too low and needs to be over 500 at the very least, ferritin is OK, but you wouldn't want it going any lower, so watch it if you remove the Mirena and start having 'proper' periods again.

Do bear in mind that TSH is a pituitary hormone, not a thyroid hormone, and does not tell you anything about what is happening with your thyroid. For that you need FT4, FT3, TPO and TgAB.

If you want to know more about thyroid issues, come and join the Thyroid UK forum on //www.healthunlocked.com

[Fluffycloudland77]

Dh had similar symptoms, but no insomnia, and since I put him on holland and barretts magnesium citrate he's massively better.

It has to be citrate, not oxide, though.