When do you move up from starting dose on ndt?

[lindsey1987]

I have been on naturethroid for 11 days 1 grain coming from tirosint 88mcg. I still feel like crap of course still no energy so when do I move up 1/2 grain? The doctor gave me the power to raise myself up to 2 in the morning and 1 in afternoon but am I doing something wrong I normally take 1 in the morning around 9am swallowed with water and 1 in afternoon with water around 2pm

[Clutter]

Lindsey, it takes time for NDT to work. People usually start at 1/2 to 1 grain and increase in 1/2 grain increments every 2 weeks. 88mcg T4 is bioactively equivalent to 1 grain so 2 grains is a substantial increase over your previous dose. Best to stick with 2 grains for 4-6 weeks and have a FT3 blood test before increasing further.

thyrophoenix.com/adjusting_...

_______________________________________________________________________________

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.

[Binkie in reply to Clutter]

i am confused ref dosing should you take enough till you feel better and most symptoms gone, if so why do T3 test as I did and it showed me I was over medicated, I certainly didn't feel it as still stuck mainly on sofa and still having symptoms, much less but still had them.

I find this dose by symptoms or dose by test results confusing?

[Clutter in reply to Binkie]

Binkie, symptoms tend to lag behind good biochemistry. Increasing dose until symptoms have resolved risks high FT3 which over a long time increases the risks of atrial fibrillation and osteoporosis.

_______________________________________________________________________________

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.

[Heloise]

Yes, there are a lot of things going on so try to be patient. You could add 1/2 grain in a few days. So you are saying that you take one tablet (1 gr) in the morning and you want to add a half tablet in the afternoon? Then he eventually thinks 2 grains will work for you? Remember you are building up levels and while you are building up, you are also going down. NDT may have a half life of two weeks which means you won't feel the full value for several weeks. I think Clutter's link may show that.

stopthethyroidmadness.com/m...

[Gismo333]

Hi I do not know what naturethroid is, is it a natural supplement or NDT? If it's NDT I wonder why you are on such a low dose.

I was told by Dr Lowe, scientist never to split thyroid hormone. What you do when you take thyroid hormone is stimulate the receptor sites on the cells. By trickling the thyroid hormone in then you are not "waking up" the sites which need to be stimulated. One dose is the best way. Some people say lose energy as the day wears on but if this is the case it's normally an adrenal problem.

As I said I don't know what you are taking but if it isn't working perhaps you could change to Erfa, this is what my doctor prescribes to people in Belgium.

If you take too lower dose of thyroid hormone you can literally shut the thyroid production down. Most doctors do not know this. eg 50 mcgs of T4 can tell the gland you are getting the thyroid hormone from elsewhere and it will cease to produce at it's normal rate so it is imperative that you always take enough to cover what you are producing and then more. The same goes for NDT, too lower dose can make the thyroid gland produce less, this could be what is happening in you case. Do your pulse before rising to see if it's anywhere near 70.

[Anthea55 in reply to Gismo333]

NatureThroid is NDT - see this page on the ThyroidUK site

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/treatm...

you'll find it under Non-UK Dessicated Thyroid

[Anthea55]

If you take your first dose at 9am when do you have breakfast? I take my first dose when I wake up then have breakfast 3/4 to 1 hour later. You should try not to take it too near to food, coffee etc.

[CandyGirlCLW]

I take mine with fruit juice and zinc. I haven't talked to doc yet, did it on my own since research. She's my Rumatoligist, I have several autoimmune diseases including Hashimotos. I felt so good on my doses of T3, and T4.

She freaked when I asked her to test me, I had no T3 or T4. I've been basically in bed for 2 years.

I now believe I was really close to Thyroid coma. After those first 2 weeks, I felt crummy again. I get to see her in December after my new blood test. Can't wait to get my meds bumped up. I'm on a very low dose of both. I can't believe I'm thrilled about blood tests and going to the doctor. I just know she's gonna give me more. She's helped me as I have been looking for a really good Endocrinologist! I live in St. Pete and found one in Orlando, the Happy Hormore Cottage, don't you love it. I bought several books from Amazon, that's where I got my info. Good luck to us all!

[LAHs]

Hi Lindsey,

The advice you are getting here is right on and it is the correct way to do things.

However, if you want to know what happens at the other end of the scale: I hated what Levo was doing to me so much that when I received my NDT (Armour) prescription I just jumped in and took the full dose the first morning I had it. And what terrible things happened? None, nothing, zip. It was like going from night to day, I got my life back within the first half hour of taking the pill, now that was only 1 1/4 grains, I a not suggesting you jump in with 2 or more grains. After 6 weeks on 1 1/4 grains I increase it to 1 1/2 (I haven't told my endo yet - that's the next fight). I did this because I was great during the morning but fell asleep during the afternoon (when the T3 had worn off).

Anyway, that's the view out of left field.

[lindsey1987]

And that's what I dont understand why is it not helping me like that

[Heloise in reply to lindsey1987]

I think it's because you are essentially taking the same dose. How long were you on 88%. If you have taken it for six months or more, and now I reviewed your other post, you can increase a bit faster since your thyroid/pituitary are probably depending on exogenous hormone. Go right to 1 1/2 grain and give it two weeks when you may feel the increase.

[lindsey1987 in reply to Heloise]

4-5 months I was on 88mcg. I started 1.5 grains yesterday head hurts of course I'm assuming bc of the increase

[Heloise in reply to lindsey1987]

I don't know but let's hope that T3 is affecting you in a good way. Keep us posted.

[Bodil333]

Pulse on waking in the morning is so important. If you have a dip (TSH has gone down so your own production is less), you can likely catch is (and increase) before you feel the symptoms of hypothyroidism. If you are over-medicated, you will know, too (high pulse). An average person's pulse is 74. It is lower if you are fit, higher if unfit.

There are situations where pulse may be affected; steroids, other adrenal support (Nutri Adrenal), high histamine level, dehydration, low iron.

Also, make a note of what your pulse is when you feel good.

[LAHs in reply to Bodil333]

Agree 100% on paying attention to your basal pulse rate, I think it is one of the few indicators which is reflective of whether you are hypo or hyper at cell level. The other indicators are our symptoms and we all know that docs don't take any notice of those.

Oh, and same goes for basal temperature, if it's lower than normal you are probably under medicated and if it is higher than normal you are probably taking too much. This is because basal temp is a measure of your metabolism - and thyroid meds affect your metabolism.

Of course, it is probably not quite this simple but good luck trying to find a doc who can synthesize it further. These are just a couple of facts.

[Bodil333]

I have become a bit weary of basal temperature. It can be a sign, but if there is also an infection, it can be within normal range. Having said that, pulse might also go up in those cases. It is the whole package that needs to be looked at. All symptoms. That takes time and some doctors claim not to have it. Money lost in the Health System, as you could prevent so may diseases. I am rambling on.