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When do you take your med?
I receive author Mary Shomon's newletters all about thyroid issues and the most recent one discusses when the best time to take our meds is. I take mine in the morning with water and wait an hour before having anything else to eat or drink. This research suggests it might be better to take the med at night before going to bed. When do you take yours?
Bruce -If your natural thyroid does make you relax for a while, like you say, it very well could be that your body needs it so bad that it is truly relaxing you as you are not as hypo for that short period. Most likely you are not on enough to feel the actual energy it can provide. For some, when hypo, they feel actual anxiety with tiredness, an odd combination. Once your not so hypo (assuming you still are) then it will be easier to figure out what dose schedule works best for you.
Katy, What you say makes sense to me. The thyroid gland and adrenal glands dance a complicated balancing act together. Since cortisol rises naturally in the early morning, it would make sense that thyroid hormone levels are naturally lower in the morning. So, when cortisol drops to it's lowest daily level, normally around 1 am (But then, who's "normal"?) thyroid hormone should naturally rise.
I have also read that cortisol levels "normally" remain high, until after the first meal. I wonder if that means thyroid levels would naturally rise after a meal?
My 16 year old son has been taking thyroxine (T4) for five years, due to secondary hypothyroidism, from pituitary damage. So his T3 levels are fine on their own, as long as he gets enough T4. But sadly, after his first week on a very low dose of T4 (50 mcg), he collapsed suddenly in the kitchen, and began vomiting and shaking a short while later, presumably from deficient cortisol. It takes about a week for T4 to start taking affect.
He was immediately prescribed hydrocortisone, with the assumption that his pituitary was not putting out enough ACTH.
He was so sick for many months afterward. (He's actually still sick, but for a different reason) He had severe daily nausea, tachycardia, temperature regulation problems, tremors, and low blood pressure. Unfortunately, his docs just looked at his blood tests and said everything was "in range", so they didn't know why he was so affected. And didn't seem to care. He was told to take his thyroxine first thing on waking in the morning, wait 45 minutes to an hour before eating, and take his hydrocortisone 3 times daily. Period.
Prior to starting the hormone replacement, his most alert time of day was 4 pm until around 2 or 3 am. Getting up for school at 7 am was impossible, so I think his cortisol rhythm was completely reversed. His body did not adjust well to his pill schedule at all.
His growth hormone deficiency plays into this as well, but that's another story. (Growth hormone is released at it's highest daily level between midnight and 3 am, while sleeping, supposedly)
Now he has Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome. He was switched from hydrocortisone to dexamethasone two years ago by another doctor, and that keeps his cortisol level more even throughout the day. The nausea has ended, but his adrenals seem to be drained - he has severe orthostatic hypotension.
There has been no change in his thyroxine dose in five years, because he hasn't grown (or gained weight), and his levels still look good on paper.
Timing his hormone replacement has been very difficult, due to Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome, but I'm wondering if reversing his pill times might help him swing back to more normal sleeping hours. If he took his cortisone late at night, so that his level is higher in the early morning, do you have any thoughts as to when it would be best to take his T4? Or would it even matter, since his thyroid gland is making T3 anyway?
His sleep cycle is so messed up, and I think his hormone replacement schedule is contributing to this.
I have also read that cortisol levels "normally" remain high, until after the first meal. I wonder if that means thyroid levels would naturally rise after a meal?
My 16 year old son has been taking thyroxine (T4) for five years, due to secondary hypothyroidism, from pituitary damage. So his T3 levels are fine on their own, as long as he gets enough T4. But sadly, after his first week on a very low dose of T4 (50 mcg), he collapsed suddenly in the kitchen, and began vomiting and shaking a short while later, presumably from deficient cortisol. It takes about a week for T4 to start taking affect.
He was immediately prescribed hydrocortisone, with the assumption that his pituitary was not putting out enough ACTH.
He was so sick for many months afterward. (He's actually still sick, but for a different reason) He had severe daily nausea, tachycardia, temperature regulation problems, tremors, and low blood pressure. Unfortunately, his docs just looked at his blood tests and said everything was "in range", so they didn't know why he was so affected. And didn't seem to care. He was told to take his thyroxine first thing on waking in the morning, wait 45 minutes to an hour before eating, and take his hydrocortisone 3 times daily. Period.
Prior to starting the hormone replacement, his most alert time of day was 4 pm until around 2 or 3 am. Getting up for school at 7 am was impossible, so I think his cortisol rhythm was completely reversed. His body did not adjust well to his pill schedule at all.
His growth hormone deficiency plays into this as well, but that's another story. (Growth hormone is released at it's highest daily level between midnight and 3 am, while sleeping, supposedly)
Now he has Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome. He was switched from hydrocortisone to dexamethasone two years ago by another doctor, and that keeps his cortisol level more even throughout the day. The nausea has ended, but his adrenals seem to be drained - he has severe orthostatic hypotension.
There has been no change in his thyroxine dose in five years, because he hasn't grown (or gained weight), and his levels still look good on paper.
Timing his hormone replacement has been very difficult, due to Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome, but I'm wondering if reversing his pill times might help him swing back to more normal sleeping hours. If he took his cortisone late at night, so that his level is higher in the early morning, do you have any thoughts as to when it would be best to take his T4? Or would it even matter, since his thyroid gland is making T3 anyway?
His sleep cycle is so messed up, and I think his hormone replacement schedule is contributing to this.
I usually take mine at 2 or 3 am, and it spikes when im ready to get up :) perfect for me although id prefer no spike at all actually.
One more thing to point out....taking it later in the day isn't equal to taking it at bedtime. If you only take it "later" then you'll be trying to fall asleep when the T3 is beginning to spike, whereas if you take it as you crawl into bed you sleep right through the spike and never even notice it.
:)
Sorry I was cranky in my earlier reply. Your responses to me (I dont know if you intende it or not) seem very harsh and rude, and I was retaliating in kind.
:)
Sorry I was cranky in my earlier reply. Your responses to me (I dont know if you intende it or not) seem very harsh and rude, and I was retaliating in kind.
There are several reasons why I feel spacey, and thyroid is only one of them. I was hoping it was solely to blame, but I don't think so anymore.
When you state absolutes like you did at the beginning of this thread, that desiccated (two Cs, by the way, not two Ss) cannot and should not be taken in a certain way, you should expect counters to that.
Some docs (my ex doc included) actually prescribe T3 sometimes to HELP people sleep. And numerous patient experience on STTM shares the same experience - that taking T3 before bed helps sleep, refreshes the body, and repairs adrenals and other organs.
When you state absolutes like you did at the beginning of this thread, that desiccated (two Cs, by the way, not two Ss) cannot and should not be taken in a certain way, you should expect counters to that.
Some docs (my ex doc included) actually prescribe T3 sometimes to HELP people sleep. And numerous patient experience on STTM shares the same experience - that taking T3 before bed helps sleep, refreshes the body, and repairs adrenals and other organs.
I want to point out a couple things about my own experiences with this science project.
1. I go to bed at midnight every night. I keep weird hours. I go to bed at midnight and get up for my day at 8 am. But at 2:30 or 3:00 my ears ring, and i start getting very anxious. Within about 30 minutes of taking my dose ( will be 1 grain tonight) I go into the deepest sleep known to mankind. My doctor agrees that its probabably because my body needs it and is finally relaxing.
2. By the time my afternoon dose time hits (around 2 pm which is 12 hours after my morning dose) my ears ring and i start to shake again. When i take the meds, I relax and start to feel better.
3. I can tell im not on enough thyroid yet because it seems to "wear off" too quickly. While I believe im getting the thryoid it needs, its not enough to sustain for more than 6 or 7 hours.
4. Despite feeling like shizzz still, I feel better now on almost 2 grain thryoid than i have felt since august 9, 2009 when this cr@p started.
1. I go to bed at midnight every night. I keep weird hours. I go to bed at midnight and get up for my day at 8 am. But at 2:30 or 3:00 my ears ring, and i start getting very anxious. Within about 30 minutes of taking my dose ( will be 1 grain tonight) I go into the deepest sleep known to mankind. My doctor agrees that its probabably because my body needs it and is finally relaxing.
2. By the time my afternoon dose time hits (around 2 pm which is 12 hours after my morning dose) my ears ring and i start to shake again. When i take the meds, I relax and start to feel better.
3. I can tell im not on enough thyroid yet because it seems to "wear off" too quickly. While I believe im getting the thryoid it needs, its not enough to sustain for more than 6 or 7 hours.
4. Despite feeling like shizzz still, I feel better now on almost 2 grain thryoid than i have felt since august 9, 2009 when this cr@p started.
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