please, why has my FT3 gone down and FT4 risen ... - Thyroid UK

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please, why has my FT3 gone down and FT4 risen since adding T3 to my NDT ?

Gillybean1 profile image
9 Replies

Hello again,

Over 6 weeks ive reduced my NDT down from 1 3/4grain daily (split dose) to 1 5/8grain daily (split dose) adding 2.5mcg Thybon liothyronine into the morning dose.

My FT3 has gone down and my FT4 has gone up , and i was wondering if anybody could advise me why please? Needless to say as the 6 weeks have progressed i have felt weaker and even worse than before and suprised that 4weeks into this myblood test is:

TSH 0.02 (0.27 -4.2) previous April 0.01

FT3 4.63 (3.1 -6.8) " 5.22

FT4 17.4 (12 -22) " 16.7

I have Hashimotos and am DIO2 positive hence starting gently with this new additional T3, could this be an absorbtion problem with this particular brand of T3 ? Am GF,DF,SF,folates ,B12,Ferritin,D, stomach acid now good VEGF tested, Selenium all good, no tap water etc.

This brand of meds like so many contains corn which could be the problem, although miniscule, i just dont know.....

Any thoughts greatly appreciated please.....3 words ' tether' and ' end of' ha ha!!

Every best wish G.

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greygoose profile image
greygoose

So, you reduce your NDT by 1.125 mcg T3 and 4.75 mcg T4, and increased your T3 by 2.5 mcg? I cannot see the logic in either the action nor the results. Why did you do that? Are you planning to go onto T3 only?

These are such miniscule amounts that I wouldn't expect them to have any effect whatsoever. I can only think that the increase/decrease has something to do with the Hashi's. I've never heard anyone complain that Thybon Liothyronine was difficult to absorb. I didn't find it so myself. Did you do both test at exactly the same time of day?

Gillybean1 profile image
Gillybean1 in reply to greygoose

Hello Greygoose,

Thank you for responding. I did this in baby steps because i react to so many things and was being cautious by reducing the morning dose NDT from 1 1/4 grains down to 1 1/8grain and adding the 2.5mcg T3 but keeping the afternoon dose at 1/2 grain and doing so for 4weeks then i retested, its now 6 weeks on this protocol. Actually i stopped the T3 last 2 days and put back the extra 1/8 NDT in the morning and am starting to feel v v slightly different .

The aim is to be eventually on 1 grain pr day NDT and the rest T3.

And yes i did the tests at the same tim,same lab.

Incidently on the second week of this regime i got my dose splitting muddled up and took 5mcg T3 instead of 2,5mcg with the morning NDT dose 1 1/8 grain and felt dreadful ,was out of it most of the morning, nausea, dizzy, so thats why im cautious and i also thought i 'was supposed to do it gently' to wake up receptors as ive been deprived for a decade.

Im not experienced and fumbling through as you see... G

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply to Gillybean1

Some things should be done gently, yes, of course. But, you must have been on NDT for some time to have got up to 1 1/4 grains. So, your body is used to T3.

Presumably you are a poor converter, and that's why you went on to NDT?

What I don't understand is the 1/8 grain of NDT. It must be incredibly difficult to cut your tablets into 8. Myself, I think I would have just reduced by 1/4, and added the 2.5 mcg T3 to 1 grain. How much T3 do you expect to end up on? By reducing by 1/8 grain, you gave yourself an increase in dose, anyway, small as it was.

Is the aim to reduce the amount of T4 you take?

Gillybean1 profile image
Gillybean1 in reply to greygoose

Hi Grey goose,

Yes it is the aim to reduce the NDT to 1 grain, and you very kindly advised me i think 3 months ago at discussion stage to drop the am dose down to 1 grain and add the 5mcg of T3 there, keeping the afternoon at 1/2 grain NDT. I got afraid, too many scarey reactions to injested things this year i lose my bottle sometimes ! you know that feeling when most days you can conquer the world and then occasionally one flounders ?

I was thinking that the feeling weaker and more lousy was that i just needed to up the T3 dose, so after retesting 4 weeks in i was suprised to see a significant FT3 drop and FT4 increase hence my question why? Then it occured to me that 'maybe' Thybon doesnt suit and should i try another brand OR persevere with it ,but up the dose. I have found another brand that doesnt contain corn but at a hefty price by comparison.

If i up the dose ,would you advise upping the morning dose of T3 to 5mcg or adding some to the afternoon dose NDT ?

G

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply to Gillybean1

I think, for a start, it would be best to up the morning dose of T3 to 5 mcg. But I really wouldn't call your drop in T3 or your increase in T4 'significant'. We can get variations like that due to many factors. :)

Gillybean1 profile image
Gillybean1 in reply to greygoose

Thank you Greygoose, you are so very reassuring. I had an episode in A&E 2 months with 3 weeks of chest pains,thankfully i had a young up to speed medic who understood that the bloods they took there 2hrs after my afternoon NDT dose showed an expected spike to 6.3 FT3 and thankfully let it pass...phew couldnt stand another confrontation. Chest pains turned out to be B1 B2 low....

I will up my T3 to 5mcg now , still umming and aahing about changing brand??

And how are you these days? all good ? G

greygoose profile image
greygoose in reply to Gillybean1

I'm ok, thank you. :) But the main thing is that you are reassured and ready to start taking a full 5 mcg T3! :D

Gillybean1 profile image
Gillybean1 in reply to greygoose

Oh good im pleased. Ok will do and many thanks for taking the time to respond. Every best wish, G .

Gillybean1 profile image
Gillybean1 in reply to greygoose

Hi Greygoose,

Re tablet cutting, i have a half grain Ndt and cut it into 4, they have a sort of mini score line so pretty accurate........be jolly glad to only be using 1 grain though, less faffing about G

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