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I have no thyroid... zip, zilch, nada! I take 100 mcg a day of levothyroxine to keep my levels in check & had no problems conceiving or carrying P... and she's a perfectly healthy little girl!

I wondered & worried about the same things, but as long as you get your levels in order there really shouldn't be any reason to worry.

Hi...
I have hypothyroid (hashimotos) as well as PCOS.
I had not ovulated or had AF visit in a year despite being on synthroid and metformin.
We weren't TTC, but we were NTNP.
I had acupuncture (for pain) and a week later must have ovulated. We must have BD at the right time, as 8 weeks later I got a BFP.

For me, since I didnt know when I ovulated, I was freaking out....I didnt know if my meds were safe and I hadn't been following any pregnancy rules, including alcohol use.

I got into the OB right away who did a dating ultrasound. He confirmed that the acupuncture likely stimulated my ovulation.

The OB was more worried about the PCOS and low progesterone rather than the hypothyroid. I had blood tests throughout the pregnancy and my synthroid dosage kept increasing.

From what I understood, once you become pregnant, hypothyroid is only really an issue if unmedicated/out of control.

They were worried at one point in the 3rd tri when my levels were completely out of whack, but they did a biophysical profile at the perinatologist and all was ok.

My baby boy is 6 months old!
Also, after having once successful pregnancy, my cycles are now regular.

So the short version of this:
1. It is possible to have a healthy pregancy with hypothyroidism
2. Make sure to stay medicated and under control
3. Look into acupuncture
4. Don't stress about the complications.......once you get a BFP, just make sure you're monitored by a good OB or Perinatologist.

If you have any questions for me, feel free to ask.

I was told the same thing as @sloaneandpuffy:. A regulated thyroid is like not having a thyroid issue at all.

I have Hashimoto's and had no trouble TTC. so far this pregnancy is uneventful. The only difference has been that I need monthly blood work done to check my thyroid levels and my medication gets adjusted accordingly. I will also have my anatomy scan done by MFM instead of just from an ultrasound tech.

My mom has hashimotos and had three successful pregnancies, no miscarriages, and quick conceptions (awkward!).

My grandmother had hypothyroidism and had 10 kids in 11 years! It's rampant throughout that side of the family, but all of her kids had 3-5 of their own. My levels were just on the cusp of okay when we were TTC, but I have PCOS as well. We got pregnant the cycle during which they were running fertility tests. DD was born at 39+5 and is a healthy 6 month old.

I have a friend who has 3 kids & the last one was an oops right after her LO was born. Everyone is different but once she got hers under control she was a baby making machine! Good luck hon.

@pui also want to add that I know get my thyroid checked every 4 weeks (bloods and exam). For pregnancy they suggest tsh stay below 2.0

@runsyellowlites: I was born without one... is that what happened with you too?

I also have two happy and healthy children. I had no problems conceiving or staying pregnant. The only trouble I've had has been now. My levels are all over the place and have been since I had my daughter last June.

@runsyellowlites: well, luckily the newborn testing that they do included a test for that. if i had been born a year earlier, it would have been a different story. we were in another province a few days after i was born, then we came back to the doctors frantically trying to get a hold of my mom. the newborn testing saved my life. i've been on Synthroid pretty much my entire life, save for an experiment with another drug that did not work.

@pui: Has your doctor tested your thyroid antibodies to see if you have Hashi's? It is an autoimmune disease and could explain the other issues. I would ask to have them checked. A lot of autoimmune disease lead to other autoimmune issues which is why there is a link between autoimmune thyroid diseases (Hashi's and Grave's) and things like gluten interances. Some of the other things my endo looked at besides gluten/Celiac were vit d and B12 deficiencies and she often checks my cortisol levels.

I'm sure your doctor has already told you this, but just in case, for TTC and pregnancy you will want your TSH to be between 1-2 with the optimum level being 1. You will want to make sure that your OB (or endocrinologist if you can get in to one) is knowledgable on thyroid and the acceptable ranges according to trimester, not just that you are "within range". TSH by trimester:
First trimester: 0.1-2.5 mIU/L
Second trimester: 0.2-3.0 mIU/L
Third trimester: 0.3-3.0 mIU/L
You want to make sure they are looking at your TSH, Free T4 and Free T3 (not total T3/T4) and also taking your symptoms into account in order to get the whole picture. They should be checking these levels at least once every 4 weeks throughout your pregnancy. It is best to get your thyroid regulated before TTC since baby depends on mom for thyroid function throughout the first trimester, but like we said before a regulated thyroid is like having no issue at all and you really shouldn't worry.

As for medication...my initial dose was 75 mcg levothyrovxine at dx (TSH over 44. I was nonfunctioning). It was the trick for me and has been my dose ever since up until I got my BFP (TSH regulated right around 1, optimum or TTC). once I got my BFP my dose was adjusted slightly where I was taking my regular dose part of the week and 1.5x the rest (it's your total weekly amount that matters not day to day). Once I hit the second tri my endo has adjusted my dose again. I get my levels checked again in 2 weeks. Hope that helps and feel free to ask questions. We were NTNP and I got my BFP shortly after DS weaned. So we weren't actively TTC.

I have it! So does my mom, her mom, and her mom did as well. I have had one healthy, full-term (actually over-due) baby, and am pregnant with my second. My cycles are longer, so I had fewer chances per year to conceive, but I've had no problems other than that.

@pui: 12.44 is quite high (though I think the scale might be different in Canada?) If its the same scale, then it will definitely take a while to get down to normal from there (normal is 1-2). My doc said that it should take at least 6 weeks to adjust to meds. I know that isn't what you wanted to hear though! I hope you start to feel better soon...

Mine was like 64. For real. And it came down in a couple of months. Can't remember when I had my follow up but it wasn't too long.