"Long wait for treatment for hypothyroidism"

I started getting the symptoms of hypothyroidism around 5 years ago (2010). I would always feel the cold more than those around me and I started finding it very difficult to concentrate on tasks due to severe drowsiness. I would often have to take a nap for an hour everyday just to get through the day. I noticed I had much less energy than my peers and even my parents.

I visited a doctor who took blood tests and my TSH came out at 5. 8, normal range in the UK is 0. 5-5. 5. However I was told that even though it was raised and outside the normal range, they would not consider treatment until TSH reached 10 even though I was symptomatic. Five years on and my TSH has reached 9. 7 and I have started treatment today.

I feel like my quality of life has been severely impacted for the past 5 years due to ridiculous NHS guidelines, please note that in the USA they begin treatment if the TSH exceeds 3. 5.

Why should people like myself have to suffer without treatment for years. It costs more to deal with the loss of productivity. I know that the NHS puts people suffering from this condition onto free prescriptions but I would have happily paid, I just needed an early diagnosis from my GP and that did not happened.

I feel that I have been failed by the NHS when I needed them the most.