Originally published on 3rd November 2017 Last updated on 19th October 2023
Do you still feel unwell on thyroid medication even though your doctor is insistent that your test results are coming back ‘fine’ or ‘normal’?
Perhaps your doctor isn’t running all the thyroid tests that you need?
Many thyroid patients benefit from being more involved in their thyroid care and treatment, which is where self-testing and the ability to order your own tests can be critical tools for empowering yourself.
More and more thyroid patients are ordering their own tests online, including myself, because they’re wanting to become more involved in their own health and treatment, or to perhaps fill in the blanks where their doctor is letting them down with thyroid issues.
Why You Can Benefit From Ordering Your Own Thyroid Tests.
A lot of doctors only test TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone) and go by it entirely to decide on your course of treatment for hypothyroidism, but this isn’t accurate on its own.
TSH is a hormone secreted by the pituitary gland. It serves as an average read out over the previous four to six weeks of your thyroid levels.
It in turn tells the thyroid how much hormone to produce. By only testing TSH and not the actual thyroid hormone levels (Free T3 and Free T4), you’re not getting the most comprehensive and accurate view of your thyroid health and thus, the best treatment. You can read more on Why Going by TSH Alone Is Inaccurate here.
Another factor to consider is whether your hypothyroidism is autoimmune, which it is for around 90% of us, and this can affect which road we take to recovery hugely, yet many patients have never been tested for Hashimoto’s.
Related Article: Why It’s Important to Know if You Have Hashimoto’s
For this, you need to test thyroid antibody levels. I can’t stress how important it is to know whether your hypothyroidism is autoimmune – for me, I only started to see an improvement in symptoms when I implemented changes to address the autoimmune condition causing the underactive thyroid.
The Importance of Adrenal Health
As knowledge on Adrenal dysfunction continues to grow, many of us are also checking for this and it is overwhelmingly common in thyroid patients.
Symptoms of adrenal dysfunction include but are not limited to:
weight gain, ongoing fatigue, trouble sleeping, sugar or salt cravings, being over-emotional, anxiety, hot flushes, brain fog, dizziness, jumping at sudden or loud noises and a lot more.
For a lot of us, adrenal issues are causing some of our ongoing symptoms with hypothyroidism.
You Need The Full Thyroid Panel Testing
A full thyroid panel includes:
- TSH
- Free T3
- Free T4
- Thyroid antibodies TPOAB and TGAB
This collection of tests give a comprehensive overview of your thyroid function and levels, to help produce the most accurate treatment plan for you, so that you can get optimal on your thyroid medication and begin to feel better.
Because being optimal matters. It matters entirely.
Where Can I Order My Own Thyroid Tests From?
Below are a couple of places I recommend…
For the UK: Medichecks
Medichecks is a very popular choice for inexpensive yet comprehensive home-testing with a fast turn around in the UK.
You can order:
- A full thyroid function test
- Cortisol testing for checking adrenal dysfunction
- The test I most often order myself – The Advanced Thyroid Function Blood Test, which checks the full thyroid panel (including antibodies) as well as vitamins and minerals such as Vitamin D, B12, Ferritin and Folate.
Results are then securely emailed to you with commentary made by their in-house doctors, letting you know how to proceed with your health.
My followers can also use the discount code INVISIBLE10 for 10% off tests.
US: LetsGetChecked
Another trusted place you can order some more in-depth thyroid testing is LetsGetChecked, who offer countless tests. LetsGetChecked cover most of the world.
You can order:
-
- A full thyroid function test
- Thyroid antibodies / Hashimoto’s testing
- and many more.
LetsGetChecked offer a one-on-one test results review with their dedicated team of doctors and nurses which are available 24/7 and will call you to explain your results.
My followers can also use the discount code 25INVISIBLE for 25% off tests.
A longer list of places (sorted by country) to order your own tests online can be seen here.
My Experience
My experiences of ordering my own tests online is that it’s a really easy and quick way of getting a full picture look of my thyroid levels. I order my own tests from the above websites at least two or three times a year.
I always suggest that thyroid patients empower themselves by doing their own research and become their own thyroid advocate. It makes such a difference in how well-managed your thyroid condition is, to be clued up on what’s going on.
