Hello everyone 😊

Hello, I hope no one minds me expressing my fears. What it is I struggle like many to get the same brand of liothyronine or just get any thats available on the nhs at times and wait time at times has been months. Its stressful just going to the chemist and I'm made to feel that I'm difficult for not accepting what they have because its unsuitable. Anyway my fear is if its like this now trying to get essential meds that literally keep us all alive, what would it be like if there was a war somewhere that affects us getting our thyroid hormone supplies.

I'm horrified and and very disturbed and upset at the news over the last few months on the TV. People do die in these countries from a lack of meds for chronic illnesses

.

Even if I could afford to by extra T3 somehow somewhere online to stock up a little incase of a major event, I'd be lucky to get a decent long expiration date.

Seems like everything can feel against us at times even when one is proactive and forward thinking to try and help ourselves. Thyroid hormone is an essential hormone for our lives.

In Spain levothyroxine is available over the counter for one euro a box of whatever strenght and quantity needed. No prescription needed.

And levothyroxine and liothyronine is available in South America as an essential medicine also can be bought over the counter very cheap without a prescription. No freedom or trust here in the uk.

I mean, we want to stay alive and try keep well and our hands are tied in the UK.

I managed to buy some b12 ampules from Germany to put away incase needed no problem. However, not so easy getting extra T3. Waiting for mexican T3 can take months sometimes.

My gp, said you're lucky to get what you get!!! . Attitude is cold.

Anyway. More power to us hopefully.

🙏

Take care all

[Buddy195 Administrator]

Welcome Elizajoe102!

I think this is your first post, although reading your bio I can see you joined the forum some time ago. It is a good place to share your health concerns; we are a friendly & supportive group.

Which brand of Levo/ Lio do you currently take?

Do you have any ongoing thyroid symptoms?

[Charlie-Farley]

Elizajoe

I can totally relate. Yes I have had the ‘what about in a war’ scenario run through my head a few times. I guess unless the medical profession (and politicians) wanted a mass extinction on in home turf we would have to look at relaxing the rules around things like NDT - natural desiccated thyroid.

Those of us who could manage on that would take pressure off other forms of hormone replacement. Who knows, perversely it might move the discussion forward. Wars and the scarcity that results, whilst definitely not desirable does force adaptation and innovation.

It has crossed my mind in the early stages of my disease, but I have made my peace with it.

Have you ever heard about the Spanish lady who became hyper because she was eating burgers contaminated with thyroid tissue? Makes you think! I’ll see if I can find the report on it. 🤗

NDT was made through drying and compounding pig or bovine thyroid tissue and making it into grains. I believe it was effective and relatively low tech. It was just Big Pharma came along and rubbished the natural product to the gullible medical profession. The perfect scenario would have been more choice but sadly no.

Lots of people have to buy the medication they need because it is denied to them now under the current regime …..

[arTistapple]

I for one, am glad you raised this as it is already a problem. I am partially consoled by Charlie-Farley explanation. Not entirely but I do agree with her. I am presently writing to a well known and very popular author, attempting to have her write about hypothyroidism/NDT etc because it would easily lend itself to the existing storylines. I have no idea whether it will make any impact but as the books are probably aimed at women more than men, you never know.

[Hidden in reply to arTistapple]

Excellent , good luck 👍

[Charlie-Farley in reply to arTistapple]

Are you thinking popular female literature rather than thyroid self help? It would be genius. I was talking to someone tonight who actually seemed to grasp the issues. But as I explained the issues, I realised that the true extent of the impact on the individual and their families is not quantified. We have so much to do in highlighting the negative effects beyond the individual. Keeping people ill makes no sense on any level 🤔

[arTistapple in reply to Charlie-Farley]

Yes, extremely popular author of female literature, storylines well researched etc. Definitely good stories with a strong female leading character. Such popularity I will tell you a joke about it sometime.

I go over this issue of ‘explanation’ to ‘others’ including medics, all the time. I have probably spent a massive amount of time, from a very young age attempting (and failing) to articulate the issues - with zero idea that my problem was hypothyroidism - even although my Mother brought hypothyroidism up with the doctor/nurse in my hearing, when I was somewhere about 16. “That would be very rare” (or words to that effect). Gaslighting even then. My Mother never had a diagnosis herself but now I know more about it, I see it was highly likely she also suffered from untreated hypothyroidism . Her Mother spent time in the local asylum, probably around my Grandmother’s menopause, because I was aware of this first hand but again ‘no real comprehension’ and let’s be honest in the 1960s, probably a subject of huge shame and kept quiet.

Anyway. All this stuff when, dare I say, we are at our least articulate. It is a passion of mine to try to go some way to overcoming this.

[Charlie-Farley in reply to arTistapple]

Now that would make an extremely good story line. Bl@@dy sad though!

I think my mum was hypo too I’m convinced. Just put down to fat and lazy. I only became aware too late.

[arTistapple in reply to Charlie-Farley]

Me too. My Mother was underweight, she really did not eat enough. However I am the spit of my GM.

Unfortunately I went along with the ‘hive thinking’ and thought my whole life she was a hypochondriac. It made me ultra determined not to be like her. Probably I contributed greatly to my many years without diagnosis through this thinking.

[DandyThyro]

I usually get in a large supply of liothyronine from abroad and keep the spare boxes in the fridge. I'm currently using tablets which expired last month, and will continue to till mid-year. I think the expiry dates are somewhat arbitrary for inert substances, and have read that meds are still good long after their expiry date, if perhaps declining in strength. It's not ideal, but for me anyway the cost of transport etc. justifies getting a year's supply all at once. Despite having a few months' worth left, I'm going to order some more pretty soon to give the delivery a lot more time.

[Hidden in reply to DandyThyro]

I will do the same as you, and ill keep it up, peace of mind to have something put aside. 😊 Take care

[Charlie-Farley]

I guess if all else fails I can get a burger 😉

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

The article I mentioned earlier

[Hidden in reply to Charlie-Farley]

You made me 😃 laugh

[Hidden in reply to Charlie-Farley]

Thank you. I'll read that in the morning. I did however say to my husband once, do you think we could go to the butches in an emergency and ask for pig thyroid gland to fry up.😬

[Charlie-Farley in reply to Hidden]

We have a lot to cope with so a little levity now and again is good for the soul ! night night Elizajoe (oh heck I’m turning into a blooming pumpkin again! ) 🤪🎃

[Charlie-Farley]

We have to read up and then show them up once you know a bit ask them questions you know the answer to and see how they cope. Mostly not. They don’t read much more than NHS generated ‘crib sheets’ or approved literature and kept so busy they don’t know their ‘you know what’ from their elbow. Latterly I have been wondering is that by design.? They take the guidelines on trust and would not believe the omissions and flawed science underpinning those guidelines.