Taking meds at night? Plus trying for baby with hypothyroidism

[Blackwater]

Hi all

I am a 30 year old with hypothyroidism post total thyroidectomy aged 21. I had thyroid cancer and I think at the time my doctor said I had hashimoto thyroiditis also, I also had radioactive iodine treatment.

All was good for years I took 200mg daily then due to doctor error at a regular checkup my doctor changed my dose to 125mg and I becamed extremely fatigued, constipated, periods irregular, dry/dehydrated..... I had to request a blood test to prove I was on the incorrect dose.

I want to start taking my meds at night but not sure how long after eating or drinking I should wait?

I am also hoping to fall pregnant but being low on thyroxine my periods are few and far between ;(. Anyone else had problems? Any advice or tips? Things I can do to help myself?

Thank you all

Any help appreciated

[Clutter]

Welcome to the forum, Blackwater.

You can take Levothyroxine any time of day or night as long as you take it with a glass of water on an empty stomach, one hour before, or two hours after, food and drink, 2 hours away from medicines and supplements and 4 hours away from iron, vitamin D, calcium and oestrogen.

What do you mean about being low on thyroxine? If your thyroxine level is low you must be under medicated. Do you have recent thyroid blood results with lab reference ranges that you can post?

Unless your TSH is to be kept suppressed post cancer it should be in the low normal range 0.4-2.0 when you are trying to conceive and during the first trimester. FT4 should be near the top 75% of range. Dose is usually increased by 25-50mcg as soon as you are pregnant to ensure good foetal development as the foetus is entirely dependent on maternal hormone for the first 3 months.

cks.nice.org.uk/hypothyroid...

[Inna]

I leave around 3 hours. Just take the meds right before bed. With regards to the periods - prolactin and progesterone (22nd day) are worth checking. Prolactin might be higher and progesterone lower than they should be. It is quite common for hypo.

[morena]

I take mine just before I lie down and go to sleep. It is so much easier that taking it in the morning, especially if you are taking other supplements. You dont have to worry about them clashing as any eating has gone on hours before and supplements are taken in the morning. I also dont worry about water as its just before bed (dont want to be up in the night). It may take longer to be absorbed but thats fine as Im asleep!

[Blackwater]

Hi

I have my most recent levels back now since going back on 175mg, I was under medicated as you said 'clutter' they are

Tsh: 5.57

Free t4: 18.8

These still aren't great are they but better than my previous levels whilst taking 125 which were almost two months ago.

Tsh: 33.48

Free t4: 15.3

Should I ask for a higher replacement or wait longer for my body to adjust?

[Inna in reply to Blackwater]

It is much better, but are you feeling better than 2 months ago? Your TSH is still high and you didnt have your fT3 levels checked, which is important. Were you on 175mcg for 2 months? If so, it was enough for the dosage to 'kick in' and you need an increased dose. One more thing to look at is if you are converting T4 into fT3 for that you need an fT3 test. Have you had your ferritin, folate, vit D and B12 tested? One of those is a common issue when hypothyroid.