T3 too high?

[ParlourPalm]

Hi all,

Last time I had my thyroid levels checked I followed the protocol of taking half my Armour dose the night before my tests. The blood test was done at 9am and all was in range. This time my endocrinologist specifically asked me to have my blood tests two hours after taking my normal Amour dose, as I've been having quite severe anxiety. My results are:

TSH - 0.019 (0.27 - 4.2)

T3 - 10 (3.1 - 6.8)

T4 - 15.1 (12 - 22)

My question is whether it's OK for T3 to be above range at this point, as it obviously dips as the day goes on, or whether it's a problem. I'm not sure if we should be aiming to be within the range for T3 throughout the day. I'm not feeling great - very anxious and nauseous. I had a thyroidectomy in 2019.

Any pearls of wisdom much appreciated! Thanks in advance.

[greygoose]

Do you have an FT3 result from when you left a gap of 8 to 12 hours on the same dose? I don't understand why doctors do this, but I always suspect their motives! The peak after taking your dose is very short lived, and leaving a gap of 8 to 12 hours gives you a more over-all results of what is normally circulating in you blood. So, doing it that way would give you more of an idea if your dose was too high. Taking your dose two hours before the blood draw is not going to tell you why you have symptoms. It's stupid.

[ParlourPalm in reply to greygoose]

Hi Greygoose, thanks for getting back to me. My FT3 after 8-12 hours was 3.9, so a big difference. I'm not sure if the figure of 10 is anything to worry about, if it's only a short-lived state of affairs.

[greygoose in reply to ParlourPalm]

I don't think it is, no. Do you feel it at all? If not then I shouldn't worry about it. Because normally your FT3 is very low.

[ParlourPalm in reply to greygoose]

Only problems with high anxiety and constantly feeling sick/loss of appetite, but I have no way of knowing if it's connected with my thyroid medication. I have an appointment with my endo next week, so will find out his verdict then!

[greygoose in reply to ParlourPalm]

More likely to do with being under-medicated. Your FT3 is much too low. And anxiety is also a hypo symptom. But I doubt your endo would know that.

[Yostie]

My Endo requested a blood test 3 hours after taking T3 (20 mcg - my morning dose). The result came back as 10.7 (3.1 - 6.8) . He considered the result to be as expected, I was properly absorbing the T3. T3 will be above range as the body takes time to process it.

[ParlourPalm in reply to Yostie]

Thanks for this Yostie - very reassuring!

[pennyannie]

Hey there again :

I would not worry about your T3 being over range 2 hours from ingesting :

I'm just sorry you have these symptoms of high anxiety and feeling sick -

Do you think the sickness directly correlates to you taking the NDT -

as if so, I wonder if returning to a synthetic mix of T3 / T4 might suit you better ?

[ParlourPalm in reply to pennyannie]

Hi pennyannie - thanks for your reply. Yes, I have wondered if it's the NDT. Just feels a bit daunting to change back to synthetic T3/T4 - another big upheaval, but I might give it a try.

[pennyannie]

I'm just thinking - you probably switched to NDT because you weren't settled on the synthetic T3/T4 combo :

Looking back you were taking 10 mcg T3 + 125 mcg T4 - did this help at all with the fatigue ?

You are now on 3 grains of Armour - do you take this as 1 dose early morning and well away from food and anything but water for around an hour ?

So this breaks down as 27 mcg T3 + 114 mcg T4 - has this dose helped at all with the fatigue ?

[ParlourPalm]

For the past 3 months I've been on 2.5 grains Armour - my endo reduced my dose because of the anxiety. Yes, I take it all first thing an hour from eating or drinking. It helped a lot with the fatigue when I first made the change, but energy levels are very low again at the moment. I've lost weight, unsurprisingly as I have no appetite, and generally feel anxious and have a feeling of nausea. Maybe I just need to reduce the Armour a bit. It's all very confusing!

[pennyannie in reply to ParlourPalm]

Could there be absorption issues causing this feeling of nausea and loss of appetite and did it only start when you switched to Armour ?

How are your ferritin, folate, B12 and vitamin D ?

[ParlourPalm in reply to pennyannie]

Hi pennyannie - it's just been since I switched to Armour, so yes, perhaps it's to do with absorption. I think i might revert back to synthetic T4 snd T3. All my vitamins etc are at such good levels I feel I should be brimming with vitality! 😴

[pennyannie in reply to ParlourPalm]

OK - however - I'm not suggesting that 10 mcg T3 + 125 mcg T4 is the right dose for you - but a start - and you can start eating again and not feel sick on the synthetics this has to be a better starting point for you at this point in time.

[ParlourPalm in reply to pennyannie]

Yes, I do think that's the best way forward - this has been going on for too long. Thanks again for your thoughts.