Armour Thyroid during pregnancy - Page 2

[meggles]

I took Armour the whole time I was pregnant with dd (had to get on Armour in the first place to conceive, actually) and dd is perfect. I'm on Naturethroid now because my naturopathic Dr. was having a hard time keeping Armour in stock. I didn't have to adjust my dosage last pregnancy because my tsh was consistently 1-2. I have subclinical hypo, so my tsh levels untreated were never higher than 3-5. 

Anyway, yes, Armour is great during pregnancy and you should definitely take the meds if you need them. Much safer than not doing so!

[Inga Rosenau]

hi tinabrocc and others

Not sure if this post is to late, but I have encountered many issues with doctors who discourage the use of Amour thyroid when pregnant. After hours of research, I have found that there are basically two kinds of doctors 1- Doctors who are TSH test heavy and prescribe T4 Synthroid only drugs. 2- Smart doctors who look at the whole thyroid, all it's hormones FT4, FT3 etc, and your symptoms! Unfortunately, a lot of doctors are resistant to change and a stuck in the dinosaur era. I am currently paying out of pocket to get one of the smart doctors and it's worth every penny :).

My suggestion is to find a good doctor and be an advocate for yourself. Good Luck!

Question- I am currently ttc, but my TSH levels on Amour seem to be fluctuating a lot. Did anyone else experience this with Armour in the first 5 months they took it? If so, did your doctor supplement with extra T4? My TSH is at 3.77 and T4 at .06

Oh- I had graves disease for 7 yrs and got RAI  about a year ago. I am now hypothyroid. I was on Levothyroxine after RAI and began to loose my hair, had extreme puffy face, dry skin, etc...it was horrible. I feel great on Armour!

[megha]

Treatment of hyperthyroidism during pregnancy is primarily medical. Propylthiouracil or methimazole are the usual first-line agents to block the synthesis of thyroid hormone. They appear to be equally effective and have the same rate of side effects. The rate of side effects of each medication is not increased in pregnancy. 

[tazrn]

Hi i saw your reply. I am 20 weeks pregnant and on armour and cytomel. i went to an endo and she said my t4 was low and that im on bad medications for pregnancy . she wanted to switch me at 20 weeks to synthroid but i said no way. so now she wants to cut out the cytomel and have me on synthroid and armour. Im kind of nervous because im really sensitive to my thyroid but i want the baby to bbe safe.

[tinabrocc]

I know it's been a while but sadly, I'm back in the same situation again! After my doctor left, I got lucky and found one in the same office who would keep me on armour during pregnancy. Now he's left too and I've recently became pregnant again. The new doctor they gave me wont work with me if I stay on armour. For those of you who have doctors with a more holistic approach that look at all the numbers, how did you find them? I'm having the most difficult time locating one and would appreciate any advice you could offer 

[LessTraveledBy]

It would be totally nuts to change medications like this during pregnancy! There is not formula of "if you were on this much of this, it equals this much of the other," just is not that simple. I would never, ever agree to changing while pregnant....

[maryamrose]

I found my Armour-friendly doctor by asking around at the Real Thyroid Help forums: http://forums.realthyroidhelp.com/

I've since switched to a compounded T4/T3 combo, prescribed by my naturopath, which is working wonderfully for me. I personally found Armour (and Naturethroid) to be too T3-heavy for me, but I've heard that it helps so many people. I can't imagine why doctors wouldn't want women to continue what works for them after they get pregnant, but I believe it. I had one doctor once tell me that I was making myself hyper by taking Armour (which was a straight-up lie - my free T3 was within range and my T4 was borderline "normal"/below range) and that my bones would become brittle and break all the time. it's inexcusable.

[jaspert]

I took Armour thyroid when I was pregnant with my DS, who is now 2 and all went well.  I went off it when I was forgetting to take it all the time when he was about six months old and I felt ok, so I stayed off it.  My tests show I'm in the normal range, although from my research now, I'm not sure they are high enough to be great for pregnancy.  My doc wanted me to go back on, but I felt I was slightly overmedicated before and wanted to wait.  I am five weeks pregnant...just found out...and am going to get a test later this week.  Has anyone started Armour once pregnant?  I obviously want to lower m/c risk, but just wasn't sure if it made a difference I wasn't on it yet.  Anyone have any input?  Obviously I was able to get pregnant, which means my levels aren't too out of whack, but I'm worrying about m/c risk.

[LessTraveledBy]

Originally Posted by jaspert 

Obviously I was able to get pregnant, which means my levels aren't too out of whack, but I'm worrying about m/c risk.

Some people are able to get pregnant even with really bad thyroid labs. If I were you, I would get tested asap, and keep having tests done.  

[jaspert]

I have a test tomorrow...thanks!  Has anyone else started Armour or any other thyroid medication mid-pregnancy?

[areal42]

I was just told yesterday that I need to start thyroid Meds for TSH of 4.33. I'm 5 weeks pregnant. I've been seeing a naturopath for 2 moths and she will start me at 30mg Armour. The endo that I saw before her wants me to start 50microg Levothyroxine. I would like to do the Armour but am nervous for some reason that my TSH won't respond quickly. How fast did your levels adjust? I will be rechecked in 3-4 weeks.