Nitrazepam and NDT

[dashi2208]

Hi, does anyone have any experience of mixing Nitrazepam and NDT? . . . or any other hypothyroid meds come to that? I have a feeling that it's not a good thing to've been doing!

Thanks for reading this. Richard

[shaws Administrator]

I would not mix any thyroid hormones with any other medication. Why have you prescribed Nitrazepam if you don't mind me asking?

[dashi2208 in reply to shaws]

I've had big problems for many years with sleep. I can fall asleep fine but pattern seems to be all over the place either sleeping too little or too much. As if whatever it is that regulates sleep, circadian rhythm I suppose, is out of kilter . . . to say the least! Nitrazepam was a desperate attempt to DO SOMETHING!! . . .. please . .

So fed up with it I can't tell you! Either really, really tired from lack of sleep or hung over from too much.

[shaws Administrator in reply to dashi2208]

Insomnia is a clinical symptom of hypothyroidism. It might be that your dose and thyroid hormones should be taken into account.

Insomnia is one of the 300+ clinical symptoms which should be eradicated once on an optimum of thyroid hormones - ones that make you feel well again.

You need good Free T4 and Free T3 so I am always puzzled that doctors cannot test these at least yearly.

T3 is the only active thyroid hormone and it is required in our billions of receptor cells, if we don't have sufficient we cannot function properly it provides our energy.

Excerpt:

One of several reasons why people may not respond well to thyroxine is that they are unable to convert enough T4 into T3. If you give T4 to these people all that happens is that the T4 builds up in the blood stream to toxic levels whilst their tissues remain woefully short of T3. In such cases, a much better response may well be obtained by taking T3 instead of T4. This will fundamentally affect the blood test results, causing the T4 and TSH levels to fall dramatically but as the tissues need T3 to work properly, so what? In fact, your own thyroid needs enough T3 to work properly so when it gets more T3 it will eventually start to work better as indicated by a recovery of the serum T4 levels even though no T4 is being taken by mouth

Another reason why people may not respond to thyroxine, or to Armour Thyroid for that matter, is that they have also developed adrenal insufficiency and the adrenal hormones are needed both to open the T3 receptors in the cells and to facilitate the T4 to T3 conversion. These people need also to take hydrocortisone, prednisolone or adrenal glandulars to provide the required adrenal support. Others may also need to take 7 Keto DHEA.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/thyroi...

[dashi2208 in reply to shaws]

thx for your reply.

I'm aware that insomnia is potentially a hypo symptom and when I was first diagnosed some 3 yrs ago I had high hopes that Levothyroxine what not only help the plethora of other symptoms but also help with the chronic insomnia too. Alas not so and in desperation I embarked on the road of Nitrazepam . . a chemical cosh. It's a nasty drug and i guess I became dependant to a degree though eventually getting the dose down to half a pill. During the time that I've been taking NZM I switched to NDT which though I'm sure made me feel better in some ways (hard to tell due to mask of extreme sleep deprivation) didn't seem to benefit me sleep-wise. Last night, having seen my Dr. yesterday, I took Zopiclone . . .got a pretty good sleep and don't feel the chemical residue (for the want of a better way of describing it) that goes with NZM and in fact am better and clearer headed than in ages. My GP (God bless him) has agreed to test for VIT D, B12, Ferritin. Zinc, Magnesium, Iron, Folate (isn't that a sex thing!?) plus the usual Thyroid scan. I can pick any NHS referral friendly Endo in the UK too. I had a cortisol test a little while ago which was 'normal'.

It seems such a minefield of uncertainty x guesswork x luck and a prayer when it comes to thyroid issues. I've tried every combination of dose and dose timing and am pinning hopes now on at least getting NZM out of my system and that Zopiclone will be a more benign substitute, hopefully temporary, remedy.

Thanks again, richard

[shaws Administrator in reply to dashi2208]

I'd ask your GP to test your Free T4 and Free T3. If you don't have sufficient T3 you may well have symptoms. Read on this link why these two are important.

thyroiduk.org.uk/tuk/testin...

The addition of some T3 might be effective as new research has shown (by different Research Depts) that T4 plus T3 is more beneficial for many hypothyroid patients.

[shaws Administrator]

I should state that I am in no way medically qualified but was undiagnosed hypo for about 7 years. Not one of the paid Specialists nor GPs ever did a blood test for hypothyroidism but I had 'treatment' for things I didn't have

[StitchFairy]

I didn't know what Nitrazepam was, so I looked it up and see that you're only supposed to take it for a couple of weeks. According to netdoctor.co.uk nitrazepam works by increasing the activity of GABA in the brain. This makes me wonder whether taking GABA as a supplement would be worth trying instead. I don't know anything about it, just throwing it into the pot for consideration

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK]

There is not one single paper in the whole of PubMed which mentions Nitrazepam AND thyroid, or Nitrazepam AND thyroxine.

The best guess, and I emphasise that it can only be that, is to consider the interactions of benzodiazepine and thyroid.

[BadHare]

Have you tried melatonin, instead?

[DellFinium]

I have found 'Zen' (GABA) very effective in regulating sleep; also 5-HTP (50mg or 100mg)

Good luck

[dashi2208 in reply to DellFinium]

Hi, do you mean Zen as a philosophy or Zen as a brand of Gaba. I'm still sleep deprived and have tried 5HTP but it made me feel a bit ill. I'm now looking into Gaba. It doesn't seem to be readily available in the U.K. however. Mind if I ask if you've tried it? I have studied Zen for 2 decades but it hasn't helped me sleep unfortunately.

Thanks, Richard

[DellFinium]

Very sorry to hear you're in this state - been there, you have my utmost sympathies!

1. Have you had adrenals checked? Cortisol may be all over the shop. (Nutritionist can do that for you.)

2. Have you had your gut health checked (stool sample)? Dodgy gut will waken you after you've fallen asleep (liver sends message to brain saying wake up, I'm hungry, even though you don't feel it) so get up and eat a vat of plain Greek yogurt (L-Tryptophan) mixed with nut butter (protein to fill you longer).

3. Are you working with an excellent nutritionist?

4. What's your B vitamin and EPA intake? See Igennus' excellent products for brain health (related, obvs).

5. Do you take Magnesium with B6? I take 800mg/day - expect more relaxation and looser stool.

4. Do you take a good probiotic that you have researched?

ZEN the product - now discontinued I see, dammit - but look at the ingredients and you could assemble your own from individual separate capsules (which is what I'll be doing).

From Nutri-link

'ALTERNATIVES TO ZEN

27 February 2017

On the week beginning 20th February 2017 the product Zen and its derivatives were discontinued. Whilst we are sad to see it go, we have prepared a range of alternatives to help you and your clients thrive.

Michael and Antony have identified alternatives to the 200mg of Zen product by Allergy Research.

1. Stabilium® 200 (ARG)

2. Neuro-5HTP Plus™ (BRC)

3. Bio-3B-G® (BRC)

4. Casein Concentrate (BRC) (formerly, ‘De-Stress™’)'

But I'll also recommend something I've been using for years from Canada but available here:

Natural Factors 'Serenity Formula'

Best of luck! There's more to restful sleep than optimal thyroid hormone - it wont fix everything if your gut and nutritional health are out of whack (as they often are with thyroid/adrenal issues).