Advice about levo and ndt together

[Qapl]

Hi, does anyone take levo and ndt together? I am on 150mcg levo and am under. I have previously added half a grain ndt on top which did help but. It sure that it was right. Was considering dropping levo to 125 and adding a grain..... any thoughts on whether this would be a good plan? Thanks

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

That's a lot of T4 to a small amount of T3. I would have thought Levo plus T3 is a better idea.

[Clutter]

Qapl,

No one can advise without seeing your thyroid results and ranges.

However, 1 grain NDT is equivalent to 65mcg Levothyroxine so you may want to drop Levothyroxine by more than 25mcg.

[vivbw in reply to Clutter]

Hello clutter, thank you for advice as always.

I cannot find the conversion table of NDT from T4 and T3.

I want to change, I am on T4 75 and T3 17.5 which equates to about 145 micrograms daily.

If my memory serves me correctly I think it said 100 micrograms is equivalent to 1 grain NDT.

Although I am aware the doses on the NDT bottle the dose states less.

Regards v

[Clutter in reply to vivbw]

Vivbw,

Manufacturers claim 100mcg Levothyroxine is bioequivalent to 1 grain when you are changing from Levothyroxine only.

There is 38mcg T4 and 9mcg T3 in 1 grain which is equivalent to 65mcg T4.

I estimate T3 17.5 = 52.5mcg T4 + 75mcg T4 = 127.5mcg T4 which is equivalent to 2 grains NDT.

[vivbw in reply to Clutter]

Thank you very much

[Qapl]

Hi my results are

FT4 18.3 ( 11.0 - 26.0)

TSH 1.53 (0.35 - 4.50)

FT3 3.7 ( 3.9 - 6.5)

I have thought about t4 and t3 but wouldn't know where to start with dozing and where to get it. I know that my gp will not be interested in prescribing it to me. I would welcome any thoughts or suggestions. Thanks

[Clutter in reply to Qapl]

Qapl,

You are a poor converter to have FT3 below range so it would help to add NDT or T3. As you already have NDT I would add 1/2 grain to your 150mcg Levothyroxine and another 1/2 grain two weeks later. Hold at 150mcg + 1 grain for 6-8 weeks and retest before increasing further.

[Qapl in reply to Clutter]

Thank you - advice is greatly appreciated. I find that ndt can give me migraines and more gut issues or at least I think that is the reason. Have you ever heard of this and is there a brand that is better than others?

The help that is offered by you and others is so welcomed as it feels a very lonely confusing situation so thank you 😊

[Clutter in reply to Qapl]

Qapl,

Different brands suit different people so you'll need to try other brands to find what suits you. Alternatively you could try adding some T3 to 150mcg Levothyroxine.

[jgelliss in reply to Clutter]

Clutter like this advice . Very sensible and reasonable advise . Being that I dose with high dose of T4 . I found that most Endo Dr's love to lower T4 when adding T3 or NDT to the T4 mix . Only adding more confusions uncertainties and having more symptoms . Most patients that are on higher T4 dosage are on it because the are well dosed with that dose except they just need some T3 or NDT added to the mix .

[silverfox7]

Your FT4 in only half way in range and your FT3 is under so I think you have two problems, you aren't taking enough medication (aim is to get both FT4 and FT3 in the top third or even top quaternary of their ranges) but also your FT3 is low against your FY4 so suggesting a conversion issue as well.

So I would ask your GP to increase your dose and also test Vit D, folate, ferritin and B12. These 4 help your thyroid to convert but they need to be optimal, not just in range so post any results and ranges for comment. They can often be low in thyroid sufferers but when optimal they can solve the problem but it takes time, can be months rather than weeks depending how low things are. They also help your general health as well. Addibg T3 can make you feel better but I think you are more stable if you address the problems first.

[Qapl]

Thank you so much for your response. Would supplements from health food shops be good enough to sort out b12 vit d etc levels? I am keen to get started in sorting this out as life is not much fun feeling this way. I anticipate that my gp will dismiss my results - I have an appointment but am not at all hopeful. I would like to add t3 and have been doing analog of research about how I can source this but it is such a minefield.

Do you know of any online places without prescription for t3 that are reliable?

Thanks again 👍🏻

[martinpatrick]

yes NDT would give you t3 directly. would take 100 levo plus 1 grain