Dealing with Thyroid Symptoms: Frustrations and Questions

I am in same boat where my thyroid labs looked "normal" for many years. I finally got a doctor to let me try Synthroid. It was LIFE CHANGING and I am so angry I didn't try sooner. Screw their "normal" lab ranges that are super wide. You have to find your normal. I get severe fatigue dry skin and other stuff and am bedridden I feel so week, when all my labs are still "within normal range" and once I get on Synthroid in two weeks I am dancing around it's so drastic. I need to be at the high end of the "normal" range to feel good. Don't let them gaslight you!!

i had two biopsy’s done that showed i have hashimoto. but my levels are normal and i’m okay in their eyes. the amount of hair i’ve lost is crazy and some times i’ll sleep the whole day or two and wake up exhausted still.

Fine tuning a diet is exhausting, expensive, time consuming and feels foolish.... I try for what I feel best eating... Simple, nutrient dense meals, that aren't filled with tons of processed ingredients or that require a professional chef. Lots of protein and veggie meals using an instant pot, slow cooker or roasting pan in the oven

I'm 30 and was diagnosed at 25... I was told to go gluten/dairy free by the nurse practitioner who first noticed my thyroid swelling, but haven't received that specific recommendation from the endocrinologists who diagnosed or currently treat me. They tend to throw out trying elimination diets, AIP, low-fodmap, soy free, caffeine and alcohol free, etc. Drs really places the onus on yourself to find any solution. I feel like I have read all the health help books and done all the research online.... I try to be open until the author starts selling their miracle green smoothie mix, only purchasable on their website, or when the tone becomes, "you're the reason you are ill if you don't cut ALL 15 of these foods completely out of your life".

Absolutely. I do have a Hashimoto's diagnosis, which was reflected in "normal" TSH, T3, T4 levels, but with high TPO Antibodies. I've also been on and off thyroid medications but I never feel healthy and still experience all those Hashimoto's symptoms. It's very frustrating! At this point, my endocrinologist seems to ignore my repeated concerns and suggests we retest my TSH only, which has never been reflective of how ill I feel.