Advise on taking Levo before bed

[Horsti]

hello all, some advise on the above subject would be much appreciated. I usually take my Levo during the night when I wake up to go to the loo, but I think at times it’s disrupting my sleep as I seem to wake up just to take the meds rather then anything else. I wanted to try and start taking it before I go to sleep so my question is. How long should I wait after I have eaten, I’m sometimes naughty and snack on chocolate before bed. 🙈 And also if I have had a glass of wine for example can I still take levo before bed?

many thanks for you help

[jimh111]

Just try it, I don't think small meals make a difference as long as there is sufficient acidity to dissolve the tablet in the stomach.

[Guineapiggy in reply to jimh111]

I take T3 with my T4 around 3 am. I only take the T3 once, without splitting the dose. Do you think that if I took both just before bedtime, that I would lose the benefit of the T3 for the following day, as it has a relatively short half life? I would welcome your opinion, please, as this is something I would rather do than try and take the T3 closer to the next day.

[jimh111 in reply to Guineapiggy]

I take my liothyronine in two doses at breakfast and bedtime. I find the nighttime dose is essential for good deep sleep that clears my mind for the next day. T3 levels peak three hours after taking liothyronine so bedtime is a good time to take it Depending on whether you take a substantial dose it can be better to split doses. Liothyronine has a twenty four hour half-life as measured in the blood but its effects can be longer depending on each tissue.

[Guineapiggy in reply to jimh111]

Many thanks. I am on 12.5 mcg at the moment. I don't want to split the dose as I can't remember to take pills during the daytime so if T3 helps with sleep that would be even better!

[TopBiscuit in reply to jimh111]

Can I ask why it's a good thing for T3 to peaking in the middle of the night?

I have read from an expert that the ideal time to take it would be during the night so it peaks during early morning hours. I did try that but can't be dealing with having an alarm go off in the middle of the night!

[jimh111 in reply to TopBiscuit]

I found that my bedtime dose was much more important than the morning one. With too little T3 my sleep is shallow and I wake up many times. If I take too much I am alert when I go to bed and find it difficult to get to sleep. With the correct dose I fall asleep normally and have deep sleep, my dreams are realistic and ‘in sharp focus’ and I don’t get brain fog the next day.

My hypothesis is that the brain is very active during sleep and so needs the T3 to work hard sorting itself out. There is an analogy with a process in computing called ‘garbage collection’, it’s where obsolete data is removed and fragmented data is collated together making processing more efficient. I think the brain may do something similar during sleep, sort itself out for the next day. Certainly if volunteers are deprived of deep stage 4 sleep they develop cognitive problems very similar to brain fog.

[TopBiscuit in reply to jimh111]

Interesting, thank you. I will try splitting my dose and taking half at bedtime.

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK]

You might find this of some interest/use:

helvella - Bed-time dosing of levothyroxine

Discussion about taking levothyroxine at bed-time.

helvella.blogspot.com/p/hel...

[TopBiscuit in reply to helvella]

Thanks for this! I've been taking my levo & T3 first thing in the morning for ever. I'm going to switch to bedtime after reading some of those studies.

[Horsti in reply to helvella]

Thank you very helpful

[Guineapiggy in reply to helvella]

Do you agree that taking T3 before bedtime is also a good idea?

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to Guineapiggy]

I have never taken T3 so cannot comment from experience. But jimh111 wouldn't say anything that wasn't true for him! And I can definitely see arguments for doing so.

But we are all different.

[Guineapiggy in reply to helvella]

Thanks.

[TopBiscuit in reply to helvella]

I've tried taking half my T3 dose at bedtime and both nights I've woken at 3:30 a.m. and not been able to go to sleep, so I guess I won't be doing that again. 😴

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to TopBiscuit]

That is how I felt while hypothyroid and before starting any levothyroxine! I'd wake up after a short time and be unable to get back to sleep.

Very much understand why you have said that, but have you fully convinced yourself? That is, two days might not be long enough to adapt.

Obviously, you know how you felt. All I'm doing is trying to make sure you don't change too soon and without having given it long enough.

[Apples]

I have seen lots of information on the website about how long to fast after taking Levo in the morning, but not much about how long to fast for before taking it at night.

How long does it take to achieve an empty stomach? Do clear liquids count like wine, green tea, herb tea or black coffee?

[helvella Administrator Thyroid UK in reply to Apples]

The things that might need more than two hours are substances like iron and other supplements which might bind to levothyroxine.

But there is a big problem with identifying any specific time - we are all different. If someone suffers gastroparesis, absorption is very likely to be impaired long after eating.

[Horsti in reply to Apples]

Since my original post I did a bit more reading, some suggest 3 hours after your main evening meal. It doesn’t mention liquids anywhere though.