I am on 100mg of thyroxine, Haven't felt well for years. My GP refused to prescribe Ts and gave me 6 week Gym membership.Self medicating T3

[agnesb30]

Self medicating with T3 got from Uni Pharma .What would be a starting dose?

[RedApple Administrator]

agnesb30, More information is needed before any useful suggestions can be offered. Please post your most recent thyroid test results, which should include FT4 and FT3 results with their accompanying reference ranges.

[Aurealis]

As RedApple says, more information is needed. However I assume if you are trying T3 that you feel under medicated on 100mcg Levothyroxine. If I were you, I wouldn’t start T3 until I was sure that I couldn’t be well on Levothyroxine only. Some people are.

What are your test results? What doses of Levothyroxine have you tried? How long have you been taking it?

[agnesb30 in reply to Aurealis]

100 taken in the morning. Recent blood est do not seem to include any thind re my Thyroid

[agnesb30 in reply to Aurealis]

I have been taking it for several years. I have steadily gained weight and am very below parr

[Aurealis in reply to agnesb30]

It seems a shame to introduce T3 before trying a higher dose of Levothyroxine as you just may be undertreated and not have a conversion problem (the reason some people take T3). It is more difficult to get T3 stable for some people, and if you’re having to buy your own, this is a big expense over a lifetime.

Gaining weight isn’t a particularly helpful thyroid symptom, but feeling under par could be due to thyroid imbalance. 100mcg is not a very large dose. It is sometimes more effective to adjust dose until you feel well then wait six weeks have blood test to see where you’ve edjustec to, this indicates your set point.

Good news about the gym membership! Wish my GP would do that! But take it easy, perhaps a gentle swim or yoga perhaps.

Good luck

[trelemorele]

When I was prescribed t3 for the 1st time, I was on t4 - 150msg,

My endo at that time advised to drop t4 to 100 mcg and gave me 20 mcg t3 to be taken twice a day in split dose.

So from 150mcg t4 I moved to

100 t4 + 2 x 10 t3

After few weeks I twicked it myself and increased t3 to 2x 20 which suited me best.

[shaws Administrator in reply to trelemorele]

If you felt well on 2 x 20 T3 I'd continue on that dose. I take t3 only and am well on it too. Sometimes levo just doesn't suit some people and you've also tried a combination (T4/T3) so I'd imagine you will be glad to get back onto a dose which made you well in the past.

[trelemorele in reply to shaws]

Shaws

That was 8 years ago when I was hypo amateur, t3 virgin and NHS wasn't dumb down with regards to t3 yet. An endo wasn't against adding t3 and it was his instruction on how to dose it.

Since then I got clued up, had my t3 taken away and self medicate on t3 only now.

I was just sharing with the OP (who's t3 virgin) safe dosing advise I got from medical professional not my personal choice.

My personal dosing style now is not to be shared with general public due to it being rather.... unconventional.

[shaws Administrator in reply to trelemorele]

That's fine. I am also well on T3 only and now source my own now.

[ShootingStars in reply to trelemorele]

Ha! Hypo amateur, T3 virgin! Too funny! What are we called when we finally get it? Hypo pro, T3 strumpet?

[agnesb30 in reply to trelemorele]

thank you for your reply. I have only started to add T3 .I take all the supplements recommended on this forum and still feel unwell tired and listless every day,

I am also on antidepressants. your plan has given me hope.

Thank you Kate B.

[greygoose in reply to agnesb30]

We don't actually recommend taking supplements on this forum, we recommend that you get your nutrients tested first, to see what you need. Taking something you don't need is pointless at best and dangerous at worst. Did you get your vit D, vit B12, folate and ferritin tested?

[shaws Administrator in reply to agnesb30]

If you are on anti-depressants I suggest you get a private Free T4 and Free T3 blood test. Your conversion of levo to T3 may be insufficient. T3 is required in our millions of T3 receptor cells. T3 is the only active thyroid hormone and T4 has to convert to T3. You will see on the following link that T3 is helpful - even if someone isn't hypothyroid.

google.com/search?q=T3+and+...

Many doctors are fed up with us complaining and they tell us 'but your TSH is in range'. They have no idea of clinical symptoms at all which should be relieved if we are on the right dose and thyroid hormones that make us feel well.

Do you take your supplements well away from thyroid hormones. I take mine at lunchtime as most have to be taken with food.

[helvella Administrator]

I'd very much like to see the evidence on which he prescribed a gym membership if you are on inadequate thyroid hormone (of whichever sort).

Somehow demanding an evidence base seems to be the exclusive preserve of doctors - we seem to have to accept blind.

[Aurealis in reply to helvella]

I imagine the GP regards the thyroid replacement as adequate (they usually do!). May have suggested exercise regarding other symptoms (depression? High blood pressure perhaps? High cholesterol?) Or any of the multiple other things that low thyroid can cause, and be missed by GPs as an indicator of hypo.

[agnesb30]

Thank you for your reply.

Until yesterday I was on 100 grams of thyroxine.

I have just started T3 which I had to get from an online pharmacy.

Cant make head or tail of my latest blood-tests

Serum cholesterol 5.6 high)

Serum urea level 8.9 ( High)

Have felt ill for years.

Had to get my T3 online.

G.p Rdefused to prescribe T3

Gave me a six week Gym membership.

Can not loose weigh even though i eat a low carb. Low fat diet

[greygoose in reply to agnesb30]

Low carb, low fat is probably about the worst diet you could be on! Not surprised you need antidepressants. The body needs fat. And eating fat doesn't make you fat, quite the opposite. You need carbs to convert T4 to T3, so whilst I wouldn't recommend a high carb diet, you don't want to go too low.

Just starting T3 without knowing your FT3 level could be dangerous. Do you have copies of your labs? Did they test the FT3? Do you know if you have problems converting? Or are you just under-medicated on levo?

Your doctor is an idiot. And very rude. He knows nothing about thyroid or nutrition! Is it possible to get a new one? If not, you're going to have to learn about your disease so that you can be your own advocate and/or self-treat. Because you're never going to get anywhere with him, with his attitude!

[agnesb30 in reply to greygoose]

I am trying to do using advice on this forum

[shaws Administrator in reply to agnesb30]

I'm sure the advice will help you. I got mine through Thyroiduk.org.uk before the forum, so many members have gone through hypo with the similar attitude to your doctor has in treating someone who is hypo.

[Marz in reply to agnesb30]

If you post your latest thyroid test results - which you are legally entitled to have - then start a new post for people to comment. You may be starting to add T3 without needing it. T3 can be difficult to manage and is NOT a magic bullet for weight loss or anything else come to that. NOTHING will work in the body if you have LOW levels of B12 - FOLATE - FERRITIN & VitD. They all need to be OPTIMAL for your thyroid hormones to work well and for you to be well.

Was your B12 tested before you were prescribed Anti-Depressants ? If your result is below 500 then of course you will present with neurological issues.

We have to attend to the building blocks as detailed above before adding in thyroid hormones with which to build our temple of wellness

If you are following the advice of the forum as you mentioned - then please obtain your results with ranges and post them as a matter of urgency. Many of the excellent members here will be able to spot things and help you to sort things. Without the results we are merely mind reading and guessing

[agnesb30 in reply to Marz]

Thank you for ypur reply. I just thought the blood test would flag up any short fall re, thyroid.

[Marz in reply to agnesb30]

Which blood test ? You have not posted thyroid results ...

[Zephyrbear in reply to agnesb30]

Change your doctor... 6 weeks of Gym membership, should you choose to take it up, is likely to seriously deplete what precious thyroid hormones you have, leaving you worse off than you are now.

[agnesb30]

Thank you . I have zero energy . Just hoping that adding T3 to my meds will improve things.

[greygoose in reply to agnesb30]

Won't improve anything if you don't need it. And the only way to know if you need it is to get it tested, along with your FT4 - I take it your doctor hasn't done that.

[marigold22]

You have had some really great advice from members; all of which I agree with. My own story is that even after increasing my T3 only dose, I still had terrible depression & was on anti-depressant Sertraline for decades. I just could not get rid of the mental health stuff; until I discovered the role of all how all eight B vitamins. Here's a link to info on all of the B vitamins, brainmdhealth.com/blog/how-...

I now have a note on the inside of my kitchen cupboard stating the role of each of them.

[agnesb30]

Thank you for this info.