Nothing extreme, just 200 mcg per day. I have been treating my insomnia as the results of inappropriately high overnight cortisol levels by supplementing B vitamins, C, and zinc. It really seems to be helping!! I am having consistently better nights--both fewer awakenings and feeling more rested in the a.m. In the course of my research for high cortisol, I have come across a lot of info on vitamins and minerals for thyroid as well. Since I have some indications of low thyroid (extremely dry skin and very, very brittle nails, along with creeping weight gain), I was wondering about supplementing selenium next.

Sorry, I just got an image of you rustling around in your cupboards and desk drawers looking for a thyroid gland to check.

LOL! I was only wondering if I even had the capability to create rt3 with my dead as a doornail thyroid.

Unfortunately, the experiment failed to take into account that mere decrease in T4 and RT3 -- per se -- won't do much to help if whatever T3 you have is pooling in your blood (as measured by serum level) instead of going into your cells.

It's akin to taking Avandia to 'help' with blood glucose levels instead of changing your diet to reverse diabetes type 2 by making your cells more insulin sensitive. The Avandia lowers glucose levels all right -- it does so by sending a signal to the tiny pre-fat cells hanging around the gut that makes them become full-fledged (empty) fat cells, and then sends all the converted-to-fat glucose into them. The patient grows ever more insulin resistant, until even the fat cells become resistant. Then Avandia won't 'work' anymore.

The whole idea of first diagnosing and then properly treating thyroid hormone resistance is to make the cells more thyroid hormone (T3) sensitive instead of letting them remain thyroid resistant. Selenium supplementation won't do a darn thing for that.


First, most of your T3 is created in the liver and kidneys, which is why it is called a peripheral thyroid hormone. It's created in peripheral tissue rather than in your thyroid gland.

Second, it is created from T4, but if your thyroid is not producing T4, no conversion can take place. However, T3 taken orally can go directly into your cells (assuming the receptors are not blocked by RT3 -- and only a blood test can determine that) and be used as if it had been 'converted' from T4 to begin with. Unfortunately, most doctors are still prescribing Synthroid or other T4 meds, and those only add to the problem if T4 is being converted to RT3. That medication is not really suitable for almost anyone.

Dessicated thyroid, which contains all the four T's your body needs, has been used successfully for over a hundred years, and only a huge Big Pharma campaign ten years ago (or so) shoved it into the corner. If you do not have a RT3 problem (as shown by blood tests) -- then dessicated thyroid is great. The best out there right now is Nature-Throid or Westthroid (made by RCL Labs) -- and the worst is the newly reformulated Armour, whose current cellulose fillers are causing major medical problems for patients.

Finally, you may be surprised to learn that not all thyroids treated by radiation (as yours was) are totally inactive -- or if they were initially, that they need to remain that way. There seems to be a growing population discovering that with the right supplementation of peripheral thyroid hormone medication, some function can be restored. There's a fair bit of research out there on the net, and there are blood tests you can order that will tell you where yours is currently.

Lisa

It's frustrating to read about a problem you think you might be at risk for that is diagnosed by tests no doctor will order and is treated by medicines no doctor will prescribe.

Like most women, my blood work comes back completely normal and my weight gain is so small that the drs. don't take me seriously. As for the insomnia, 4 different drs. have all agreed that what I have is an Ambien deficiency! One endo refused to do any further tests beyond the standard free T4/TSH (whatever) because I have no outward signs of any thyroid disorders. She said she couldn't treat me anyway unless I had Addisons, Cushings, or diabetes, and I clearly had none of those.

I think I will continue targeted vitamin and mineral supplementation and see how I feel in the coming weeks. The sleep is improving, so maybe I am doing my adrenals some good at least.

If you pm me where you live I can email you some doctors who WILL do the right tests (Free T3, Free T4, antibodies, ferritin, B12, saliva cortisol) and prescribe the right meds.

Scarlett -- don't forget REVERSE T3! Can't do the ratios without that. And equally crucial: Leptin Serum Level.

Also, the OP should know that all of these tests can be easily ordered online, and the costs are not at all prohibitive.

Lisa

Oh yeah reverse T3. I am too tired to be typing .

Did not know leptin was available as a blood test yet! Wow.......

I didn't know that! Can you post a site or two where I could begin my search? Of course, you have probably already posted it half a dozen times in earlier discussions, but I am new to this topic and not up to speed yet. Your post elsewhere about dropping your total cholesterol by 100 pts in one month caught my eye. The only blood values I ever get that are off are high total cholesterol (253) and very low sodium and very low chloride. Don't know what to make of the low salts, but the high TC is offset by high HDL (110) and low trigs (65).

Low sodium is often a sign of flagging adrenals.

Here is a list of private labs and the tests you need also:

http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.co...mended-labwork/

Oh and my total cholesterol dropped from 269 to 177 after getting to my optimum thyroid treatment.

Nelson -

glad to hear your sleep is better. I also notice a big improvement in stress levels supplementing zinc and vitamin C, and also magnesium. I wonder if low-carbing increases the need for zinc? It's very odd, as meat is the most zinc-rich food source, but twice lc-ing I got low in zinc. According to ithyroid.com zinc is good for hypothyroid (copper being antagonistic?).