What do you think of my new lab results?

[peggy64]

FreeT4 0.93   (0.80-1-70)
FreeT3 4.20   (1.80-4.20)

TSH  0.33

I am on armour 90 mg 5 days a week
                           120      2 days a week.

This is the first time my Free T3 has ever been this hight.

    

[peggy64]

Had to stop the levoxyl. It was causing a flare up in my asthma, and making me feel awful. Plus, it made my face swell even more than it was before.  I guess I am going to have to suppress my numbers.

I did manage to get an appt witha top doc, but he can't see me till March.

[peggy64]

I will have to have a drs order to go get the lab work. I will have to go see my pcp because can't get an appt until feb with the thyroid doc, in  b-ham.

I know since I have started in with the t4 meds, I am eating like a pig and a horse and a bear all rolled into one. This is driving me insane. Between the thyroid and the other hormones, I am just one unbalanced cookie.

And please keep on praying. I sure do need it.

[Barb135]

Peggy, have you had any luck getting an appt with the doctor you found on the "topdoc" website?  You are the only one who knows how you feel and although I do think you need a doctor's help with this, you are right that most of them don't know what they are doing when it comes to thyroid issues and my former pcp got downright hostile with me when he realized that I had been researching and actually knew what I needed/wanted.  

I think you were right to raise your T4 med -- I hope it helps.  Can you just go to the lab and get retested when you want to or do you need a doctor's order for lab work?  I'll be anxious to see how the dosage change does for you.  

I think *I* just got lucky with this endo.  I'm praying that you find someone to help you through this.  

[peggy64]

Thanks for your thoughts on this. I really wish I could find a dr to help with this, but so far all that I have seen don't seem to know anything about it, and don't want to. Endo's have been the worst.

You sure are blessed to have an endo like that. That is what I treat, my symptoms. And so far, I have not gotten to a level to get rid of them.   I am still so symptomatic and now with the free t3 so high, and the free t4 so low, I decided to do something to raise up the t4.

I can only wait and see what happens.  I know drs hate when you do this, but they don't want to work with you on your symptoms. They see the numbers and thats all they want to know. I guess it covers them by going that route.

[peggy64]

You know, I was wondering if I should raise up the Armour. The last 2 nights, I have had internal tremors, and I knew from past experience that is due to not enough meds.

I have medical experience so I am not too worried about dosing my own meds, plus I have done so much research on this. I do know I need a dr to help me with this.

I appriciate you input on this. It really helps to hear your input.

[Barb135]

Maybe you are one who will need to run outside some of the ranges in order to feel good.  *I* have to have my TSH suppressed to almost nothing (0.01) in order to get my FT's even mid range in order to feel even 1/2 way decent-- that sure freaks out most doctors!!!  My heart rate stays between mid 50's and mid 60's -- I'd probably be scared of what it does at night when I'm sleeping...........lol

I wish you weren't so far from me -- I'd send you to my endo.  I saw him this morning and he was mortified that my pcp insisted on dropping my dosage just because my TSH was low AND my pcp only tests TT4, not free and refuses to test FT3.  He (endo) was very emphatic that it's most necessary to treat symptoms before lab results........that's not something too  many of us hear very often......

I agree with goolarra, though, that you need to doctor to help you get through this. It scares me when people begin self medicating.  

[JennaRie]

I was kind of in the same boat as you recently, too low FT4, and my FT3 was too high, yet I was having NO hyper symptoms, and but plenty of hypo symptoms. My doc put me of combo levothyroxine and armour. I went from 1.5 grains armour to 100mcg levo and .5 grains armour. I felt MUCH better on that. THEN when I tried refilling the armour, my pharmacy said they couldn't get it, so I was stuck with only the levo, which I started taking 125mcg since I had to drop the armour. I started getting heart palps with that, so dropped to just the 100mcg. After a week I felt awful, way too hypo. I'm now taking the 100mcg and trying an extra 25mcg every other day. This is such a pain! I want my armour back!

[goolarra]

I still think you need to find a good doctor who can help you with this.

However, just as a point of information.  45 mg Armour and 88 Levoxyl is closer to the equivalent of what you've been taking (90 mg x 5 days and 120 mg x 2 days).  Since you are still experiencing hypo symptoms, your doctor might not think it's the best idea to lower your overall dose at this time.

[peggy64]

88 levoxyl and 30 armour.

My heart rate is still low 60's.

.  I found a dr on topdoc website of STTM and am going to try to get an appt with him.

I have been hyper before, and that is awful.

[Barb135]

I'd be interested in the amount of Levoxyl you are taking now.  A drop from 90 or 120 mg Armour to only 30 seems quite drastic.  

I also wanted to point out that some symptoms of hypo can also apply to hyper.  

[goolarra]

So how much Armour and how much Levoxyl hae you settled on?

[peggy64]

I hate to do it myself, but they just hit and miss, and so, looking at my labs, I did the same thing.

will give it about 6 weeks, and then go from there.  

Thank you for your input.  

[goolarra]

I hate to see people self-medicating...it worries me.  You need to find a new doctor who knows what's going on.  You should;t have to figure this out on your own.

You can post a question and ask members for a referral in your area...be sure to get your city and state into the title line.  If that doesn't work for you, we can suggest questions for you to ask prospective doctors to try to judge their knowledge of thyroid.  Find someone you can work with...  

[peggy64]

Well, I did not go back to the dr.  The weather here is so bad, and I hate to get out. I had some refills here on levoxyl so I restarted that, and am going to go with 30 mg armour to see what happens there. Maybe that will help.

[peggy64]

I have an appt in the morning. this dr is not to thrilled with armour. I am going to see if she will switch me to Levoxyl to go along with a little bit of armour. We shall see what she will do. She is not very knowledgeable on thyroid treatment.

[Smilerdeb]

You seem to be overmedicated with Armour.
I would seriously consider going back to yr Doc and maybe trying a T4 med with cytomel.
Or as Laura says....a T4 med with less Armour.

[laura1967]

Bingo Peggy! I think you are one of those patients that does need a T4 med added to your Armour so that you can get the correct ratio for your body!

[peggy64]

thanks for getting back to me.

I have an appt Tues with my dr. She does not really know about HypoT. I have not found a dr in this area that really knows how to treat this or uses Armour.  I am going to ask her if I can add some levoxyl and decrease the armour a tad.  I am hoping to find some kind of info on taking both together.

I have no hyper symptoms. In fact, I am still having symptoms as before. Brain Fog, fatigue, dry skin, and dry hair, unable to lose weight, cold extremities, insomnia. Basically the same as before starting meds.

I have been on Armour for about a year and a half now. This is the first time the Free T3 has been that high.

Again I thank you for your input.

[goolarra]

Your FT3 needs watching since it's right in the very top of the range.  Are you having any hyper symptoms?  At the same time, your FT4 is too low.  I'd ask my doctor about lowering the Armour a bit and adding in some levo to get the FT3/FT4 balance more in line.  Armour contains a lot of T3 compared to what our bodies would produce if our thyroids were working properly.  You also have to have adequate levels of T4 available for conversion when your body demands it.

[peggy64]

range for the TSH is 0.27-4.2

Ferritin 56.2    (13-150)