Hi everyone,
I'm 34 weeks pregnant, my gp called me yesterday regarding my results that he was extremely worried about.
TSH 0.30. (0.27- 4.2)
T4 4.5 ( 10.5 -24.5)
I'm self medicating with t3, (doc unaware). I'm on 25mcg of t3 and 25mcg of Levo daily.
Haven't got free t3 results..
But do these results looking Alarming?? Is it ok for t4 to be this low in pregnancy?
Need some advice on this please...
Maya_83
Looking at your previous thread
healthunlocked.com/thyroidu...
Have you tested FT3 along with TSH and FT4 as advised along with vitamins, as SlowDragon mentioned. I see you have increased your T3 dose from 2 x 6.25mcg to 25mcg now. Hopefully you did test before increasing.
What are your current levels - ferritin was low last time and haemoglobin and hematocrit were below range which suggests possible anaemia - what did your GP say/do about these?
Thanks for your reply ...
I increased t3 dose due to CT3M method and feeling much better, but could be even better obviously.
Gp just increased ferrous sulphate to x3 I was taking 1 a day.
Gp just rang to say I've been referred to to a endocrinologist as they baffled with my results above... do I tell them I'm self medicating with t3? Will they stop giving me care as am taking T3? Im scared ,I don't know what to say..
Will low t4 effect my baby?
I cant increase Levo any more as I feel like a zombie and lifeless..
Dear Maya:
If you are pregnant, and so far along in pregnancy, in my opinion, you should tell your doctors all meds you are taking - it may affect treatment they recommend for you given their concern about your bloodwork. You do not want your doctors (who are not very good at thyroid issues under the best of circumstances) giving you treatment that is not right for you if they are unaware.
I personally would not fool around with keeping things from docs when you are so close to term and delivery and just bite the bullet and tell them.
Hope all goes well for you - sending you positive thoughts today.
Your baby is now at the stage where it will take everything it needs from you, even doing so in extremis at risk for your own health. Its thyroid will be making T4 and T3 on its own, so unless you overdose yourself it will be unconcerned. It will weigh about 3-4 pounds now. Say you weigh 70 pounds. Then it's absolute need for thyroid hormone is 1/20 to 1.25th of your needs. But is supplying its own now. Regarding taking T3 on the QT I think you'll have to admit it, but since you are far along with your pregnancy, seem to have a reasonable TSH you may simply get told off (because they don't understand about T3 usage). But do not let them alter things at this late stage. Changing a stable regime does more harm than good in your condition. If you feel well then you should be monitored henceforward to term.
Maya
I actually don't think you have a choice. Your doctors are looking for an explanation of your low FT4 and rather than them going on a wild goose chase with unknown consequences, it would be better if they knew you take T3 and explain what it does to test results.
I don't know how they will react to this but prepare yourself for a lecture.
When I was self medicating with NDT (under the care of Dr P) my GP refused to have anything to do with my thyroid, not even thyroid function tests. I think as you are pregnant you will still receive care but they may want you back on Levo, I just don't know.
I have no idea how, or if, low T4 affects baby.
I'm wondering if you can contact Paul Robinson for advice as you are following the CT3 method.
Thank you so much everyone for the reply. My appt is next week and I'm just going to tell them what I'm doing.. I've been fine on this dose for a while now and feel like I can actually function a little bit better.
The only problem still is they saying baby had stopped growing and will need to keep and close eye if I may need to be induced etc... I'm hoping it's not thyroid related.
So glad to hear that you will tell your docs - it’s the right thing to do. Please keep us posted and wishing you well for a successful delivery.
Hi guys...
So my appt with the endo went really well ( thank god). I told her everything and she was very understanding. She said she had a lot of pts who were self medicating, so she was not surprised at all when I told her.. the only thing she said was she wouldn't be able to prescribe any t3 as her hands are tied but happy for me to continue as I was because I was doing well on it.
She ordered t3 blood test
So these are my results.
T3 4.0 (3.1-6.8)
Any suggestions on the dose of t3? I'm currently taking 25mcg of Levo and 25mcg of t3 on two seperate doses.
( I'm 38weeks preg, this week)
☺
Hi Maya,
So glad all went well at your docs. I will leave dosing recommendations to those who are better at it than me - but I can tell you what I read here: take it up by 5 mcg at a time and see how you feel. I myself increase my own dose by 2.5 mcg at a time because I am very sensitive to thyroxine and any changes affect me significantly.
Stay well and good luck with the rest of your pregnancy.
Increase dose T4 immediately.
Your baby uses your T4 and it’s too low !!!!!!
I can't take any more t4 as it makes me ill.. I'm on 25mcg of Levo.. others have said since I'm taking t3 , t4 levels will automatically be suppressed and that's ok as I feeling well x
T4 is an inactive hormone. Its purpose is to convert to T3. T3 should be at an optimum and to know for certain you need a Free T3 blood test which will reveal whether or not you're T3 is at optimum. If you're feeling well on your dose, I believe that's fine because that's the aim of taking replacement thyroid hormones. I am also not medically qualified but treat myself.
I would especially take the advice of Diogenes - who is well-qualified.
Thank you Shaws,,
I've added my t3 results.
I'm doing better on the dose I'm currently taking but I suppose I can feel even better as I get really tired in the afternoon & yawn alot..
diogenes do you think there's still room to increase t3 ? Would really appreciate any advice given..
Thank you
SeasideSusie
shaws
humanbean
Any advice/ suggestions on t3 dosing please... do I need an increase based on the results??
Kind regards Maya x
You should add or reduce according to your symptoms alone, I think, when on T3.
Blood test results were introduced along with levothyroxine, therefore if we take or add other than levothyroxine, blood results will not correlate.
T4 (levothyroxine) also made me feel more unwell but on T3 it resolved my symptoms. I only get a yearly blood test now.My TSH will be low or very low, T4 practically none, and T3 higher because that's all I take.
The main question is 'how do you feel on your dose'. If fine then that would seem like an optimum dose to me. The following may be helpful and was written by one of TUK's advisers (now deceased).
naturalthyroidsolutions.com....
You must tell your doctor you take T3 as well as T4, as it is unfair to make him very worried about your condition i.e. very low TSH and below range T4. He's unaware you are also taking T3.
I would say I do still struggle daily with tiredness? Especially gettung out of bed. ( not preg related) and still very tired towards the end of the afternoon and need a nap everyday.
My Gp, endo is aware I self medicate with t3 and happy with it and said wouldn't change so late in the pregnancy .
If I was to add more t3 (¬ overdosing), how much more& at what time as I take 3/4 of t3 of 25mcg at 4.30 am and another 6.25mcg at 4.30pm.
diogenes your input aswell would be very helpful. X
I am not medically qualified but take my T3 in one daily dose, as advised by Dr John Lowe. Increases can be slowly increased about 1/4 tablet. Dr L was of the opinion - being an expert in the use of T3, that one dose saturated all of the millions of T3 receptor cells and that one dose lasted between one to three days by sending out 'waves'.
I don't have the link for this extract as Dr Lowe's website was removed when he died due to an accident. The following is from page 152 on the following link.
"Many researchers, physicians, and patient advocates believe that the endocrinology specialty has been curiously obstinate in its advocacy of T4-replacement. Its obstinacy is evident in its disregard for the protests of thousands of patients and a growing number of doctors that T4-replacement is ineffective and harmful for many patients.
The specialty’s obstinacy may be sustained by financial incentives from corporations that profit from the practice of T4-replacement therapy. This suspicion of financial motivation is reinforced by the specialty’s standard method of enforcing the practice of T4-replacement among doctors: political tyranny rather than scientific argument and debate. The suspicion will only mount if the specialty—despite the recent studies showing replacement therapies to be ineffective[1][2][3][4] and harmful[37][63] for many hypothyroid patients—sidesteps the issue now at hand. How safe and effective is T4-replacement compared to alternate approaches to thyroid hormone therapy now in widespread use? For its own credibility, it is imperative that the specialty immediately address this issue free from prejudicial preconceptions."
Let us say emphatically, however, that this doesn’t mean thatall patients who think they are resistant should take high doses ofT3! Treatment with thyroid hormone must always be individualized
Also read 'Safely Getting well with thyroid hormones"
naturalthyroidsolutions.com...
This is an excerpt from page 155.
"OPTIMAL IMPROVEMENT WITHTHYROID HORMONE THERAPYTo get optimal improvement with thyroid hormone, the patientshould follow two rules. First, she should not permit her doctor toadjust her dosage according to lab thyroid test results. TSH andthyroid hormone levels have nothing whatever to do with makingcorrect decisions about safe and effective doses of thyroid hor-mone.[345][406] Using the results of thyroid tests to adjust a patient’sdose is likely to sabotage the patient’s effort to recover from hersymptoms of hypothyroidism or thyroid hormone resistance.Second, the patient should enlist her doctor’s assistance in ad-justing the hormone dose according to changes in her symptomsdue to the last dosage increase. The patient should monitor forchanges in her symptoms using the method we describe below andin Chapter 3. The patient’s doctor can help her by monitoring howshe’s responding in other ways (see section below titled “TissueResponses to Thyroid Hormone that Your Therapist or Doctor CanMonitor”)
With the FT3 range you mention, getting to around 5 to 5.5 would be a useful target.
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