Re: New Here and to Lugol's

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In a message dated 6/13/2008 7:13:52 PM Eastern Daylight Time, mmmgym@... writes:

Hi Annie:

The first thing that came to my mind was that your Armour dose seems low. Do you want to post your lab work so people can give you some more specific advice according to the results of your tests?

Hi :

At my physical 3 months ago, my TSH was .77 (I generally feel best when it is under 1)

Free T3 382 (range 230-420)

Free T4: 1.1 (range .8-1.8)

Thyuroid Peroxdase AB Normal Less than 10 Range: Less than or = to 35

Thyroglobulin AB 85.1 High (Normal is less than 20)

My Free T4 may have seemed a bit low because I always test after taking meds and I take the extra T3 in the AM -- so body probably compensates by putting out less T4. Anyway, I felt ok then and the numbers are typical for when I feel ok. When my TSH gets close to 1.5, my cholesterol zooms up 60 points and I generally start feeling exhausted, fluid retention etc. Yuck. Worst hypo symptoms for me are exhaustion, HAIR SHED, depression, aches and fluid retention. The depression makes want to eat/binge more and I end up gaining weight...this tends to happen in the late fall and during winter. Hoping to break the cycle.

I've been on Armour and Cytomel for about 8 years -- dosages tweaked occassionally. I would love to get off the expensive Cytomel and keep the Armour and then add appropriate iodine. The evidence for the health benefits of iodine beyond just thyroid function is too overwhelming and compelling to ignore -- especially in our toxic bromide/flouride filled environment.

Vote for your city's best dining and nightlife. City's Best 2008.

[Guest guest]

Hi Annie:

The first thing that came to my mind was that your Armour dose seems low. Do you want to post your lab work so people can give you some more specific advice according to the results of your tests?

From: anniesmithannie <oolongal@...>Subject: New Here and to Lugol'siodine Date: Friday, June 13, 2008, 5:39 PM

I have Hashimoto's hypothyroidism with nodules and take 1 Grain Armour plus 5mcg of Cytomel. I have fibrocystic breasts and some uterine fibroids. I am 5'2.5" tall and weigh about 109 pounds. Sixteen days ago, I started adding 1 drop of Lugol's to water and drinking this daily. It is equal to 1/2 of an Iodoral Tablet according to Dr. Brownstein's book. I have been been feeling extremely tired. Dr. Brownstein mentions that this could be from Bromide excretion. I take 500 to 1,000+ of Vitamin C per day plus 800 to 1,200 mg magnesium oxide at night (I've done this for quite a while as it helps with constipation -- a frequent issue with hypothyroidism) plus adding Celtic seasalt to water and food. I also take a multi and eat an almost entirely organic food diet. My breasts feel much softer -- it's mid-month and generally I would start feeling the cystic pain. So I am extremely encouraged that my

breasts feel better so quickly. But I don't want to aggravate my hypothyroidism or antibodies. Anyone else have initial fatigue? I live in NYC and do not have any iodine literate physicians who have experience on what side-effects to look for and how to interpret my lab numbers while I'm trying the iodine. I realize the dose I took is very very small but I am trying to do this methodically and cautiously since I do not have an iodine literate physician. The confounding factors are: 1) we've had a heat wave in NYC and I exercise outside and have been sweating buckets so maybe I'm salt deprived; 2) the hot weather is easier on hypothyroids so perhaps I need to taper DOWN on my medication because I'm going hyper due to the hot weather. Although the usual hyperthyroid symptoms are palpitations and raciness/jumpiness -- I've read that exhaustion can also be a sign. I would love to get off the Cytomel

and stay on the iodine if at all possible. Any thoughts or suggestions would be most helpful. I realize from Dr. Brownstein's book that there is no one perfect iodine dose for everyone and a lot is trial and error.

[Guest guest]

Your thyroid meds are too low. My kids had labs like that and our Dr put them on Armour. You should be in the upper 1/3 of those ranges to feel better (frees). Scrap the TSH it is useless in dxing hypoT

Steph

Re: New Here and to Lugol's

In a message dated 6/13/2008 7:13:52 PM Eastern Daylight Time, mmmgym@... writes:

Hi Annie:

The first thing that came to my mind was that your Armour dose seems low. Do you want to post your lab work so people can give you some more specific advice according to the results of your tests?

Hi :

At my physical 3 months ago, my TSH was .77 (I generally feel best when it is under 1)

Free T3 382 (range 230-420)

Free T4: 1.1 (range .8-1.8)

Thyuroid Peroxdase AB Normal Less than 10 Range: Less than or = to 35

Thyroglobulin AB 85.1 High (Normal is less than 20)

My Free T4 may have seemed a bit low because I always test after taking meds and I take the extra T3 in the AM -- so body probably compensates by putting out less T4. Anyway, I felt ok then and the numbers are typical for when I feel ok. When my TSH gets close to 1.5, my cholesterol zooms up 60 points and I generally start feeling exhausted, fluid retention etc. Yuck. Worst hypo symptoms for me are exhaustion, HAIR SHED, depression, aches and fluid retention. The depression makes want to eat/binge more and I end up gaining weight...this tends to happen in the late fall and during winter. Hoping to break the cycle.

I've been on Armour and Cytomel for about 8 years -- dosages tweaked occassionally. I would love to get off the expensive Cytomel and keep the Armour and then add appropriate iodine. The evidence for the health benefits of iodine beyond just thyroid function is too overwhelming and compelling to ignore -- especially in our toxic bromide/flouride filled environment.

Vote for your city's best dining and nightlife. City's Best 2008.

[Guest guest]

Also, to get accurate labs, you need to not take your thyroid meds (Armour and T3) for 12-18 hours prior to the blood draw.  Your Armour dose is too low - most people end up feeling best at 3-5 grains.- Janet B.On Jun 13, 2008, at 7:23 PM, oolongal@... wrote: In a message dated 6/13/2008 7:13:52 PM Eastern Daylight Time, mmmgym@... writes: Hi Annie:   The first thing that came to my mind was that your Armour dose seems low.  Do you want to post your lab work so people can give you some more specific advice according to the results of your tests?   Hi :   At my physical 3 months ago, my TSH was .77  (I generally feel best when it is under 1)   Free T3 382 (range 230-420)   Free T4: 1.1 (range .8-1.8)   Thyuroid Peroxdase AB   Normal Less than 10  Range:  Less than or = to 35   Thyroglobulin AB 85.1   High   (Normal is less than 20)   My Free T4 may have seemed a bit low because I always test after taking meds and I take the extra T3 in the AM -- so body probably compensates by putting out less T4.  Anyway, I felt ok then and the numbers are typical for when I feel ok.  When my TSH gets close to 1.5, my cholesterol zooms up 60 points and I generally start feeling exhausted, fluid retention etc. Yuck.  Worst hypo symptoms for me are exhaustion, HAIR SHED, depression, aches and fluid retention.  The depression makes want to eat/binge more and I end up gaining weight...this tends to happen in the late fall and during winter.  Hoping to break the cycle. I've been on Armour and Cytomel for about 8 years -- dosages tweaked occassionally.  I would love to get off the expensive Cytomel and keep the Armour and then add appropriate iodine.  The evidence for the health benefits of iodine beyond just thyroid function is too overwhelming and compelling to ignore -- especially in our toxic bromide/flouride filled environment.    Vote for your city's best dining and nightlife. City's Best 2008.

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 6/13/2008 8:18:36 PM Eastern Daylight Time, janetlmb@... writes:

Also, to get accurate labs, you need to not take your thyroid meds (Armour and T3) for 12-18 hours prior to the blood draw. Your Armour dose is too low - most people end up feeling best at 3-5 grains.

Thank you everyone for your suggestions. Whether or not one should stop thyroid meds before a lab draw is open for debate. The main concensus is that there should be consistency. I have always taken meds as usual on the day of blood draws -- for 8 years and have been managed well in terms of hair loss, weight control, etc. It seems illogical to me to take a medicine daily and then do a blood test without the medicine -- that creates an artificial circumstance that is different than one's day to day regime. But to each their own -- the point is, one should be consistent in however they test. The only medication tweakings I've had tend to come when winter hits and there is a big drop in temperature. I've gone on higher doses of thyroid medication and have had hyper symptoms. Broda wrote that there is no one ideal dose -- what most people feel better on is highly variable. He also wrote that not everyone's temperature will rise to the purported normal level. Also, I only weigh 108 pounds -- body size always matters when one is taking any kind of medication or supplement. Also, I realize that for many people, having the free t3 and free t4 in the upper range is ideal -- but there is a feedback mechanism when one is taking extra straight t3 as I am -- that the body will put out less t4. To arbitrarily state that both numbers must be in the upper range is simply not viable or necessary for a person to feel well. Also, lab results are merely a guide but far from precise. If you drew your labs several times in a single day, you could likely come up with various numbers. Broda also wrote that the best amount of thyroid medication is the least amount that would aleviate symptoms. I felt fine until I started the Lugol's -- my hope with the Lugol's was to eventually be able to at least cut out the Cytomel. My understanding of the iodine research by Dr. Brownstein et al is that individualized iodine supplementation may enable a person to at least lower their thyroid medication. This is not guaranteed -- but I would like to be hopeful. Also, as I stated before, I believe the iodine is crucial for breast health specifically and of course general health. I am really looking for experiences of people who have felt extra fatigue when starting even relatively small doses of iodine ie one drop of Lugol's daily. My endo is open to tweaking my meds however I want in order for me to feel well, but he has no experience with iodine supplementation. He would likely say it's ok to try -- but he does not have experience with other patients trying it and so cannot really guide me as to what to look out for in terms of side-effects and/or how it may effect my thyroid medication. I am thinking of seeing Dr. Linchitz -- listed as an iodine knowledgeable physician. I live in NYC -- so he is not particularly convenient, but there appears to only be 2 iodine knowledgeable physicians in the NY area. I'm going to call his office on Monday and see if he could manage my thyroid condition and guide me with the use of iodine. I am so glad I found this site -- it's heartening to hear from so many knowledgeable, proactive individuals. Thank you all again for your thoughts and suggestions.Vote for your city's best dining and nightlife. City's Best 2008.