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High TSH and Low Free T3?

Hi Everyone. My doctor said that she has no idea what my results mean.

TSH = 5.24 (Slightly elevated)
Free T3 = 2.17 (slightly low)
Free T4 = 0.98 (Normal, I believe)

I've been having symptoms for 5 years such as a sudden 20 pound weight gain and highly irregular menstrual cycles along with severe constipation. I started getting my period more than once a month or sometimes for several weeks at a time. I had already been on birth control pills for several years before this started years ago and tried switching them around but it was no use. My doctors have run TSH and T4 over the years which always came back normal. I asked for a T3/panel at this new place and they did it and this is the the result. My mother has been taking synthroid since she was 24 and it has helped her. (I am 27). I am also on lithium which is why I had been having my thyroid checked in previous years.

This new doctor said she had no idea why my results were how they were and suggested twice (I said NO twice) that I get an IUD. (Pregnancy is not an issue and I DO NOT WANT AN IUD). She also suggested I take miralax and we could perhaps retest in a week or two. She said she didn't want me to get heart palpitations. I told her that I did in fact have Mitral Valve Prolapse but she didn't seem concerned with that aspect of the medication/palpitation possibilities...

I don't get why this person couldn't understand my results if she is a physician. It's my opinion that she should have referred me to someone who could read them. I also think it's too bad that any of us have to look to the internet for advice when our doctors should be the ones helping us. (That's not a jab at anyone on the site)

That being said, has anyone seen these kinds of results before?
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903476 tn?1242237037
I have when I was first diagnosed hypothyroid I had had nearly a year and a half of negative tests. It wasn't until I saw a dermatologist for my constant breakouts. After all the normal acne treatments didn't work he said that Insulin Resistance is pretty common specially in woman so he had me tested turns out I have it so he put me on pills to fix it. It was then that my hypothyroid symptom's kicked up to a 11 see the insulin that was masking my thyroid problems but once that was leveled out they were able to get a 13.4  TSH level out of me.
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Avatar universal
Test results and reference ranges vary from one lab to another, so please post the ranges shown on the lab report for those results.   Also, before further discussion, please look at this list and tell us of all the symptoms you seem to have.  

Fatigue
Increased sensitivity to cold
Constipation (If you take laxatives you have this)
Dry skin  (If you use skin creme you have this)
Weight gain
Puffy face
Hoarseness
Muscle weakness
Elevated blood cholesterol level
Muscle aches, tenderness and stiffness
Pain, stiffness or swelling in your joints
Heavier than normal or irregular menstrual periods
Thinning hair
Slowed heart rate
Depression
Impaired memory
Enlarged thyroid gland (goiter)
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