I was inspired by the medical medium after reading his thyroid healing book. I’ve been drinking the celery juice each morning. I decided to try and reduce my medication with a view to stopping the pills. I had been taking 3 grains NDT and 25mcg T3 daily. The NDT wasn’t sitting well with me as I’m eating a vegan diet. Anthony Williams , the medical medium, describes thyroid medication as acting like a steroid in the body and aging us prematurely. He suggested that depending how long you’ve been on the medication, would depend how long you could safely withdrawal. The recommendation for me was one year. However I stopped over a two week period. Then over the next two weeks felt worse. Had my blood tested on Tuesday and had to ask for my results on the Friday. I realise now it wasn’t the safest of experiments. I suffer from chronic urine infections and have Hashimotos. I am on a low dose antibiotic for three months but had run out after two months. Thought I could do without the final month. But along comes my period and my immune system is shot, so it’s come back with a vengeance. I don’t value how precious my health is and what freedom it allows until it is threatened and temporarily lost.
Am taking 1 grain daily in split doses, trying to avoid headaches.
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crmavb
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For chronic uti's you need antibiotics for longer than 2 or 3 months, I was initially given 6 months worth but 2 years on I'm still taking them and uti free 👍
Glad you posted this. I found most patients and many doctors think short term antibiotics are enough. Often they are and antibiotics can be difficult to take but there are times when long term is the best answer.
Oh boy! This must be CRAZY SUNDAY! If you have Hashimoto's it's almost certain it won't resolve. Celery juice. I don't know who this Williams is, but his statement that artificial thyroxine ages us beats everything in absurdity. The life expectancy and quality of life of someone on T4 only for the rest of their lives is virtually indistinguishable from healthy people, if T4 only is tolerated well..
I actually think this Williams bloke ought to be prosecuted. Advocating cr*p like this to chronically sick and often desperate people is nothing short of criminal in my opinion - or he ought to be sectioned. Bloody snake oil for the 21st century.
This ‘celery juice’ b*llsh*t has come up on this site before because I remember responding to it. The fact that celery is mostly made up of water anyway and that it actually has a high sodium content for a vegetable (so eating it in concentrated juice form is probably not the best idea) aside, how anyone could conceive that this with enable them to come off meds is a tad or so beyond me! As Diogenes astutely points out, the other references made to thyroid medication and age are equally absurd.
Thank you for trying this and posting the outcome - I genuinely mean that - as it will help other people to avoid this charlatan and his b*ll*cks ideas. Your T4 is very low - I do hope you get back on your meds and feel better soon.
I like celery, I eat lots of the stuff. It makes a nice crunch in a salad. Eat celery by all means; drink its juice if you like. But don’t expect a miracle cure...
I was the foolhardy one. Thinking I could come off sooner. He doesn’t claim to replace doctors. Just says there are cases of people having had their thyroids removed and living without thyroid medication. He says that hypothyroidism, Hashimotos and hyperthyroidism is caused by the Epstein Barr virus. What’s needed is to kill the virus in order for the thyroid to heal. Drinking the celery juice is one of the many suggestions that can help with this.
I'm sorry, but no human can live without thyroid hormone. Epstein Barr may or may not be 'a' causal factor in the development of 'some' cases of thyroid dysfunction but this snake oil seller has no proof that it is 'the' cause; nor that stopping taking exogenous thyroid hormone and drinking celery juice will cure it.
Your above blood test results indicate what happens when someone who needs to replace or supplement their exogeneous thyroid hormone, stops doing so; not that you stopped too quickly.
Where someone is denied thyroid hormones, whether by an internal cause or external factors, they are at risk of myxoedema crisis. Myxoedema crisis has a high mortality rate - I've read up to 60% even with timely high quality treatment - because in such cases, low intracellular T3 can lead to cardiogenic shock, respiratory depression, hypothermia and coma. Then there's arrythmia, disordered coagulation, hypotension, bradycardia, a need for mechanical ventilation, hypothermia unresponsive to treatment, sepsis, lower Glasgow Coma Scores, high APACHE II scores, and high Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scores........ I wonder if the Medical Medium mentions any of that in advising people to quit taking their thyroid meds because all will be well.
Are you aware of the consequences of having no thyroid hormone or extreme low levels for a few months? There is a condition called myxoedema coma that can develop. IF it is diagnosed in time people can recover after a spell in intensive care. If it isn't diagnosed in time people die.
And for people whose levels of thyroid hormone are very low but not yet at the level of coma they can end up psychotic. In the past people ended their days in lunatic asylums.
Just read your link. Scary stuff indeed. Those poor women.
The story of the healed thyroid after removal was that some small amount of thyroid remained and was enough to make a difference. I know it sounds far fetched and wanting to believe something is true can’t make it so. But it’s so frustrating how little progress has been made in chronic illness and if there’s a chance for learning another way to heal, especially if they suggest mainly fruits and vegetables, then I’m listening. Obviously I threw the baby out with the bathwater and I’m incredibly lucky I am not in a worse state for doing so.
Thank you for the link, I think I will print that.
Some small amount does remain, but it would never grow to a size where it would be able to make enough hormone to keep a person alive.
Besides, why did the person have their thyroid removed in the first place? If it were due to cancer, the cancer would grow back with the thyroid. That's why cancer patients need their TSH suppressed, to stop the thyroid growing back.
And, if it were due to Grave's, the antibodies would still be there, so if they thyroid grew back, they would still have Grave's.
I don't think he knows the first thing about thyroid!
Sorry, but in my view, that is exactly what he claims. He says that it is all a complete mystery to medical communities - and then tells you what to do. That is saying, he can and does replace doctors.
Complete Mystery to Medical Communities...
In my upcoming book, Thyroid Healing, I reveal an entirely new take on the epidemic of thyroid illness. I empower you to become your own thyroid expert and explain in detail what the source problem really is, including what’s going on with inflammation and autoimmune disease.
I share the exact cause of 88 conditions and symptoms that are plaguing people today and how they develop. These problems are still a complete mystery to medical communities and include thyroid conditions like:
I don't think there are any cases of people living healthy lives without a thyroid and no replacement hormones. Before thyroid hormone was discovered, people with under active thyroids would gradually go mad and be locked up in asylums to die. Of course, when your brain is completely fried, you might think you are OK as you can't think ...
People that have their thyroid removed living without medication.... For how long? The thyroid regulates our heartbeat, metabolism and is important for our entire endocrine system. Without adequate hormone replacement, people will eventually fall into a myxedema coma and expire!
This is a lesson in learning that the belief systems of some “healers” are dangerous and ill informed. Take special care of yourself, I hope that you are soon feeling much better.
By 'thyroid medication', presumably he is talking about replacement thyroid hormones ? If these are really so dangerous, shouldn't healthy people undergo antithyroid treatment to kill of their 'normal" levels of hormone ?
Thank you for posting this. It is something concrete to point to when people talk about this rediculous - and dangerous - so-called 'Medical Medium'. The man is a public menace and should be banned. I wonder how many people he's killed? I wasn't aware until today just how dangerous he is, I haven't read his books, and just thought he was a harmless lunatic and that no-one could really take him seriously.
And, you're blaming yourself for not carrying out his instructions correctly? No. It's not your fault. How ever well you followed the protocol it would never have worked. How can a vegetable replace a hormone? The only thing that can replace a hormone is a hormone, not any sort of juice. You must go back on your thyroid hormone replacement - because that's all it is, not actual medication in the strict sense of the word - as some as possible, and burn his wretched book - preferably in public!
crmavb, Thank you for posting your experience, because it will hopefully help other people to see what a dangerous charlatan this person is. He is clearly an attention seeker who cares nothing about the damage he may do to others, and is solely feeding his own desperate need to be some sort of hero.
Please don't continue experimenting with his crackpot ideas. You will be the one to suffer, not him. There is no shame in needing to take thyroid hormone. it is not a drug. Those pills are not something to 'come off', they are needed to sustain your life.
Focus on getting your treatment right, not on trying to do without it.
Thank you everyone, it means a lot to be able to share on here and hear your responses. Even though I still think the medical medium is giving some sound advice. You can’t beat actual interaction with real live people who understand thyroid disease and the frustration with doctors who have limited knowledge. I had the blood test on Tuesday and only found out the results by ringing in myself on Friday. Looks like they had the results on Wednesday but no one tried to contact me.
This is such a valuable resource and I appreciate every one of you taking the time to comment. I foolishly believed I would be aware of my symptoms enough to know when I needed more medication. After 6 days of not taking any T3 or NDT I did take 12.5 mcg of T3 and 4 hours later suffered with a headache for two consecutive days. It’s going to take some time to slowly increase my meds and avoid nasty side effects.
I suspect that most of us with Graves' or Hashi's will have wished for a 'miracle cure' at some point, and people are upset that someone is taking advantage of this to peddle advice which appears to be not simply expensive and useless, but positively harmful.
It's not so much that you wouldn't be aware of your symptoms, more that there can be a lot of overlap between hypo and hyper symptoms, and most of the common symptoms aren't exclusive to thyroid disease anyway.
I think most of us have to ring the surgery for our results - although you may be able to register to see them online.
Well, those bloods show you are very, very hypo right now and need to get back on those meds immediately before you damage your heart and brain irreparably.
To be open-minded, it's quite possible that this guy has a gift for looking at people and seeing what is wrong with them - after all that's what GPs used to do before they became obsessed with computer screens. But that's a bit different from doing it remotely or saying that one size fits all through a book.
Let's say that glandular fever is the cause of Hashis/autoimmune thyroid disease. Most of those who get it, tend to get it in their teens, so, say you got glandular fever at age 14 and Williams met you the following year and saw that you still had the virus and were getting Hashis. If you managed to knock out the virus completely and stop the autoimmune response it is quite likely that there would be enough thyroid tissue left to produce a decent level of hormones so you'd be fine for the rest of your life.
But the reality is that most people don't know that there is anything wrong with them for maybe 20 years or longer, and by the time they are frustrated enough to turn to a website for help, too much damage has been done for anything except hormone replacement to help.
Notice that most of his reviews are from the rich and famous who can afford to throw a hissy fit if they get a pimple - and have it taken seriously. Ordinary people are not in the same position.
Some of his dietary advice may be excellent and help your overall health, but I doubt it will regenerate your thyroid if you are ill enough to have a diagnosis of hypo.
All of this is most interesting... I have not read this Thyroid book but have read Williams' book 'Liver Rescue'. I was irritated from the first by his endless use of extended metaphors intended to explain even the simplest of notions. He also has a tendency never to use one word where 20 will suffice... Nevertheless I persevered, hoping that he might come up with something interesting - the fact that he is not 'mainstream' didn't and doesn't worry me at all: I have had such a horrific experience with mainstream doctors with my own complaint (pernicious anemia) that I am prepared to listen to anyone with alternative ideas.... as long as they are able to present a logical argument in reasonable English. Since Williams, apparently, has 30 years of experience working as a GP and (I think) liver specialist I suppose it is at least worth listening to what he has to say. Anyway, the central thesis of this book is that many illnesses start in the liver, including all so-called 'auto-immune' diseases. In fact Williams does not believe that there is such a thing as 'auto-immune' disease. He thinks that this is merely a convenient catch-all term invented by scientists in the 20th century to explain all kinds of medical problems to which they could not provide any other (more rational) explanation. The way to deal with many medical problems is to look after the liver - eradicating viruses (especially Epstein Barr), detox, diet (and yes, basically this means lots of lovely celery juice., apples ...) etc etc. I am afraid I am quite sceptical about all of this, though part of me wants to believe that detoxing the liver could indeed provide the miraculous benefits Williams claims. But then I know absolutely zero about medicine. I wonder if any of you knowledgeable people out there think there think that there may be some truth in some of this, or is it all Alice in Wonderland?
This is rubbish I have been eating celery sticks everyday for over 50 years. Greengrocers daughter. In my sixties I have had my gallbladder removed and now my thyroid, so much for the celery, but I have had it today with my lunch a habit now in my seventies but it's never helped my with my thyroid problems.
@crmavb, rather than thinking any more about whether these specific assertions are valid or not, now think about how to protect yourself against this kind of mistake in future. In other words, learn how to tell whether information is good or bad, for yourself.
1. Start by assuming it's snake oil, if you've never heard about it from anyone else.
2. Check the research that supports the claims. If none is given, that's a huge red flag to start with. If studies are mentioned, try and find them online and read the abstracts yourself (or the whole study if you can, but the abstract should be enough). Studies that only lasted a few weeks, or only used a handful of test subjects (a couple of dozen people), are not at all reliable. Very often, in the actual research paper, you'll find that it doesn't match what the general public see in the media - journalists don't always understand fully, and they work to tight deadlines, and need a headline that has impact. (Even the BBC make this kind of mistake.) Also if subjects for the study were only among students, for example - that wouldn't include many people older than their early 20s. Or if the study only used men, or only women... all sorts of things. Secondly - if it's possible - find out who funded the study and whether they stood to benefit if it showed one or another conclusion.
3. Deliberately search out the *opposite* views, as if you hated the person giving the advice and were researching everything you could find to ruin their reputation. (If you're very lucky, you'll find that lots of reputable people do agree, whether or not the establishment wants them to tell the world. But this is RARE.) You may also find accounts of people that tried the methods and had problems - these won't be in the quotes on the author's own website, of course!
(All this does feel like working against your own interests, and it can take strength - and it does usually take longer - but it is vital. Remember that every suggestion you rule out makes your store of knowledge stronger: more effective and more reliable.)
4. Don't just look at how many people are against the advice - don't just look at how strongly they say so - look most at the reasons they give. If they can back up their arguments in more detail than the other side can, that's a big sign. If they give links to articles, look at those.
5. I should have said first - well, second - that you should look at the author's qualifications and experience. Sometimes they lie, but most don't, and if they have only worked as a counsellor at a hospice, they aren't likely to be any better at science than the rest of us (only better at self-publicity!). Looks like this guy does pass this test, but it's only one on this checklist.
6. If you're still happy to give the ideas a trial, at least look into the possible dangers (you've learnt that, this time round!) - doctors don't always go into details for fear of alarming patients too much, or we don't take it all in when we're first diagnosed. eg I know I'll die without insulin but I learnt the ropes as a child and the grown-ups involved me in the explanations. A lot of diabetics never quite get it. Some aren't even told it. Unbelievable but true. ... Your time is better spent learning *good* methods than recovering from avoidable experiments! <3
If you really want to become your own expert (sounds like you do ), then the way to get there is to practise being a ruthless cynic. Then, when an idea does make it past all your fierce defences, you can really trust it. And improve your life that way. Meanwhile enjoy the journey.
Thank you for taking the time for writing your reply. I read it and honestly thought my husband could have written it. So I do have my other half with that mindset - the yang to my yin 😉
I have managed to reduce my NDT to 1 grain a day in split doses.
My latest blood test shows I’m on the lower acceptable level for t4 and my TSH is suppressed below the lower limit.
Sorry I always have a bit of a fight to get the print out but I’ll do it soon.
My periods stopped at the beginning of April - pregnancy tests are negative, even blood. Hormone levels are normal. Dr thinks it’s because I’m hypothyroid. I would be surprised as it’s never happened before and I feel quite stable.
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... Your time is better spent learning *good* methods than recovering from avoidable experiments! <3
), then the way to get there is to practise being a ruthless cynic. Then, when an idea does make it past all your fierce defences, you can really trust it. And improve your life that way. 
I'm about to self medicate on T3 - is it safe without knowing current level?
Going from Graves to being hypothyroid without RAI or thyroidectomy 
Self Medicating on NDT
