I would appreciate input from as many people as possible:
I have seen two doctors in the past year. One only believes in Armour, the other one will prescribe Armour or Erfa, depending on the patient's wishes.
On 30 + 60 mg Erfa pills, I felt well, slightly hyper maybe, but well, but I suffered from terrible itching, so I switch to 125 mg pills. I felt they were somewhat weaker, so I had to raise the dosage slightly but, on 4x125 mg daily, I feel great (on less, I feel suboptimal). These are my latest labs, 24 h after taking any meds:
TSH <0.001
FT4 1.2 (ref 0.7-1.7)
FT3 3.9 (ref 2.2-4.2)
The doctor who only believes in Armour wants me to switch to it. So, my question, primarily to those who have tried both Erfa and (reformulated) Armour, is: in your opinion, would 7.5 grains of reformulated Armour lead to the same results as 8 grains of Erfa? Or should you always stick to the drug that normalized your labs and made you feel normal...?
LOL, all seems a bit silly to me. Neither Erfa or Armour are right for everyone - there isn't a brand of NDT that's right for all. I take Nature Throid quite happily (it's cheaper too!).
If Erfa works for you I wouldn't switch. We've all spent too long being ill to waste any more time needlessly swapping medicines to suit a doctor's preference. A good doctor would know to leave well alone!
Anna, Having taken the last dose 24 hours before the blood draw you can extrapolate FT3 up by 20% to 4.68 as a 'true' FT3 result so you may be very slightly overmedicated on your current dose. Some people don't feel well unless their FT3 is above range however.
You say you feel great on 4 x 125mcg Erfa. Why change what is obviously working for you just because of the doctor's prejudice/bias? What suits you should be paramount, not the doctor's preference.
I think you might mean WP Thyroid (and Nature-Throid):
Rod
Ok, thank you all!
Could someone please tell me which levels would be ideal +/-24 hours after taking NDT?!
Lab's reference values:¨
TSH 0.4-1.5
FT4 0.5-1.5
FT3 1.7-3.7
So which levels should I aim for 24 h after taking NDT (I'd appreciate input on this as I am still trying to determine whether Armour or Erfa would be best for me...?) Please, if anyone know which levels I should +/-aim for, I'd love for you to mention them here, so that I can compare them to my next lab sheet....
Anna, it doesn't work like that. A person needs the least replacement on which they feel well and that will be as much as it takes. Generally FT3 should remain within range, and being in the top 75% of range is usually considered ideal. Don't chase or target numbers, just take enough meds to feel well.
Neither was ok for me..it flared up my Hashis. But..Armour was much weaker, needed to be crushed, due to all the fillers. Very little Erfa, made me have terrible Hyper symptoms.
Sorry, I just saw this now! What do you mean by "they both changed their formula lately"?? Are you referring to Armour and Erfa? How did they change lately?
Those of you who chew Armour up, do you feel a difference in taste? Erfa pills are crunchy, but melt quickly, and taste very sweet and actually pleasant. If Armour has indeed been reformulated, and cellulose decreased, would the pills not taste better (sweeter)?
Isn't cellulose in thyroid medication a bad idea to begin with, as it seems cellulose binds to thyroid hormone and decreases its absorption? Has Forest even explained why they decided to make this change?
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Problems with Erfa
