Armour ...increase in dosage ?
OhDD65
Posts: 185 Member
I have been on thyroid medicine for about 9 months. I was changed from a synthetic thyroid to Armour at my request in August. In April 2012 my TSH was 2.54. By June it was . 03, By Aug it was .01 By Oct it was 1.39 and by Dec 2012 it was 2.78. My dosage while on Armour was first at 60 mg, which actually made me feel good and I actually lost a bit of wt when I exercised also. However because I was now showing hyperthyroidism my dr decided to bump me down to 30 mg. What this did was increase my wt . Almost everything I had lost I put back on, plus I again have been dealing with brittle nails, dry skin and hair loss. So logically thinking I thought that maybe a 45mg dosage should be what I need. His ideas were to stay on 30
until March to see my TSH results. Meanwhile after doing some research I decided I was tired of being cold, cold, cold during the winter after 5 yrs of this. Checked my body temp for 10 days and yes that definitely factored into the equation. So here we are back to my metabolism and thyroid again. I took this in to my dr and he this time decided ok lets try 45 mg. Does this all sound pretty logical to everyone ? My dr is old school, so he is aware of Armour. He didn't mind me making a change. He admits this isn't his specialty, but he will request help from an endocrinologist if necessary. Anyway next testing is in the middle of March, so we will see where my thyroid is at that point. Definitely feel making the change to Armour from a synthetic thyroid is the right way to go. Instantly I started feeling better. Also let my thyroid dissolve under my tongue about 1 hr before breakfast. Don't feel like a need a another cup of coffee at 4 pm. May consider splitting my Armour to the 30 mg in the am and the 15 mg later in the day. Thoughts ???
until March to see my TSH results. Meanwhile after doing some research I decided I was tired of being cold, cold, cold during the winter after 5 yrs of this. Checked my body temp for 10 days and yes that definitely factored into the equation. So here we are back to my metabolism and thyroid again. I took this in to my dr and he this time decided ok lets try 45 mg. Does this all sound pretty logical to everyone ? My dr is old school, so he is aware of Armour. He didn't mind me making a change. He admits this isn't his specialty, but he will request help from an endocrinologist if necessary. Anyway next testing is in the middle of March, so we will see where my thyroid is at that point. Definitely feel making the change to Armour from a synthetic thyroid is the right way to go. Instantly I started feeling better. Also let my thyroid dissolve under my tongue about 1 hr before breakfast. Don't feel like a need a another cup of coffee at 4 pm. May consider splitting my Armour to the 30 mg in the am and the 15 mg later in the day. Thoughts ???
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Replies
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Once you start taking meds the feedback loop between your pituitary (source of TSH) and your thyroid get interupted. Therefore, going just on TSH is no longer valid (well, it shouldn't be just TSH anyway!!).
Your TSH of .01 wasn't "hyper", he just wasn't looking at your actual thyroid hormones. If you were feeling good with your TSH there and feeling bad with your TSH higher, I would ask him to up the dose again. Also request that he test your free T3 and free T4; you want the free T3 in the top 1/3 of the range and your free T4 around mid-range.
Going just on TSH doesn't tell the whole story. You need to factor in those symptoms, and the free T3/T4 levels. Good for you for listening to your body!0 -
Go to www.stopthethyroidmadness.com and read on the recommended labs you should have done. I am also on armour (the generic NP actually) and I don't even look at my TSH anymore, I look at T3 and T4 like islandmonkey - but there are other tests you should have too like Reverse t3, vitamin D, B12, ferratin, thyroid antibodies (in case you have Hashimoto's like me). I dictate my outcome because I have educated myself with what I need and base it on how I feel - and luckily I have a great GP that just follows my lead (somewhat scary but true) all you need to know is on that website. Read until you can't read anymore. Getting switched to Armour is a huge step in the right direction!0
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Oh yea - I am on 60mg and I take 30 at wake and 30 at 3pmish. I just chew it (shows you how much patience I have). Armour has a short half life, so twice per day makes a huge difference. Personally I would switch myself to 45 like you said, twice per day and you may end up back at 30 and 30 when it's all said and done.0
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Go to www.stopthethyroidmadness.com and read on the recommended labs you should have done. I am also on armour (the generic NP actually) and I don't even look at my TSH anymore, I look at T3 and T4 like islandmonkey - but there are other tests you should have too like Reverse t3, vitamin D, B12, ferratin, thyroid antibodies (in case you have Hashimoto's like me). I dictate my outcome because I have educated myself with what I need and base it on how I feel - and luckily I have a great GP that just follows my lead (somewhat scary but true) all you need to know is on that website. Read until you can't read anymore. Getting switched to Armour is a huge step in the right direction!
Totally agree with this too - my Vit D wasn't even that low (41) but I'm taking 4000 IUI daily to get it up to at least 60. Iron (and ferritin, your iron stores), B12, selenium, iodine etc are all involved in either the production of thryoid hormone or in the process of converting T4 into T3.
Reverse T3 is less of an issue with people taking dessicated meds (vs. those on T4-only meds) but still worth getting checked to make sure.0
