Liothyronin emotional roller coaster

[Wired123]

Hi all

I’ve been on T3 and T4 combo for about 6 months and feel generally quite good.

I lost a close family member 2 weeks ago and have felt awful and terrible for the entire 2 weeks. This is quite unlike me and I’m now starting to wonder if the Lio is contributing to such intense emotions.

I totally get grief, sadness and feelings of loss are normal in a time like this however I’m beside myself with emotion and distraught like I’ve never been before - kind of like a child who has lost their mother in a busy shopping centre.

I’ve never felt like this before so am convinced Lio is playing a part in this.

Keen to hear others’ thoughts.

[radd]

Dk123,

I am sorry to hear about your loss.

T3 fixed all my physical symptoms but mixed me up mentally by magnifying emotions.

Even now years later I have periods of being either very up or very down, whereas before my brain/mind was just dulled. But to have physical health back is so worth it.

Grief can affect us all in different ways and I hope you feel better soon.

[Wired123 in reply to radd]

Thanks for your words. I just don’t understand this and am clutching at straws but could Lio have increased my Estrogen which would then explain some of this.

I won’t bother asking my Endo because he’s a prat and probably won’t entertain any discussion of this sort.

[radd in reply to Wired123]

Dk123,

The hormone communication between thyroid, adrenal and ovaries is heavily influenced by T3/T4 levels but only high T3 levels encourage excess oestrogen. Are you (peri)menopausal?

If you were previously deficient of T3 for many years, it can take months/years to recover. There are more T3 receptors in the brain than anywhere else in the body and large quantities found in the limbic system (emotional brain) play a large role in the release of neurotransmitters (brain chemicals) such as GABA, serotonin and norepinephrine. Hence an insufficiency in thyroid hormone can lead to low mood/depression.

Paradoxically adding T3 gave me low mood/depression (until HRT alleviated it a year later), but also magnified and confusing emotions, ie crying but not knowing if it was because I was happy, sad, or for no reason! Or feeling so happy where the sheer depth of feelings didn't match the experience.

You have reason to feel sad but might still be experiencing the rollercoaster of ups and downs as T3 continues to saturate receptors that haven’t been activated for years. Be kind to yourself, accept it's a response to grief where maybe emotions driven by the addition of T3 have just temporarily gone into overdrive, but it will pass. All we want is that happy stable base to experience the world from.

[Wired123 in reply to radd]

Thanks for your further insights. Probably worth pointing out that I’m male!

I may refuse my T3 a little to see if that takes the edge off.

[radd in reply to Wired123]

Oops! 🤭😬Just checked your previous posts and you're only on a small dose of 10mcg T3 anyway. Don't risk lowering the all-important T3 level too much coz as said above, although suspect it to be the cause it is also ironically responsible for encouraging us to feel better 😊.