Now taking Armour

[Michy1]

Hi, I have now started taking Armour tablets since she 9th September, but have not seen or felt any real difference. How long till I start to feel better? I am on the full tablet now of 1.5 grain, as I started off on half for 6 days.

[puncturedbicycle]

Were you on meds before Armour? And do you have reason to believe this is the right dose for you? If you've only been on the higher dose for two weeks you may need to give it a bit of time. Are you planning a test in 4-6wks? That will tell you if you need to tweak anything further.

[Michy1 in reply to puncturedbicycle]

I was on Levothyroxine 125 mcg, but had all the side effects going. Since been on this, I have noticed I'm not in so much pain. I still find it hard to get up in the morning, but not like before. I will have bloods done in 2 wks to see, but not seeing the Endo untill Nov.

[puncturedbicycle in reply to Michy1]

A test in two weeks will not give you an accurate result. Best to wait until you've been on a stable dose for 6-8wks, otherwise it will only tell you what your levels are at the moment your blood is taken, but your levels will continue to change for weeks after a dose change.

[Michy1 in reply to puncturedbicycle]

Ok, so I will leave it till I have to go back to the Hospital in November. Thank u.

[puncturedbicycle in reply to Michy1]

No worries, it can be such a palaver to have the blood tests done and one doesn't always get the right info from the doctor so I thought I'd point it out.

Glad the ndt is working for you!

[Michy1 in reply to puncturedbicycle]

Ok, so I will leave it till I have to go back to the Hospital in November. Thank u.

[shaws Administrator]

The procedure when introducing NDT, is to take a dose (if you've been on levo before it's a straight switchover to an equivalent dose of NDT). 1.5 grains is between 125 and 150 mcg levo. You remain on the starting dose for two weeks and increase by 1/4 or half grain every two weeks until you feel the benefit. Some people take up to 5 grains or even more. If you feel you've taken too much, fast pulse etc, lower to the previous dose and that should be your regular daily dose.

[Michy1 in reply to shaws]

So Friday will be 2 wks and I'm on 1.5, so should I then take half the 1 tablet and then half of another and see how it goes? That would make 2 grains then.

[shaws Administrator in reply to Michy1]

Some may increase by 1/2 gr at a time but I prefer 1/4 as I think it's better to go up slowly and it's easier to drop down to previous dose if you get palps.

I am a bit confused because you stated on your first query above:-

"I am on the full tablet now of 1.5 grain", but then you say further on

" so should I then take half the 1 tablet and then half of another and see how it goes"

which I think you'd then be taking 3 gr instead of 2 gr.

I don't think it's necessary to get blood tests until you think you are at an optimum level or if you get symptoms you haven't had before.

I am not medically qualified and it is how I found my way through the maze

I take one daily dose because if you split the dose your stomach has to be empty as food interferes with the uptake. Also as we're hypo our digestion is slower and it may take longer to have an empty stomach and it can be a bit inconvenient.

[Michy1 in reply to shaws]

I am on 90 mcg, which is a 1.5 grain tablet, so if I add half to it, it will take me to just under 2 grains (will it not?). May be I'm adding it up wrong.

[shaws Administrator in reply to Michy1]

I must admit it is confusing. Levo and T3 are measured in mcg. NDT in grains or mg. Many make the mistake of thinking that 60mg is 60mcg.

1 grain - even although it says 60mg is not 60mcg. The effect of 1 grain is around, in its effect, to 100mcg of levo. Therefore you could overdose.

This is a conversion chart from Nature-throid and would be similar to Armour: You'll have to enlarge it.

getrealthyroid.com/wp-conte...

1 grain of Armour is equal to around 100mcg of levo (it can vary slight between patients) so 1.5 grains is around 150mcg levo and 2 grains 200mcg levo.

[Michy1 in reply to shaws]

So may be I will just stay on the 1.5 grain for a whole and see how it goes.

Thanks for that.

[SmallBlueThing]

A member mentioned a dosing strategy recently whereby the micrograms of Levothyroxine are replaced by the same amount of T4 in NDT. It may be best suited to those of us with thyroid hormone resistance, and others should be more cautious.

You've been on 125 and 150 mcg of Levothroxine. As Armour contains 38 mcg T4 per tablet/grain, your equivalent dose could be 3.25 to 4 grains. For what it's worth, it's tallied well with my experience.

For convenience I stayed on 4 grains for a while, but my temperature is a lot better if I take the trouble to add 0.5 grain.

[Michy1 in reply to SmallBlueThing]

Thanks for that.

[Michy1 in reply to SmallBlueThing]

Sorry I've just seen ur reply. I'm in my way to the private Dr to get a prescription. so will tell him to put me up to at least 2 grain.

[Glynisrose]

Do what makes you feel better but were I you I would start on a low dose of NDT and build up over a few weeks DO NOT do a direct swap unless you are already taking T3.

[Michy1 in reply to Glynisrose]

Well this Friday is 2 weeks on Armour and 1 week at 1.5 grain. So next Friday should I go up to 2 grains?