How to supplement properly?

[littlepotofjelly]

Hello -

in recognition that I'm not going to get any support with thyroid from GP unless it gets much worse, i'd like to support my body as well as I can in other ways. I suspect my adrenals probably need the help as well as i'm feeling pretty burnt out. I think i've got all my vitamin levels into a pretty good place now - what i'm not sure of is how to maintain that without raising levels or letting them drop.

Current B12 half way through range at 360 (140-720), Ferritin at 49 (13-150). Those numbers were taken about 6 months after stopping supplements for B12 & iron. What are good maintenance doses that won't just keep raising levels unnecessarily but also won't let them drop? I'd like to add a B-complex in, could I just do that or should B12 be supplemented in addition to that? I've got 1000 strength vit C tablets to take with the iron as aware that helps absorption.

Vitamin D is near top of the range now - should I stop supplementing or take a low dose maintenance amount? It was below range last year but I had loading doses for a month and then 5000 iu almost every day for a year. Don't want to carry on at that level now incase I make myself toxic but also don't want to drop the level too low again.

I also plan to add selenium after a recommendation on here - can this do any harm if I am not deficient in it? How would I find out if I am?

And I'll add magnesium as well, have already been given great info on that so will choose accordingly.

Any other suggestions to support what feels like a struggling body would be gratefully received. I've been researching but always feel like there is something I am missing.

Hoping some regular yoga will help if I can find the energy for it. And i'm trying my best to get good sleep. Thanks for any advice. Struggling at the moment and really appreciate the input. Feels like I might never feel properly normal again sometimes (a feeling i'm sure many of you know well). Thanks.

[Heloise]

Hi little, I see I posted the video by John Bergman about healing your thyroid especially if you don't have Hashimoto's, now another person on You Tube which points out 20 reasons for low thyroid is a good idea.

You have addressed a couple of them but as long as you have low thyroid which means your TSH is high, you have something else going on. It could be sex hormones, it could be vitamin A deficiency. You could be obstructing your own thyroid with other medications like antidepressants. As long as your TSH is high you may be short on a lot of nutrients so I think you probably should continue since your B12 and Ferritin are still low. B12 is difficult to overdose as anything water soluble will be removed. Ferritin is stored iron and is difficult to raise. My MIL needed 18 injections and still took iron continuously. Your vitamin D is not soluble so if at the top,( is the range 100 or 200?) could probably be halted till winter perhaps. Magnesium is another supplement that is really necessary and most people are short. It can cause diarrhea when overdosed so not to worry about that. Good oils are very necessary so coconut oil, avacado oil for cooking and olive oil for salads and fish oil to balance omega 6. Taking Betaine might help metabolize minerals you need.

Glucose can stress the adrenals and therefore the thyroid.

Look at Dr. David Clark's 20 Reasons for Low Thyroid on you tube. I can only copy one of each but you can see them all.

[littlepotofjelly in reply to Heloise]

Hello Heloise - yes thanks so much for the links to John Bergman, I have watched several of his videos now and they are so informative. I wish all Doctors could take his approach - sadly I have never found one in the UK. I don't have Hashimotos - no antibodies on tests, so that is ruled out.

How would I know if I had a vitamin A deficiency? I've not heard of Betaine so will look that up.

So low thyroid doesn't mean it will become hypo? It could improve with the other stuff sorted out? (I felt like that was what Dr John Bergman was suggesting too...)

Thanks for all the other information - i'll watch the Dr David Clark video you recommended. I'm feeling totally lost for how to work out what might be the cause of it... I did ask the Dr for tests to identify if sex hormones could be a problem a while back and she told me that there was no test to check that as female hormones are so unpredictable... so no help there!

[magsyh]

Do you have hashimotos or is ur thyroid problem due to nutritional deficiency? Depending which it is different things would help?

[littlepotofjelly in reply to magsyh]

I don't have hashimotos. I don't have a diagnosed thyroid problem (just symptoms of what could by hypo and a slightly higher in range TSH of 3.1 - but not over the top of the range which is 4.2, so not yet hypo).

I have had low ferritin and Vitamin D and below optimal B12 which I think I have corrected now. As far as I know I don't have other nutritional deficiencies. I eat a very healthy diet (lots of vegetable juices home-made, good fats like coconut oil and avocado, no gluten at all) but it doesn't seem to make a difference to how I feel!

Any suggestions welcomed. Thank you

[magsyh in reply to littlepotofjelly]

You are much like me I havent been diagnosed either. I also dont have hashis. My vit d, ferritin, folate and b12 werent optimal. I have managed to fix all that now. With a tsh of 3.1 you could well be hypo. You need to know your ft4 and ft3 levels? Its them that will paint the bigger picture. Forget the tsh and get ur frees tested and post results on here for best advice xx

[littlepotofjelly in reply to magsyh]

Sorry you are also struggling to work out what is going on. The info Heloise has just posted here seems like it might help you too? There's a lot to wade through - I feel like I am constantly learning (that's a positive out of all of this!).

I have had a full thyroid panel - my FT4 was 14.6 (12-22) and FT3 was 4.6 (3.10-6.8) - (full results in my medi-checks post) - so not high in range but also definitely not out of range.

Thanks for your help. x

[magsyh in reply to littlepotofjelly]

Your frees are a bit higher than mine. Ive been struggling for 11 years. Now 59 and still no menopause. I think my hormones in such a mess dont know if its low thyroid keeping the bleeding going or messy hormones messing with my thyroid?

[littlepotofjelly in reply to magsyh]

Have they done other hormone tests for you? It's ridiculous you've been struggling for 11 years. I'm so sorry to hear that. I'm only just turned 30 so hopefully not related to menopause for me - hoping to start a family soon!

[magsyh in reply to littlepotofjelly]

At my age they wont do it. They just keep telling me i must hit menopause soon. They told me that 11 years ago. I hope all goes well for you and you get this sorted and your family gets started soon xx

[magsyh in reply to littlepotofjelly]

Forgot to mention if you are using hormonal contraception that can really mess with your thyroid. If you intend getting pregnant come off the contraception for quite a few months to give ur body time to adjust and then retest before u get pregnant to see what ur thyroid levels are up to. Hormonal contraception steals all the b vits from your body. My daughters levels were very low for same reason. She got her vit bs in order esp folic acid before she got pregnant and everything went really well. My sisters daughters also suffer from low thyroid and they had major problems with pre eclampsia and gestational diabetes. So please give ur thyroid time to adjust if hormones are the problem x

[Heloise]

A good B Complex should be added to those.

[littlepotofjelly in reply to Heloise]

In addition to B12? Or could i get my B12 from the complex? Thanks Heloise, I really appreciate your input here. Feeling lost - i feel like i'm doing all the right things but never feeling well!

[Heloise in reply to littlepotofjelly]

Absolutely, B vitamins assist each other but you need higher doses of B12. I'm afraid you ARE deficient in nutrients. Your metabolism is slow, your temperature may be too low and amino acids and minerals rely on enough acid to break them down to be soluble. If not, those large particles escape and are not used. If your gall bladder is not functioning because of liver problems (coming from glucose issues) you will not process fats. Maybe you should consider digestive enzymes. I did post something on amino acids last year or so and more recently enzymes. You see, everything is not being processed quickly enough because of low metabolism which really fouls everything up. Your body fights to compensate and that adds so much stress.

I don't know a lot about the sex hormones but in Clark's five minute videos, he'll discuss testosterone (yes, you can be high or low) and estrogen/progesterone. usually we are estrogen dominant. I would not be at all surprised that this is where your problems may lie. Something started this tumble and it's usually glucose ups and downs or female hormones. When you find the Clark videos, watch #11 about progesterone, #4 Prolactins #15 about high cortisol #18 and 19 about testosterone. Maybe you should see a gynecologist about some of those hormonal tests.

[littlepotofjelly in reply to Heloise]

Phew, it's a minefield isn't it. So if I discovered it was sex hormones (for example) and got that in balance again it could bring my thyroid back in balance too? Thanks again for all this information. I'll keep wading through it all I guess. Need to start keeping a folder and highlighting the useful bits I think. I'm going to make a Dr appointment and see if I can get referred to someone who can help with hormone testing. Thanks again.

[Heloise in reply to littlepotofjelly]

Well, if you think of all the miraculous things the human body accomplishes among heartbeats and pumping blood and keeping a homeostasis with pH and temperature, etc. etc. etc., I guess you could call that a minefield. The problem is that so many contaminants are out there in food, water and even air that you MUST counteract BEFORE the immune system is overwhelmed. Yes, it takes work but as you continue, it will get easier. Keep me posted. Other good videos by Eric Berg, Axe, Dr. Lam, Ray Peat, et al.

[littlepotofjelly in reply to Heloise]

Thanks again. the body is miraculous - it's the understandinghow to help it bit I find a minefield at least I'm learning - that's one positive to come out of all this! Thanks again for the links / names to look up. Will start again in the morning! Thanks again! X