Hair loss and high T3

[Polly91]

Hello everyone

It’s been a while since I posted and I hope you are doing as well as can be-given the circumstances.

I’m pretty sure I’ve seen high T3 and hair loss reported by other members of this forum.

I’ve been experiencing quite a lot of hair loss over the last couple of months and I assumed it would be due to low T3 so I got tested last week and these are my results:

TSH <0.01 mU/L (0.27-4.2)

T4 24 pmol/L (12-22)

T3. 9.1. pmol/L (3.2-6.8)

Ferritin 158 microgram/L (15-300)

Vit D 122 nmol/l

This is the highest T3 I have ever had. I’m usually around 4

My only other symptoms are itchy skin and dry/itchy eyes and clenched teeth at night.

So overall pretty good and so much better than I was and better then many people suffering. But the hair loss is horrible and worrying.

I stopped taking levothyroxine in October 2020 and now only take Metavive (11 metavive per day).

If anyone else has seen hair loss with high T3 please let me know as my practitioner thinks it’s low T3 that causes hair loss- but I’m now not so sure. How long does it take for hair to stop falling out ? Also any suggestions on how long it can take to reduce T3? Words I never thought I’d use as I’ve been trying to increase my T3 for the last 2.5 years !

Thanks v much

Polly

[Lora7again]

Because of the hair cycle you are probably losing hair from what your levels were about 3-4 months ago. I have had two lots of extreme hair loss and both times it was because my levels were either too high or too low.

[Polly91 in reply to Lora7again]

Thanks Lora7againMy T3 got v high last October which was when I stopped taking Levothyroxine altogether - I didn’t get tested at the time. I’m just going by v fast heart rate & insomnia.

But then I suspect it got v low for a few days too with no treatment and I had classic hypo symptoms towards the end of October.

So do you think the hair loss I’ve been getting for last 6 weeks ago relates to that? Or is it because my T3 is high again.

When you’ve had hair loss has your T3 been much higher than mine (9.1)? Or about that level?

How long does the hair loss last?

Thanks v much for your reply

[Lora7again in reply to Polly91]

Mine lasted 2 years because I was left untreated because the GP thought it was the menopause. You can read my story on my profile if you are interested. Once your levels are right for you it should stop and luckily both times my hair grew back.

[Polly91 in reply to Lora7again]

Thanks again. So if you didn’t get treatment for 2 years you just have been hypo for a long time which would explain hair loss ?I will take a look at your profile.

Thanks

[Baobabs]

OMG this is me! My T3 is not as over range as yours but the clenched teeth, thinning hair and itching are all mine!

[Polly91 in reply to Baobabs]

How long have you had these symptoms Baobabs? Also what’s your T3?

Must admit I was shocked when I learned how high my T3 was.

Thanks for your message.

[DippyDame]

Your FT3 is too high, we are advised to keep it in range or very close to that.

I assume you check your heart rate frequently ....racing heart indicates overdose.

The caveat being that if you have a type of thyroid hormone resistance and need a lot of T3 to overcome the resistance then a higher FT3 may be necessary.....this is my problem though unlikely to be yours! T3 is a potent hormone and must be treated with respect.

The half life of T3 is about 24 hrs so levels drop by half each day

It is possible to drop all T3 then wait a few days and then start slowly building dose again until you reach your therapeutic dose.....I did this when I felt overdosed and managed to reduce my dose by almost half.

You may find this helpful

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu....

If your dose is too high then you can suffer the converse effects of T3 which may be what is causing your hair loss and other symptoms.....and making you wonder if you are underdosed. This happened to me briefly.

Metavive is not NDT which contains 9mcg T3 plus 38mcg T4 making it straightforward to calculate hormone dose.

Instead Metavive is marketed as glanular support and the dose is not specified.....but 11 tablets sounds a hefty dose.

I'm not a medic but would suggest that you need to reduce your dose.

Hope things improve soon

[Polly91 in reply to DippyDame]

Thanks so much for replying to me. Must admit my heart rate was v high in October which was when I stopped Levothyroxine all together. I haven’t really been monitoring it since but I think it’s still high around 80+.

How do you know if you thyroid hormone resistance ?

I think you’re right 11 capsules of metavive is probably too much. I have reduced to 8 capsules today and may reduce further tomorrow.

Thanks again for your advice.

P x

[DippyDame in reply to Polly91]

Wise decision....good luck

[AnneEvo in reply to Polly91]

Maybe try 8 capsules for 6 weeks, then test to see what levels are before reducing again. I take Metavive ll alongside levo.

[Polly91 in reply to AnneEvo]

Good advice. Thanks What dose of Levo and metavive are you taking , how long for and how do you feel? Thanks

[AnneEvo in reply to Polly91]

Well... the thing is Polly, I'm extremely lucky, I don't have many symptoms and none that are debilitating. I've had the same symptoms for 40 years but only diagnosed nearly 5 years ago. I don't feel any different whether I take levo or not but if I don't take levo my TSH rises; as a result I think eventually my thyroid will stop working. So I'm nothing to go by. I sometimes wonder if there is something else going on with me. When I first tried Metavive ll though my T3 was the highest it had been at 5.3, previously always over 4. I stopped taking Metavive as there seemed no point in paying for it when I didn't feel any different. However I've gone back to it as I've always struggled to feel awake in the mornings but had been feeling more tired in the morning so thought I'd try it again. I wonder though if that's just because it's winter; I've read that some people need more medication in the winter months. I'm currently only taking 1 Metavive on alternate days with 50mcg levo and on the other days I take 75mcg levo. When I've been on this regime for at least 6 weeks I will test again.

[Noelnoel]

11 sounds rather a lot; what strength metavive are you taking?

[Polly91]

The lowest strength metavive IThanks