Early days on T4 & T3 combo

[hobbycat]

Further to a visit to my new endo I have been prescribed T3 to combine with my levo. Three weeks ago I reduced my levo from 125mcg to 100mcg, and was to add 20mcg T3.

Day 1 and I took 100 levo together with 10mcg at 06.30 and and another 10mcg T3 at 14.30 - which had me very hyper (shakey, fast heart rate, hot - not nice).

Next few days I just took first 100 levo + 10mcg T3 in the mornings - these were my best days - I guess the levo wasn't reduced in my system at this point. My resting heart rate moved up from ~ 62 to ~ 68 and I woke in the mornings feeling So much lighter and brighter. My head was a bit clearer and quicker and that awful body and mind lag (slow response) was much improved.

A few days on and I added a further 5mcg T3 at 14.30.

And from day 10 I was on 100 levo + 10 T3 at 06.30 and 10 T3 at 14.30. (Had my levo then reduced in my system by this point?)

Since then - the disappointment ! Although it is still easier to get up in the mornings, and my mood is a little lighter, my mind seems even slower than it was, and my energy has dropped again and some of my lag has come back (since adding in T3). Why might I not be feeling the benefits of this change ? My next endo appointment isn't for another 7 weeks. Should I be making contact about upping either my levo or T3 in the meantime ? As my change has been adding T3 which I expect is a quick response change - is this just it or might I feel any different in the next few weeks on the same dose ?

Below are my Jun17 tests before this dose change :

TSH level 0.07 mIU/L 0.35 - 4.94mIU/L

Free T4 level 15.6 pmol/L 9.01 - 19.05pmol/L

Free T3 level 4.6 pmol/L 2.63 - 5.7pmol/L

I'd be so grateful for any thoughts.

[Clutter]

Hobbycat,

T3 is quicker acting than Levothyroxine but it still takes several weeks for FT3 levels to improve and for T3 to metabolise to improve symptoms. Wait for your endo consultation before making any adjustments.

[hobbycat in reply to Clutter]

Thanks so much Clutter, I will take some comfort in what you say, though can you say a little more about why it might take a little while for T3 to metabolise, so I can understand a little more ? In the meantime I will keep going as I am, and keep on loading in the supplements.

[Clutter in reply to hobbycat]

Hobbycat,

Any thyroid med takes time to metabolise. It has to build up in our blood, move into the cells and then the work of relieving symptoms starts.