Hi. I am taking my Levo at 5am in the morning but want to try and take it in the evening hoping it can imorove my sleep.How can I make this change? For example, if I took today a 5am dose, shell I take tomorrow's one tonight? Tomorrow evening?
Also, are there any issues with other medications to consider?
I am taking statins for cholesterol in the evenings.
Just delay your morning dose until the evening, you won't notice the difference as we store a lot of thyroxine. You shouldn't take levothyroxine within three or four hours of a meal or certain medications or supplements.
Just take tomorrow morning’s dose Levo tonight
And then take at bedtime every night going forward
No other medication or supplements at same as Levothyroxine, leave at least 2 hour gap.
Some like iron, calcium, magnesium, HRT, omeprazole or vitamin D should be four hours away
(Time gap doesn't apply to Vitamin D mouth spray)
If you normally take levothyroxine at bedtime/in night ...adjust timings as follows prior to blood test
If testing Monday morning, delay Saturday evening dose levothyroxine until Sunday morning. Delay Sunday evening dose levothyroxine until after blood test on Monday morning. Take Monday evening dose levothyroxine as per normal
Your cholesterol levels should naturally reduce once your dose Levo is optimal and Ft3 at least 50-60% through range
nhs.uk/conditions/statins/c...
If you have an underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism), treatment may be delayed until this problem is treated. This is because having an underactive thyroid can lead to an increased cholesterol level, and treating hypothyroidism may cause your cholesterol level to decrease, without the need for statins. Statins are also more likely to cause muscle damage in people with an underactive thyroid.
Statins are dreadful things. They disabled my brother almost completely until he managed to get himself off them.
I am sorry to hear. I have been on low fat diet for over 2 decades and nothing helped drop my cholesterol and triglicerydes. They now seem to be in normal range and I surprisingly do not have side effects as I had expected
Sometimes high cholesterol is normal. I remember visiting one of my aunts (she was married to one of my dad’s brothers) telling me about hers, it was very high naturally. She said it ran in her family.
This was years ago, and she is more than likely no longer with us, my parents would have been over 100 now. But that has always stuck in my mind.
This is true
Hi, Why do you think it will improve your sleep taking the thyroxine at night? I was born without any thyroid function, but have always taken it in the morning 30 minutes before food. I am 63 this year. If I don't take it then, I forget to take it. Also as others have said, you have to be mindful of meds such as iron and vitamin D, as you need four hours between taking thyroid meds and these, because the thyroxine will not absorb well.
Can I ask what problems you are having with sleep? Are you not able to sleep, or not sleeping enough? Do you snore? As sleep apnoea are closely linked with thyroid conditions. There is a stigma with it I know, but invariably any weight gain, is due to undiagnosed sleep apnoea. People with sleep apnoea also come in all shapes and sizes. My male cousin is as thin as a rake, yet has both hypothroyidism and sleep apnoea.
The myth behind high cholesterol is rubbish too, it is just a number. I had always prided myself on having low cholesterol, until I realised that I had low HDL and slight elevated tricyerides, it should be the opposite way round. We need cholesterol to feed our brain and organs. I was offered statins although my total cholesterol was 3.7! which is very low and not good really. All statins do, is make money for the Dr's and pharmaceutical companies. They do not prolong life or quality of it.
Follow the advice of jimh111 if you would like to switch to evenings. However, you need to remember levothyroxine should be taken on an empty stomach with a full glass of water, and not close to other medications. This means you need to consider when you are taking the statins. I usually take thyroid meds wee hours of the morning when I get up to use the wash room. I have noticed this is when I get a better quality sleep. Please speak to your Doctor however, as you need to be very careful when taking thyroid medications and other med.
Do I take thyroid meds before blood test
Can i take Levothyroxine a few hours earlier?
switching to thyroid-s
Best time of day to take NDT if you have trouble sleeping...
