Hypothyroidism

[MaminaElsie]

This is my 26th year of living with hypothyroidism and the treatment then was Thyroxine and 26 years on the treatment is Thyroxine. Only the dosage has changed. Sad really as one has to keep going

[Marz]

I have just read your Profile and can see you are taking lots and lots of medication. Much of it is contra-indicated when taking thyroxine. So no wonder you are not feeling well. Statins do not benefit women nor do they prevent heart disease - in fact recent research indicated that statins cause heart disease. This is due to statins blocking VitK2 which is needed to send calcium to the bones and not leave it in the arterial system to cause calcification.

Taking a PPI will also prevent good uptake of vitamins especially B12. So many people are put on these drugs when in fact they have LOW acid and not high. It is intended as a short course. Asthma too can be linked to low thyroid.

So lets start at the beginning. Do you have any test results with ranges you could post ? You need the following tests done - B12 - Ferritin - Folate - Iron - VitD. I am guessing they will all be LOW as will your FT3.

if you have only had the TSH tested then it is a mistake to keep upping and downing your Levo/T4 on that one result ....as detailed in your Profile. So important to have the FT4 and FT3 too. Do you have Hashimotos ? - have you had your Thyroid anti-bodies tested ?

I'm sorry but I think you have been neglected by your GP and they have not taken the time to search for the root cause of your various conditions. Long before thyroid testing in the early 70's - anyone with raised cholesterol had their thyroid treated. It has been discussed on this forum many times.

I think it is time for you to take control with the help of people on this forum and start digging and possibly reducing some of the pills you take - which I think are causing more problems for you .....

Lots to read and lots to learn - so keep asking questions here and people will be happy to help.

[MaminaElsie in reply to Marz]

Thanks Marz. I shall ask for these tests when next I see my GP. Also I am not taking any statins as I read so much about the side effects that I decided to use food to solve the problem and I succeeded. Thank you again,

[Marz in reply to MaminaElsie]

Do you have any thyroid results with ranges you could share with us ?

[MaminaElsie in reply to Marz]

Yes I will look it up but it is from November last year. I will get back to you. Thanks again

[Marz in reply to MaminaElsie]

Most people here would ask the same questions as it is difficult to comment without them ..... as you will no doubt see from reading other posts/replies.

[shaws Administrator]

Another disastrous post. Neglect no wonder about that. 26 years of levothyroxine and still unwell with a myriad of other problems too (read Marz's post). That's the problem with the 'modern' method.

The old fashioned method was much simpler and we didn't have these 'additional' problems to deal with. The problems (clinical symptoms) have been treated with other medications rather than a decent dose of thyroid hormones. You probably were diagnosed just after Big Pharma produced their 'magic potion' levothyroxine and the blood tests. The blood tests I think are the cause of the major mistakes for diagnosing/treating patients,

Blood tests for thyroid hormones should be done at the very earliest and don't eat before it although you can drink water. If you were on levo you should leave 24 hours between the last dose of levo and the test and take it afterwards.

Whatever you are taking at present don't stop suddenly as some might have to be weaned off.

[greygoose]

Oh dear, MaminaElsie, I have just read your profile, too...

I'm a bit worried about all the iodine you're ingesting. Did someone advise you to take it? Did you get tested before you started taking it? Iodine suppléments really are not recommended for hypos unless their hypothyroidism is due to iodine deficiency. Excess iodine can cause a lot of problems, and make your hypo worse - can even trigger Hashi's. You really do need to get your antibodies tested.

So, you're taking seaweed, iodine and Levo. Three sources of iodine. Plus the iodine you get from food. I do think you're probably getting too much. One molecule of T4 contins 4 atoms of iodine. Every time a molecule of T4 is converted into a molecule of T3, one iodine atom is released into the blood, and recycled. So people taking Levo rarely need to supplement iodine.

Are you still exercising? Because exercise depletes your T3, which makes you more hypo, and which you cannot replace easily. Exercise is not recommended until your T3 is optimised. And, by the sound of it, yours isn't. I think you should just stick to gentle walking for the time being.

[MaminaElsie in reply to greygoose]

Bless you. I will check with my GP next week. Have a great weekend xx

[greygoose in reply to MaminaElsie]

Thank you, you too.

[faith63 in reply to MaminaElsie]

I am afraid that you will not gain real, truthful information from a standard medicine type GP.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

One last suggestion ......low levels of magnesium upset uptake of thyroid too

NHS only ever test serum magnesium levels ...... Apparently this test is waste of time (always comes back "in range" - you really need Magnesium RBC test - this measures magnesium inside blood cells. (not available on NHS)

Highly likely to be low in magnesium, especially if been on PPI

gov.uk/drug-safety-update/p...

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Also ......

Acid reflux may well be LOW stomach acid rather than high. Us hypo's often suffer LOW acid - symptoms are very similar.

Possible cause for cough could be low B12

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/212...

[faith63]

After reading your profile, i have even less respect for your GP..but to be fair, i don't think they were taught much about Thyroid disorders. Do you have Hashimoto's disease, were your antibodies tested? Those illness with mucous and lungs could be gotten rid of most possibly. Low thyroid and bad immune systems can be repaired. Hashimotos, Lupus, MS, Crohn's, Hashi's, can all be gotten rid of or put into remission, so it is possible for you too. I would read stopthethyroidmaddness for basic thyroid info, then Dr. Mark Hyman and Isabella Wentz on autoimmune and thyroid natural treatment.