I have been hypothyroid (Hashimotos) for about six years. My thyroid didn't completely stop functioning all at once--it was about 5 years of slow decline, changing my meds every 3 months. It has stablized so I have it checked every 6 mos now. My doc started me on the lowest dose (Lovoxyl), and adjusted up from there according to TSH. I felt better immediately, but it took months for hair to grow back, maybe even years for other symptoms like my tendons were so tight I would injure easily when I tried to exercise. Work with your doc, and good luck.
It would be wise to return to the doctor who prescribed the armour. You should not be feeling worse on the medication. Not all people do well on every medication . It may be that you need a different medication or a different dose of the same medication. The jittery feeling may also make you feel scared and concerned.
I would consider requesting a celiac blood test from your doctor this would check an autoimmune reaction to gluten (antibodies in the blood) which has been linked to Hypothyroidism. The reason I mention this is that it took me 7 years to figure this out working with several doctors and it wasn't until I had this test and removed the gluten completly from my diet that my thyroid returned completly to normal. Please note that this is a genetic diease that is more common than the medical community realizes and is not just a digestive diease this is very important to make the doctor understand. I had a genetic test that proved this and allowed me to gain my health completly back with no drugs. A good book to read is Dangerous Grains as this may help the understanding of how this genetic disorder to gluten. I hope this helps you as I hate to see anyone go through the 7 years I went through trying figure this out.
is it normal to be jittery on the armour medication... my heart feels like its not adjusting well... i just want to know what is normal when taking this medication.. im so scared of becoming hyper.... with a tsh of like 4.6 it was only slightly out of range by like a couple points... i cant remember the range but other tests showed me at 6.4 with a range of (.04- 4.9) these were older tests and most recent was the 4.6 would being on right now 30mg. in the morning and one 15 at night be way too much??
the selenium at 200mcg may help the autoimmune attack, but this is unclear and needs more research. you still need the thyroid replacement if you are hypothyroid.
This varies from person to person. The current armour dose may be adequate -- would wait 6 weeks (from starting meds) to recheck TSH. Target TSH is 0.5-2.5. It may take several months (even after getting levels normal) for your body to fully appreciate that the thyroid levels are back in place.