Hi Margie,
Your email address does not work. so have to post here.
Thank you for getting back to me. I have much to think on now. I shall make an appointment with my PC DR next week.
I already do use coconut oil, started using it 6 months agao. I manage to cook my eggs in it other than that just do not have anyplace else to put it. I am on induction again with Dr Atkins LC diet. Today is my first full day back. Just calculated my carbs and they are low at 10. YIKES!! not even hungry. I will write again thanks again for the support
hugs Martha

please excuse the lower case typing...broke my upper right arm in 3 places, 2 wks ago, so i am having to attempt to type with my utterly useless left hand! i apologize for my choppy sentances. too

just wanted to tell you which "other" med is working better for me. i am not only hypo but also insulin resistant. started on .100 synthroid and improved...HOWEVER.... when i switched to .100 unithroid....even the fatigue went! TSH started at 2.5 ( and yes I was hypo that low) synthroid dropped it to 1.5 but the unithroid dropped the tsh to .84 and i feel good but have no hyper symptoms. only time i ever went hyper was on a new refill of synthroid....tsh dropped to .61, then .49...stopped taking that refill and started new one...tsh came back up.

you did not show Unithroid as a med even though it was the 1st FDA approved thyroid med ....before Levoxyl & long before synthroid was approved

i love unithroid as you can tell

I've been on synthroid for about 12 yrs now. I'm curently taking 250 mcg's of synthroid a day. I had never heard of taking anything for the t3 and t4. What are the brand names on those drugs? I know that they test that when they do the tsh test. I have a really hard time keeping my thyroid stable. And it hasn't done a thing for my weight loss that I've noticed over the years.
I can tell when it's of the least little bit. I get really tired, so tired that I could just lay down anywhere and go to sleep! Interested hearing all of the moments on this topic.
Thanks,
Shirley

Shirleyann,

There are numerous T4 meds...in my opinion most all of the others are better than Synthroid. Among some T4 meds there is Levoxyl, Synthroid and my preferred...Unithroid.

T3 meds are either a synthetic to be taken with a reduced dose of T4 or in a dessicated (natural pig thyroid)form such as Armour, which was the first thyroid med ever made. Testing both the Total T3 & Free T3 will tell you if you need T3 supplementation

Problem is that most docs have been so brainwashed by Synthroid that it is difficult to get them to try other T4 meds, let alone a T3 or Armour (which they call "old fashioned"...but most patient's do better on it).

Also, if you have a difficult time losing weight....what is your glucose? 110-125 is "pre-diabetic" (insulin resistant stage) Thyroid meds are one of the meds that will raise glucose. It is not uncommon for some hypo's to be insulin resistant (I am).

Best place to learn about thyroid conditions, meds, tests, etc is www.thyroid.about.com They too have a forum, which is excellant for learning & getting help w/test results, etc. MOST doctors think you are ok if you pop a pill a day....they don't have a clue about optimizing the dosage!

Texastwin,

Do you know a lot about glucose levels and/or diabetes? I am just starting to become aware of the sugar levels in my diet severely impacting my weight situation. I would appreciate any information you can provide me, even just letting me know where to look. I have significantly reduced sugar intake in the past week, and have noticed an immediate change in my exercise/energy/weight situation. I am really curious about any information on this, specifically targeting hypothyroids.

:-) Margie

Margie,

Yes somewhat as i am insulin resistant. according to ADA "pre diabetes" is 110-125 now.....that is insulin resistance. FYI...thyroid meds are 1 of the meds that elevate glucose.

I have to be somewhere in 2 hrs & since my upper right arm is broken it takes me forever to get ready! i too love mary's site & have learned a great deal from it and the forum.

I will post to you when i get back this evening....typing is not fun w/ a useless left hand!
Faye

Faye,

I look forward to your response. So you know, I don't know anything about diabetes, insulin, glucose, or anything else related to this discussion. All I know is that when I reduce my sugar intake, I feel better. And, when shopping for sugar free products in the supermarket, I notice there are always comments about diabetes & glucose on the packages. I am very curious about what this means - especially since you say thyroid meds increases glucose levels.

I know you have a bad arm, but anything at all you can provide will be HUGE for me.

:-) Margie

margie,

hmmm, all that i know about insulin resistance........

exercise is key....excess glucose is in the blood stream because the insulin isn't moving it into your cells for use by the body....to improve that, you need exercise to deplete what is stored in the cells so they will open back up and accept glucose. unfortunately some cells may never open up again

testing:

initially a morning fasting glucose will determine if your glucose is too high. while lab values are usually 70 (i think) up to 125, for "normal" the american diabetes assn issued new guidelines, last yr.

110-125 is now considered "pre-diabetes" (insulin resistance) and it should be approached as if patient is diabetic with diabetic counseling & diet. mine jumped from 112 to 129 after starting thyroid meds...which the ADA states is one of the meds that will elevate your glucose. i am not on any meds...just try to control w/diet. so far my 3 mo average went from 6.8 down to 6.6

if fasting glucose is elevated, dr should order a fasting glucose tolerance test (GTT) and a test that checks what your glucose has been for the previous 3 mos. (sorry can never remember it's exact name...it's like "Habc1 or Hbac1"). if your GTT shows a certain response (as mine did...i still make insulin) and the 3 mo ave is over 6% but below 7%, you are considered insulin resistant. <6% is normal, 7%> is diabetic

my diet was designed to be 1500-1600 cals per day hoever, after the inital loss of about 10 lbs weight loss stopped....i suspect that my diet's carb intake is much higher than it should be...and that is why i am here! found this site as a link from Dr Bernstein's Diabetic Solution.

prior to going on thyroid meds my glucose tested 106...yr later 115, then just 3 wks before i had it retested, i went on the Carbohydrate Addicts Diet and it tested at 112....so i am also reconsidering that diet....i have high cholesterol so am leery of the high protein/fat & low carb (or the nearly no carb like atkins & bernstein)....after i started thyroid meds it was 129! 112 to 129 in 4 mos!

on a diabetic diet, the new way is not "exchanges" but by carb choices. you are allowed to deduct fiber gms from carb gms...each carbohydrate "choice"= 15 gms of carbs. milk products are a carb choice now, instead of a fat choice. if you are interested, i might could find the site that has a listing. also, you should try to have a fiber intake of 25-25 gms....it helps "sweep" the glucose out.

i'm sure ther is more that i have forgotten to tell you ...please ask if you have any questions

ooops...sorry all for the posting duplication

margie knows but for those that don't...please excuse typos...my right arm is broken...am trying to type with left hand...mostly my index finger ! not fun!

I work as a medical secretary on the cardiac floor. And yesterday my doctor was making rounds and I asked him about possibly changing my current brand of Synthroid to one of the t3/t4 meds. At first he seems a bit unsure of this. I went on the tell him I had started the Adkins diet on Monday and had been reading quite a bit about it on here. He then said yes we can try something different (after he knew that I had some information) but I still want to keep you in the right levels. I told him I had no problem with this. I currently take a 250 of synthroid a day. So....make I'm getting somewhere with this. Keep the information going for all of us with this problem. And yes I think the poll was well worth it!!!

Texastwin,

Thanks for taking the time to provide that information to me. I am sure that I will end up having questions for you, but right now I'm having a hard time putting all of the information together. I am going to spend some time this weekend on it, and wanted to let you know that I appreciate the time you spent outlining it for me like you did!

:-) M

margie...

was going thru my newsletters from intellihealth this am....it gave the blood glucose levels i mentioned but also added elevated triglycerides....also it said " in addtion to insulin resistance " so i have to assume insulin resistance is a separate condition, not the same thing as "pre-diabetes". sorry about the misinformation

This is terrible to admit but I started on synthroid 28 years ago after developing a goiter from postpartum hypothyroidism. Now I read if you just hang in there your levels will usually right themselves. 28 years and no dr has ever suggested my taking any other medication. I didn't even know there were as many out there as there are. I really can't believe I'm saying this I'm usually very well read on any health problems I may have and know what questions to ask. I think being 21 I just accepted the fact and thought it was going to take care of any symptoms it took care of the goiter. Now I have read so much information about it. I never knew that even though you're on medication your metabolism is still messed up. I always wondered why I couldn't lose weight. I just kept putting it on slowly but no diet ever worked. Now it all makes sense. 3 years ago I went on Atkins, did it for 6 weeks and lost 22 lbs. Christmas came and I quit and have never been able to get back on until now. I didn't lose anything for 2 weeks and then suddenly 6 lbs dropped off. You could of knocked me over with a feather. I have been in WW and only lost 1.5 lbs in a month, following their plan perfectly. They just kept saying hang in there. I sure wish I'd of know that the best plan with hypothyroidism is a limit of carbs. The bulb is slowly lighting over my head, I wouldn't of found any of this out unless I joined this group that led me to the information out there about hypthyroidism. It's been enlightening to say the least.

I just changed from Levoxyl (l0 years) to Armour, and it's been a miracle. It took some convincing, but my doctor finally realized that I was well-informed about the risks and that I really had tried everything to lose weight. I suspect she thought I wasn't really doing all the things I told her I was doing--eating right, exercising daily, etc. When you do all those things, you lose weight, right? Wrong!!!! I changed my meds to Armour and felt instantly better. My hair stopped falling out. My body temp. raised a full degree (still below normal, but hey!). I have tons more energy and feel less "overwhelmed" all the time. I started Atkins about a month after starting Armour and that helped even more. I've finally lost 3 pounds after being stalled for 1 1/2 years. At one point, I was eating approximately 1100 calories a day (Weight Watchers) and riding my bike 2-3 hours a day along with 3 days a week weightlifting. I was actually GAINING weight (not just weight from adding muscle, either) on that program. But the combination of Armour and Atkins is really helping. I'm completely off my diabetes meds (Glucophage), and I'm taking only one blood pressure med instead of three. Wow! I just hope all this wonderfulness will last. I'm terrified it will stop working, but enjoying it right now.

After years of switching from one synthetic to another, I am on Armour. Funny too, that I was just reading the Atkins book and he also only uses natural thyroid that has both T3 & T4, which is Armour.

So I think the old doc, (bless his soul) was right after all.

His WOE and Armour have been around many, many years.