I have Graves and had my thyroid surgically removed in 2016. I have not been stabilized on NDT yet.
I have changed from Naturethroid (48.75 mg./3/4 grain) to NP Thyroid(60 mg./1 grain) because it has a lot less fillers and junk than Naturethroid. The NT gave me serious diarrhea and my endo lowered my dosage of 48.75 daily. This was a disaster, all my labs were at the bottom of the ranges and she said that was fine.
New doctor, GP, and NP Thyroid 60 mg daily and 200 mg. of Selenium. If I don't take Selenium I am crying and depressed, basically dysfunctional.
Labs 2/20/19, 9 hours after taking NP thyroid.
TSH 0.160 range .450 - 4.5
T4 1.16 range .82 - 1.77
T3 4.1 range 2.0 - 4.4
The T3 on my labs done in December 2018 was 4.5 on Naturethroid. So it has lowered now to 4.1. I wanted to add 15 mg. making it 1-1/4 grain, or 75 mg, but my doctor would not do it. He thinks the diarrhea is from hyper, but with me it is caused by hypothyroid, and the bloating.
I feel pretty good now, the diarrhea is better but not entirely gone, I still have bloating sometimes. So the doctor won't order a prescription for 75 mg. NP thyroid, so I can't see if that is my perfect number! I'm so frustrated by the lack of thyroid knowledge around here (United States), not one doctor has ever checked my vitamin levels or cortisole. I show them blogs from this website and they just are closed minded.
What do you think of these labs?
Thanks for your wonderful support and compassion. I am not alone!
Marilyn
Written by
leftbehind
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I am sorry for your post, many on here feel the same and I do sympathize but I am not as knowledgeable as some on here, but good luck it's a difficult journey. I self medicate with NDT you know that you can purchase yours make online if it's any help.
I feel for you I lost my thyroid in 2016 to cancer and like you my labs are always "perfect" and no increase in Armour Thyroid required and I'm in the U.S. as well. The U.S. Endos are very much into lab numbers they are the Accounts of the medical field here. I would suggest if you can change Endos, life's to short to be messing with stupid doctors that care more for labs then the patient.
Has your Doctor suggested you see a gastroenterologist to rule out IBS-D? I have suffered with IBS-C for years and has become worse since thyroid removal.
Yes, my GP wanted to send me to gastroenterologist, but I wanted to try the NP THYROID increased dose because previously the higher dose of thyroid stopped the bloat and diahrrea. If I went to a specialist for every symptom I would be full of prescription meds. I'm determined to get the dosage right for me, then symptoms are gone like bloat, sore muscles, shortness of breath, all gone. The doctors here just don't believe all those things are related to hypo thyroid.
Don't let them confuse you and make you sicker. Read this blog. Also, in US, STTM.ORG, Stop the Thyroid Madness.
If I go to a gastroenterologist, I'm convinced they will say I have IBS. And I'm convinced I don't have it, just had my immune system bombarded by high doses of antibiotics Levaquin 750 mg. for pneumonia. This was previous to Graves and thyroidectomy. An overdose I believe brought all this on me.
I also take NP Thyroid and I had a partial thyroidectomy this last year. I feel a ton better on NP Thyroid than on Levothyroxine which I was on before but I agree that you probably need to take more if you had your entire thyroid removed. I'm on 60mg of NP Thyroid and still have half of my Thyroid. I'm also in the states and looking for a new dr so I feel your pain.
I just wanted to add 15 mg., making my NP 75 mg. I believe would be perfect for me. If it's too much, certainly easy to cut back. The GP acts like I'm exhibiting "drug-seeking behavior", lol. Thyroid meds are so much FUN! Eeek.
Leftbehind ....my endo did this very thing to me at a recent appointment made me feel like a drug seeker for asking for 1/2 grain more of armour thyroid and she said "why" your numbers are "perfect" and that it would be unethical for her to give me and increase based on my bottom of the range lab results. My FT3,FT4,TSH,T3,T4....bottom of the ranges although still in the magical lab ranges.
It's a joke these endos tell you that your in good hands we will work to make you feel your best after thyroidectomy to only dump you like trash as soon as you achieve these magical lab numbers that are anything but magical. To add insult to injury after I had thyroidectomy I developed Psoriatic Arthritis because of it and they have no idea why...I wish I could post a before thyroidectomy picture and after it's mortifying to see how this thyroidless body is slowly killing me.
I also regret having a thyroidectomy. if I knew then what I know now it would not have done it I would have worked more on my diet and all the other things vitamins when your really hyper and you weigh 82 pounds you are scared and do whatever the doctor says and he didn't support anything except looking at his numbers he didn't care if I eat mac and cheese everyday and sat on the couch eating chips watching TV every day he could care less so I took it upon myself to read up change my diet I exercise everyday you're still having problems up and down hope it straightens out some days I look ancient and other days I look like I am healthy. Good luck I don't know what else to say thank you for your input
My current GP asked if I wanted a referral to a different Endo, along with the threat that he would be the same and would not increase my dose. So I replied why go there then?
I agree and its frustrating...but that guy is just trying to use scare tactics on you. Screw him/her....try someone new. I read along time ago...my health and happiness is no one's responsibility except my own and I refuse to let a sickness/disease define me.....and quite honestly I have to remember that from day to day, but its true.
Your numbers look pretty good..... ie: T 3 in top of range, T 4 - mid range and TSH low, low, low. But you were only 9 hrs out from your dose of NP. It is usually suggested that you have labs done early in the day and at least 12 hrs after dosing NDT.
Do take your body temp about 3 pm in the day. This is when body temp is usually at it's highest. You want it close to normal. Also check heart rate and blood pressure if you have a home cuff. The acid test is .... how do you feel? If you are still having hypo symptoms, you may need a little more NDT or maybe just some additional T 3 only as well as your regular dose of NDT? Keep a log, nothing fancy... just a daily log, jotting down dosages, symptoms, heart rate, body temp and how you are feeling. Years ago, there was no cursed TSH test and docs went by symptoms only and kept dosing until symptoms were alleviated.
A low body temp will let you know that you need to increase your medication. Always take it low and slow, holding for six weeks before labs. A higher body temp and/or increased heart rate along with a feeling of anxiety, sleeplessness and irritability can be signs that you need to lower your dosage.
Ps... if you have had loose bowels for a while now, do take a good probiotic and eat lots of yogurt/buttermilk etc. with live cultures. It helps when we repopulate our gut with good flora/fauna.
Yes, I am taking live culture probiotics. Since I started the NP THYROID, the diahrrea has gone. My GP also found I had high alkaline phosphatase, which I googled in relation to thyroid and Graves and liver function. Sure enough, another symptom of Thyroid activity gone south. GP was not interested in the article! So now I'm supposed to have liver disease and go to an enterologist.
Any info on alkaline phosphatase would be appreciated.
I am totally uninformedabout alkaline phosphatase, my friend. You can probably google the condition and learn more than you ever wanted to know about it...lol.. I wish you luck. But study, study and research.
Hi there I also have Graves and have had my thyroid surgically removed and I all over the place regarding medication at the moment with a dosage of 100 Levo/12.5 T3 making me feel very unwell so I am going to see a private doctor this week in the hope that he will prescribe me NDT and I notice that you say you are only on 1 grain and that surprised me because I thought I would need more than that without a thyroid but maybe that's where I am going wrong and overmedicating and need just 1 grain of NDT too. I hope to start feeling better on NDT and hope that you too get the results you hope for. I just commented on this post as I was surprised that you were on such a low dose but maybe that's the way forward for me?
I'm a small person, now weighing 110 pounds which is good weight for me. Maybe that's why the low dosage. The drs. don't explain anything to me, only I'm within lab ranges. Before the NP I was on WP 48.75 (3/4 grain) and at the bottom of all the ranges, Endo said that was fine, even though I had chronic diarrhea. Now I'm at the top of T3 and feeling much better. I sort of had to trick the new GP into prescribing the 60 mg (1 grain). The conversion between Levo and Natural is not equal strength. Also the NP includes T3.
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