VITD 76 - so still room for improvement - even on 8000 iu's (gel capsules) ??
Still taking 25mcg T3 at night and 100mcg T4 in the morning.
Now into week 12 of knee pain/swelling. ITB bursitis diagnosed by Orthapaedic Surgeon. X-rays of knees fine - no signs of arthritis. Still cannot walk far or stand for long. So it's back to the back ! Seeing spinal surgeon 9th Jan...not sure about more surgery at 78 ?
Am unsure if I should go back to T3 only or to increase T4 ? - or T3 ? Apart from poor mobility I feel well - and the constant weight battle is a challenge...
Temperature first thing 35.5 and HR 76 (Dr P's guidance)
Suggestions welcome - and thank you for reading... 🌻
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Marz
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Hello Marz, sorry to hear about your ongoing medical issues. There is not much I can offer other than to agree that you could improve your vitamin D3 levels. Many would say anything above 30 or 50 is fine, however mine is over 90 and I go by Professor Angus Dalgleish’s advice and aim to have my level around 100. Incidentally, he actually thinks the current range is inadequate. I take 10,000 IU’s per day and although it takes time to raise levels, this keeps my personal level up. You may wish to check The World Council for Health recommendations, I think they also advise 10, 000 IU,s per day also.
I would think having back surgery at any age is daunting but obviously I know you will weigh up the pros and cons carefully. No doubt you have a good surgeon that you have faith in? I have a self induced knee issue at the moment and appreciate that reduced mobility can be extremely frustrating. I’m sure this issue is not helping your weight management.
Thank you for your teply. Sorry to read about your knee - hope it will soon be on the mend.
Yes I agree with all you say about VitD. I think your results are ng/L whereas my UK ones are pmo/L. My current capsules are 4000iu's so I doubled the dose ! Will now take x3 and see what happens....
Yes being able to move more freely would enable me to expand my exercise and encourage weightloss ! It would also help if our weather was better and I was tempted to leave a warm home !
The surgeon on the 9th Jan is new to me so have my questions lined up ! Had back surgery in 2007 in Germany for stenosis which kept me pain free and active for 10 years. Onwards and upwards.... x
Thank you ! My T4 is a 100mcg capsule so not sure how to increase ! No-one at the Pharmacy knows the brand ? - lactose and gluten free apparently....(pharmacy attached to surgery)
Yes it is a special - requested by my GP - not me. Hubby asked for PIL when collecting - N/A ! When I am walking I will go and do battle. Thanks for the info...
While that applies to authorised medicines, you surely must be told the basics?
Like the company that supplies it and the ingredients? How can you possibly make a rational decision on whether or not to take something if you don't even know what is in it? And, while responsibility lied with the prescriber, if that individual is not available for any reason, what would happen if you had a severe issue and A&E had no idea about the product and couldn't contact the maker? After all, you can surely imagine an issue where the levothyroxine powder was not to standard in some way and it would be advisable to contact ALL patients who had received products containing it.
It was over the phone that GP prescribed Levo/T4 50 mcg initially. Pharmacist phoned to check if GP had ordered LF levo by mistake. I suggested it could be due to my Crohns history ( thinking on my feet ) No problem said the Pharmacist - I will make a note on your notes....
Thank you ! After your Reply on my last post I bought a new thermometer ! I agree my temp needs a boost. How long do you leave yours under the arm ? Will make a plan !
So sorry to hear this Marz. I do so hope that your health - knee especially right now - improves. My best to you and good luck with whatever happens re surgery. xox Take care and be well. 💚💛🧡
If you are going to continue on going the T4/T3 combo med route, then I agree with others to raise FT4 level which is at present under- range. However, you will need to keep an eye on FT3 levels incase conversion raises this too high, in which case you would need to reduce T3 dose to accommodate more Levo.
Thank you - yep - finding a balance is the challenge. My initial concerns were about the introduction of T4 and reduction of T3 being a possible cause of the current tendon issues. Still debilitating after 12 weeks...ouch ! 😥
I know it really is preferable to have TSH in range, and your TSH is in range. On paper this looks great. At one point, I reduced my T4 dose to see if I could get TSH back in range when it was under range.
I took 63 mcg T4 when previously on 75 mcg T4 , and on 63 mcg , T4, got TSH 0.31 (0.27-4.2), with FT4 50% and FT3 40.54%. On 75mcg T4 , TSH 0.15 (0.27-4.2), FT4 81% and FT3 59.46%.
Like you , I have back problems and have had spinal surgery. I found that when TSH went back into range, I hobbled. Nothing tracked on my right side. My right knee was problematic , as too was the right hip, which audibly clunked and clicked. My right sacro-iliac joint was dreadful , as too my right shoulder, which also clunked and clicked. My clavicles too were clicking and clunking. I thought I would never do a "tree of life" yoga pose ever again, as my knee wouldn't come anywhere close to managing the pose, which is normally effortless.
These symptoms disappeared when I upped T4 and TSH fell below range again.
For what it is worth, I would try increasing T4 dose by 12.5 mcg initially , by splitting a 25 mcg Vencamil tablet as SlowDragon suggests. Either change your 100mcg mystery T4 capsule for 100 mcg Vencamil T4 tablet too, or keep your mystery capsule for the 100 mcg dose. If everything was Vencamil , you have the option of 25,50,75 and 100 mcg tablets that could be split to fine tune your dose.
I too have had below range FT4. I suspect that you do need in range FT4. In range TSH , I feel , has previously caused me to have mobility issues. Hope things improve for you.
Edited: I am on liquid levo. This may be a good option for you too. I think very small changes can produce big swings, and if you had liquid T4 you could do really small changes and judge and test the effects of this.
Zentiva do a liquid levothyroxine 125 mcg strength. If you are given this (also do 100 mcg), I don't think there is anything wrong with it as long as you don't chop and change to another brand. Those of us who have had to switch to this brand as a stop gap when there are stock issues, seem to get a floored TSH. I think it may be a little stronger than other brands.
As you are probably aware, pharmacies hate a named brand on your prescription and want to give you what is cheapest at that particular time. If your prescription is for 125 mcg strength liquid, there is only one brand who manufacture this, so it can't be substituted with another brand. I believe it is a special on the drugs tariff and MIGHT have more of a nominal value where the pharmacies MIGHT not be losing money dispensing this one, whereas the Zentiva 100 mcg , MIGHT lose them money. It might be something you would want to consider going forwards.
A member posted a few days ago and mentioned earth grounding sheets. I had never heard of them before. You can buy a fitted bed sheet and also pillowcases. The science behind them are on a few of the sellers' websites. I am going to order today. I have just read a review from a user with a prolapsed disc where sleeping on an earth grounding sheet stopped her sciatica. If she sleeps without it her sciatica comes back, and disappears again when she resumes use. Worth a go! The article says that because it supposedly is having a detox effect on the body, you can feel a bit off for the first week or two. Is this something you have tried in the past? They have silver threads running through them.
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Please can someone comment on my results need to be prepared for endocrinologist on Tuesday. 
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Advice re next dosing step for NDT v Levothyroxine 
