Many thanks again for your help a few weeks ago. I got the postal kit from Lets Get Checked and got the results on Friday. Prior to doing the blood tests I had tried splitting my 2x 60mg NP Thyroid dose into 2 doses - 1 tablet early morning a couple of hours before I am due to get up and the other at night before bed. On the night before the test I took 1/2 my dose (1 tablet) around 9-10pm and did the blood test around 7.30am the following morning before taking my second dose.
I switched to 120mg NP Thryoid from 50mcg of Levothyroxine mid March under prescription from a new GP. While I feel the NP Thryoid has helped me somewhat giving me a bit more energy and I think it has improved hair loss and speeded up metabolism, unfortunately I have been feeling a bit more fatigued again in the last month or so which is debilitating. To be honest I am very surprised at the results.
In tests on 25th February 2022 in a hospital outpatients dept. at circa 8.30am when on 50mcg Levothyroxine my results were:
Free T3 3.8 (range 3-7)
TSH 3.4 1 (range 0.27-4.20)
Free T4 16 .8 (range 12-22)
Thyroglobulin 10.3 ng/ml (range 3.5- 77)
Anti-thyroglobulin < 20 IU/ml (range 0-115)
Anti-Thyroid Peroxidase < 11 kIU/L (range 0-34)
Vit 12 1530 mg/L (range 197-771) ** I take high strength Methy B12 - 5000 IU daily on prescription and find it beneficial for energy)
Folate 19.4 ug/L (no range) * started taking iron and folate supplement approx 2 months ago to see if it would help boost energy levels
Ferritin 75 ug/L (range 13-150)
Haemoglobin 12.9 g/dl (range 11.5-15)
Cortisol 543 nmol/L (no range)
Vit D 119 nmol/L ( range 30-125) * I take Vit D daily approx 3000 IU on advice from my GP
My results from Lets Get Checked postal blood tests taken circa 7.30am June 14th 2022 tests:
ENDOCRINOLOGY
TOTAL THYROXINE(T4) 105 nmol/range L 59 - 154
THYROID STIMULATING HORMONE * <0.01 mIU/ range L 0.27 - 4.2
FREE THYROXINE 18.8 pmol/ range 12.0 - 22.0
FREE T3 * 7.6 pmol/ range 3.1 - 6.8
Thyroid peroxidase ab's <9.0 IU/m range l 0 - 34
Method used for Anti-TPO: Roche Modular
Thyroglobulin Antibody 16.1 IU/mL range 0 - 115
Method used for Anti-Tg: Roche Modular
Basically my main concern right now is trying to improve low energy levels and minimise other Hypothyroid symptoms such as hair loss, constipation, cold peripheries etc. I am strongly considering getting my main Thyroid bloods rechecked at a hospital next week- Free T3, Total T4, Free T4 and TSH in the event that there could be any discrepancy with the postal kit testing I did last week. I had been taking a Biotin supplement but stopped it around 6 days prior to the test. How long prior to blood testing is it recommended to stop Biotin please?
I would rather be very sure that my results are accurate and therefore am more likely to be able to find the right balance of Thyroid hormone replacement. I have returned to single dosing early morning about 2-3 hours before I am due to to get up (I set an extra alarm) as I didn't find the nighttime suited me and didn't think the split dosing was doing anything for me either but is I find it trickier to manage lifestyle wise.
Based on the previous advice I was given here, I presume I should to split dosing prior to doing an early morning blood test again taking my last 1/2 dose of NP Thryoid 8-12 hours prior to testing- or am I mis-interpreting anything ?
I eat healthily lots of fresh vegetables, fruit, protein etc. generally, avoiding gluten and dairy. I take Omega 3, Vit D, B12, Co-Q10 200 mg daily, taking iron and folate combined for the past 2 months . I have recently started a Magnesium B Vitamin complex with NAC and Ashwaganda called Mega Mag Energen Plus from Nutri Advanced which I find helps a bit with energy although it has small amount of iodine -75 ug but my GP said that should be okay.
Sincere thanks for any and all advice on how to improve my energy levels- it is deeply appreciated!!!
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I had been taking a Biotin supplement but stopped it around 6 days prior to the test. How long prior to blood testing is it recommended to stop Biotin please?
Depends on the dose. It's recommended to leave off for 3-7 days before any blood test. A B Complex usually contains up to about 400mcg biotin and in this case 3 or 4 days should be enough. It's high dose Biotin that's in stand alone supplements or hair/nail supplements, eg 5mg or 10mg, that needs the full 7 days.
Based on the previous advice I was given here, I presume I should to split dosing prior to doing an early morning blood test again taking my last 1/2 dose of NP Thryoid 8-12 hours prior to testing-
That's correct. Even if you take your NDT in one dose normally, it's recommended to split the dose just for the day before your test.
I have recently started a Magnesium B Vitamin complex with NAC and Ashwaganda called Mega Mag Energen Plus from Nutri Advanced which I find helps a bit with energy although it has small amount of iodine -75 ug but my GP said that should be okay.
Ashwaghanda is can lower cortisol.
I wouldn't trust any doctor's opinion on nutrients and especially iodine. I have personal experience of even a holistic practioner (supposed hormone expert) who told me it was OK to take a supplement containing 150mcg iodine when I pointed out that my iodine test showed my level to be perfectly mid-range. When I tested again a couple of months later my level had gone from 150 (100-199) to 250 (100-199). I ditched the supplement and the practioner.
If you want to continue with that supplement then I would suggest you do a 24 hour adrenal cortisol plus DHEA test (don't do one that tests cortisol only) plus a non-loading urine iodine test.
Your new thyroid results seem to suggest that you are very slightly overmedicated, it might be worth reducing dose a bit to see if anything improves.
SeasideSusieMany thanks for your reply. I've been taking a high strength Biotin supplement (5000IU) the past 4/5 months to try to improve hair loss so I suppose I'd better stay at least 7 days off when I go for more blood tests.. Im thinking of retesting ASAP maybe later this Friday as there is an appointment available or next week as
I want to make sure there is no mistake with my recent results. It's taken so long to get to this point that I don't want to risk making a decision based on results that may be inaccurate and have to wait several more months to change again if there did happen to be any errors with the last postal blood testing kit..
If the results are similar again would you recommend I try to reduce NP Thyroid from 2 daily to 1 tablet daily if the GP who is prescribing it for me is in agreement of course.. ? Or should I be looking at adding some Levothyroxine back in also? If so how much perhaps please? Prior to March I was taking 50mcg of Levothyroxine - Eltroxin brand but still very fatigued and had alot of hair loss, cold extremities and constipation etc. I'm fairly sure dairy doesn't agree with me (did previous elimination tests) so I generally keep off dairy food but I've seen posts here where some people feel better on brands of Levothyroxine without lactose. I might look into what might be available in Ireland if I did have to revert to taking some separate Levothyroxine with the NP Thyroid..
I will check out and see where I can get a 24 hour adrenal cortisol plus DHEA test in Ireland plus a non-loading urine iodine test.
Click on "Read the list of available tests" which opens up a pdf and you'll see the Urine Iodine Test on page 3 - test code END25
If the results are similar again would you recommend I try to reduce NP Thyroid from 2 daily to 1 tablet daily if the GP who is prescribing it for me is in agreement of course.. ?
First of all, don't tell the doctor you are adjusting the dose, just do it and see how you go. If your prescription is reduced you may not be able to get the full amount b back again.
Don't reduce by 1 x 60mg tablet, that's far too much. With NDT dose changes should be 1/4 of a grain at a time, ie 15mg.
Or should I be looking at adding some Levothyroxine back in also? If so how much perhaps please?
Just see how it goes. Your current results show a high in range FT4 for someone on NDT, often it is quite low in range. However, when on any kind of combination thyroid hormone replacement (T4 plus T3) then the balance of them is very individual. Some are fine on the fixed ratio of 4:1 in NDT, others are better taking synthetic T4 and T3 and working out the ratio that suits them best. I take Levo plus T3 and the ratio that works best for me is around 8.5:1 T4:T3 so I wouldn't do well on NDT.
The NP Thyroid tablets I get are actually tiny so I'm not sure how I could make them into quarters? Even if I tried to cut the somehow I couldn't be sure they would be evenly split..or is there some way I'm not aware of?
I've sent those results to the Doctor already so he might have some comments on them but I have said I'll probably retest again to be sure.
I will wait until after the results are back on the retest to do a consultation with the Doctor. It's hard to know what is best going forward as regards what to try medication wise but at least I'll have more peace of mind that the results are accurate if I do a retest.
thanks again for your previous help. I asked in my pharmacy and they had a device for cutting tablets. I tried it but the NP Thyroid tablet are quite brittle and sometimes they split into uneven parts when I tried to cut them.
I have made an appointment to get the main Thyroid bloods (T4-total & free, Free T3, TSH)
retested Mon 27th June next week at 8.30am in a local private hospital.
Just thinking again about your previous advice on reducing the dose by a quarter of a tablet if I can manage to cut it into something similar to that.. . I presume I'd better wait until after the blood test on Monday morning to change the dose..?
I'll try to take as near to a 1/3 of my dose Sunday evening about 1 2 hours before the blood test on Monday morning. Last time I took half my dose the night before around 10-11 hours prior to the blood test so perhaps that will all make a difference for the retest.
If I'm mistaken in anything above please do let me know. Sincere thanks again
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