please help ! Over medication of thyroxine last... - Thyroid UK

Thyroid UK

141,246 members166,486 posts

please help ! Over medication of thyroxine last year

Chouchou1234 profile image
10 Replies

18th October 21

T3 3.4. And T4 23.

May 22

T3 2.3 and T4 21.3

Is it possible over medication thyroxine? It lowered my t3 ? Isn’t the drop from 3.4 to 2.3 drastic ? Makes no sense to me . I am trying to find out why things are so much worse. Is that normAl?

Written by
Chouchou1234 profile image
Chouchou1234
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
Read more about...
10 Replies
Buddy195 profile image
Buddy195Administrator

Please can you add the ranges for your blood test results (in brackets after readings) as these vary between laboratories.

What thyroid medication and dosage are you taking?

Have you also tested key thyroid vitamins:

Ferritin

Folate

B12

Vitamin D

tattybogle profile image
tattybogle

You know we ALWAYS need lab ranges to compare results properly , so please always include them , NEXT TO THE RESULT (no one here has time to go searching all your old posts looking for them and i'm not going to bother wasting my time looking, You already know what we need , if you don't provide it, i can only assume you aren't really bothered about getting an accurate answer)

17th June 21

T3 2.3

T4 15

18th October 21

T3 3.4

T4 23.7

13th April 22

T3 2.5

T4 20.2

27th May 22

T3 2.3

T4 21.3

I think you said on the post that you deleted last night , that you were on unchanged dose of Levo for all these tests with no T3 taken at all ? .. so , assuming this is correct ,and that all the lab ranges are the same, and that all the tests were done the same amount of time from last dose levo (which is a lot of assumptions with a history as complicated as yours) .

but , IF those assumptions are correct ...... then the fT3 at the end is no lower than it was at the beginning , so no , you haven't lowered your T3 .

On the second test where the fT4 rose , initially the fT3 also rose as expected .

And then (also as expected) when fT4 stays quite high , the conversion rate of T4 to T3 slows down a bit ..... so over time with high fT4 , your fT3 fell back to where it was at the beginning.

High fT4 levels do briefly increase fT3 levels.... but then slow down the rate of conversion from T4 to T3 , and yes this is perfectly normal. (the deiodinase's do this speeding up / slowing down job)

But it is not permanent , (it is part of the normal flexible 'adjustment' system of the HPT axis ) :

When the fT4 level is low / lower , then the rate of conversion of T4 to T3 speeds up a bit .

When the fT4 is high/ higher , then the rate of T4 to T3 conversion slows down a bit .

If you were previously taking 'too much' Levo , then yes , your rate of conversion to fT3 would be a bit less than it would if fT4 was low .. but this only applies while fT4 stayed high.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

All of this is old news/ out of date / now irrelevent .. so stop obsessing over it.

None of us will ever be able to work out to for sure "what caused what" ~ the thyroid/ deiodinase/ HPT system is far too complex to draw firm conclusions, even if you have ALL the test data needed ,and know for certain ALL tests were taken under the correct circumstances ~(and you do not have this.. your dose/ test history is all over the place , and you have fiddled with doses constantly).

So focus on the present day , and when you have some correctly taken results from 6 weeks on the CURRENT dose of Levo and T3 ., then there will be something worth looking at / discussing.

Chouchou1234 profile image
Chouchou1234 in reply totattybogle

ok sorry to bother you. I am so sorry . I am so embarrassed to ask sorry.

I have been so exhausted for so long.

Can I ask would T3 and t4 affect liver and bile blow? Nothing is digesting.

I am so stressed I can’t digest anything nothing going through properly then the bowel distended on to my bladder so can’t pee .

Sorry Im in such a panic as literally finding it difficult to cope with the basics aand yesterday spilt drain cleaner in the kitchen as didn’t see it - and mum left it open in the cupboard I think as I was trying to clean the kitchen to pull my weight but basically the whole house smells of toxic drain cleaner the washing washine stinks so I have ruined it and think I poisoned myself in a huge rash and now my family who also tells me non stop what a useless person I am and waste of space (as been in bed for so many years) sister and mum non stop tell me

So if my previous results 20.1 on 100mcg t4 my dose is 125mcg as my t4 dropped to 15.

I am grateful for all your help.

Sorry to bother you.

Thank you

I deleted the other message by accident as was in tears and got so anxious that I am a bother .

Sorry

Jazzw profile image
Jazzw in reply toChouchou1234

Chelsea, you can’t really look at old results and try to work out how they apply to what’s happening now. All you can do is focus on taking the medication you’ve been prescribed consistently—every day, same dosage, no experimenting. That’s the only way you’ll get a set of reliable results in the future to make it possible to see what’s going on.

You’re an over thinker and many of us get that all too well. But you’re catastrophising and that means your stress levels will be high and the rash you have is almost certainly stress related, nothing to do with the drain cleaner.

Stop thinking about bile flow and thyroid hormones. You can’t fix anything by frequently messing about with your dosage—this is a long game. You need to stick to the dose you’ve been prescribed for a good long time. If you’ve got other symptoms like constipation and urine retention you need to see a doctor about them and follow their advice—you cannot assume it has anything to do with your thyroid hormone levels, ok?

Sending hugs xx

Chouchou1234 profile image
Chouchou1234 in reply toJazzw

thank you xxx so tired of fighting xx appreciate the reply support xxx

Lalatoot profile image
Lalatoot

Chouchou I was all but stuck in bed for 2 years because of my thyroid, poor medication and how it all affected me. It is a terrible struggle.There are no quick fixes.

It took me another 2 years to sort out my doses of t4 and t3. I have now been on stable doses for 18months and my body and mind are still recovering.

To judge what doses your body needs you need to stick to set doses for 6 to 8 weeks. Keep a diary of your symptoms. At the end of the 6 to 8 weeks you need blood tests which include ft4 and ft3.

When you get the blood test results you then look at where ft4 and ft3 are in their ranges and your symptoms. This then helps you to decide if you need to change your dose of levo or t3. You only change 1 thing at a time. Then you wait another 6 to 8 weeks and do bloods. If you post your blood results up here then we can help at this stage.

It has to be done slowly and methodically otherwise you get in a muddle and you don't know what is causing your problems. We just want to get well and for life to be better so we panic and chop and change which upsets our system more.

Start today by taking this virtual hug I'm sending you. Take your doses properly and come back when you have recent blood results.

Vileplume profile image
Vileplume in reply toLalatoot

Hello. If you don't mind sharing, what doses of T3 and T4 worked best for you?

Lalatoot profile image
Lalatoot in reply toVileplume

2 x 50mcg levo  1x 5mcg lio 1 x 2.5mcg lio

DippyDame profile image
DippyDame

Stop! Take a deep breath and forget about previous results.

You are beating yourself up mercilessly for no logical reason

You are not a waste of space!

You are unwell... and as soon as the people around you get their heads round this and start supporting you the better.

Of course you feel rubbish so don't apologise for asking for the help you need...stop apologising it doesn't help you if you feel wrong

You are not wrong....you are unwell and confused

Right....

that said, pay attention to the advice you have already been given

Arrange a full thyroid test to include...

TSH, FT4, FT3, vit D, vit B12, folate, ferritin and thyroid antibodies

Take this test just before 9am

Take it after you have been on a constant dose for 6 / 8 weeks

Ideally do a private test so that you can include all of the above

Test kits can be obtained here...

thyroiduk.org/help-and-supp...

For example...every Thursday Medichecks will offer discounts on various tests.

Forget your previous lab results....don't look back, you're not going there!

Post the results with ref ranges and members will help.

Time to stop imagining all sorts of things that are most likely irrelevant and time to concentrate on working to move forward.

With correct medication you will improve!

Determination!
Chouchou1234 profile image
Chouchou1234 in reply toDippyDame

thank you to all. The replies have saved me. Thank you xxx I appreciate this so much . Thank you 🙏 the kindness is overwhelming x

Not what you're looking for?

You may also like...

Please Help!!

If my TSH is 62.1(0.014-4) My free T3 2.3 (3.1-6.8) My Fee T4 8.2 (12-22) Do I need to increase my...
Crlnfly profile image

Latest bloods please help

Managed to persuade my good old gp to do t3 and guess what? He did. I've actually gone down again...
Jodypody profile image

Armour help, please

I’ve been trialing Armour thyroid for 4 weeks (1/2 grain twice daily) - having changed from 125mg...
Annaoj profile image

Results help please

I have just joined I have been taking thyroxine since 2014 and here are latest results, symptoms...
LucieC profile image

help/advice re blood results please

hi could I please get your feedback on the following blood test results it’s for my son who is on...
Conor747 profile image

Moderation team

See all
PurpleNails profile image
PurpleNailsAdministrator
Jaydee1507 profile image
Jaydee1507Administrator
Buddy195 profile image
Buddy195Administrator

Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.

Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.