T3 advice

[jacobite33]

Started taking T3 and worked it up slowly to one full 25mcg tablet per day.Done this for a couple of days then split the 25mcg half in morning and half mid afternoon.Whilst at the same time I reduced my Levo to 50mcg taken in the morning with half the T3 tablet

Problem is I’m still feeling terrible fatigue wise.Just this constant tiredness and pain.Every time I stand up or walk around I feel my heart skip beats and my blood pressure is still high even on HBP meds and constant headaches and teeth pain

Obviously somethings out of whack so I am wondering if it could go above the full tablet.Take another quarter every five days (per Paul Robinsons advice) till I reach one and a half tablets.Then split these to 3/4 in the morning and 3/4 in the afternoon.Thinking about coming off the Levo altogether as I don’t convert well so what is the point taking it?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated and welcomed

Thank yous once again folks!

Oh and I am taking vit D magnesium B1 and just started a super B complex again yesterday.Off all things gluten too as I have Hashimotos

[SlowDragon Administrator]

possibly you increased T3 too much and too quickly and reduced levothyroxine too much

Very easy to miss the “sweet spot” and take too much

Skipping heart beat suggests too much T3

You were on 112mcg and 100mcg on alternate days

Ft4 at top of range

Possibly only needed to reduce levothyroxine by 25mcg per day ……That would be 87.5mcg and 75mcg alternate days

Adding 1/4 tablet (6.25mcg) T3 as three separate doses spread through the day

Starting with 1/4 tablet once day …….after a week or so increase to 1/4 tablet twice a day……possibly adding 3rd 1/4 tablet

Ideally hold at that for 6-8 weeks before retesting

Suggest you get bloods retested ASAP and see where you are

Always test as early as possible in morning before eating or drinking anything other than water and last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test

Day before test ALWAYS split dose into 3 smaller doses, taking last 1/3rd approx 8-12 hours before test

[jacobite33 in reply to SlowDragon]

Thank you so much for replying SlowDragon

That is now 8 weeks gradually building the T3 up slowly.Only started taking a full tablet about a week ago.Had reduced the Levo to 50mcg the second week ( if my memory serves me right) after starting T3 so I’m thinking it should have all levelled out

Regards the skipping heart beat I have had that for the past few years.Put that down to far to much Levo and not enough converted T3.Thought after adding T3 this would reduce and finally ease as with the fatigue as well.Still the same though unfortunately

Noticed some saying they are on more than 25mcg per day and thought maybe I need more to benefit?

Obviously the Levo isn’t doing much good as I don’t convert it very well

At this rate it will be late January before it’s worthwhile taking another blood test.Which to be truthful is the logical approach but I’m still struggling and still can’t sleep either

[Alejandrita17 in reply to jacobite33]

Which is your current T 3 level?

[jacobite33 in reply to Alejandrita17]

Hi Alejandrita17My T3 was 37.57% through the range around 8 weeks agoWas on 100mcg Levo one day then 112.5mcg the next day back then

[Alejandrita17 in reply to jacobite33]

I have T3 just 17% through range and my energy is ok as usual. My main symptoms are muscle related :-(. I tend to think it is not ONLY t3 affecting us, but other issues as well (such as poor gut or liver function, adrenal issues, iron absorption, nutrients, etc). I'm in the same boat as you, trying to figure this all out.

[jacobite33 in reply to Alejandrita17]

Well Alejandita17 I can honestly say I haven’t a clue about it all!Just in this constant daze and in pain and find it very difficult to concentrate and take things on board

Maybe I’ve just jumped in to quick with the T3 but will need another blood test to confirm that in around five weeks (oooft it’s the thought of having to wait that long)

To be truthful though I just don’t see the point taking Levo if my body is a poor converter

So maybe I would benefit more without Levo and just the T3 doses three times per day?

No idea where to begin now,crazy!

Must just go walking around Arran instead and forget about it lol

[Alejandrita17 in reply to jacobite33]

I ask myself the same question. My T3 levels were HIGHER without any medication at all. Nevertheless, my TSH was 8, and I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that high TSH itself can be risky. It's as if we need to choose between:

High TSH with normal t4 and t3 or

Normal TSH with low range t3.

Which one is Best?

[FancyPants54 in reply to jacobite33]

I wouldn't wait that long. I'm in the process of reducing Levo and upping T3 because Levo makes me worse not better. I've reduced from 125 to 75 and even though my conversion is poor, I can really feel the loss of it. I'm currently just up to 40mcg T3 per day, 20, 15, 5 split. I will be moving up to 45 according to Paul Robinson's method. I'm not waiting 6 weeks or so. I think I've worked out what's going on with my body. I need to lower T4 and increase T3 to get to a solution. There is no way all this pain and exhaustion is from too much. My last increase was the same day I reduced Levo another 25mcg. It was too much that day because I was still getting conversion. So I dropped 5mcg of T3 off and settled back to 35mcg a day. But I should have just weathered it because a few days later I was getting more and more tired. We are all nervous of this medication because the medical establishment has freaked us out about it. We need to be less scared to try things. Some of us need a lot of T3 to get anywhere, depending on what the issue is in the first place. 5mcg 3 times a day would do nothing for me.

[jacobite33 in reply to FancyPants54]

Ah FancyPants54 thank you so much for replying! Read some of your posts and the Levo/T4 is the one that’s been getting at me

I was initially on 125mcg for over 8 years and never checked

My blood results showed (long story of ups and downs with dosing) my T4 was 92% through the range settled at 112.5mcg one day and 100mcg the next day and My T3 was 37.57% through the range

Obviously the 125mcg was far to much in the beginning

Thing is I had lots of ectopic heart beats and palpitations and really buzzy heart racing and so forth and anxiety through the roof

So was it because I wasn’t converting properly or did my body finally take a reaction to taking the levo (nurse told me I could have had a reaction just over three years ago while I was hooked up in A&E to be told later nothing was wrong with my heart again.Oh and I think she knew when I look back)

Know one seems to know what it does if not being converted to T3

Question is for some of us is it actually causing more harm than good just taking it?

I actually thought I would be feeling far better by now when taking T3

[FancyPants54 in reply to jacobite33]

I too thought I'd be feeling a lot better by now on T3. But I've come to the conclusion that I have to get rid of as much T4 as possible. I have the Dio2 genetic defect from one parent affecting my conversion and I suspect I have an issue with Dio3 grabbing hold of the T4 it sees, and some of the T3, and converting it to rT3 and then on to T2 and off out of the body. Taking T3 with the same level of Levo dosing I had done before has NOT worked at all for me, even though my blood tests keep coming back with ever lower FT4. I've gone back to basics, read up about the Dio3 problem, re-read the relevant bits of Paul Robinson's Recovering with T3 book and decided I need to lower the Levo right down and let the T3 take over. Paul say's it's important not to let yourself end up more hypo during this process. I think I have done that this last week, by accident. Now I have to get some more T3 in and try to reverse that trend.

I live with, what is now probably permanent, atrial fibrillation that started long before I added T3. No explanation from the medics. Yet my HR with it is high and I have to take a beta blocker to suppress it. But it was still running high, in the 90's, mostly high 90's most of the time. I was afraid that adding T3 would make this worse. And it did for a couple of days last week when I reduced Levo further and increased T3 by 5mcg, but overall since adding T3 my HR has been reducing and this week it's been really good. My resting HR at this moment is 82 bpm averaged over today. That's excellent for me. It feels as if my heart needed the T3. But mood and breathlessness and lack of energy have been a big feature yesterday and today so I'm monitoring it and waiting to see what happens with the next 5mcg increase. Paul recommends something like increases (small) every 5 days or so. And as blood tests are pretty useless now I'm on combo, I'm not doing all of that endless waiting around for a while. I need to get to a working level where I'm functioning properly and then let my body function for a while.

I'm still learning about Dio3 so find it hard to explain. But have a look into it. It might be the problem you are battling with. There are loads of articles about it here:

thyroidpatients.ca/?s=Dio3

[jacobite33 in reply to FancyPants54]

FancyPants54 did you purchase Paul Robinsons book/books?If so what one are you using as there are three

Looking at them now on Amazon and not sure what one to get

Recovering with T3 or The CT3M Handbook

[FancyPants54 in reply to jacobite33]

You want the blue Recovering with T3 to start with. That's the all-rounder.

[jacobite33 in reply to FancyPants54]

Ordering it now!Thank you so much FancyPants54 your a a gem!

I am still on 50mcg of levo and one 25mcg of T3 I just want to be T3 only and see how I feel there

Can’t wait to get the book

I don’t know if I have the Gene problem but somethings wrong I feel even though I’ve had loads of tests and all supposedly well

So what does Paul Robinson say about reducing your Levo and adding T3

Is it reduce by 25mcg for a week then add equivalent T3 to compensate or another way?

Would like to try starting before the book comes

[FancyPants54 in reply to jacobite33]

Well, read some of those articles on Dio3/D3 while you wait, it's good grounding. I can't remember how he advises the reduction in the book. But it's normal to reduce the Levo and wait a few days before increasing the T3 to let some of the FT4 wash out. I didn't do that last week and I really felt it. My heart rate shot up on that first day because I still had a full load of FT4 on board and more T3. So I would advice reduce for as long as you can before you feel tired and then increase. However, you are only on 50 Levo. You might only need 25 Levo, but if you take it all away and rely on T3 only the management of it is harder and takes more work. I have tried it in the past and T3 only didn't suit me either. I'm hoping to keep some Levo going so that there is a background of T4 if I need it. The less there is of it the less issue D3 enzyme should be.

Your T3 is low dose. So if I were you I would increase by 5mcg now and leave the Levo where it is for a while longer. The way to tell if you have this issue with rT3 (as I experience it) is that when I take an increase in dose I feel great for the rest of that day. But next day less so and by the 3rd day I'm back to rubbish as all the benefit is converted away. Don't be in too much of a rush to reduce the Levo at this early stage would be my advice.

[FancyPants54 in reply to jacobite33]

My copy of Paul's book is bristling with post-it notes. The index isn't terribly sophisticated so I marked up all the important bits for me as I read it and so I have tabs at the top with notes on. Looks like a yellow and blue hedgehog.

[jacobite33 in reply to FancyPants54]

Ooft! That’s what I should do but never do it then lose it all in a haze of forgetfulness Read that on Amazon reviews about the index

First review I read the chap gave Paul Robinson a savage review,very brutal

Obviously it didn’t work for him!

FancyPants54 thank you so much your help and I hope you get yourself healed very soon!

[FancyPants54 in reply to jacobite33]

I read that recently. There must be some beef there of some sort because no way was that warranted. It's a good book, full of personal experience gathered over many years.

[jacobite33 in reply to FancyPants54]

Certainly a beef there indeedJust because it didn’t work for him doesn’t mean to say it won’t work for others

It was a rather long winded one as well