Synthetic Thyroxine

[Melbury]

Having recently being diagnosed with underactive thyroid I have spent ages reading loads of information about treatments etc.  There seem to be a lot of people implying that synthetic thyroxine is no good, but surely if as many as 1 in 50 women suffer from hypothyroidism, loads of people must be OK on it.  I find it very worrying to read that the treatment I have put on may not work at all.   I was started on 50mcgs for a month and it has since been put up to 75mcgs and I am hoping to see some improvement in how I feel soon.  How long does it take for the thyroxine to kick in and start to make you feel normal again?

Thanks.

[Melbury]

Thanks for the information.  I am in England and don't know if we actually have the brand Synthoid over here.  I assume they are all much the same - hopefully!  Just hope it doesn't take too long to start working.

[ChitChatNine]

I have seen most people start with generic or namebrand Synthroid and then move on to alternatives if that fails ..... I have also seen people right on this board who have had bad experience with generic who have success with name brand .. it is the fillers that vary widely sometimes among manufacturer's so many Endos suggest sticking with the name branded Synthroid so as to be certain it is the same thing month after month being taken w/o cause for disruption if something else changes in the tablet.  I was on Miralax b4 it went otc ... (laxative) and the generic was awful one time .. tasted terrible .. so I called the pharmacy and they said it was the monthly contract that month to buy Brand ABC of this generic equiv of Miralax and, yes, the mfg. agreed there was a metallic taste to it but NOTHING TO BE CONCERNED wtih as it was safe!!!!  Right then and there I realized why my Endo suggested sticking to the name brand on this drug Synthroid to start with ... as it is important to remain consistent in the world of thyroids.

I agree; it is going to take you some time ...

cheryl  TSH 1.3 on 88mcgs Synthroid daily

[stella5349]

I have been taking Armour medication for 6 months now and I do feel better then when I was on Synthroid. I suppose it all depends on how our bodies react to the medications and what we need for proper hormone function.  

I agree with AR - Your TSH is high - so it may take some time to get to the TSH level as AR says to 1.0 or around there.

Good Luck

[Melbury]

Thanks for all of the information.  Another thing I read which has been worrying me a bit is some people say the actual brand of synthetic thyroxine can make a difference.  My 50mcg tablets are made by a different company to the 25mcg tablets (I am on 75mcg per day), so could this make any difference?  Is there one brand that is better than others?  Initially I was given Eltroxin, but now it just says levothyroxine on the box.

I have had more symptoms since starting the medication - very stiff knee joints and arms (especially at night), either too hot or cold, weight gain and just generally feeling unwell.  

I have another blood test due in two weeks time and then they will decide whether or not to up my dose to 100mcg per day.  

[AR-10]

I am on Synthroid.
I had RAI to kill my thyroid in January, and although my last two TSH draws were 1.5 and 0.35, I will not be stable for many months to come. My thyroid has to die first, which takes months, and then my dosage will have to be twiddled with (like yours), until I am back around 1.0 and staying there.

I've been out of whack for two years, and both doctors are telling me it will be a long time before I feel great again.

The thing about Armour, which is a natural hormone, is there are not really many people that can take it succesfully. It contains T4 and T3, while synthetic hormones only contain T4.

Any T3 you take in gets used imediately, and then the T4 is converted to T3 as it is needed. If I was to take Armour, I would suffer from overmedication, as I don't need the extra T3 in the Armour. Most people are the same way.

Some people (and I did mention Mary Shomon) feel we all need to be on Armour, but medical statistics do not support that theory. This is not about drug companies and who has the most advertising money to throw around. It is about hormone levels and what drug will deliver the proper amount.  

[AR-10]

95% of people taking replacement hormones are taking synthetic hormones.

You don't hear about all the people like my sister, Mother, or aunt, who have had thyroid issues for decades and taken synthetic hormones with no real complaints. They have no need to get on the internet and tell us all how good they feel. What you hear on the internet are the problem children, like me, who was not an easy fix.

With a previous TSH of 64.47, it is going to take a while for you to feel better. It took a long time for your TSH to get that high. You should be feeling a little better after being on the meds a few weeks, and my guess is you have been on meds a few weekks now.

You are not going to feel normal again until a few months after your TSH has been held at around 1.0 or 2.0. So, it is going to take a while, I am sorry to say.

My GP says if you were out of balance for six months, it may take that long AFTER you are back in balance to feel normal again. Your body has a lot of healing to do, and it will not start healing until you are at the proper TSH.

He may be exagerating a little to slow me down, because he knows I am very impatient, but my Endo is sort of echoing his thoughts as well.

[Melbury]

Are you on synthetic thyroxine, you don't say.  Don't know how levels are yet, not due for another blood test until mid-April.  Previous results were TSH 64.47, Free FT4 3.6, Free FT3 1.8 and TPO Antibodies 235 - does that mean anything to you?

[AR-10]

Quit reading Mary Shomon.

As for your question, that is hard to answer.
Are your levels where they should be yet?