javelina

If you can convince your doc to run a Free T3 and Free T4 test it would be a lot more conclusive than just a TSH to diagnose hypothyroidism. But given your symptoms and your response to the medication it's a pretty sure bet that you are hypo. Your TSH is on the high side, no matter what the ranges say.

There are two basic medications to treat hypo-T, one is the synthetic T4 you are currently taking, the other is with natural thyroid hormones, which come from pig thyroids (Armour, Nature-throid). I suggest you read up on these and make your own decision about your treatment. I chose the natural thyroid because I wish to replace my hormones with a full compliment of hormones that NTH has(T1, T2, T3, T4 and Calcitonin), which is what my own thyroid would produce if it were functioning properly. Not all doctors prescribe NTH however and it can be more challanging to find one who does. * Disallowed website link and related information removed by hb-mod, moderator *

But no matter what you use, be sure to get treated based on keeping your symptoms at bay and not based just on your TSH level. Often docs who only use TSH for diagnosis will stop increasing the meds if the TSH gets suppressed and this leaves a lot of people continuously hypo. It's far better to use the Free T3 and Free T4 levels to judge just how much hormones you have.

Be sure to read up on some posts here, they can answer a lot of your questions and give you a lot of good info.