Need your help! Armour Thyroid / Cytomel (T3)

bethanylaugh

Hi everyone - I want to approach my doctor at my next appointment about switching to Armour or AT LEAST adding T3 to my synthroid. I'm nervous as the last 2 doctors I brought this up to brushed me off immediately.

I've been reading a lot since finding this group and feel really encouraged by the fact that I'm not the only one suffering from the symptoms that my synthroid hasn't fixed... and that there might be a solution! I had a total thyroidectomy in 2004 and haven't been the same since.

SO, I'm asking all of you - if you have had success (or not!) with Armour or T3 supplementation, please post here! I plan to pretty much print out this topic string before my appointment so I have enough artillery in my arsenal if they start to claim it won't make a difference :laugh:

PLEASE only add to this topic if you've taken/are taking Armour or T3 - good or bad. Thanks everyone!!!

nspink

I also had a TTD about a year now. I'm on both Synthroid (T4) and Cytomel (T3). I started out with jus the Synthroid right after the surgery and about a few months later, I was still getting severe Hypothyroid symptoms. It was so horrible, deeply depressed, fatigue, and gained over 40 pounds. And I suggested my endo to add Cytomel and I have felt the difference right away. Less then one week I was out of the funk and getting my life back. My levels are still off though because my TSH is supressed but with normal T3/T4 levels. Still working with my endo to figure out why but it could be just the factor that I was Soooo Hyper before the surgery that it could have supressed it. I still get fatigue on some days but its not horrible and the weight has been a struggle to lose, it just takes longer.

As far as Armour, alot of endo/doctors do not prescribe it because the batches are never the same and that can effect your levels month to month. So, doctor should be okay with prescribing Cytomel T3 based on symptoms. At least give a try and test your levels withing 2 months to see the effect. I can assure you, especially since you also had a TTD, the cytomel will change your life. You will start to feel like YOU in no time!!!!

I wish you the best! Don't stop until a endo doctor prescribe you T3!

shvits

my endocrinologist was willing to give me Armour, but also brought up the point the each batch is different. I'm on synthroid, brand name not the generic as that can also vary. I still have 1/2 of my thyroid and don't feel I need T3 replacement though my doctor did offer it if I felt I needed to have the medication. It never hurts to try something if what you are taking does not work for you. Find a specialist who is willing to try different approaches.

bethanylaugh

thanks! yeah i was reading about Armour and how it can be inconsistent... but apparently synthroid can be just as - they are both held under the same USDA standards and need to fall within 90-110% consistent. i'm new to the concept though so i'm waiting for a few medical books to arrive so i can read through them on the subject.

anyone else out there?

bethanylaugh

bump!

tecallahan

I have had huge success with Armour. After being on Synthroid for 15 years with miserable weight gain, fatigue, and a myriad of other symptoms, I found a Naturopath who agreed to transition me to Armour. I have taken statins for High Cholesterol (Lipitor) and High Blood Pressure meds for 15 years also -- doctors told me that the cholesterol and HBP were "genetic" and I would be on these meds for the rest of my life. I also had high levels of Reverse T3 which slowed my metabolism to a crawl. So no matter how well I ate or how much I exercised, I could not lose a pound.

After 3 months on Armour, my cholesterol is normal, my blood pressure is normal, the Reverse T3 is gone and I've lost 10 pounds.
I am off of all medications now except for Armour.

Armour is not unstable -- that's a publicity stunt by the pharmaceutical companies and doctors that want to push Synthetic T4 out into the market. Up until the late 1970s Armour was the one and only medication for hypothryoidism and had been since the turn of the century.

dalmiechick45

Hi everyone - I want to approach my doctor at my next appointment about switching to Armour or AT LEAST adding T3 to my synthroid. I'm nervous as the last 2 doctors I brought this up to brushed me off immediately.

I've been reading a lot since finding this group and feel really encouraged by the fact that I'm not the only one suffering from the symptoms that my synthroid hasn't fixed... and that there might be a solution! I had a total thyroidectomy in 2004 and haven't been the same since.

SO, I'm asking all of you - if you have had success (or not!) with Armour or T3 supplementation, please post here! I plan to pretty much print out this topic string before my appointment so I have enough artillery in my arsenal if they start to claim it won't make a difference :laugh:


I had my doctor add cytomel (I didn't request it, she actually gave it to me when my TSH was spiked to around 25 immediately following my second thyroid - completion- surgery). I went in crying my eyes out, and really struggling to form thoughts and just survive a day. Phew, thought I was going nuts. She only let me have it for ten days though, and I felt amazing, I was crushed when I never heard back from them after asking why they would not just leave me on it. (this doc also told me I was making it all up in my head- but she gave it to me) I asked for it again and got a lower dosage 10 mcg per day, got myself a 90 day supply, and have upped my own dose... I called the doc yesterday and said hey you might want ot get me in there becuase I;ve upped my dose, I am feeling much better, and I want to continue with it. HA-HA, when you tell them you're taking it on your own that gets them interested in getting you an appointment. I asked for the cytomel again because I had stil been having really extreme fatigue and sad, blah, listless days...I was also swelling in my ankles and wrists and the tops of my feet- which was starting to frighten me.
You do know that you have the right to fire your endo and seek another doctor... tell them to lower synthroid if they have to and give cytomel to supplement it. Just be honest with them and say "look, I have not had the quality of life I was told I could expect when taking these pills instead of having my actual thyroid gland. Can't we try something else, please? If not, please send me a referral for someone who is more concerned about my symptoms than my numbers on a chart or my co-pay being met."

This also gets them interested in helping you.... Good luck! Let me know how it goes!
PLEASE only add to this topic if you've taken/are taking Armour or T3 - good or bad. Thanks everyone!!!

dalmiechick45

I had my doctor add cytomel (I didn't request it, she actually gave it to me when my TSH was spiked to around 25 immediately following my second thyroid - completion- surgery). I went in crying my eyes out, and really struggling to form thoughts and just survive a day. Phew, thought I was going nuts. She only let me have it for ten days though, and I felt amazing, I was crushed when I never heard back from them after asking why they would not just leave me on it. (this doc also told me I was making it all up in my head- but she gave it to me) I asked for it again and got a lower dosage 10 mcg per day, got myself a 90 day supply, and have upped my own dose... I called the doc yesterday and said hey you might want ot get me in there becuase I;ve upped my dose, I am feeling much better, and I want to continue with it. HA-HA, when you tell them you're taking it on your own that gets them interested in getting you an appointment. I asked for the cytomel again because I had stil been having really extreme fatigue and sad, blah, listless days...I was also swelling in my ankles and wrists and the tops of my feet- which was starting to frighten me.
You do know that you have the right to fire your endo and seek another doctor... tell them to lower synthroid if they have to and give cytomel to supplement it. Just be honest with them and say "look, I have not had the quality of life I was told I could expect when taking these pills instead of having my actual thyroid gland. Can't we try something else, please? If not, please send me a referral for someone who is more concerned about my symptoms than my numbers on a chart or my co-pay being met."

This also gets them interested in helping you.... Good luck! Let me know how it goes!

dalmiechick45

Also note, I am not saying your Doc is wrong or deliberately trying to ruin your life, but they should be open to at least listen to how you're feeling I mean I wouldn't go to a hairdresser or hire a plumber who would not listen to what I needed done....

Doctors care, but they're swamped this is a very understaffed field... the reason endo's are swamped is because think or the prevalence of this disease (thyroid cancer or thryoid illness), and then think about how many people have diabetes....

There are (this is from a report I read) something like 37,000 new cases of thryoid cancer diagnosed per year and only 25,000 or so certified endos in america.... (doing this from memory)...

I am sure if you broach the subject gently at first and ask for something to increase your quality of life, they'll hopefully be open to helping you!

MmmDrop

My doctor added in T3 (Cytomel) to my regimine. My labs had been showing normal for quite a while, but I was still having some major Hypo symptoms with just the Synthroid. After the Cytomel was added all those symptoms went away, and I was me again.

But then - everyone is different. Some people don't agree with Cytomel, just like some won't do well on Armour.

mgmlap

I take Armour...and personally your doc should be open to your suggestions..after all you are paying him/her. If not..find a doc that is receptive. Its all about the natural vs the synthetic..my doc goes the natural route whenever possible.

As far as helping..It did...

tecallahan

found this online:
Possible Synthroid Side Effects
Like all levothyroxine products, Synthroid can have side effects. Synthroid side effects may be caused by under-replacement (too little of the active ingredient levothyroxine) or over-replacement (too much levothyroxine). If you are not getting enough levothyroxine, you may continue to experience hypothyroidism symptoms. If you are getting too much levothyroxine, you'll experience hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid) symptoms.

Side effects* of over-replacement can include:

Partial hair loss may occur rarely during the first few months of Synthroid therapy, but this is usually temporary.
Rapid or irregular heartbeat
Chest pain or shortness of breath
Muscle weakness
Nervousness
Irritability
Sleeplessness
Tremors
Change in appetite
Weight loss -- {REALLY??? I don't think so :grumble: }
Vomiting
Frequent bowel movements
Excessive sweating
Heat intolerance
Fever Impaired fertility
Decreased bone density
Changes in menstrual periods

embclark

I was on synthroid then levoxyl and had to finally switch doctors to get armour thyroid. My results were "normal" with the first two medications, but my arms and legs were still soo sore. That is actually how I was diagnosed with hypothyroid... Each morning I would wake up and be so sore/stiff that I could barely walk down the stairs and I had a 6 month old baby, so it was horrible. I thought I had Lyme disease.

So my doctor had me try the fist two mess, but I wasn't happy. My sister had previously been on armour thyroid and took it for two years and was able to wean off it and has now taken nothing for the past 3-4 years. So I really wanted to give it a try figuring my sister and I have a similar body makeup.

I have been on it since last summer. I lost 17 pounds with MFP and dieting, then I got pregnant and lost the baby and put on about 10 of those. But then I started again on january 1st and with diet and MFP and exercise I have lost 24 pounds and I feel great. Just a little foot tingling every now and then. And I am usually cold, but none of the major symptoms!

Oh and to find my new doctor I googled my area and armour thyroid. I was able to find doctor reviews which let me know which doctors around me had previously prescribed armour thyroid...

hsrunningmom

You may want to check out the site www.stopthethyroidmadness.com. It is a wonderful site with information for natural thyroid medication. It even has a letter that you can print out to take to your doctor to help "convince" your doctor to switch you to a natural thyroid medication. As far as the levels of thyroid medication varying from batch to batch is no long true in NTs. It was that way many, many years ago, but with the advances in science that is no longer the case. I take NatureThroid, which is similar to Armour. I do not do well on the synthetic thyroid meds. I am so thankful I have a doctor who listens to his patients and treats based on how you are feeling and not based on what the bloodwork says. Good luck with your doctor. If that doctor doesn't listen, then I'd find one who will. The better educated you are, the better chance you have of them listening. I would love to hear how it goes.

Farfelue

Hello Bethany,

T3 changed my life. All of a sudden, the clouds disappeared and I no longer was tired, having muscle weakness etc... I have been on Liothyronine (T3) since summer 2011, I started on a very very low dose (5mcg). You need to be careful to really reduce you T4 for 10 days prior to starting T3.

I am now on twice 20mcg a day + 75mcg T4

We all are different, but since taking T3, I am no longer symptomatic, which I had been for the past 7 years despite increasing Levothyroxine.

Give it a try. Try also
http://www.thyroid-disease.org.uk/smf/index.php?PHPSESSID=a99fab7cc54a35920678900cc4786dbe;wwwRedirect

lizard053

For a while I took only Cytomel. It gave me a lot of blood sugar crashes, and I kept forgetting doses later in the day. I got switched to synthroid, and I never felt any better. Then I found another new doctor and she's now got me on Armour. We've had to seriously decrease my dosage. It's like the synthroid did absolutely nothing for me! She said that she is the exact same way. Some people do not respond to T4 treatment, but once they get more complete thyroid supplementation (T1, T2, T3 and T4, aka, Armour) they do a lot better. This is her experience as a doctor and as a patient.

bethanylaugh

Thanks everyone SO MUCH!!!! I have an appointment next Tuesday... I'll keep you updated :-)

Shirlann46

I switched from Syntroid to Armour after reading about it here. I researched it thoroughly online. ( You can do the same-print out the important info and take it to your appt. also.)Then I emailed my Dr. and without hesitation he called my Pharm. immediately.
I haven't felt this good in years.. Energy, sleeping better and so much more.
But, everybody is different.
My Pulmo DR. said they used to use it in the early 60's or 70's. He has No idea why Dr.s stopped using it.
If you can't convince your Dr. then find another Dr.
Good Luck
Shirley

moejo3

I prefer Armour I was on Levoxcy for 5 years and Cytomel for 3. If you are going to an Endocrinologist they may prescribe it to you. If you have a GP and they won't check for a Naturopathic Dr. in your area they will prescribe or Natrothyroid(sp?). You have to stay on top of the meds because the needs seem to change all of the time! Good luck

bethanylaugh

Good news!! He let me switch! I have a few other complications with needing to keep my TSH low due to having had thyroid cancer, but other than watching that VERY carefully, I'm a go!
yay!

tecallahan

Good news!! He let me switch! I have a few other complications with needing to keep my TSH low due to having had thyroid cancer, but other than watching that VERY carefully, I'm a go!
yay!

WOOHOO!! You may feel a little yucky during transition, but hang in there!!