I've started vencamil 100mg after 11 years on Mercury phama brand

[Shawry36]

I've started vencamil 100mg been on 5 days in morning im absolutely fine by 11am im shatterd of smallest of things and im forgetting loads ive been on Mercury phama for 11 years now on this vencamil is anyone struggling on this or is it just me ? Is this better do I need to give it more time

[Jaydee1507 Administrator]

Welcome to the group. If you could complete your profile it helps members understand your thyroid journey so far and be able to advise you better. Click on your image icon to start. Fill out the free text box at the top.

Vencamil is usually well tolerated and works for many people.

It might be that your thyroid levels aren't yet optimal which is very common. Vitamain levels also need to be at OPTIMAL levels, not just 'in range' for thyroid hormone to work well.

When hypo we get low stomach acid which means we cannot absorb vitamins well from our food, regardless of a great diet. For thyroid hormone to work well we need OPTIMAL levels of vitamins. Have you recently or could you ask your GP to test levels of ferritin, folate, B12 & D3? Private tests are available, see link for companies offering private blood tests & discount codes, some offer a blood draw service at an extra cost.thyroiduk.org/testing/priva...

There is also a new company offering walk in& mail order blood tests in London, Kent, Sussex & Surrey areas. Check to see if there is a blood test company near you. onedaytests.com/products/ul...

Only do private tests on a Monday or Tuesday to avoid postal delays.

Do you know if you had positive thyroid antibodies? Many with autoimmune thyroid disease aka Hashimoto's benefit from a gluten free diet. A smaller percentage of those also need to remove dairy from their diet to feel well. These are intolerances and will not show up on any blood test.

[HealthStarDust]

If you felt better on Mercury Pharma, I would suggest you go back to taking it.

[SlowDragon Administrator]

Reading your helpful profile you sound like you might be not on high enough dose levothyroxine

Presumably you are on 100mcg daily as Vencamil only available as 100mcg tablets currently

What were your most recent results BEFORE changing to Vencamil

What vitamin supplements are you currently taking

Recommended that all thyroid blood tests early morning, ideally just before 9am, only drink water between waking and test and last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test

This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip)

Private tests are available as NHS currently rarely tests Ft3 or all relevant vitamins

Testing options and includes money off codes for private testing

thyroiduk.org/testing/

Medichecks Thyroid plus BOTH TPO and TG antibodies and vitamins

medichecks.com/products/adv...

Blue Horizon Thyroid Premium Gold includes BOTH TPO and TG antibodies, cortisol and vitamins

bluehorizonbloodtests.co.uk...

Only do private testing early Monday or Tuesday morning.

Link about thyroid blood tests

thyroiduk.org/testing/thyro...

Link about Hashimoto’s

thyroiduk.org/hypothyroid-b...

Symptoms of hypothyroidism

thyroiduk.org/signs-and-sym...

Tips on how to do DIY finger prick test

support.medichecks.com/hc/e...

Medichecks and BH also offer private blood draw at clinic near you, or private nurse to your own home…..for an extra fee

Just TSH, Ft4 and Ft3 test - £32

monitormyhealth.org.uk/thyr...

Monitor My Health also now offer thyroid and vitamin testing, plus cholesterol and HBA1C for £65

(Doesn’t include thyroid antibodies)

monitormyhealth.org.uk/full...

10% off code here

thyroiduk.org/testing/priva...

[Shawry36 in reply to SlowDragon]

They never checked my bloods before putting me on it I ran out of medication requested more from doctors an went phymacy and was given vencamil 100mg I have been on 100mg Mercury phama for 8 months that was last time I had bloods done because they said it was low again so upped me again I dont understand what people mean by th3 or th4 my doctor don't tell me what my levels are she just says it's low or its fine

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Shawry36]

I dont understand what people mean by th3 or th4 my doctor don't tell me what my levels are she just says it's low or its fine

You should have been retested 6-8 weeks after being increased to 100mcg Mercury Pharma

If dose wasn’t increased then

Retested again in another 2 months…..to see if levels are stable

it’s time to take action yourself

Frequently GP will only test TSH

Retest 6-8 weeks after any dose change or brand change in levothyroxine

I ran out of medication requested more from doctors an went phymacy and was given vencamil 100mg

how many days were you without any levothyroxine ?

It can take weeks to recover from missed doses

Test after 6-8 weeks on Vencamil

For full Thyroid evaluation you need TSH, FT4 and FT3 tested

Also both TPO and TG thyroid antibodies tested at least once to see if your hypothyroidism is autoimmune

Very important to test vitamin D, folate, ferritin and B12 at least once year minimum

About 90% of primary hypothyroidism is autoimmune thyroid disease, usually diagnosed by high TPO and/or high TG thyroid antibodies

Autoimmune thyroid disease with goitre is Hashimoto’s

Autoimmune thyroid disease without goitre is Ord’s thyroiditis.

Both are autoimmune and generally called Hashimoto’s.

Significant minority of Hashimoto’s patients only have high TG antibodies (thyroglobulin)

Low vitamin levels are extremely common when hypothyroid, especially with autoimmune thyroid disease

20% of autoimmune thyroid patients never have high thyroid antibodies and ultrasound scan of thyroid can get diagnosis

In U.K. medics hardly ever refer to autoimmune thyroid disease as Hashimoto’s (or Ord’s thyroiditis)

Recommended that all thyroid blood tests early morning, ideally just before 9am, only drink water between waking and test and last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test

This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip)

Private tests are available as NHS currently rarely tests Ft3 or all relevant vitamins

Testing options and includes money off codes for private testing

thyroiduk.org/testing/

Medichecks Thyroid plus BOTH TPO and TG antibodies and vitamins

medichecks.com/products/adv...

Blue Horizon Thyroid Premium Gold includes BOTH TPO and TG antibodies, cortisol and vitamins

bluehorizonbloodtests.co.uk...

Only do private testing early Monday or Tuesday morning.

Link about thyroid blood tests

thyroiduk.org/testing/thyro...

Link about Hashimoto’s

thyroiduk.org/hypothyroid-b...

Symptoms of hypothyroidism

thyroiduk.org/signs-and-sym...

Tips on how to do DIY finger prick test

support.medichecks.com/hc/e...

Medichecks and BH also offer private blood draw at clinic near you, or private nurse to your own home…..for an extra fee

[Shawry36 in reply to SlowDragon]

Oh see I wasn't re tested after the upped my dose I have been in the past at my old doctors but not with this new doctors I was without for 4 days I put request in the week before i ran out but never heard nothing they said it hadnt been logged by this time i had 1 dose left an was told it could take upto a week to get a dr to sign an sent to phymacy so was then off for 4 days and it was the worse 4 days of my life I was so emotional i had shakes hot flushes palpitations it was horrible so wen i went to phymacy and they gave me vencamil i didnt put up a fight as i was in such a mess but i did ask why and they said they can no longer get Mercury phama so I need to go back to doctors and ask them to run my bloods again and tell them I'm on vencamil??

[SlowDragon Administrator in reply to Shawry36]

they said they can no longer get Mercury phama

Mercury Pharma is widely available so pharmacy is not telling the truth

Explain Vencamil not suiting you to GP

Get a new PAPER prescription from GP and take it to different pharmacies until you get Mercury Pharma

Roughly where in U.K. are you

I have to say I am finding it impossible to get Mercury Pharma 100mcg in Woking /Chertsey area of Surrey

There are online pharmacies. ……here

thyroiduk.org/get-support/t...

Some only supply private prescriptions

Others will do NHS too

I need to go back to doctors and ask them to run my bloods again

Yes definitely……but 6-8 weeks after being on constant unchanging dose and brand levothyroxine

[Shawry36 in reply to SlowDragon]

My freind was on Mercury phama 50mg and shes struggled to get it to shes in burton upon trent they have put her on accord now I'm in telford donnington area but I will call the doctors in the morning and request that thank you

[Pennypingu in reply to Shawry36]

mercury pharma is available, my chemist said they can’t get it so I said what about Advanz pharma, which is the same, they said yes we can get that, when it came it was boxed mercury pharma anyway, so I’ve got needs mercury pharma or Advanz pharma written as an additional script note on repeats, so far so good. I’m in Eastwood Nottinghamshire. Best to speak to Drs pharmacist as they do the prescriptions anyway.

[Jaydee1507 Administrator in reply to Shawry36]

The reason you're feeling bad now is because you ran out for a few days and didn't take any.

Levo has a time lag of a couple of weeks, so what you are feeling now was because of what happened a while ago.

This may not be due to the change in brand.

You really do need to get some fresh bloods run BUT not until you have been on a steady dose for 6-8 weeks.

If the way you are feeling now is due to missing some doses of Levo then give it a few weeks and you should pick back up again.

[HealthStarDust]

FYI SlowDragon

I have experienced stock issues when my brand was widely available. Pharmacies are affected by arrangements and distribution issues locally with suppliers. And, sometimes the computer just says no when it shouldn’t.

It’s increasingly becoming the case that the manufacturer will state there isn’t an issue with stock, when there actually could be for individual pharmacies.

My advice to you Shawry36 is when there isn’t a national stock issue of some kind due to manufacturers, then keep trying different pharmacies who do have stock or are able to order it.

[SpringerMom]

I received Aristo/Vencamil when my dose was increased to 100 just before Christmas and seem to be fine on it so I’m trying to stick with the brand. When my prescriptions were sent to a local pharmacy I regularly had a change of brand and it was rarely consistent. Now that I order from an on line parmancy for home delivery, by post, it is easier to specify the brand. I still sometimes have it delivered to the local pharmacy though if I know I won’t be at home but so far so good 🤞

[AngelRain]

I'm another one who was stable on Mercury Pharma for ten years, but can no longer get it. The two independent pharmacies I have access to say it is no longer available and there is therefore no point asking the GP to specify it on my prescription.

One pharmacy went as far as to say that it is pointless to specify any brand now as they simply have to have what they can get. It feels like another scandal brewing.

[Pennypingu in reply to AngelRain]

My chemist said they couldn’t get it as not on their system it would have to be ordered as a special which costs them more and to try elsewhere, I asked if they could get Advanz pharma which is the same, they could and when it came it was boxed as mercury pharma, the mind boggles as to why computer systems nowadays don’t pick it up

[Auders]

My local pharmacy tend to give me MP (50mcg) but I get on better with Accord, so I check whilst still in the shop and ask them to swap if I’ve got MP in my lucky dip bag!😂