The Thyroid Thread (Part II) - Page 36

[Cascadian]

Hi everyone - I'm sorry I can't reply to the other posts as I don't have as much research knowledge...

Update again:

I am now on only T3, it's been 2 days - an increased dose than before. I still feel amazing. My energy levels are still better than they have been in 7 years. I feel like I am making up for lost time. My mental alertness has increased, as well as sustained energy levels and....zest for life.

[lil_miss_understood]

Originally Posted by OdinsMommy0409

I was thinking the same thing regarding my ferritin levels. I'll start taking the Floradix Iron & Herbs my 15 month old takes to see if I can get my stores back up.

Do you have any recommendations for a sublingual B12? And selenium supplement? I'm sure my doctor would have them, but he's 3 hours away so I'd rather find my options nearby.

Thank you so much for your help.

I use Jarrows Labs for B12. So long as it's not cyanocobalamin form, I'd say it's ok.
For selenium, I believe many on the thread eat 2 Brazil nuts daily. I take 200mcg daily- can't remember brand nor form atm.
Also, do you have amalgam (aka "silver") fillings?

hoping your newfound energy/zest continues, Cascadian!

[purplegirl]

Hmm, my recent ferritin level was 15 lab reference= 10-291
Iron serrum=73 lab reference 35-155
t4= 1.70

My doc did not make any changes or recommendations based on these numbers. Can I get some feedback please? I am feeling so hopeless and quite symptomatic.

[tanyalynn]

That ferritin is very low. When mine was 70, both my DO and my acupuncturist felt it was possible that part of my fatigue was related. I took a bottle of Perque's Anemia Guard, it's an iron supp (ferrous bisglycinate, an easily absorbed form) with some copper and B12, maybe a couple other B vits. Didn't help me, I think my fatigue was mostly adrenal, a bit thyroid, but it was good advice.

[tanyalynn]

Originally Posted by OdinsMommy0409

I was thinking the same thing regarding my ferritin levels. I'll start taking the Floradix Iron & Herbs my 15 month old takes to see if I can get my stores back up.

Do you have any recommendations for a sublingual B12? And selenium supplement? I'm sure my doctor would have them, but he's 3 hours away so I'd rather find my options nearby.

Thank you so much for your help.

Per dose, the B12 sold at holisticheal.com is the cheapest I've seen. There are lots of forms available there--hydroxy, methyl, adenosyl, there are sprays and stuff too, but the mega drops (in any or all of the forms above) is a good place to start. I've mostly used hydroxy, it seems to be the most easily tolerated form.

I buy almost everything online, it's just so much more affordable than buying locally for me (I'm in the continental US, if I weren't, it would probably be a different story). Thorne sells stand-alone selenium, there's also a reasonable amount, I think, in their multivit (that has real folate) or their mineral supps.

[purplegirl]

Originally Posted by tanyalynn

That ferritin is very low. When mine was 70, both my DO and my acupuncturist felt it was possible that part of my fatigue was related. I took a bottle of Perque's Anemia Guard, it's an iron supp (ferrous bisglycinate, an easily absorbed form) with some copper and B12, maybe a couple other B vits. Didn't help me, I think my fatigue was mostly adrenal, a bit thyroid, but it was good advice.

And that was a few months ago. I pulled out the lab report today to review it again and noticed the low ferritin level. Could that explain the swelling in my feet and mind fog? Of course, i still think I'm hypo even on 137mcg of synthyroid. I'll see the endo again in Oct and am going to challenge her to find a more effective treatment.

[tanyalynn]

Originally Posted by purplegirl

And that was a few months ago. I pulled out the lab report today to review it again and noticed the low ferritin level. Could that explain the swelling in my feet and mind fog? Of course, i still think I'm hypo even on 137mcg of synthyroid. I'll see the endo again in Oct and am going to challenge her to find a more effective treatment.

Sadly, I've had lots of things cause brain fog. I think trying a bottle or two of a good quality iron supp is reasonable since you've had recent blood results (I wouldn't want to supp iron for myself or my kids w/o blood tests), there are multiple brands that sell iron as ferrous bisglycinate.

If you aren't already taking a supp with a good amount of selenium, maybe try that now (before you get new bloodwork)? Selenium can help with conversion of the T4 in synthroid to T3 that your cells use. You may be ok with that dosage of Synthroid if you add in the selenium, I mean. About 200 mcg of selenomethionine, there are other forms that are probably good too, selenium picolinate, I'd avoid sodium selenite and stuff that says it's from yeast.

I figure, for me, supp-ing iron removed one possible cause of my problems. If it helps, great, if not, you've reduced/eliminated one mineral deficiency and that should make it easier to find the actual cause.

[OdinsMommy0409]

Originally Posted by JacquelineR

I use Jarrows Labs for B12. So long as it's not cyanocobalamin form, I'd say it's ok.
For selenium, I believe many on the thread eat 2 Brazil nuts daily. I take 200mcg daily- can't remember brand nor form atm.
Also, do you have amalgam (aka "silver") fillings?

I'll check out Jarrows for B12 and get some brazil nuts for the selenium. We'll see if DS tolerates them.
Fortunately, no amalgam fillings but I do have many resin ones.

[michelleklu]

My doctor wants me to see an endo asap for hyperthyroidism. I'm going to go and get my test results to read myself later. What treatment should I ask for? I'm so confused and upset because my doctor said I can't have any more children because I need radioactive iodine treatment. Should I ask for Armour? Do all thyroid problems have the same cause? I've read books and websites that suggest that. At what point does someone need the radioactive treatment?

[tanyalynn]

Armour is a thyroid hormone supplement, it's for people who have too little thyroid hormone circulating (HYPOthyroid). People who are HYPERthyroid have too much thyroid hormone circulating, their thyroids are overactive. It's the opposite state.

Here's a very alternative approach (ie, I wouldn't mention it to any conventional doc)... Conventionally speaking, there's a med (maybe a couple?) that a minority of people respond to, otherwise the idea is to destroy your thyroid and then put you on a thyroid hormone supplement for the rest of your life. My mom had Graves, a hyperthyroid state, and that's her situation now.

http://ithyroid.com/

[lil_miss_understood]

If you go to see the endo and his first response is RAI, I would run far far away.
Please read this article for a good summary of the customary course of treatment. It's the best one I've found so far (not that I spend much time looking for articles on hypER since I'm hypO, but...).
The other thing which you might consider researching is low dose naltrexone.
And of course there is always the alternative approach which Tanya suggested.

eta: I've also read some suggestions on different places on the web which are controversial because they involve marijuana. Apparently there are certain varieties of marijuana which have a chemical which blocks the effects of thyroid hormone and can be prescribed medically.
Note that I am not advocating any of these approaches, but just laying out what I have read in different places in order for you to do further research on your options.

[lil_miss_understood]

Just found this site as well, for anyone interested. "Alternative Health Solutions for Thyroid Autoimmunity"
Haven't explored it yet, but figured I'd throw it out here anyway.

[Cascadian]

I wrote of my experience which is now buried somewhere in this thread, so I'll reiterate:

I was dxd with Graves initially and my endo prescribed radioactive ablation. I ran away from him, screaming, into the arms of a naturopath. I did a natural regimen that apparently fixed things enough for me to get PG (which is why I got dxd in the first place). I had a dietary overhaul, pills and a herbal tincture which did help.

When I got PG, I went back to my endo who put me on Synthroid because I was PG. Admittedly, my naturo did not have a huge background in thyroid issues and I was a bit of a guinea pig - it DID work, though. But I wasn't willing to be a pregnant guinea pig KWIM?

So...I didn't do the radiation, I'm managing fine on drugs. The thought of radiation scared the bejeezus out of me...think hitting a fly with a hammer. He just wanted to be able to manage me better rather than the constant blood tests and med changes. I don't mind, though, and they're not that constant (only when/if I feel something's off).

I did fire my endo, and got a new one who is trying a few things with me.

[michelleklu]

Thank you tanyalynn, JacquelineR, and Cascadian.

I'm guessing you guys are referencing atithyroid drugs? The closest doctor under my insurance that says they're "not strictly" RAI is 1 1/2 hours away and the next appointment is in February but they said I may be able to get in earlier if my test results look severe. I feel like I'm going to get a lot of flack about not choosing RAI. I need to give it a shot. On average how long does it take ATDs to stabilize my thyroid so I can get pregnant?

Anyone have thoughts on beta blockers particularly on Propanolol? I'm currently taking them and the doctor says it helps manage Grave's. She told me I can't have children after RAI

I keep trying new doctors but they all end up fear mongering/incorrect.

[michelleklu]

Originally Posted by tanyalynn

Here's a very alternative approach (ie, I wouldn't mention it to any conventional doc)

What? Marijuana? Can you get that from somewhere other than a conventional doctor?

[tanyalynn]

So Cascadian, you swung from hyper to hypo with the treatment from your naturopath? It does seem like that's not terribly atypical. I think my mom was hypo for years before she turned hyper, and I didn't know anything about thyroid stuff back then so she just went with the conventional treatment. I've read of other people swinging from hyper to hypo, sometimes back and forth a few times.

[tanyalynn]

Originally Posted by michelleklu

What? Marijuana? Can you get that from somewhere other than a conventional doctor?

I don't know anything about marijuana for thyroid stuff. The discussion on ithyroid.com is all about mineral deficiencies (and some vitamin deficiencies) as being a big part of the cause of why our thyroids aren't functioning properly. I took the list of hypothyroid mineral and vitamin supps (he doesn't sell anything) and it helped significantly. I still had to figure out why this was so messed up in the first place, but it made me a lot more functional.

So, his list of stuff is doses of vitamins and esp minerals that are often quite a bit above the RDA. He doesn't discuss other things that are likely to be helpful like avoiding gluten (and maybe dairy and considering other food intolerances), and it's only recently that he's started talking about root causes for the mineral deficiencies a bit more. The only one I saw that he mentioned was mercury issues due to amalgam fillings--which turned out to be my issue, but he didn't have it on his website when I first found it.

And other stuff like acupuncture and other TCM approaches are also likely to be helpful. I love acupuncture, I just can't afford it enough to use it as much as I'd like.

ETA: the reason I said not to mention it to conventional docs is that a) mineral deficiencies aren't very well recognized IMO/IME by many doctors, and b) it is not considered a cause of thyroid problems (even if the cause isn't known, vit/min deficiencies surely aren't involved). The idea that you would treat thyroid problems alternatively is often considered nutty and inappropriate. I only went to one endocrinologist's office and it was clear that they absolutely followed the conventional approach, nothing else was valid, and my reading suggests that is a typical attitude (certainly not every endo, but the majority).

[lil_miss_understood]

That's what I've read as well, Tanya, and my brief contact with one endo showed me.
Re: medical marijuana, as I said, I've only read briefly on the subject (a friend sent me a link) but it may be something you'd like to explore further. I have no idea how one would even begin to go about it though. And sorry for the confusion resulting which involved ithyroid.com in the mix.

[Cascadian]

Tanyalynn - this is a mystery to me, and I think I was initially misdxd. I believe I have Hashi's, and my new endo mentioned that I presented with Hashi's more than Grave's, or I had a subset of Grave's that also flip flops. Yes, I swung from hyper to hypo, though I'm wondering if the pregnancy had something to do with it.

[lil_miss_understood]

Originally Posted by Cascadian

Tanyalynn - this is a mystery to me, and I think I was initially misdxd. I believe I have Hashi's, and my new endo mentioned that I presented with Hashi's more than Grave's, or I had a subset of Grave's that also flip flops. Yes, I swung from hyper to hypo, though I'm wondering if the pregnancy had something to do with it.

From what I remember of the ithyroid site, the theory is that people will initially present with hypO due to deficiencies (although they may not recognize themselves as hypO while it's occurring) but, as time goes on and the deficiencies become more severe, they will switch to hypER. When one begins healing from hypER, it would (in my mind) follow that one would at some point become hypO again on the road to recovery. IF this is true, and you were working with a ND to correct these deficiencies, it would seem that you were doing a good job of healing.