Hashimoto's - Hypothyroid, Insulin resistance

[marchm2016]

Hello

I am in the US--- I am on Synthroid 75mcg in the morning, and Cytomel 5 mcg in the morning and one in the evening. My recent labs are

Thyroxine (T4) .91 reference (0.82-1.77)

TSH 0.398 reference (0.450-4.50)

Triiodothyronine, free 3.0 reference (2.0-4.4)

Before the medication change I was on 112 mcg but was still feeling sluggish -- I see the Endocrine on Monday 3/6/17 I did the Danette May 30 day challenge and lost 12 pounds but my sugar went up just a lil (I was fasting) it was 5.7 now its 5.8 ( Reference 4.8-5.8) I am told I am insulin resistant and pre-diabetes...... I go to the gym.... I eat nothing from a box basically clean eating. I DO NOT UNDERSTAND Took Metformin but off of it now just didn't seem to help at all

I am thinking I need to go off the Cytomel and maybe up my Synthroid to 150's or 175's

This needs straightened out real soon -- I had high hopes to be thin by September for my Sons wedding. I have been fighting for years to get this straight......ugh!

Doctor even did a Cortisol test I had to take a dexamethasone pill the night before the test ---- my result was 6.6 with the reference of 6.2-19.4 but prior to that They apparently messed up on the procedure for the same test and had me at 10.2 (reference 6.2-19.4) I just wish I understood this more. any help or suggestions to take to this Doctor is welcomed. She is new to the area and is very TEXT book too young and new to go outside the box (so to speak)........hope she still wants to keep digging

Many Blessings thank you

[Jodypody]

Clean eating is great to a point but you can still eat too much clean food if that makes sense. Going to the gym every day is great but unless you're a six foot athlete who works out for an hour or more you aren't going to burn that many calories. What do you do at the gym and what sort of calories are you taking in?

[marchm2016 in reply to Jodypody]

I use to do zumba and hiit class. But changed to gym 4 days a week. My doctor recently told me that I need to go with Yoga, walking and weights. So I go to the gym. Walk for a couple miles and then do the machines. Legs arms one day. Then core. Try to switch and do a different body parts. Love the kettleball -- I Eat between 1200-1500 calories a day. I eat every 3 hours. I notice I get a lil shakey if I dont. I dont eat junk but will at family gatherings have some sampling. I try to stay away from gluten. I notice I itch if I have too much. Thats why I basically eat clean too. I havent had any carbonated drinks and cant drink or eat anything diet. I am allergic to aspartame. Stevia even leaves a bad taste for me.

[Jodypody in reply to marchm2016]

Sounds like you're doing everything right. If you find you get shaky (as do I) try lowering carbs and upping protein and fats instead. I'd suggest 20% carbs and 40% each fats and protein. Sucrose might. E an option for sweetener. Protein shake from protein works are good for upping protein and keeping hunger at bay. They have no soy lecithin and are sweetened with stevia. If it's any consolation I adopt this regime. I dont eat gluten or sugar and lift heavy weights and do intense (insanity) cardio 6 days a week and eat similar calories to you just to keep to a normal weight!! It sucks but there you go. Are you female or male?

[marchm2016 in reply to Jodypody]

I am 49 year old female. I love kettlebell. Have a row machine. Energy is hard. I feel meh most of the time. Trying to work my arms so I have definition for my dress. Just started beginner yoga. I am at 207 now. I wanna see below 200 soon. I am trying to be realistic. A lil at a time. Need to be way less eventually. I found a protein powder. Its vegan. Gluten free dairy & soy free. Sweetened with stevia natural plant based by Bodylogix. 140 cal. 25 g protein. 5 g fiber 0 sugar and 2 g fat. Total 10 carb. Found it at GNC. Was using coconut sugar. 1 tsp =4 g sugar. Didnt think that was bad. Maybe I need to stay at 1200 cal for now since I am not as active as I was

[Jodypody in reply to marchm2016]

Just put the emphasis on the macros and lowering your carbs. Coconut sugar is still sugar I'm afraid (dull I know) I'm 48 and for me heavy weights seem to be doing the trick. There's a guy called Rudy Mawer who's got a decent few programs I'm looking at. Or you could try something like P90x. If you train arms and legs in the same day you won't be training either hard enough. A good regime would be more like back and biceps. Chest and triceps. Cardio x 2 and leg day. Legs burn a lot of calories

[Jodypody in reply to marchm2016]

Low carb high fat diets are supposed to reverse diet based diabetes you may want to look in to that. Until your medication is right you'll struggle though.

[Eddie83]

I suggest you make only ONE change at a time. So why would you go off Cytomel and increase Synthroid? Please note that your FT3 is just 41% up in range, and most of us here would suggest it needs to be around 75% up in range. Do you know if increasing your T4 all the way from 75mcg to 150mcg is warranted, given the T4 full-replacement dose? Multiply your weight in kg by either 1.5 or 1.7 and see what your T4-only full-replacement dose would be.

Your FT4 is in-range, but only 9% up in range. If you increase your T4 dose but your body won't convert it, then you have to make a decision on the basis of *how you feel*. In a case like this, I think you should increase T4 by a reasonable amount, say 20%, and see if your FT3 improves. If it does not improve, then it is unlikely you will get a benefit (but, once again, *how you feel* is the bottom line).

Are you aware some thyroid patients do better when FT4 is low in range? I am one of them. I know quite well that I get unpleasant symptoms like anxiety when my FT4 goes above ~15% up in range.

Have you taken notice of the many warnings in this forum, about the negative effects of continuing Hashimoto's autoimmunity, and the role of dietary changes and supplements in helping your thyroid work correctly?

BTW, FYI, I am on T3+T4=10+75 micrograms also. For comparison, I weigh about 168 lbs (76 kg). But I have no idea of how much thyroid hormone my thyroid (I still have it) is now contributing to the mix. I have never been told I am pre-diabetes, but I did note that, when I got my FT3 up above 50% in range, my non-fasting blood sugar went down almost 20 points.

[marchm2016 in reply to Eddie83]

Thank you Eddie83. I was seen by my Endo yesterday. She increased my Synthroid to 88mcg. And one cytomel in the AM. My knees are painful and I think thats why she increased it. I was down 8 pounds from my last appt with her. I have been reading about Hashimoto's. My endo Doc says that once disagnosed- you just have it. (Basically). She wont retest my antibodies. I have taken steps in correcting some dietary changes. I am reading the book from Isabella Wentz. I had labs done to check my iron, vitamin d. For some reason my request for vitamin b and the others are being deemed unwarranted. I am really trying to understand all of this. There is alot to this. I was on metformin for insulin resistance. My body did not accept this well at all. Was taken off. Was on Armour Thyroid. That threw me into anmassive anxiety that I never want to me in again. It was an absolute nightmare. I am hopiing I am on the right track. Thank you for your info and knowledge.

[Eddie83 in reply to marchm2016]

Sorry to hear you have a narrow-minded endo. I have a long history of musculoskeletal problems due to hypothyroidism and nutrient deficiences caused by enteropathy, including knee problems. I have never run across any doc who appreciates the link between hypothyroid & enteropathy, and musculoskeletal issues.

[marchm2016 in reply to Eddie83]

Thats just sad. Its not like any of us ask for this. Most of what I kinda know is from this forum or reading. And knowledge from others that are going thru this or had gone and found what works for them. Blessing to you