# TSH - what is it and how do we test?



## stevo (Jul 17, 2011)

thanks for your help, i'm new!


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## Honor77 (Jan 12, 2011)

Hi *stevo*,

TSH stands for "thyriod-stimulating hormone" and is, as this suggests, related to your thyroid. 
Wikipedia has an article on it that can provide you with more info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thyroid-stimulating_hormone

It's in general important for your health that thyroid levels are stable and thyroid function "normal" - it can affect your blood pressure and heart, among other things. 
When it comes to ttc, unstable levels and an "abnormal" thyroid function can affect your fertility. This is a more common issue for women, but not to be neglected for men either!

I have Graves Disease, which is a thyroid-related condition. This was diagnosed and treated a couple of years before we started ttc, but in my case it still took a while, and the opinion of a fertility consultant, to get my levels to what they needed to be for ttc. [NB: doctors will tell you your levels need to be one thing to be classed as "stable", but for ttc, you need to make sure that they're between 1 and 2 - for women in any case.]

You can have your thyroid tested through your GP (or fertility clinic, if you're already at that stage?) with a simple blood test. Ask for your TSH, T3, T4 and thyroid antibodies to be tested.

Hope that helps a bit! Perhaps also head over to the Immune Issues & Investigations thread at: http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php?board=52.0

xxx


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