Advice on T4 levels please.

[TSH86]

Hi,

I would just like to say I have received some excellent and amazing advice on here. Thank you all. It will allow me to face my Endo with some confidence, as someone on here called theirs "The Prophet of Doom" and mine sure is.

I am on T3. My body does not tolerate T4. Trials of it over 11 years makes me extremely unwell but Endo chooses not to hear that and keeps on insisting I take some. I am having to write to her so it's in black and white before they take away my T3.

Any advice would be appreciated.

How does a level of T4 < 2 (I think that means below 2) affect thyroid health.

If on T3 treatment - TSH and FT3 are both in range.

Thank you.

.

[greygoose]

I should think your thyroid health is beyond help if you've got to this point. It's not your thyroid you should be worrying about. I think what you mean is, how does a level of less than 2 affect your general health? And, quite frankly, I don't think anyone can answer that with any kind of authority.

Do we absolutely need T4? Some say yes, some say no. Plenty of people live very well on T3 only - I did for quite a while because any form of T4 made me very ill, too. They, after a few years, I tried introducing 25 mcg T4 to see what would happen. Nothing happened. I didn't feel any better but I didn't feel any worse, either. I'm still taking it after about 8 months.

On the other hand, other people need some T4 added to their levo to feel well. SeasideSusie , for example, says she needs her FT4 at a certain level to feel well. And if that's what she needs, that's what she needs. But, it doesn't mean that everyone else needs it, too.

So, unless your endo has some pretty convincing evidence that no T4 is going to harm you in some way - in which case, please share it with us - I think she has to trust you that you don't need it and don't intend to take it. After all, she's not there to dictate to you, she's there to advise, and treatment should be a joint decision with your informed consent. If she doesn't inform you as to why you should take something, then you are within your rights to refuse. It's your body, your life, your health. And how you feel should be paramount, not her need to dominate.

[TSH86 in reply to greygoose]

Thank you Greygoose. That has cleared up my concern that the endo would use my T4 level as some sort of excuse to get me to take T4 AGAIN.

Like yourself I recently tried 25mcg T4 with T3 it made no difference but when I take 50mcg T4 I feel and look extremely unwell.

I won't let her dictate to me as I feel more informed now and it is how an individual feels. I will read SeasideSusies post.

Much appreciated advice.

[greygoose in reply to TSH86]

I can't take 50 mcg levo, either. I'm just staying on the 25 mcg as a sort of insurance policy, really, just in case.

[TSH86 in reply to greygoose]

I think that's a good idea and I think I should do the same.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to TSH86]

TSH86

Just to say it might be hard to find posts where I mention my levels of FT4 and FT3 (I tend to post more about vitamins).

I found, by trial and error, and tweaking doses of Levo and T3 over a couple of years, that my FT4 needs to be about 75% through the range, same with FT3.

I was taking 100mcg Levo with 31.25mcg T3 at the time and my results were

FT4: 19.5(12-22) and FT3:6.61(3.1-6.8)

as I was still experimenting I reduced Levo to 75mcg, left T3 the same and this is what happened

FT4: 12.8(12-22) and FT3: (4.59)3.1-6.8

I felt dreadful but at least it showed me that I still had some natural conversion by the fact that my FT3 reduced as well.

It took 12 months and a couple of further tweaks to get my levels back to the original ones and I ended up on 112.5mcg Levo and 25mcg T3.

Just goes to show how we're all different and what suits one isn't necessarily right for another.

[TSH86 in reply to SeasideSusie]

Thanks SS for that. I couldn't find your post on T4. This is very helpful. I think I will buy some blood test kits and do the same. It may take time but hopefully I will get there.

[Angel_of_the_North]

I'm not sure if we need T4 for anything. I take T3 only but my free T4 has never been as low as yours. I take a grain of NDT once every couple of weeks just in case.

[TSH86 in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

So possibly, correct me if I am wrong. T4 is only in the body to be converted to T3.

If we get T3 directly we don't need T4 ?

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to TSH86]

I don't think anyone knows whether T4 has any direct function. It might have, but I doubt that anyone has studied it.

[TSH86 in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

In that case my Endo has no reason to insist I take T4.

Thanks