Mental help

[paul1978]

Hi all

So long story

I had a TT in aug 18

Rai in Oct

Was taking 100 northstar and 50 teva

Was put up to 175 on Xmas eve and took teva

Lost it Xmas day crying walking streets

Gp put me on antidepressants

Skip my levo on Boxing Day and felt ok

Went back on levo 200mcg and took northstar only

Since then my anxiety has been unreal every day all day and nasty thoughts that won’t go away panic all the time shaking hands and whole body shaking from the inside

Woke up this morning and not took my levo

Had a coffee and toast and I feel a lot better mentally

Advice please

[bantam12]

You need to post your latest results so people can help.

[paul1978 in reply to bantam12]

TSH 0.48 (0.38-5.33)

Ft3 6.7 3.2-6.2

Just wondering if the levo is making me crazy

[greygoose in reply to paul1978]

Did they really only do TSH and FT3? No FT4?

[paul1978 in reply to greygoose]

Nope just those 2

So sick of the nhs

[greygoose in reply to paul1978]

How strange. I would advise you to get private labs done, so that you get the whole thyroid panel:

TSH

FT4

FT3

TPO antibodies

Tg antibodies

vit D

vit B12

folate

ferritin

That will give you a much clearer idea of what is going on. Details of private testing here:

thyroiduk.org/tuk/testing/p...

[paul1978 in reply to greygoose]

Thanks

[Angel_of_the_North in reply to paul1978]

That looks a bit overmedicated. I'd try dropping levo by 25mcg

[shaws]

Paul1978 - you have my sympathy and I'm sure the whole forum will also have sympathy for you.

What is Northstar? I cannot see any info about it on the internet.

[paul1978 in reply to shaws]

The packets inside says activis but the box says north star brand

[shaws in reply to paul1978]

I believe that people who have no thyroid gland at the very least should be on a T4/T3 combination. Quite a number of Research Teams have proven that a combination of T4/T3 on a 3:1 or 4:1 basis can improve patient's wellbeing.

I could not improve in any way on levothyroxine and I do have my thyroid gland (although defunct).

Levothyroxine is an inactive hormone and it has to convert to T3. Some of us may not do so effectively. I only improved when I added some T3 to the T4 but when I stopped T4 and took T3 only, then my body recovered. It is trial and error for many of us.

Levothyroxine also known as T4 is inactive. It has to convert to T3 (liothyronine and the Active hormone). We have millions of T3 receptor cells in our body and the brain and heart need the most T3.

I don't know why doctors or endocrinologists aren't more knowledgeable and sympathetic. Even NDT - the very original thyroid hormone replacement which is T4, T3, T2, T1 and calcitonin and used from 1892 onwards and people no longer died through hypo and they survived.

T4 and blood tets were only brought in in the 1960's (so I believe) as a way of bumping up the profits of Big Pharma. The other companies who produced NDT obviously lost out in some way but the fact that some of us cannot improve on T4 have to try options. Doctors, at one time used to prescribe NDT or T3, but have been forbidden to do so in the UK.

Not one medical professional can possibly understand the turmoil some patients go through due to ineffective thyroid hormone replacements. We are all different and we need options.

If your GP provided anti-d's due to you feeling so bad, why cannot he add T3 to your T4? Are you aware that people who have their thyroid gland and get depression that T3 can improve their condition.

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

The brain and heart have the most T3 receptor cells and psychiatrists can prescribe T3 for their patients.

[paul1978 in reply to shaws]

Thanks u

[pennyannie]

Hi Paul,

A fully functioning thyroid would give you 100 T4 + 10 T3 daily.

I truly believe anybody who has lost their thyroid through medical intervention should have both these thyroid hormones on their prescription should they need them both replaced in the future.

Some people are ok on T4 alone, some are not, and there should be acknowledgement of this fact, and the appropriate replacement hormones available.

The prescribing of antidepressants and the false assumption it's your fault, is not acceptable.

I was refused a trial of T3 last year and decided I would to try NDT and am self medicating. I have my brain back, and am feeling better looking after my own hormone replacement.

I do not see the point of getting stressed when I don't fit into a blood test result range that is not appropriate for me and or, listening to dogma recited from a computer screen.

[pennyannie]

P.S. Paul - looking at your results I would have thought you needed your T4 reduced down gradually, and this should also bring your T3 down gently, hopefully resulting in both T3 and T4 coming into in range.

Both these hormones need to be in the upper quadrants of their relevant ranges thereby giving you approximately a conversion rate of 1 / 4 - T3 being roughly 4 times stronger than T4.

Imagine a seesaw - optimum fun is when both the participants are of equal weight ?

It might also be sensible to get a full thyroid panel showing T4 as well as T3 along with the vitamins and minerals as detailed on this site.

Post back on here when with the full results, including the ranges, where people more knowledgeable than me will offer considered opinion.

[Hidden]

Paul, I doubt very much if you will ever get well on Levothyroxine (T4) alone or even combined Levothyroxine/Liothyronine (T4/T3). You need to be fully aware that these 2 synthetic chemicals are different products to the natural Triiodothyronine (T3) and Tetraiodothyronine (T4) contained with either the human or porcine versions of what the thyroid gland produces. It is 100% impossible for the main constituents of a natural product to be synthetic chemicals. The manufacturers of Armour NDT used to actually state on their website that this LIE was the truth. The NHS refused to believe me when I told them this was a lie and continue to repeat this same lie on their justification for the blacklisting of NDT. It is irresponsible to deliberately refer to both the the natural and synthetic hormones using "T3" and "T4", apparently in the hope of causing confusion for thyroid patients. I use it here purely for sake of clarity.

The natural product also includes an array of other hormones which the NHS deem to be totally unnecessary for the treatment of anybody with a thyroid issue. I believe every one of them is essential for good health, especially for those without a thyroid gland at all.

Recommend ditching the levothyroxine and getting some NDT. The best brand for me is Thyroid-S.

Antidepressants will, according to many people, make you feel worse, recommend ditching them as well.

Stopping taking the Levothyroxine will make you feel better.......BUT only for a short time, then you will feel a lot worse.

I had a TT and RAI some years ago. Been there, got the tshirt. Problems with thyroid since 1989.

[paul1978 in reply to Hidden]

Thanks panda x