T3 T4 combo

[dodge1979]

Hi all

Started last Saturday

125mcg levo and 10mcg T3

Take dose at 6am and wait 1 hour before food ect

Feel like I am on a come down about 2pm

Tried and dizzy spells

Any advice

Thanks

[SlowDragon Administrator]

5 days ago you were splitting dose

5mcg waking and 5mcg at 2pm

I know splitting dose is a pain, but some of us find it necessary

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...

You need to stick on one regime for 6 weeks. Then get TSH, FT3 and FT4 tested

Recommended on here that all thyroid blood tests should ideally be done as early as possible in morning and fasting. Last Levothyroxine dose should be 24 hours prior to test, (taking delayed dose immediately after blood draw). This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip, best not mentioned to GP or phlebotomist)

If/when also on T3, make sure to take last dose 8-12 hours prior to test, even if this means adjusting time or splitting of dose day before test

You may need a third 5mcg dose after bloods are back

[Hidden]

My Endocrinologist once asked me what time I take my medication ?.....100/75 levo plus 10mcgs T3

When I told him 6.30am he asked why I take it so early? ............." because I eat my breakfast around 7.30 am."

He then said that I'd better take a little extra in the afternoon, so yes,I can understand you feeling tired then.

However,being retired and now only myself to look after, I have delayed it until 7.00am and breakfast is OK at 8.00 am.

I do like to get it out of the way first thing.I eat my main meal at lunchtime so not sure I want to be thinking about it in the afternoon, in between the cups of tea and TV quizzes !!

I suppose it depends on how active you need to be later in the day .Hope you sort it to suit you.

[dodge1979 in reply to Hidden]

I have a 2 year old so after work is very hard at the mo

[Hidden in reply to dodge1979]

Oh Wow!!........ Not much rest for you at the moment then.

I would definitely think you need an afternoon boost .

I was not diagnosed hypothyroid until over sixty, though I struggled for many years.

However,you'll need all your strength with a toddler and work,so hope you get optimally medicated as soon as possible.All best wishes and enjoy your little one's early years .......they pass too soon .

[NWA6 in reply to dodge1979]

I had 4 under 6 when diagnosed, I feel your pain 😖 esp when the last thought sleep was for wimps so no rest for the wicked 😢

[NWA6]

You may find that you need more t3. This is only the beginning and if you haven’t reacted to taking 10mcg in one go then you may find you’ll be able to add in another 5mcg after your next bloods. And maybe you’ll increase again. But slowly slowly. You’ll soon find what works for you 🤗

[RockyPath]

If you were fortunate enough to be only taking T3, you would get your blood tested every week or ten days, so see what the T3 is doing for you (If you couldn't tell by how you feel). I'm unsure why you're supposed to wait (suffer) for six weeks to get blood tests done. I think you said you're nearly comatose around 2 pm. Sounds familiar. Here's something you could try and see how it makes you feel.

Cut up the 125 mcg T4 in half and try taking only half each day for a couple of days. See if that makes any change in how you feel. It has a half life of a week, so you're not going over a cliff by cutting back for a few days.

Presumably you've got a bottle of tablets of the T3, so you COULD try taking a third tablet at the same time as you cut back on the T4. If you're dragging at two, count back six hours and that's when you would need more T3, as it takes several hours to peak.

The pharmaceutical handout suggests taking the whole dose at one time, so you could take 15mcg one morning with your reduced T4 and see what happens.

I'm assuming you don't have to drive a motor vehicle or operate complex equipment, so it would be an experiment. If you feel a bit better on 15 mcg then there's a clue.

You could be feeling comatose due to too much, and the T3 is approximately 4 to 6 times as potent as the T4.

I've done loads of experiments with T3, with occasional mistakes causing massive overdose, and the worst that's happened is my heart's been racing uncomfortably for several hours and I've had to lie down and wait to feel better. It clears within 24 hours, so, other than the excitement, there's no lasting effect from my trial and error.

You haven't a heart problem have you?

[dodge1979 in reply to RockyPath]

Thanks. No heart problems

And will to try anything

[NWA6 in reply to dodge1979]

This is why think you need more. You’ve not had any overactive symptoms. Unless like Rockypath suggests you’re taking too much but I can’t think that’s true on 10mcg. But to be safe I think blood tests and then either split the dose again or add another 5mcg

[RockyPath in reply to NWA6]

You’d be surprised what can be too much, particularly when mixing and matching T3 with T4. Each person has a unique response. It’s unfortunate we haven’t metering like diabetics have.

Well, actually I suppose we do have a primitive meter in the brain but it seems pretty useless.