Anyone prescribed "armour thyroid" under nhs please contact me.

[anon211]

my GP is trying to refer me to any NHS specialist who can prescribe me armour thyroid because I am intolerant to Levothyroxine. Please, if anyone here has been prescribed armour thyroid under the NHS, please forward that specialist's details to me via PM.

[Lalatoot]

The NHS endos I have seen will not prescribe it as it is not licensed for use in the UK. Having said that i think there may be one or two who have managed to get it.

[radd]

anon211,

As Lalatoot has said it's difficult to get Armour prescribed because it is not licensed and seems to hold worst curses than T3! Even though we now have the right to choose our endo, it is the CCG who withdraws the meds even when endo reports the patient has made good progress.

When I eventually found another CCG who prescribed T3, they then withdrew it several months later citing I was out of area. I haven't even bothered chasing Armour (I just self-source now) but there are some people who do have it prescribed on the NHS (seek link below). Good luck with your quest🤞

openprescribing.net/analyse...

[nightingale-56 in reply to radd]

Only Thursday I was told by the NHS Endocrinologist I share with my son, that I looked youthful for my age. Unfortunately I was not quick enough to say to him that it must be the NDT that I was taking. I use Erfa privately prescribed and paid for, but do not find it as good as WP Thyroid, which is now no longer available.

[radd in reply to nightingale-56]

Hi nightingale-56,

Yes, I too loved our WPThyroid but Armour is ok, just a lot stronger so have had to add some Levo. Wish I was told I still look youthful 😬

[DippyDame]

Is it the T4 you cannot tolerate or the excipients added to the tablet?

Obvious question I guess, but have you tried other brands of levothyroxine?

You may find this helpful...compiled by TUK's helvella

It's extensive so keep scrolling!

dropbox.com/s/shcwdwpedzr93...

[anon211]

no, I have not tried other brands. I've been put on different doses of levothyroxine, started off from 25mcg to all the way up to 175mcg, didn't feel any better on any dose in fact I got worse and now I am bed-bound and desperate to get off the medicine.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Which brands of levothyroxine have you tried

Many people find different brands are not interchangeable

Teva brand especially upsets many people

Teva is the only brand that makes 75mcg tablets

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

Previous post I recommended you get FULL thyroid and vitamin testing done

healthunlocked.com/thyroidu....

Have you done this?

Please add results and ranges

What vitamin supplements are you currently taking

Very common to need to supplement continuously to maintain OPTIMAL vitamin levels for levothyroxine or T3 or Armour or any NDT to work well

Has GP tested vitamin levels

It’s far far easier to get T3 prescribed alongside levothyroxine

Email Thyroid U.K. for list of recommended thyroid specialist endocrinologist and doctors who will prescribe T3

[e-mail]

But BEFORE considering adding T3 or NDT we MUST have good vitamin levels

If you have autoimmune thyroid disease also called Hashimoto’s diagnosed by high thyroid antibodies, highly likely to need to be strictly gluten free as well

Before considering cutting Gluten always get coeliac blood test done, ideally via GP

If your vitamin deficient this must be addressed before considering adding T3 or Armour

[Ajva]

I can not tolerate levo any brand, any dose. I have to pay private for my armour. I still do not feel great but better than I did on levo. I felt like I was going to die on levo. My throat was swelling (got worse & worse). My body ached so much I was bed bound like you.

[anon211 in reply to Ajva]

levo is the devil, I feel like shit, I am unable to do basic things, I can't even sleep it caused me to have insomnia. I am glad that you're off it and got prescribed armour. hopefully, you'll get better Ajva, good luck buddy.

[Ajva in reply to anon211]

It is awful. I have to pay a lot for armour. But I guess we can’t put a price on are health. I was only on levo for 3 weeks. Changed brands a few times and was on 50mg so a low dose. I just couldn’t move. I slept well couldn’t wake up or get out of bed. Felt like I was going to slip into a coma

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Ajva]

If you were only on levothyroxine 3 weeks and only tried one brand, that wasn’t long enough

Also essential to get vitamin levels optimal

[Ajva in reply to SlowDragon]

Allergic reactions with throat swelling, I ended up at the hospital as I could hardly breathe. Drs said I needed to stop taking until I saw an endo.

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Ajva]

Which brand of levothyroxine

Some brands contain acacia

Teva contains mannitol

thyroiduk.org/if-you-are-hy...

Had you changed brand?

You can just stop levothyroxine, without an immediate alternative ……likely to become extremely unwell after 10-14 days and can take many many months to recover

Request GP test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12 now

Is your hypothyroidism due to autoimmune thyroid disease also called Hashimoto’s diagnosed by high thyroid antibodies?

About 90% of primary hypothyroidism is autoimmune

GP should do coeliac blood test at diagnosis of Hashimoto’s. Have you had coeliac test?

Or are you already on strictly gluten free diet

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to anon211]

Come back with new post once you get FULL thyroid and vitamin results

Likely vitamins need improvement, trialing different brands levothyroxine, possibly gluten/dairy intolerant and then can look addition of T3 prescribed or NDT

What’s your diet like, are you vegetarian, vegan, low carb, gluten or dairy free?

Also consider Dio2 gene testing

Assuming you test positive helps get T3 prescribed alongside levothyroxine on NHS

thyroiduk.org/deiodinase-2-...

regeneruslabs.com/products/...

[Lalatoot]

Anon211 I had so many symptoms and blamed the levo. So I reduced my dose and reduced my dose until I was on 25mcg per day. I felt great.....for 3 months then I became very ill. I was all but stuck in bed for the next 2 years. I read up on this site and learnt that you need to know and track your blood results and vitamin levels. My endo had been happy with my results for the last 5 years but I learnt that in reality I was undermedicated with a TSH at the top of the range around 4.5 and FT4 30% through the range.Luckily because my TSH was now 32 they started to test FT3. To cut a long story short once my TSH was down below 1 it became obvious that I had a conversion problem and I needed T3 liothyroinine as well. This had always been the problem but because FT3 was never tested and TSH and FT4 were in range, I was considered fine by the medics.

Now I have been on a combo for 2 and a bit years and I can go about and manage things. I am not yet fully recovered as my body is having to re-adapt from its thyroid-hormone-starvation status.

I would suggest you explore vitamin levels and your blood test results to see if you would benefit from the addition of liothyronine.

One of the benefits of being on levo and lio is that you can adjust the doses individually. NDT has a fixed dose of T4 and T3 and it doesn't suit everyone - some folks find they have to add in more levo or lio to get the balance they need.

[DJ3271]

I realize this is an old post. I am in the States. I could not tolerate Levo or Synthroid. I hit the jackpot , the second Endo I went to prescribed Armour. LITERALLY, the NEXT DAY the chest pain stopped. I've been on it only a week, but I feel PERFECT. Have you had any luck getting it? IT HAS BEEN LIFE-CHANGING for me!