I have obtained my full T3 medication back via my Consultant of 60mcg per day (20mcg x 3 per day).However I have taken everybody's advice and now take this all once in the morning.
My TSH in January was 1.45.However I am still not yet feeling right. I am tired (feel like I have not been to bed when I get up' I have foggy thinking and my memory is not good) I also continue to slowly gain weight ( I am now 16st 11oz). I raise this every time with the Consultant (as I am worried about this and see myself clearly on the path to other serious health issues) ; however the Consultant repeatedly tells me to eat less and exercise more.
I have also been suffering with depression for a number of years.When I asked the role the thyroid plays he said that they were not necessarily linked.
Over the past two days I have been taking my basal body temperature (Broda Barnes method with mercury thermometer under arm on waking). My body temperatures were 96.6 and 96.8.Could this be the reason why I am still unable to lose weight and can anybody advise me what you would do next.
I have contacted and asked for the blood results after my recent visit but have not yet had these back.
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Artemesia310
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For Levothyroxine or T3 to work we need good vitamin levels
There's nothing on your profile
Do you have autoimmune thyroid disease also called Hashimoto's diagnosed by high thyroid antibodies?
Absolutely essential to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12 at least annually
What vitamin supplements do you currently take?
Some people manage fine taking T3 all in one go....but many, especially with Hashimoto's need 2 or 3 doses per day
For full Thyroid evaluation you need TSH, FT4 and FT3 plus both TPO and TG thyroid antibodies tested. Also extremely important to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12
Low vitamin levels are extremely common, especially if Thyroid antibodies are raised
Recommended on here that all thyroid blood tests should ideally be done as early as possible in morning and fasting. This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip, best not mentioned to GP or phlebotomist)
Last Levothyroxine dose should be 24 hours prior to test, (taking delayed dose immediately after blood draw).
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
Private tests are available. Thousands on here forced to do this as NHS often refuses to test FT3 or antibodies or all vitamins
Medichecks Thyroid plus ultra vitamin or Blue Horizon Thyroid plus eleven are the most popular choice. DIY finger prick test or option to pay extra for private blood draw. Both companies often have special offers, Medichecks usually have offers on Thursdays, Blue Horizon its more random
If antibodies are high this is Hashimoto's, (also known by medics here in UK more commonly as autoimmune thyroid disease).
About 90% of all hypothyroidism in Uk is due to Hashimoto's.
Low vitamins are especially common with Hashimoto's. Food intolerances are very common too, especially gluten. So it's important to get TPO and TG thyroid antibodies tested at least once .
You are legally entitled to printed copies of your blood test results and ranges.
UK GP practices are supposed to offer online access for blood test results. Ring and ask if this is available and apply to do so if possible, if it is you may need "enhanced access" to see blood results.
This is best way to see old historic tests and check exactly what has been tested
In reality many GP surgeries do not have blood test results online yet
Alternatively ring receptionist and request printed copies of results. Allow couple of days and then go and pick up.
Most long term patients recommend 200mg of Selenium.
200 micrograms, maybe.
However, a very recent paper used 83 micrograms to significant effect. (Seems to have been Syrel from IBSA.)
I personally see no point in consuming more than necessary, especially of a substance which is known to have toxic effects at only 800 micrograms. So, if I were to supplement, I would choose 100 micrograms or less.
(The paper is published in Spanish and English despite being authored by authors in Italy.)
Endocrinol Diabetes Nutr. 2019 Jun 10. pii: S2530-0164(19)30116-8. doi: 10.1016/j.endinu.2019.03.018. [Epub ahead of print]
Selenium supplementation in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism affected by autoimmune thyroiditis: Results of the SETI study.
The purpose of this prospective study was to assess the effects of selenium supplementation on TSH and interferon-γ inducible chemokines (CXCL9, CXCL10 and CXCL11) levels in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism due to Hashimoto's thyroiditis.
PATIENTS AND METHODS:
Patients with subclinical hypothyroidism due to Hashimoto thyroiditis were prospectively enrolled in the SETI study. They received 83mcg of selenomethionine/day orally in a soft gel capsule for 4 months with water after a meal. No further treatment was given. All patients were measured thyroid hormone, TPOAb, CXCL9, CXCL10, CXCL11, iodine, and selenium levels at baseline and at study end.
RESULTS:
50 patients (43/7 female/male, median age 43.9±11.8 years) were enrolled, of which five withdrew from the study. At the end of the study, euthyroidism was restored in 22/45 (48.9%) participants (responders), while 23 patients remained hypothyroid (non-responders). There were no significant changes in TPOAb, CXCL9, CXCL10, CXCL11, and iodine levels from baseline to the end of the study in both responders and non-responders. TSH levels were re-tested six months after selenomethionine withdrawal: 83.3% of responding patients remained euthyroid, while only 14.2% of non-responders became euthyroid.
CONCLUSIONS:
The SETI study shows that short-course supplementation with selenomethionine is associated to a normalization of serum TSH levels which is maintained 6 months after selenium withdrawal in 50% of patients with subclinical hypothyroidism due to chronic autoimmune thyroiditis. This TSH-lowering effect of selenium supplementation is unlikely to be related to changes in humoral markers of autoimmunity and/or circulating CXCL9.
In my experience, those temps are way too low. That means your thyroid prescription is not working, you metabolism is in low gear (impossible to loose weight)
After years of experimenting, my guideline temp upon awakening is about 97.5 deg F,
3 hours after wakening, my temp is 98.6 + or - 0.3)
This works for my (I'm using 4 grains WP Thyroid sublingually, 2 at bedtime, 2 upon awakening.
My energy is finally great (after 6 years of Medical Doctors). If my temp varies below 98.3 deg F 3 hours after awakening, I might feel a little sluggish, but not bad. Any time my temp is below 9.0 I feel fatigue (and break another pill in half and put it under my tongue immediately--this rarely happens though)
I've tried T3-only and it was troublesome some keep things stable (there is a great book on amazon on the topic of treating thyroid with only T3. It might give you some insights into fine-tuning your protocol. 60mg T3 only seems like an awfully low dosage.
I recommend NDT, preferable WP Thyroid. Take enough to keep your temp above 98.0.
Good Luck.
I am not a Doc or medical expert. You should check out my recommendations with a professional. And, of course, keep in mind we all have different biologies, and there are several different spots on the thyroid pathway where things can get fouled, eg. failure to convert t4 to t3, failure of cells to uptake the t3 in the blood, and some others.
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Basal body temperature
Body basal temp and combi therapy (T4+T3)
Low body temperature and being too hot
Consistent low morning basal temperature with hyperthyroid symptoms
Can someone help me out who knows about basal body temperature and how it translates to symptoms?
