Okay, so I uped my medication for my hypothyroidism, and I do feel a little better with the increase, the herb Ashwangha?, increase iron,and B12.......
BUT hair loss has started again, and it has become totally lifeless!!! I so hate levothryoxine!!!!
AGH WHAT CAN I DO?? Is there no other T4 medicine I can take here in france????
Starting to panic...😰😰😰😰😰😰😰
I feel your pain! I too have hair loss & thinning hair. I thought it was my age until I started seeing that other fellow hypothyroid sufferers on levo were complaining of the same thing. I wish I had an answer. At this rate I will be wearing a wig in the near future 
Blah!!! There must be a better answer!!! I have to find a substitute for levo!!! I'm even Willing to order medicine outside of france!!
All ears..if anyone has any ideas?????
PLEASE!!!
Enfrance, Levothyroxine patient information leaflet cites hairloss as a temporary side effect which usually stops in a few months. I think members have reported similar temporary hair loss shortly after a dose increase. NDT is illegal in France so the only alternative is Liothyronine (T3) which also causes hairloss in some. Unfortunately, some members do experience significant hair loss on any thyroid hormone replacement. Low ferritin and low zinc can also cause hairloss.
OK, this bites. I am so stuck! AGH!!!!! Now, I have to try to find another endo who might give me T3..but the odds are not good. Then, I have to wait another 3 weeks approx. before I can take the blood test and get the results.
In the meantime, this herb Ashwhatever is keeping me going, but I'm going to end up like a hairless rat, and a fat one at that since I'm not bloody well converting...blahhhhhhhh.
Sorry, I'm venting.
No possibilities, of having family members from other countries like US, UK, Spain for example bring me something natural???
😱😱😱😱😱😱
Enfrance, it is illegal to import NDT into France but entirely up to you whether you ask family to source it on your behalf. If this hairloss is completely new to you since increasing dose it may settle down in a couple of weeks. I PMd you a link where to buy T4 a little while back. The same site supplies T3. Be warned that some experience hair loss on T3 too.
Please be patient with me, but I cannot stop thinking about this! I'm going to stay the course and keep with my levo at 100 mg until I have my blood test in approx 3 weeks. To see if my results are any better, than I will have the challenge to find another endo or just boycott he/she completely and continue to self medicate.
The big question..if I were to have family members bring me natural thyroid medicine, could you tell me approximately how much I would I need to order??
If I am self-medicating anyway...why would I medicate myself with something that is not working? By the way, the hair loss issue has never been temporary in my case or it has never settled down. In fact, every doctor I asked about the side effect..denied it even existed.
I owe it to myself to do better!!!
Please help!!!!!!!!!!!#
Enfrance, undermedication is the likely reason you are still experiencing hair loss.
If Levothyroxine (T4) only isn't working it doesn't follow that the addition of T3 won't improve things considerably. I'm not able to tolerate T4 on it's own but I'm reasonably well on T4+T3 combination. Would it not be better to try the addition of T3 to a reduced dose of T4 before trying NDT?
NDT isn't a magic bullet and doesn't suit everyone, just as Levothyroxine doesn't, and you may have to try different brands to find one which suits you.
60mg (1 grain) of NDT is the bioactive equivalent dose of 100mcg Levothyroxine. You will probably need a higher dose within a few weeks as the manufacturers overstate the bioactive equivalence from my observations. I would be surprised if you ultimately end up on less than 2 grains.
At this point, I am willing to try anything and everything! I have nothing to lose and everything to gain, but I need to get my hands on some T3 with T4 or something natural. I have never regained my hair, and it has gotten worse. I think than this means I have alwats been undermedicated?
I just need to have my options lined up so I won't tolerate the poor treatment anymore. It also doesn't help that it is not going to be easy to get out of this big hole I find myself in!!
Enfrance, unless you have your historical thyroid results you won't be able to tell whether you have always been undermedicated. You've been advised by members that you are undermedicated now despite your endo's assertion to the contrary. You've taken the first step by increasing your Levothyroxine dose. It will take a few weeks to see whether that dose increase is sufficient to improve your symptoms and blood results. Feeling good often lags a few weeks behind good bloods but you should have experienced some improvement in symptoms in 4-6 weeks.
Depending on symptoms and bloods your options are:
a) a further increase of Levothyroxine;
b) adding a small amount of T3 to your T4;
c) increasing the T3 added;
d) stopping T4 and trying T3 only; or
e) trying NDT.
None of the above options is a quick fix as you will always have to allow 6-8 weeks at least to metabolise a dose increase or change of medication and it can take considerably longer to find the right brand and dose of NDT.
Arranging private blood tests every 6-8 weeks initially and less frequently once your dose is stable will guide you with dosing. It is important that FT3 should remain within range.
Ferritin, vitamin D, B12 and folate should be checked once or twice a year as optimal levels aid absorption of thyroid meds and aid conversion of T4 to T3.
So do you think I should order 2 grains..,I am shopping and I have to try and guestimate the dosage
Okay, thank you for everything! I will have to deal with all of this in the meantime. I appreciate your advice and help!
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