palpitations/flutterings in middle of the chest.

[C70rol]

Hello lovely people, I've been getting flutterings (paitations, I assume) in the middle of my chest a couple of hours after taking my morning dose of Armour and sometimes in the afternoon. So was wondering if I should just put up with this and just lengthen the time before my next increase.

I have been increasing every two weeks, starting with 1/4 grain, then 1/2 grain, and now on 3/4 grain - following the protocol of 2 weekly increasing . I am due to move to 1 grain, but am thinking I would leave this next increase slightly longer as I was originally on 62.5mcg of levo, and wondering if 3/4 grain might be equivilant to the 62.5 mcg?

I certainly don't feel optimal yet, but don't like these palpitations/ flutterings.

So your comments would be very, very helpful?

Thanks !!!!!!!

[Hidden]

Hi C70rol - do you take the Armour all in one go? If you do, you could try taking some Armour on a morning and the rest either afternoon or evening. You may be sensitive to thyroid meds. I know I am.

If you go with the Armour info leaflet (whereby the T3 part is stated to be around 4x the potency of T4) this equates to 55.5mcg equivalent T4 for 3/4 grain. Most people say that T3 is only 3x the potency so that works out at 48.75mcg equiv T4. So you're getting there in terms of an equivalent replacement dosage (c.f. your levo dose) but it depends on how you're blood test results and symptoms were on 62.5mcg levo? You may well need more or less.

Edit: this is based on my experience. I'm not a medic. Unfortunately I'm a patient!

[C70rol in reply to Hidden]

Thank you for your reply EpicSwan. Unfortunately my chemist dispenses the meds in their own brown bottles without the leaflet that would be attached to the Armour container. So I didn't know what the bioactive equivalent was for 3/4 grain. So I'm really grateful for your working it out for me !!!!!

I have been multi dosing, with 1/2 and 1/8 grain in the morning and the other 1/8 grain in the afternoon, making it up to 3/4 grains per day. Maybe it might be better if I take 1/2 grain in am and the 1/4 in the afternoon.

I noticed you said that you too are sensitive to thyroid meds, did you have a similar problem ?

[Hidden in reply to C70rol]

No problem C70rol. Even if it comes in a brown bottle I still think the chemist/pharmacist should give you some information about what you're taking. That's not your fault obviously! But they should.

Yeah, I've experienced this when trying to increase Armour. You're the first person I've came across to cut a 1/4 grain tablet in half. Thought it was just me. I had to do this when I started Armour back in May. I didn't realise 1/4 grain could have such an effect. Some good, some bad for me.

If I were you I would do as you suggest and take 1/2 grain am and 1/4 pm. Having said that, I actually find I'm better with a larger evening (10pm) dose as T3 reaches a peak overnight so I find it beneficial. So you could take 1/2 grain at bedtime (10pm?? not me I'm a 12am sleeper) and 1/4 grain midday. I found it good to keep as much time between doses as possible to avoid anxiety/heart palps. This settled eventually and I'm so glad I stuck with it. I almost gave up Armour.

[C70rol in reply to Hidden]

That's very helpful EpicSwan, and has given me some options and food for thought !!!

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to Hidden]

Completely agree that the product information should always be given.

The USA Prescribing Information for Armour Thyroid is available here:

pi.actavis.com/data_stream....

More information here:

armourthyroid.com/treatment...

[Clutter]

C70rol, 3/4 grain is equivalent to 56.25mcg Levothyroxine. It's not uncommon to have a slightly faster pulse and heart rate 1-2 hours after taking a T3 dose and it should resolve within an hour or two. If it's uncomfortable you might want to go back to 1/2 grain and try increasing again in another week or two.

________________________________________________________________________

I am not a medical professional and this information is not intended to be a substitute for medical guidance from your own doctor. Please check with your personal physician before applying any of these suggestions.

[C70rol in reply to Clutter]

Thank you Clutter for making it so clear. I'll see how I go !!!!! I still have some ectopic heart beats as well, so I'm tending to worry that I'm putting a strain on my heart.

I know ( from my STTM book) that the heart is sensitive to thyroid hormones, but that NDT , in the long run is much better for the heart than synthetic levo.

I know that there is also a comment, somewhere in that book, that says:-

"swallowing NDT with food slows the release of the thyroid hormones to your body, distributing the direct T3 more evenly throughout the day."

So I have even been wondering if eating closer to my breakfast would be a help in reducing palpitations?

Thanks again Clutter, it's was good to hear from you !!!!

[Clutter in reply to C70rol]

C70rol, thyroid meds bind with the proteins in food and drinks and this reduces uptake. I wouldn't take NDT with, or within an hour of food.

Ectopics and palpitations can be uncomfortable but they rarely cause heart damage. They'll probably settle down when you've been optimally medicated for a while.

_____________________________________________________________

I am not a medical professional and this information is not intended to be a substitute for medical guidance from your own doctor. Please check with your personal physician before applying any of these suggestions.

[C70rol in reply to Clutter]

O.k. I won't reduce the gap between meds and food. Don't really want to mess with the uptake.

Thanks so much for your reassurance !