A year ago I finally found a Dr that would agree to give me Armour Throid after being on .112 of levothroxine for a very long time. They started me on 60 mg. then up to 75 and then to 90. Went to a new dr because of insurance and she put me back on synthroid .125. I told her my previous dose had been .112 and she said based on my weight I should be on .125. I had never heard of using your weight to determine dosage. Had blood work after 6 weeks and free t4 was 2.14 (range .82-1.77). Free t3 was 3.3 (range 2.0-4.4) TSH .027 (range .45-4.5) So she lowered my dose to .1. I reminded her I had been on .112 and she said no we need to get your t4 down. Now after a month I'm tired when I wake up, my eyes are dry, my muscles ache and my bottom of my feet are really really sore. I called today to request to go back on Armour and won't hear back until Monday.
My last blood work also showed high level of B12...1848 (range 211-946). Does anyone know if high B12 is related to thyroid at all? She did not seem concerned with this number. Any info will be greatly appreciated.
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Suzyjul
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So sorry you are feeling unwell again I don't know a lot about treatment with t4 or even t4/t3 my experience is with t3 only, however I do know if your t4 is over range, if you are not hyper then it can point to problems with converting t4 to the active t3. Factors affecting conversion can be low/high cortisol and/or low/high iron. It may be why you felt okay on the combination t4/t3 (Armour) as you could use the t3 in the med. Have you had your iron and cortisol checked?
Are you taking a b12 supplement? And have you increase your dose recently? If so the type of supplement may be important, as in my experience many hypothyroid people seem to also have methylation issues. Such as the Mthfr gene mutation which can stop the body from converting certain b12 and folate supplements into usable forms. This could be why you have a high b12 level, and can mean that you may not be getting the required affects from your supps. Optimal b12 levels are generally over range, around 1000. The most effective form of oral b12 is methylcobalamin. If you search Mthfr gene mutations on the internet there is a great deal of info that may help you. Good luck and best wishes on your journey.
I have been taking coenzyme b-complex because I quit eating meat a year ago. From what I have read vitamin b doesn't build up. The cortisol and iron were not checked. I will ask her to order these blood tests. Thanks for your reply..
B12 works with Folate in the body so that may be low and unable to help in the distribution of B12. Even a Multi-vit containing small amounts of B12 can skew your results. Any excess your body does not need will be excreted. However I agree with jennyrigg about the MTHFR problem. Are you on any other medications ? - or have any other conditions in addition to the the thyroid ?
Perhaps going back to NDT would be helpful for you ....
I had some Armour left and have already started back on it yesterday. The folate results says >20.0 (>3.0 NGOs/mL) I am not on any other RX. I take vitamin d and a supplement for pain called Curamin. I will check out the info for MTHFR. THanks for your reply.
When you had your blood test for thyroid hormones:-
1. Did you allow 24 hours between your last dose of Synthroid and the test?
2. Did you not eat before your blood test although you can drink water?
If you didn't follow this procedure it can skew your results.
Your doctor is making the same mistake that others do 'adjust dose to keep TSH in range'. Disregarding the patient's remaining or additional symptoms. (they don't know any symptoms in the first place and are unaware that hormone replacement is to erradicate symptoms, not give you more).
60mg of Armour is equal to around 100mcg of levo. Most people feel an improvement with NDT but some need up to 5 gr per day.
Your Free T3 was in a good range, and if she lowers your T4, it stands to reason your FT3 will reduce too.T3 is the only Active hormone required by the receptor cells. T4 is inactive and only when it converts to sufficient T3 will the patient feel better. Some people don't feel well on synthetic levothyroxine i.e. synthroid, levothyroxine etc.
Next time you can miss the night dose and take after test and take your usual dose at night.
I'm sorry you feel awful on Synthroid as I did on levo. I am well now but am on T3 only. Sometimes the addition of T3 to Synthroid might be helpful for you.
Well I am back on the Armour now. I take half in the morning and half at 3:30. So I will not take my afternoon dose or the morning dose the day of the blood work. Fingers crossed here😎👍 thanks for your reply.
The B12 level is high if you aren't supplementing. Although B12 isn't toxic high levels in your blood can trigger an autoimmune response that generates a protein that binds to the B12 in your blood and prevents it from being transferred to your cells where it is really needed - resulting in a functional B12 deficiency - which could be part of the tiredness aches and the pains in your feet.
If you are supplementing B12 then you could try either reducing the level and see what that happens. The alternative which sounds very counter-intuitive would actually be to up the dose until you get to a point where the body can't produce enough protein to bind it all - toxicity isn't an issue.
This is an article on functional B12 deficiency and what might cause it - don't think thyroid is mentioned though there are links between B12 and thyroid processes - just in case you aren't supplementing
I've heard of B12 being related to thyroid but not well enough informed to say exactly why. Such a shame you were put back onto Levothyroxine (Synthroid) after being on NDT.
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I don't know a lot about treatment with t4 or even t4/t3 my experience is with t3 only, however I do know if your t4 is over range, if you are not hyper then it can point to problems with converting t4 to the active t3. Factors affecting conversion can be low/high cortisol and/or low/high iron. It may be why you felt okay on the combination t4/t3 (Armour) as you could use the t3 in the med. Have you had your iron and cortisol checked?
Switched over to NP Thyroid from Synthroid
Not sure what to do
whats the best way to reduce Armour?
Anyone change back to levo. from NDT.
