T3/T4

[Guest guest]

So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2 and the range is .45 - 4.5 does that mean he is converting T4 to T3 okay?

His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76 It seems to be on the low end. ??

With a TSH of 8.96 (and antibodies in the 800's)

What amount of thyroid meds does he need? For the past year he's only been taking compounded 5/20 mcg. Is this enough? And what should he be feeling when he knows it's enough? We will be trying the ERFA as soon as we can get an rx.

Robyn

[Guest guest]

Hi Robyn,

His FT3 is 93% in the range and FT4 is 22%. He definitely needs more T4. It

appears he converts the T3 fine maybe too well.

When you say 5/20 mcg do you mean he is currently taking 5 mcg of T3 and 20 mcg

of T4? Or vice versa?

The smallest does of Erfa is a half grain which has 17.5 mcg of T4 and 4 mcg of

T3. He may need some T4 added to the Erfa. Some people need more T4 because

natural thyroid has a higher amount of T3 than the human body makes. Increasing

any desiccated med, like Erfa can cause his T3 to be too high.

My daughter takes Unithroid, a T4-only med that has never had a recall or

potency problem, because she tends to have high T3 and we can't let her T3 get

any higher. She also has Graves' so that would be a double whammy.

With the extreme Adrenal Fatigue your hubby has he may NOT see any improvement

with the thyroid meds until he fixes the Adrenals. Normally, you feel better

and not so tired and exhausted when the thyroid med is working. If it's too

much he'll have fast heart rate, sweating, nervousness, and feeling like he's

out of breath.

HTH,

~Bj

>

> So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2   and the range is .45 - 4.5  does that mean

he is converting T4 to T3 okay? 

>

> His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76    It seems to be on the low

end.  ??

>

> With a TSH of 8.96   (and antibodies in the 800's)

>

> What amount of thyroid meds does he need?  For the past year he's only been

taking compounded 5/20 mcg.  Is this enough?  And what should he be feeling when

he knows it's enough?  We will be trying the ERFA as soon as we can get an rx.

>

> Robyn

>

[Guest guest]

BJ ~ I called the lab to confirm. Yes the 5/20 is 5 T3 and 20 T4. So maybe from what you're saying, would it be better to just do a T4 only med? And not do ERFA?

We are working on the Adrenals with trying to get lots more sleep, eating better and not skipping meals, hydrocortisone (but he may need more) and I am going to pull out the AF book and see what else we need to do! He is feeling better than he did this time last year, but we will be re-doing his 4 saliva test on Sunday to see if he's improving. In your opinion should he double the thyroid meds he's taking above and see how he responds? He definitely has never had hyper symptoms from them.

Lots of thanks,

Robyn

To: Thyroiditis Sent: Thu, March 11, 2010 1:58:43 PMSubject: Re: T3/T4

Hi Robyn,His FT3 is 93% in the range and FT4 is 22%. He definitely needs more T4. It appears he converts the T3 fine maybe too well. When you say 5/20 mcg do you mean he is currently taking 5 mcg of T3 and 20 mcg of T4? Or vice versa? The smallest does of Erfa is a half grain which has 17.5 mcg of T4 and 4 mcg of T3. He may need some T4 added to the Erfa. Some people need more T4 because natural thyroid has a higher amount of T3 than the human body makes. Increasing any desiccated med, like Erfa can cause his T3 to be too high. My daughter takes Unithroid, a T4-only med that has never had a recall or potency problem, because she tends to have high T3 and we can't let her T3 get any higher. She also has Graves' so that would be a double whammy.With the extreme Adrenal Fatigue your hubby has he may NOT see any improvement with the thyroid meds until he fixes the Adrenals. Normally, you feel better and not so tired

and exhausted when the thyroid med is working. If it's too much he'll have fast heart rate, sweating, nervousness, and feeling like he's out of breath.HTH,~Bj>> So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2 and the range is .45 - 4.5 does that mean he is converting T4 to T3 okay? > > His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76 It seems to be on the low end. ??> > With a TSH of 8.96 (and antibodies in the 800's)> > What amount of thyroid meds does he need? For the past year he's only been taking compounded 5/20 mcg. Is this enough? And what should he be feeling when he knows it's enough? We will be

trying the ERFA as soon as we can get an rx.> > Robyn>

[Guest guest]

Robyn,

That is such a small amount of thyroid hormone that I wonder if he even absorbed

any of it.

The labs just do NOT make sense to me. I don't want to confuse you but with his

Adrenals hardly working at all I wonder if there was a lab error and the FT3

result of 4.2 s/b .42 - that would mean his FT3 is below range. This scenario

makes more sense because he needs cortisol in order for T4 to convert to T3 -

your hubby does NOT have sufficient cortisol to do that or not to do it very

well; plus he must have adequate T4 before T4 can convert to T3. Also the high

TSH would correlate with both low FT3 and FT4.

Essentially, there is something very wrong here but I do NOT know what.

Does he have extreme exhaustion, brain fog, forgetful, loses his thoughts in mid

conversation, forgets where he is going or what he planned to do - for example

goes to the garage for a tool but gets there and can't remember why he went

there. These are all symptoms of LOW T3. When mine was low I cried a lot and

could NOT express what I was feeling, the words would disappear into space. I'd

have to ask who I was talking to on the phone and what they wanted as I couldn't

remember what they had just said. I was very frustrated and extremely irritated

that I couldn't remember simple stuff or do everyday household chores etc.

Also my muscles and joints ached so badly, they felt like I was walking on

burning glass, my knees and especially my ankles felt like knives were in them

cuting and twisting with any moment and each step. It was almost impossible to

bend or lift my arms to pick up the baby.

If he has some of these symptoms I'd ask the doc or lab to rerun the FT3 test.

What does the ND or doc say? Or just assume the FT3 is off/low and increase the

Efra from roughly a half grain to ¾ or even one grain and see how he does. You

can always decrease and split it if need be.

I could better suggest if I knew all his symptoms. I never told my hubby how

horrible I felt because my brain was so exhausted and low functioning. So if

your hubby's T3 is low he may not be able to communicate how he is actually

feeling.

Eating gluten-free should help, also Omega 3 helped me a lot.

Hope this helps,

~Bj

> >

> > So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2   and the range is .45 - 4.5  does that

mean he is converting T4 to T3 okay? 

> >

> > His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76    It seems to be on the

low end.  ??

> >

> > With a TSH of 8.96   (and antibodies in the 800's)

> >

> > What amount of thyroid meds does he need?  For the past year he's only been

taking compounded 5/20 mcg.  Is this enough?  And what should he be feeling

when he knows it's enough?  We will be trying the ERFA as soon as we can get an

rx.

> >

> > Robyn

> >

>

[Guest guest]

BJ ~ Wow that is interesting. ND said nothing except he was converting to T3 okay. He did stop by the lab yesterday to do new blood work but it will probably be a couple of weeks before we get the results.

He doesn't have the symptoms you speak of. So maybe these new labs will show us something. I don't have ERFA yet. he's still taking the compounded. When we finally get in to see a doc/ND I will ask for it.

I guess we will keep things status quo for now until we get all new labs. Thank you so much for you insight.

Robyn

To: Thyroiditis Sent: Fri, March 12, 2010 10:11:40 AMSubject: Re: T3/T4

Robyn,That is such a small amount of thyroid hormone that I wonder if he even absorbed any of it. The labs just do NOT make sense to me. I don't want to confuse you but with his Adrenals hardly working at all I wonder if there was a lab error and the FT3 result of 4.2 s/b .42 - that would mean his FT3 is below range. This scenario makes more sense because he needs cortisol in order for T4 to convert to T3 - your hubby does NOT have sufficient cortisol to do that or not to do it very well; plus he must have adequate T4 before T4 can convert to T3. Also the high TSH would correlate with both low FT3 and FT4. Essentially, there is something very wrong here but I do NOT know what. Does he have extreme exhaustion, brain fog, forgetful, loses his thoughts in mid conversation, forgets where he is going or what he planned to do - for example goes to the garage for a tool but gets there and can't remember why he went there.

These are all symptoms of LOW T3. When mine was low I cried a lot and could NOT express what I was feeling, the words would disappear into space. I'd have to ask who I was talking to on the phone and what they wanted as I couldn't remember what they had just said. I was very frustrated and extremely irritated that I couldn't remember simple stuff or do everyday household chores etc. Also my muscles and joints ached so badly, they felt like I was walking on burning glass, my knees and especially my ankles felt like knives were in them cuting and twisting with any moment and each step. It was almost impossible to bend or lift my arms to pick up the baby.If he has some of these symptoms I'd ask the doc or lab to rerun the FT3 test. What does the ND or doc say? Or just assume the FT3 is off/low and increase the Efra from roughly a half grain to ¾ or even one grain and see how he does. You can always decrease and split it if need be.

I could better suggest if I knew all his symptoms. I never told my hubby how horrible I felt because my brain was so exhausted and low functioning. So if your hubby's T3 is low he may not be able to communicate how he is actually feeling. Eating gluten-free should help, also Omega 3 helped me a lot.Hope this helps,~Bj> >> > So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2  and the range is .45 - 4.5 does that mean he is converting T4 to T3 okay? > > > > His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76   It seems to be on the low end. ??> > > > With a TSH of 8.96  (and antibodies in the 800's)> > > > What amount of thyroid meds does he need? For the past year he's only been taking compounded 5/20 mcg. Is this enough? And what should he be feeling when he knows it's enough? We will be trying the ERFA as soon as we can get an rx.> > > > Robyn>

>>

[Guest guest]

Robyn,

I am surprised the ND didn't pick up on that. I would call him and ask him.

Normally, if either FT3 or FT4 are high, TSH is low and when FT3/FT4 are low TSH

is high. Even, my Graves'/Hashi daughter, who has wonky labs when her FT3 was

high her TSH was low. I really think it could of been a lab error.

What new blood work was done?

Take care,

~Bj

> > >

> > > So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2   and the range is .45 - 4.5 

does that mean he is converting T4 to T3 okay? 

> > >

> > > His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76    It seems to be

on the low end.  ??

> > >

> > > With a TSH of 8.96   (and antibodies in the 800's)

> > >

> > > What amount of thyroid meds does he need?  For the past year he's only

been taking compounded 5/20 mcg.  Is this enough?  And what should he be

feeling when he knows it's enough?  We will be trying the ERFA as soon as we

can get an rx.

> > >

> > > Robyn

> > >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

FT3/FT4 & TSH was done yesterday. Sunday we are doing the cortisol saliva 4 tube test.

To: Thyroiditis Sent: Fri, March 12, 2010 11:29:48 AMSubject: Re: T3/T4

Robyn,I am surprised the ND didn't pick up on that. I would call him and ask him. Normally, if either FT3 or FT4 are high, TSH is low and when FT3/FT4 are low TSH is high. Even, my Graves'/Hashi daughter, who has wonky labs when her FT3 was high her TSH was low. I really think it could of been a lab error. What new blood work was done?Take care,~Bj> > >> > > So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2  and the range is .45 - 4.5 does that mean he is converting T4 to T3 okay? > > > > > > His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76   It seems to be on the low end. ??> > > > > > With a TSH of 8.96  (and antibodies in the 800's)> > > > > > What amount of thyroid meds does he need? For the past year he's only been taking compounded 5/20 mcg. Is this enough? And what should he be feeling when he knows it's enough? We will be trying the ERFA as soon as we can get an rx.> > > > > > Robyn> > >>

>>

[Guest guest]

You know what I am really wondering about this ND!!

To: Thyroiditis Sent: Fri, March 12, 2010 11:29:48 AMSubject: Re: T3/T4

Robyn,I am surprised the ND didn't pick up on that. I would call him and ask him. Normally, if either FT3 or FT4 are high, TSH is low and when FT3/FT4 are low TSH is high. Even, my Graves'/Hashi daughter, who has wonky labs when her FT3 was high her TSH was low. I really think it could of been a lab error. What new blood work was done?Take care,~Bj> > >> > > So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2  and the range is .45 - 4.5 does that mean he is converting T4 to T3 okay? > > > > > > His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76   It seems to be on the low end. ??> > > > > > With a TSH of 8.96  (and antibodies in the 800's)> > > > > > What amount of thyroid meds does he need? For the past year he's only been taking compounded 5/20 mcg. Is this enough? And what should he be feeling when he knows it's enough? We will be trying the ERFA as soon as we can get an rx.> > > > > > Robyn> > >>

>>

[Guest guest]

Robyn, that's great! I'd wait a few days for test results and see where his

current thyroid hormones function at. An old test is probably not significant

now anyway, but can be compared if done at the same lab and near the same time

of day. I was asumming he had just got those other results.

I usually have my blood drawn at 4pm and take my morning dose of meds and wait

at least 8 hours before the draw, then take my evening dose as usual. I

normally take my thyroid at 7 am and 7 pm. For me, taking a dose in the evening

helps me sleep much better.

~Bj

> > > >

> > > > So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2   and the range is .45

- 4.5  does that mean he is converting T4 to T3 okay? 

> > > >

> > > > His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76   

It seems to be on the low end.  ??

> > > >

> > > > With a TSH of 8.96   (and antibodies in the 800's)

> > > >

> > > > What amount of thyroid meds does he need?  For the past year

he's only been taking compounded 5/20 mcg.  Is this enough?  And

what should he be feeling when he knows it's enough?  We will be trying

the ERFA as soon as we can get an rx.

> > > >

> > > > Robyn

> > > >

> > >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

BJ ~ He did have his blood drawn at 4:00 on the afternoon. And it was almost 10 hours after his last meds. So that is good. His TSH was just done and that was 8.96 but we will wait for the frees to come in too. (the MD ordered the TSH, and the ND ordered TSH plus FT3/FT4 and the cortisol). Of course, I know when we go see the MD he is going to refer to endocrinologist. (But when we see the MD/Endo at least I have insurance and can get the labs done (or some of them)without paying out of pocket.) We'll see how it all goes when we finally do go see them. Then I can see if I can find a new doc.

Has anybody had any experience with Dr. Boydston in Clovis? http://www.drboydston.com/ I'm willing to talk with him after we get all the labs in and see what his take is. It would just be phone visits because we can't drive to Clovis.

Here is to a gluten free dinner tonight on our 16th anniversary! Found a mexican restaurant that is completely gluten free (except for their mole sauce)!

Robyn

To: Thyroiditis Sent: Fri, March 12, 2010 12:37:34 PMSubject: Re: T3/T4

Robyn, that's great! I'd wait a few days for test results and see where his current thyroid hormones function at. An old test is probably not significant now anyway, but can be compared if done at the same lab and near the same time of day. I was asumming he had just got those other results. I usually have my blood drawn at 4pm and take my morning dose of meds and wait at least 8 hours before the draw, then take my evening dose as usual. I normally take my thyroid at 7 am and 7 pm. For me, taking a dose in the evening helps me sleep much better.~Bj> > > >> > > > So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2 ÂÂÂ

and the range is .45 - 4.5 does that mean he is converting T4 to T3 okay? > > > > > > > > His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76   It seems to be on the low end. ??> > > > > > > > With a TSH of 8.96  (and antibodies in the 800's)> > > > > > > > What amount of thyroid meds does he need? For the past year he's only been taking compounded 5/20 mcg. Is this enough? And what should he be feeling when he knows it's enough? We will be trying the ERFA as soon as we can get an rx.> > > > > > > > Robyn> > > >> > >>

>>

[Guest guest]

Robyn,

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! You go and have a relaxing dinner. You deserve a night out!

Our anniversary is in April, and hubby will till be overseas, he's a military

man. So we'll celebrate in July, hopefully. I am counting the days...

Hugs,

~Bj

> > > > >

> > > > > So if my husbands free T3 is

4.2ÃÆ'‚ ÃÆ'‚  and the range is .45 -

4.5ÃÆ'‚  does that mean he is converting T4 to T3

okay?ÃÆ'‚ 

> > > > >

> > > > > His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 -

1.76ÃÆ'‚ ÃÆ'‚ ÃÆ'‚  It seems to be

on the low end.ÃÆ'‚  ??

> > > > >

> > > > > With a TSH of 8.96ÃÆ'‚ ÃÆ'‚  (and

antibodies in the 800's)

> > > > >

> > > > > What amount of thyroid meds does he need?ÃÆ'‚  For the

past year he's only been taking compounded 5/20 mcg.ÃÆ'‚  Is this

enough?ÃÆ'‚  And what should he be feeling when he knows it's

enough?ÃÆ'‚  We will be trying the ERFA as soon as we can get an

rx.

> > > > >

> > > > > Robyn

> > > > >

> > > >

> > >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks BJ ~ Tell your husband "thank you" for all he does for our Country! We are praying for him!

Hugs too!

Robyn

To: Thyroiditis Sent: Fri, March 12, 2010 2:33:17 PMSubject: Re: T3/T4

Robyn,HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! You go and have a relaxing dinner. You deserve a night out!Our anniversary is in April, and hubby will till be overseas, he's a military man. So we'll celebrate in July, hopefully. I am counting the days...Hugs,~Bj> > > > >> > > > > So if my husbands free T3 is 4.2ÃÆ'‚ ÃÆ'‚ and the range is .45 - 4.5ÃÆ'‚ÂÂÂ

does that mean he is converting T4 to T3 okay?ÃÆ'‚ > > > > > > > > > > His free T4 is .86 with a range of .61 - 1.76ÃÆ'‚ ÃÆ'‚ ÃÆ'‚ It seems to be on the low end.ÃÆ'‚ ??> > > > > > > > > > With a TSH of 8.96ÃÆ'‚ ÃÆ'‚ (and antibodies in the 800's)> > > > > > > > > > What amount of thyroid meds does he need?ÃÆ'‚ For the past year he's only been taking compounded 5/20 mcg.ÃÆ'‚ Is this enough?ÃÆ'‚ And what should he be feeling when he

knows it's enough?ÃÆ'‚ We will be trying the ERFA as soon as we can get an rx.> > > > > > > > > > Robyn> > > > >> > > >> > >> >>

[Guest guest]

My Free T3 is always low, most of the time at the bottom or

barely above the low end of the range. I have the brain symptoms you describe

below but not the joint/muscle stuff. Though I have to much

tension/anxiety to rest, I’m exhausted. I don’t sleep well at

night. I’ve been blaming it on menopause and stress. I’m confused

about what to do and non of the drs I go to have a clue either. I also suffer

from bile reflux due to gallbladder removal which keeps me in a state of

burning pain. So this is a stressor. I just did a saliva test for adrenals and

will send off on Monday. I had a complete hyst 11 years ago and use transdermal

estradiol. My Estradiol level is fine but my FSH is always way higher than it

should be. I was told that if my thyroid were working right, this would go

lower and I would actually notice my estrogen.

Would it behoove me to get on some Armour type med even though I

have Hashis? (See I’m confused if this is contra indicated.) Or some

straight T3?

My last labs were –

TSH – 2.15

(.40-4.50)

FT4 – 1.0 (.8-1.8)

FT3 – 263 (230-420)

ThyroGlob Ant - <20

(<20)

Thyr. Perox. Ant –

12 <35

Thanks again for any

insight. I’m just confused.

Liz

From: Thyroiditis

[mailto:Thyroiditis ] On Behalf Of beckyjov

Sent: Friday, March 12, 2010 10:12 AM

To: Thyroiditis

Subject: Re: T3/T4

Does he have extreme exhaustion, brain fog,

forgetful, loses his thoughts in mid conversation, forgets where he is going or

what he planned to do - for example goes to the garage for a tool but gets

there and can't remember why he went there. These are all symptoms of LOW T3.

When mine was low I cried a lot and could NOT express what I was feeling, the

words would disappear into space. I'd have to ask who I was talking to on the

phone and what they wanted as I couldn't remember what they had just said. I

was very frustrated and extremely irritated that I couldn't remember simple

stuff or do everyday household chores etc.

Also my muscles and joints ached so badly, they felt like I was walking on

burning glass, my knees and especially my ankles felt like knives were in them

cuting and twisting with any moment and each step. It was almost impossible to

bend or lift my arms to pick up the baby.