How long has it been since your thyroidectomy, and what meds are you on?

When I was hypo immediately following my thyroidectomy I had muscle and joint aches and pains, but I agree that those should go away if you're being treated properly.

Your doctor should be testing your free T3 and free T4 and basing your dose on that. People can have issues after surgery in converting T4 into T3, so if you're on a T4-only med (like synthroid or levothyroxine) it's especially important to get your free T3 tested.

I am on Levothyroxine 100 mcg. It was removed in August 2012.

That seems like a pretty low dose - I know people with hypo (who still have their thyroids) who are on more.

When were your free T3 and free T4 last tested, and what were the results? Remember that you want the levels to be optimal (in the top 1/3 of the range) and not just "normal", "fine", or "within normal range".

I would ask your doc to test both of those, and if he/she won't I'd look for a new doctor, to be honest.

If you're living in the US you can apparently order labs yourself, without needing to go through a doctor.


Until your levels are optimal I'd be pushing for labs every 4-8 weeks.

I would ask your doc to test both of those, and if he/she won't I'd look for a new doctor, to be honest.

If you're living in the US you can apparently order labs yourself, without needing to go through a doctor.


Until your levels are optimal I'd be pushing for labs every 4-8 weeks.

I didn't know I could order labs myself. Thanks

I'm in Canada so don't know what the site is in the US, but apparently you just pay online and they email you the lab script, and you take it in as usual. Their pricing is wrong - still says $95 for a free T3 test but it's actually $35. I can ask around for the website if you want?

I had a tt this past September (nodules that contained hurthle cells, hashimotos and a family history of thyroid cancer). I had muscle and joint pain for the first month or so but better now. I now see my family dr and have blood work every 4-6 weeks, current dosage of synthroid is 100 mcg and cytomel 25 mcg taken every other day. I don't remember my exact free t 3 and free t4 levels from last bloodwork but they were a little high which is why she had me change the cytomel from daily to every other day. I have been told it takes about a 4-6 weeks for your body to adjust to the meds and it can take about a year to get your medication regulated. My dr will prescribe Armour but prefers to start with synthetic since some people do ok with it. I would def have some tests ran at least every 6 weeks.

The only result they gave me was TSH of 1.8. I don't know if free T3 and free T4 were tested. I'm new to this. I was tested in October.

Thank you for your help.

It sounds like you do need an increase in dose. Your TSH could be lower and still be in range. Many people find they need their TSH to be suppressed in order for them to be well. As long as T3 doesn't go above range you should be fine. There was a recent study that shows that TSH does not respond in the same way to exogenous thyroxine as it does to the thyroxine that one's own thyroid produces so TSH is pretty useless for fine-tuning dosage and only useful as a tool for assisting in diagnosis.

If you are new to all this you may find this website helpful

www.stopthethyroidmadness.com

It has lots of useful information.

Carolyn x

I like the group "Thyroid Sexy" too! She has lots of good info!

My dr will prescribe Armour but prefers to start with synthetic since some people do ok with it.

It's so weird to me that doctors do this. People "do ok" with a med so they prescribe it first. People feel fantastic and "finally normal again" on a different med...so they don't try that one first??

Her reasoning was that since Armour is compounded by hand that it could vary by dose and that the synthetic is not and therefore more consistent. Honestly I was so happy to find that my family dr was ok with a natural hormone since I have heard so many stories about drs refusing to prescribe it. Not to mention the local endo (only one in my town) was so horrible and rude! The dr I really wanted to see was over an hour away and I would have had to have waited 4 months to see her - despite my surgeon being affiliated with her group.

There were inconsistencies with Armour previously, but it was reformulated in 2009 and it completely regulated and consistent now. Sounds like that doctor is really not up to speed on thyroid management! It's great that your family doctor is more open.

And ya, I had an endo YELL at me for declining radioactive iodine treatment (I later found out RAI was contraindicated for me for a variety of reasons). They certainly don't teach people skills in medical school...!


I would definitely still get your free T3 and free T4 tested, to see if your dose is high enough. Ideally your free T4 should be about mid-range and your free T3 in the top 1/3 of the range.