Try more Levo or try T3: Hello Lovely People... - Thyroid UK

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Try more Levo or try T3

PixieElv profile image
PixieElv
•9 Replies

Hello Lovely People

Could I have some advice/views on what you think I should do please? I am on a journey and am currently on 150mcg. Most of my hypo symptoms have disappeared (hurrah 🎉), but i still have a big black hole of energy around 3pm every day. I often need a power nap (no problem whilst working from home but can’t do that when i go back into the office).

I am already at quite high levels of T3 75% and T4 100% through the range. I do have some hot and sweaty nights, which could be too much Levo or could be other hormones?

Do I need to live with the energy slump? Drink more coffee? Or should I try some T3, and less Levo? I have a private prescription and my Endo has said I could try this. But when i tried it before I was feeling quite ill.

Thoughts? Please?

Thank you!

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PixieElv
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9 Replies
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Lotika profile image
Lotika

Hmm! Those levels look really nice. We are all different, but personally, I’d take those and run! That doesn’t mean they’re great for you of course. But it makes me want to look in a different direction… so sweaty nights - could be low vitamin d or the weather generally? Slump after lunch could be too many carbs or sugars at lunch and a resulting sugar crash?

PixieElv profile image
PixieElv• in reply toLotika

I know, they look good and I feel quite greedy/ungrateful… I just struggle with this terrible afternoon crash.

Vit D is good (about 1/3 through the range) I don’t really eat any sugar (other than fruit & a small piece of chocolate) and not that many carbs

Lotika profile image
Lotika• in reply toPixieElv

Yes, it is odd, isn't it? it sounds like a proper energy crash if it leaves you needing a nap, too... To me it doesn't look obviously thyroid-related, but as I said, we're all different and I'm absolutely not an expert in any case! I know a couple of posters here split their levo and take a little at night as well as the morning dose and they feel it works better for them... I just wonder if it is worth a shot? It's unorthodox but... !

PixieElv profile image
PixieElv• in reply toLotika

I tried that but it didn’t help. Someone mentioned cortisol fluctuations. That could be the culprit?

Lotika profile image
Lotika• in reply toPixieElv

Potentially - but I’m out of my depth with that!

FancyPants54 profile image
FancyPants54• in reply toPixieElv

How old are you? Is it the start of female hormone disruption? The sweaty nights are a big flashing light for that and the crashing after lunch hit me hard for a while too. I'm on HRT now so don't have either of those things left. You don't look like you need T3.

LAHs profile image
LAHs

You might want to get a cortisol profile. I say this because that starts of high in the morning, slumps in the early afternoon, picks up again about 4:00pm then dwindles off until time to sleep. Some labs will do a daily profile where you spit into test tubes about 6 times during the day (noting the time on the t-tube) and hence a profile. I get an afternoon slump and I attribute it to my cortisol dropping off - mind you, I am not sure how they fix this problem - but some do.

Bearo profile image
Bearo

I saved something someone wrote in a post previously on here. I’m sorry I didn’t save the name of the poster or the reference, but it might be useful.

“The other thing is that there is a relationship between adrenal and thyroid function. Constant stress is bad for the adrenals and their cortisol output. Doctors always seem to consider stress to be a psychological/mental problem and treat it with anxiolytics or anti-depressants. I'm not denying that stress might be psychological, but there are lots of other reasons for being stressed. I am convinced that nutrient deficiencies cause stress to the body and therefore affect the adrenal glands and therefore the thyroid is affected too. High cortisol reduces the output of thyroid hormones and also decreases TSH.

Low cortisol is also bad news for someone with a dodgy thyroid.

stopthethyroidmadness.com/a...

The relationship between the thyroid, the adrenal glands and the gut is a complicated one. Concentrating on only the thyroid is going to leave us ill.

You can find good explanations of this on both Paul Robinsons website and Stop the thyroid madness.

Stop the thyroid madness call this “ pooling” I dont believe in pooling myself and think Paul Robinsons explanation of needing cortisol and iron to make T3 more effective in the cell more accurate description.

They both mean the same thing, T3 is in the blood but not working properly inside the cell.

Im afraid I dont have any links but both very easy to find, both have their own websites, fb page and books.

These are the two most common reasons for high T3 with continuing hypothyroid symptoms.

T3 does get into the cell, however it needs to be able to be used effectively in the cell, for that you need good cortisol and iron. With out these it just wont work properly.

You can get a situation where your blood test looks good, FT3 well up in range but still very hypo or even worse than you did before.

This is usually down to low cortisol or iron .”

My apologies for not crediting the author!

PixieElv profile image
PixieElv• in reply toBearo

Hi BearoThank you for all the info.

Someone else mentioned Cortisol and Adrenals. I’ll get a saliva kit to check that out.

For me it’s not the thyroid but my pituitary gland that’s not working. Although treatment is the same.

It really is weird as I’m bouncy as a bouncy thing (which is what I used to be) from 6-15:00 and then I’m like a deflated balloon. Picks up later again about 6-7pm…

My vitamins are good but I’m having an iron panel done next week.

Oh the joys of hypothyroidism…

All the best

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