Hello.
I have hypothyroidism (Hashimoto's).
I have lost all confidence in the NHS and pharma industry and I want to find out about alternatives to Levothyroxine. I currently feel chained to both the NHS and big pharma by this daily tablet and I want to take back control and get back in touch with my body.
I would be grateful for any pointers in the right direction.
Many thanks
Most people with Hashimoto's, once they have had it long enough to really need thyroid hormone, have to keep taking it. (Though exactly which form is something that can be discussed.)
If you view that as being chained to the NHS and big pharma, and I understand why you might well feel that, there is unfortunately no real alternative.
Thank you for replying. I have had it since my 20s and I am now 60. My mother had it and one of my daughters has it. Being tied to the nhs and the pharma industry is now affecting my mental health.
I have been diagnosed hypothyroid and taking Levo since 1975 so 47 years. I don't feel "tied" to the NHS and big pharma but I know I need thyroid hormone replacement. I have learnt to understand and take control of my condition myself so I use the NHS for my prescription for Levo and look after my vitamins, etc., myself. I also know that I don't convert T4 to T3 very well and that the NHS wont help me there so again I've taken control of that.
What exactly is it that you want? If you post your latest test results, including reference ranges, and tell us how you feel, that will be a start and maybe we can help.
On the other hand, it is keeping you alive. Without some kind of thyroid hormone replacement, you will die a long, slow, painful death. Blunt, but true. Instead of feeling you're tied, maybe you should be greatful that someone is making those pills, because the alternative would be chewing on raw thyroid glands. As a Hashi's sufferer, I know which I would chose! 
You don't really say what you mean by an 'alternative'. Do you mean T3? Or NDT? If so, ask outright for people to PM you their trusted sources. Or, do you mean vitamins, minerals, Chinese herbs or something? If so, you're barking up the wrong tree. You can only replace a missing endogenous hormone with an exogenous hormone of the same kind. Changes in diet and exercise, etc., whilst the may help you feel a little better, will not get to the root cause, and certainly aren't a cure. So, whilst you may ressent these pill makers, you really do need them, I'm afraid.
The NHS, and their blatant ignorance is, of course, another matter. They know nothing about thyroid, don't want to treat you and ressent your having the disease. My answer to that is to self-treat. But, I still have to take my little daily white pills. It's just that I get to chose how much I need to take, instead of some ignorant clod having hysterics over a suppressed TSH and making my life a misery - even more miserable than the Hashi's makes me.
You have to learn about your disease and you have to learn to read your body, and you have to pay out of your own pocket for the little white pills. But, as far as I'm concerned, it's worth it to feel in control. Levo didn't suit me at all. NDT was even worse! Although no-one believed me. So, here I am, on T3 only, listening to my body and doing what it tells me is best. And, I don't feel chained to anybody.
Hi, thanks for replying. I have read loads over the years and I am able to read my body. I have also seen my mother suffer for years with this. She had a thyroidectomy in the 1950s. I have purchased thyroxine privately for a while, but I would like to be able to manage this without thyroxine, or if that's impossible, to at least be less reliant on it. I watch everything I eat and I've cut out a lot of things. Insomnia is one of my main issues. I don't want to go back to the nhs ever again.
Well, I can understand that, but it's not possible. And what you eat has next to nothing to do with it. Hashi's is a problem with the immune system, it mistakes the thyroid for the enemy and slowly destroys it. Thyroid hormone is essential for life - all forms of vertebrate life. So, if your thyroid can no-longer make the T4 and T3 that you need, in the quantities you need, then you have to take the hormone pills. It's like type 1 diabetes sufferers having to take insulin. If they stopped the insulin they would die.
I'm sorry to hear your mother suffered with Hashi's, but I'm willing to bet that her suffering was more due to her doctor than the disease itself. Doctors are just totally ignorant about it all, and terrified of all hormones. They will willfully under-medicate a patient because they do not know how to safely dose, and are terrified of the possibly consequences and the fact that they might be blamed for them.
And, I cannot possibly see how you could be less reliant on levo - unless you took T3 or NDT - because you need as much as you need. And taking less will make you ill and cause symptoms like insomnia. It is not usually the levo itself at fault, but the way it is dosed or taken. Or, maybe your body cannot convert it very well. Maybe it's time you tried T3? Or NDT? But you cannot just give up levo - or even reduce it very much - without a back-up plan. And that back-up plan has to include some other form of thyroid hormone. Those are the facts, and it's nothing to do with the NHS or Big Pharma, it's the disease at fault.
Yes, that's what I'm asking. I want to try alternatives. NDT and T3 are not widely available. There are some overseas websites, but that seems possibly dubious.
Well, there are well-known sites whose names are passed from patient to patient, because they are known to be trustworthy. But, from your original post above, it's not clear what you want at all. So, if I were you, I would write a new post, with the title something like 'Seek T3' or 'Where to buy T3 without prescription', etc. Then ask people to PM you their trusted links, because we're not allowed to discuss these sites on the open forum, and those that know will PM you.
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