I have been critical of some of the things this doctor says, especially since trying to "flush out" high rT3 by adding 25 mcg of T3 to 3 grains of NDT (after reading a success story about one of his patients who lost ca 20 kgs of weight doing that).
However, the following article could have been written about me:
restartmed.com/leptin-resis...
In September 2018, at my annual medical check-up, I weighed 73 kilograms. Back in the good (or rather bad) old days before taking NDT and supplements for insulin resistance, I weighed 101 kgs at one point (I'm 173 cm). But, once my NDT was optimised, and I went on Berberine and Hyponidd, I lost 28 kgs effortlessly and was able to keep that new, lower weight for three years. I was not even dieting, just eating mainly healthy food (but not counting calories) with the occasional treat.
However, in recent months, things have started to go wrong. Last summer, I was diagnosed with ovarian cysts and put on progestin (Duphaston). I have blamed my recent weight gain and inability to lose weight on that drug, as I've read that synthetic progesterone suppresses natural progesterone levels which in turn leads to estrogen dominance. So I've tried supplements said to lower estrogen levels naturally, without success. I have also considered PCOS which is said to cause weight gain.
But I'm not sure a drug taken ten days a month can mess you up that badly...?
The most noticeable problem in recent months has been increased appetite. I never feel full, and I am constantly craving carbs. Last year, at my annual medical check-up, I was told both my fasting insulin and blood sugar levels were normal (using Berberine). Back then, I also had no problems with my appetite control. That has started in recent months.
If I have not eaten in two hours, my stomach actually starts growling, loud and clear...
I have put on 22 kilograms in the last six months.
Two weeks ago, I went off NDT after being diagnosed with out-of-range FT3 levels after suffering what looked like an epileptic seizure. I have been on T4 only since so my FT3 levels must have declined by now. I have not been on more than 4 gr of NDT in the past year so I have taken 152 mcg of T4 at most. I started on 175 mcg of Euthyrox as that is what I took before I went on NDT, but felt slightly overmedicated so decreased it to 150 mcg daily. I know FT4 levels won't change as fast as FT3 levels, but I reckon 150 mcg daily is a minimum dosage for someone weighing 95 kilograms. However, I feel HYPERthyroid on Euthyrox only as well. I sweat all the time, my hands are really warm and, worst of all: my appetite keeps increasing. Friendly and well-meaning advice like: "Just drink a big glass of water" or "Nibble on a carrot" simply doesn't help. It's like my body cannot get enough food.
I have been eating a lot of protein (eggs, tuna, chicken...) in an attempt to feel full and lower my carb intake. However, according to Dr. Childs, people with leptin resistance should eat 80% fat and no more than 20% protein. I guess I have eaten twice that amount of protein in recent months. And no, it hasn't had any noticeable effect on my appetite either
In the article, Dr. Childs writes that people with leptin resistance tend to have HIGH FT3 levels as well, which is exactly what I have had.
Given my recent experiences, I am willing to give T3 only a try. But the idea of taking no T4 at all makes me somewhat uncomfortable...I've always had this question at the back of my head "What if I end up unconscious in the ER with no T4 to be converted to T3, and cannot take any T3 for 24 hours; will my FT3 levels be completely depleted by then?"
I'd appreciate any input from people having gone off T4 completely and taking T3 only, or having decreased T4 to a very low dose (50 mcg daily or so) along with T3.
Right now, I am so desperate that I am willing to try anything. I read another article about rT3 dominance, by Dr. Suzy Cohen, and she stresses you should notice quickly if it works for you or not. So I would not stay on high doses of T3 if I did not notice quick improvement.
But I'd be afraid to take too much T3. Back when I had my "seizure", I was taking 52 mcg of T3 daily (3 gr of NDT + 25 mcg of T3). So I would have to start low and go slow.
I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's back in 2000 and told after a thyroid ultrasound that I had "few hormone-producing cells left", so it's not likely my own thyroid has suddenly come back to life, causing me to go hyperthyroid on thyroid hormone replacement...I know that antibodies can sometimes flare up in people with Hashi's, but if that has ever happened to me in the 19 years I've been on thyroid hormone replacement I have never noticed it. I have never had symptoms like this before, and going off NDT and back on T4 has not made a difference either, which is why I don't think seeing an endocrinologist would help. S/he would most likely tell me to lower the Euthyrox dose even further. I doubt any conventional endo measures rT3 or leptin levels or even knows what they are.
I have seen a Hertoghe doctor in private practice in Belgium for the past seven years, but she could not offer me an appointment before October. I could always see if it's possible to get an appt with another doctor in H's clinic in Brussels, but that would mean starting all over again with tests, and I doubt the Hertoghe doctors test for leptin or rT3 resistance. I know my current doctor doesn't. And I am not willing to waste several hundreds of € just to be told the same things all over again.
I would even be willing to try the drug Saxenda which Dr. Childs describes as a new and very effective way to treat obesity. It seems it's basically the same as the drug Victoza used in patients with diabetes 2, but that Saxenda was specifically developed for weight loss. It's extremely expensive and not covered by health insurance, but available online. However, I'm inclined to try T3 only first, and only try Saxenda as a last, desperate measure if nothing else seems to help.
If this has ever happened to anyone else, especially after being stable on thyroid hormone replacement for years, I'd really love to hear about it, and also if you found a way to treat it.
At this point, trying something like Weight Watchers would not work, given how hungry I am all the time, so eating less fat is probably the last thing I should do right now.
Has anyone gone back to levo after years on NDT?
Elevated Reverse T3 
