Still REALLY CONFUSED About Thyroid Meds...

[Mianezra]

Hello, I am a brand new member, however I have been reading different posts for over a year now. My situation is this..... I was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism in late Aug of 2003 and it was determined that the effect was caused by a tear in my thyroid due to a virus. My Endo told me that there were several scenarios that could happen once the tear healed. He said that I would either return to normal, go hypo and then return normal on my own, or go hypo and stay hypo, meaning I would have to take meds. Well of course I went hypo and stayed hypo so he put me on Synthroid 50mg which helped very minimally. After reading many threads from this site, I decided to pick up some Cytomel while vacationing in Mexico. I have been taking the Cytomel since June 2004 and noticed a slight improvement in the beginning but now am starting to have all the hypo symptoms again, especially weight gain and fatigue. I know it has to be thyroid issues because I have been a low-carber for about 6 yrs now and work out 3-4 times per week. I would like to know if anyone has any information that would help me lose weight and feel better. Should I start taking the synthroid again, along with Cytomel? If so, what doses of each should I be taking on a daily basis? Or, should I try to get my Endo to prescribe Armour? If so, what dosage usually works best? I've also read about adding Synthroid to Armour? Is this better than Armour alone? I am so confused, I just want to feel better soon. Please help. Any info will be greatly appreciated. Thank you :help:

[doloresrod]

HI Mianezra,
My experience with Armour has been great. My endo. added a Compound T4 to it and it has helped me to start losing weight again. Everyone is different. My advice to you would be to ask your doctor about Armour.
I am on 1 1/2 grains of Armour and 75mcg of Compound T4.
There are some cases where the synthroid doesn't work and of course there are some that it does work.
I'm not sure if this helps you but I truly hope that you get your levels where they are suppose to be. A year ago I use to be a couch potato and now I try and walk 3 miles a day during the week and sometimes on the weekend. My husband has noticed a huge difference.
Take care, Dolores

[Natrushka]

Should I start taking the synthroid again, along with Cytomel? If so, what doses of each should I be taking on a daily basis? Or, should I try to get my Endo to prescribe Armour? If so, what dosage usually works best? I've also read about adding Synthroid to Armour? Is this better than Armour alone? I am so confused, I just want to feel better soon. Please help. Any info will be greatly appreciated. Thank you :help:
Mianezra you should get yourself to a doctor and you should have some tests done ASAP. Self-dosing can be very dangerous - especially with cytomel. You need to have your FT4 and FT3 tested to determine what kind of med you need.

The dose of synthroid you were on was very low this is probably why it only helped minimally - it should have been increased and your FT4 and FT3 should have been monitored to determine doseage. If your doctor did not do this then you need to fire him/her and find someone who will help you. It is your right to be healthy and to be properly treated.

Your best bet is to do a little telephoning around to find a doctor so you do not waste your time with one who will be as bad as that last one. You want to ask questions like "Does the doctor treat a lot of people with thyroid disease" and "How does the doctor monitor progress / dosage changes" If you are told by TSH only then you are finished with this office. The correct answer is "by FT levels and symptoms". Also, ask if the doctor ever prescribed natural desiccated thyroid (Armour, Naturthroid) - if you are told YES then you know you've found an enlightend doctor who probably knows a fair bit about this disease.

Also, don't pin all your hopes on Endos - they tend to be primarily focussed on diabetes and don't always know more about thyroid than GPS. Often one of the best group of doctors to deal with thyroid problems are osteopath and naturopaths - doctors who look at disease holistically and understand that symptoms happen in groups and often a disease will present with many of these symptoms. They also do not rely on just the all mighty lab report - they listen to their patients.

Please do not continue selfdosing / medicating. I know of people on other boards who have done this and ended up very sick.

Nat

[Mianezra]

Thank you to both Delores and Natrushka, your information and insights were very helpful. I have an appt scheduled with my GP to check my current levels in the beginning of November and will spend the time in between searching for an Endo who believes in the concept of Armour Thyroid. Thanks again!!!

[doloresrod]

Great! I hope everything works out for you.
Take care, Dolores

[Natrushka]

Thank you to both Delores and Natrushka, your information and insights were very helpful. I have an appt scheduled with my GP to check my current levels in the beginning of November and will spend the time in between searching for an Endo who believes in the concept of Armour Thyroid. Thanks again!!! Glad to be of help, Mia :)

This post might help you find a doctor (http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?p=2683087#post2683087) - don't get your heart set on an endo, though, they aren't usually opened minded enough to prescribe Armour. Here is a list of TopDocs (http://thyroid.about.com/cs/doctors/a/topdocs.htm) as rated by thyroid patients.

Nat