You’ve been told your thyroid is “fine.” But you still feel terrible — exhausted, foggy, gaining weight no matter what you do. Sound familiar?
The most common thyroid test ordered by conventional doctors is TSH — thyroid stimulating hormone. And while TSH is a useful starting point, it only tells part of the story. It’s like checking the oil light on your dashboard and assuming the entire engine is fine.
What TSH Doesn’t Tell You
TSH measures how loudly your brain is asking your thyroid to work. But it doesn’t measure:
- Free T4 and Free T3 — the actual hormones your cells use for energy and metabolism
- Reverse T3 — a marker that shows whether your body is converting thyroid hormones properly or blocking them
- TPO and TG Antibodies — immune markers that reveal whether Hashimoto’s autoimmune thyroiditis is quietly destroying your thyroid gland
- T3 Uptake — helps evaluate how well thyroid hormones are binding and being utilized
The Functional Medicine Approach
At Neurometabolic Solutions, Dr. Gafken runs a comprehensive thyroid panel — not just TSH — on every patient presenting with fatigue, brain fog, weight gain, hair loss, or mood changes. This expanded panel often reveals dysfunction that standard testing completely misses.
We also evaluate your thyroid in context: looking at blood sugar regulation, cortisol patterns, gut inflammation, and nutrient deficiencies that directly affect how your thyroid functions.
What You Can Do Right Now
If you’ve been told your thyroid is normal but you still don’t feel right, consider requesting a full thyroid panel. And if your doctor won’t order one, that’s exactly the kind of investigation we specialize in.
Ready to dig deeper? Schedule a free 15-minute consultation to discuss your symptoms and see if advanced thyroid testing is right for you.
