I've just started self medicating with NDT as I've been getting nowhere with Drs for the last few years and increasingly feeling like crap (whilst my TSH continues to go up and body temps down!).
I'd be grateful for any insight into the following:
1. How do you go about increasing the dosage? Is there any thorough guide? I've started on 1/2 grain of Thyroid S a few days ago and I intend to move up to 1gram today as that seems to be what STTM book suggests to start on. STTM seems to suggest going by body temps to gauge when to rise and stop etc, but Peatfield seems to suggest that your body temp should rise very slowly and if it does increase too quickly then you are on too much ndt or too quickly so going against the sttm advice (I think).
2. DrMyhill (in the UK) recommended reading Kevin Blanchard's "Functional approaches to hyperthyroidism" book which I'm now reading. He seems to recommend mainly T4 supplemented with very small amounts of NDT (or t3) and in fact Blanchard's protocol seems to suggest that "once you start taking high doses of T3 or NDT you will make yourself more hypothyroid over the long term which will prompt you to take more and more." See: chronicfatiguediagnosis.com...
3. I have 90 Thyroid S tablets, but I understand they are now no longer available. Should I instead be using something like metavive? And perhaps starting off on that?
Trying to figure this all out on my own (along with a host of other issues) is seriously adding to my stress, which of course is counterproductive to everything. Feeling quite down and out about it all, so grateful for any guidance.
Many thanks in advance
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Mowgyi
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I started on 1/4 grain because I had never taken NDT before and it is stonger because of the T3 it contains. I would stay at the dose for 2-3 weeks and see how you feel. Sometimes if I tried to increase too quickly I would feel jittery and get palps so I would reduce by 1/4. On the day I went up to 1 grain I didn't sleep at all that night so I had to drop it down again. I have taken Levothyroxine before but that took months before I felt the affect. I think you need to take it slowly because it isn't a quick fix unfortunately. Also I have heard Thyroid S is going to come available next year and some have already received their back orders. I have actually frozen a large amount just incase I need them later.
I am talking from personal experience and everyone is different so if you feel well at a high dose to begin with carry on. Also I didn't take my temperature I just took my heart rate and blood pressure which is a better indicator for me.
What thyroid medication are you currently taking ?
I stopped 125 mcg levothyroxine and started with 1/2 a grain the following day.
I monitored my blood pressure and temperature daily :
I took bench mark measures of T3 and T4 before i started:
I optimised my ferritin, folate, B12 and vitamin d before i started :
I was and still am taking adrenal glandular for the damaged caused by RAI back in 2005 ;
Weekly increase by 1/4 grains :
If you get to 2 grains hold this dose for 6-8 weeks and take a blood test :
Has your T3 moved ?
Do you feel any better - have symptoms reduced - disappeared ?
If your T3 hasn't moved and you feel no better this may not be the best option for you :
If ok and happy with progress continue on in 1/4 grain weekly increases until one week you feel a bit anxious, irritable and simply not you, and then drop back to the previous weeks dose and let that dose bed in for 6-8 weeks and then that is your dose on NDT.
I'm ok on just 1 + 1/2 grains a day, but understand this to be a relatively low dose ;
If you only have 90 grains it may not last until production starts up again in Thailand.
With any thyroid hormone replacement it is a long slow process and I think until you can secure future same product this may not be the best time to start swopping around the various alternatives.
thank you for the thorough reply. I'm not on any thyroid medication. Do you think I should hold off on starting (I only started a few days ago). Or perhasp instead start with a different NDT that I know will be available? Eg metavive? Thank you so much
Or perhasp instead start with a different NDT that I know will be available? Eg metavive?
Please be aware that Metavive is not NDT, if it was it would be prescription only. Metavive is a thyroid glandular with no declared hormone content, i.e they use the whole thyroid gland but do not measure hormone content so there may or may not be any. Some people do well on it, some don't.
thank you for the headsup SeasideSusie . More confused than ever now, lol. Seems a bit of a gamble if you don't know what you are taking? So maybe holding out for Thyroid S is a better plan?
Well, Thyroid-S is supposed to be becoming available again in the (hopefully) not too distant future, but there are so many back orders and such demand that who knows how much will be available and when.
You could try Metavive, you might be one of the people it works well for.
I started on 1/2 grain for seven days, then went up by 1/2 a grain weekly until I got to 2 grains. I held this dose for 6 weeks and then tested. I now take 1 & 1/2 grains. As you have never taken any Thyroid medication previously, it might be better to increment by 1/4 grain each time and see how you feel. This will take longer but it isn't something you can rush.
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