Please help??

[TreorchyGal]

Just come out of hospital after having rest of thyroid gland removed due to follicular cancer found in 1st half removed. Endo has put me on levo until Tuesday due to no T3 available at the hospital. Will I have the same side effects on t3 as I am having on levo now which is shakes, being wired but feeling tired the same time???

[PinkNinja]

Sorry you've had to have your thyroid removed

Hopefully the addition of T3 will help. The wired and tired feeling seems to be quite common in people on levo when they need T3 as well. One thing to check is that your serum iron is good (not just ok) and that your ferritin is above 70. If you have low iron, this will contribute to the wired but tired feeling that some people get with levo.

How much levo have you been put on? It might not be enough. It could just be that you need some T3 though. If you think about it, your thyroid would have been producing T4 and T3. With levo you are only replacing the T4 (which does get converted to T3) so you may find that you are feeling the effects of just not having enough T3 in your body.

Hopefully the T3 shortage will be sorted out soon!

Carolyn x

[shaws Administrator]

What dose did your Endo put you on? Maybe it is a bit too high initially for you (I am not medically qualified). You could try a slightly smaller dose and see how it works.I don't think you will have the same affect with T3 but everyone is different. I am glad your Endo is considering T3, you don't then have a conversion problem (i.e. T4 converts to some T3).

[TreorchyGal]

My endo has put me on 150mcg of levo til Tuesday when I think I may be on both, but not sure

[shaws Administrator in reply to TreorchyGal]

Personally, I would have thought that was a little bit too much but I do know with cancer they suppress the TSH. Usually, though we start with a dose around 50mcg and work up to an appropriate dose.

On Tuesday, you can tell him how you are feeling and get his advice.

Wishing you well.

[spring13]

I think you should consider your symptoms may be because you are still recovering from a major op and not directly caused by your medication. When a person is started on T4 after a total thyroidectomy they don't have to start at a low dose and work up as suggested by shaws because their body is used to "running" with normal thyroid levels, unlike someone who develops hypothyroidism and needs to be "rebooted" gradually. Hope that makes sense. Be kind to yourself, relax and rest and you will soon feel better.

[nickym1]

I too had a thyroidectomy following thyroid cancer earlier this year. I had two op's, and was put on T3 after the second. (Also no instructions!) However, I was given a bottle of pills and told to take just one in the morning. I also was very tired - but felt completely wired, anxiety levels through the roof. I also had terrible palpitations, and insomnia - which I still have now. I think it just takes a little while for everything to settle down. Which for me it mostly has 12 weeks on. Still tired, but coping ok.

Wishing you the best of luck with your recovery.

Nicky x

[TreorchyGal]

Thank you I'm now off the t4s and now on liothyronine 1 3 times a day 20mcg each so I'm hoping now that the symptoms ease off x