Help With Test Interpretations Please

Hi everyone,


I've been recently diagnosed ( clinically) with Lyme and Bartonella. However, before that, due to all of my severe symptoms ( There are a lot) I was waiting months to see an endocrinologist and an integrative medicine doc to check for thyroid disorder. I was almost positive that's why I have been a forgetful zombie for the past couple of years. Well, after waiting all that time to see both docs, both declared my levels in range. At the time, I didn't know much about thyroid disorders but while waiting for my appts I did much reading on the subject and thought my levels looked a bit low. Or a couple of them and a couple posters on the Lyme board agreed.

Now since, I have been diagnosed with Lyme. It does explain some of the symptoms but not all and I have a suspicion that my Thyroid has been effected and this could be exacerbating my symptoms. Particularly severe cognitive dysfunction, brain fog and scary memory issues. Plus insomnia, unable to rest or sleep much, any time of day or night, heart palps, loss of eyelashes and eyebrow hair, several every single day, ear ringing, blurred vision, etc.

The most concerning is the cognitive stuff and I don't find many Lyme patients who complain of eyelash loss, yet. If I can find a doc who knows that these levels should be in the top half of the range instead of the bottom, then I am willing to try anything to help relieve some of these symptoms so that I can think clearly , better help myself through this and give my body a fair shot at fighting lyme and co. The best endos here all have a 4 or 5 month wait at least and I cannot continue to waste another year waiting to be told that nothing can be done there. I cannot work or do anything. I don't even feel like me at all anymore.

I've also just had heavy metals testing if anyone here can help with that as well. I really feel like there is more to the story here. My LLMD won't talk or look at anything else but my Lyme symptoms. For a long time I even doubted that's what it really is. But based on my history and some other events, now I'm beginning to believe I do have it, but that there's more as often is the case.

Also, so far none of the "Thyroid Specialists" I've seen even tested reverse t3 or t4. I'm very frustrated here and broke. I cannot even function, work, drive, etc and have been this way for a long time.

Please tell me what you think. If there is a problem ( I suspect low t3) that can be helped at all, besides trying to take shots in the dark trying to find a doctor here to let me try something for it. Preferably nature thyroid or something similar. Is there anything natural I can purchase/take on my own that would maybe help? Willing to try anything even if it helps clear up my mind just a little.

Also, if anyone here is familiar with heavy metals testing and how to interpret those I can post that as well.

Please someone help. My brain is not working and I have no support system here to help and the docs here are HORRIBLE!

T4 Free 1.2 ( Ref range 0.8 - 1.8 ng/dl)
TSH 0.88 ( ref range 0.40 - 4.50)
T3 Free 2.8 ( Ref range 2.3 - 4.2)

Also High Cholesterol levels. Very high. Endo said it's just genetic. However, I have lost a lot of weight due to low appetite and changed my diet drastically for a few months before test. I know there's a connection there as well with Thyroid disorders.

Thanks so much!

I am not a doctor, but anyone can see that all those numbers are within range or under that cutoff (e.g. thyroid antibodies). If you start taking thyroid replacement, you would most likely go hyper. Is that what you want? Muscle weakness, constantly hot, jittery, brain fog, and bone loss to name a few?

Lyme Disease alone, may very well be your issue and not thyroid.

(I have Hashimoto’s.)

Cyclinglady,

Thanks for your reply. To answer your question, no, I do not want or need anymore sx then I already have. I already have an enormous amount of brain fog 24/7. Cannot remember anything and I'm a shell of the person I once was. Lyme is quite enough.

I'm only trying to rule out a Thyroid component because I know Lyme can and often will attack the endocrine system along with other things as I'm finding now and others with both lyme and Thyroid disorder have told me my numbers look in the lower part of the range and may be worsening some of these things. Which I would like to avoid at all costs.

The other reasons I ask is because I'm trying to find out why I'm losing an abnormal amount of eyelashes and eyebrow hair daily but only slight thinning on my head. I cannot find this to be a Lyme symptom. Thanks for your input though. I'm just trying to put all the pieces together here to help myself better.


Thank you astroman,


I appreciate your post as well. I do suspect that this is more of an adrenal and or gut issue. I definitely had gut issues before lyme and this has certainly made it worse. I do also suspect adrenal fatigue because of a round of oral steriods I did earlier this year ( before I was diagnosed with Lyme) that completely pushed me over the edge and almost killed me. Have not been the same since, nor has my sleeping patterns. Not even close. I'm just trying to see if there's anything I can do presently to help with any of these things.

I have changed my diet drastically and will continue to keep working on it. No sugar, dairy, gluten, starches, etc for months now.

Any other advice for me since it sounds like you have experience with this? I've already been on a combo of abx for just over a month. Been sick for a very long time so I'm not expecting miracles. I just want to know all my enemies so to speak or rather how many there are and how I should best be treating these things.

The cognitive dysfunction and heart troubles really has me down. The eyelash loss is the least of my problems and at this point, vanity means nothing to me anymore. It used to. I just don't think lyme is the cause of that particular issue. I could be wrong though.

Thanks again.

Thanks again astroman,

I'll keep an eye on the thyroid from now on. But it's good to know I can kind of rule it out as to the cause of any of my symptoms that don't seem to fit lyme. There are a lot of factors in my case so I just want to sort through it all. With a half working brain but I'm trying. I just literally had like 3 eyelashes fall out in the last hour. kind of freaks me out.

Thanks for the natural recommendations to increase T3. I'll google more about this. I actually love Brazil nuts so bonus if that's true

My eyes are always red the last several months and they burn occasionally. I noticed that kicked up a little more when I started abx but now it comes and goes here and there. Periods of blurred vision. That's recently only gotten slightly better lately. But in relation to my eyes, the newest thing I noticed happening lately is I do get these white flakes around my eyes, all times of the day and sometimes I find them in my eyebrows too. I know it's not dandruff. I wouldn't be a bit surprised if it were either of the two things you mentioned or Demadox as someone else suggested. I'm planning on seeing a naturopath soon. I'm hoping they will be able to sort this out for me. Do you think trying a round of diflucan might help if this is yeast overgrowth?

Thanks for the name of the lab for the adrenal saliva test. I'll look into that as well.

Did you get tested for celiac disease prior to going gluten free? That might be your source of hair loss, cognitive issues, etc. CD has over 200 possible symptoms and many overlap with Lyme. It is systemic and most systems are due to malabsorption. Unfortunately, you must be on a gluten diet for 8 to 12 weeks the the antibodies blood test.

Sorry you are going through this brain fog issues. I can relate. I do have hashimoto's and other auto immune illnesses. I've had bad brain fog. Recently, I started taking vitamins and it really helped me. I think I was low in B vitamins.

Functional medicine often helps people when mainstream does not. Functional medicine.org

I watched a lot of functional medicine videos on auto immune disease and read some books. I took some of the supplements and vitamins recommended and my thyroid straightened out along with the fatigue and brain fog. They have protocols for treating lyme. Maybe it would help you?

I wish you the best of luck in your quest to feel better. I went to mainstream docs for years, took antidepressants, sleep meds, you name it and it was the vitamins and supplements that got me well. I was quite shocked b/c I was not a believer.

Oh, I also did gluten free and dairy free and that helped a lot. Still doing that. I had some food intolerances.