Anyone Taking Thyroid Medications? I Need Your Help!!!

NewEnglandRN, RN · Sep 1, 2005

Hi,

I would recommend checking out about dot com/ health. There is a great thyroid disorder section that I think will help you.

I am only on Levothroid right now, but the site above has been very helpful.

Good luck!

SproutRN · Sep 1, 2005

My doctor started me on Cytomel 5 mcg/daily in April. It didn't do much for my thyroid levels, so tomorrow after I have more blood drawn, he has me starting on two thyroid medications at once: Cytomel 12.5 mcg/daily, and Syntroid 25 mcg/daily. What is your experience with taking two thyroid meds at the same time? Anyone have any patients that take both of these meds together? Some doctors won't give two thyroid medications at once, but my PA said he believes in it. Before I start the two meds together, I just wanted some advice from those of you who are on thyroid meds, and from my nursing comrades who have experience with endocrinology patients on thyroid meds. Thanks for your help in advance. :)

I have been hypothyroid for over 6 years now and have only taken Synthroid at various doses. I have my levels checked twice a year and my MD keeps my levels on the high side of normal (because it makes me feel better).

Good luck,

Sprout

live4today, RN · Sep 1, 2005

i viewed the site "about.com" and learned that soy products have a negative effect on the thyroid. i drink lots of soy milk, too. i found this article on that site: :eek:

the article i posted yesterday is not allowed to be posted here due to tos rules (per pm received from a moderator), but i am allowed to post the link to the article. just go to www.about.com and look up information on the thyroid there. thanks!

UTRN2005 · Sep 1, 2005

If they're putting you on Cytomel and Synthroid to get a combo of T3 and T4 why not just change it to Armour?

I'm borderline hypothyroid. My levels were at the cut off for normal but my mother is hypo. Well they started me on Armour (I see a DO that specializes in bio-identical hormone replacement) and to be honest I don't think I need it. I'm cold natured normally but I didn't feel any better on the thyroid meds. All I felt was the side effects- inc HR, hot flashes, palpitations, restlessness, difficulty sleeping- all while my levels were still what the DO considered low.

This is not meant to knock Armour though. My mom had previously been on Synthroid and Cytomel separately and still felt bad but once she got the T3/T4 combe in Armour she felt better.

Sorry about the rant I'm just tired of having side effects for something that I'm not sure is a problem now. After kids I may need it I just don't think I do now. That and it's a pain to have the dosages tweaked all the time.

live4today, RN · Sep 1, 2005

Hmmm...after reading this information about soy products, I am definitely going to ask my doctor for an endocrinology consult so I can get more expert treatment and care. What if I'm on thyroid meds due to the intake of soy milk I've consumed in large gulps over the years past? This really concerns me. :uhoh21:

Anyone else hear anything about soy products affecting our health? :confused:

live4today, RN · Sep 1, 2005

If they're putting you on Cytomel and Synthroid to get a combo of T3 and T4 why not just change it to Armour?
I'm borderline hypothyroid. My levels were at the cut off for normal but my mother is hypo. Well they started me on Armour (I see a DO that specializes in bio-identical hormone replacement) and to be honest I don't think I need it. I'm cold natured normally but I didn't feel any better on the thyroid meds. All I felt was the side effects- inc HR, hot flashes, palpitations, restlessness, difficulty sleeping- all while my levels were still what the DO considered low.
This is not meant to knock Armour though. My mom had previously been on Synthroid and Cytomel separately and still felt bad but once she got the T3/T4 combe in Armour she felt better.
Sorry about the rant I'm just tired of having side effects for something that I'm not sure is a problem now. After kids I may need it I just don't think I do now. That and it's a pain to have the dosages tweaked all the time.

Thanks for sharing your experience with me. :) My PA is tweaking my meds too, and now instead of just taking one med, he's putting me on two. I haven't heard of Armour before, but I'm surely going to ask the PA about the soy issue, and the Armour. I wonder if I stop the soy milk...which I am going to do now that I have read so much against the consumption of soy tonight...will my levels taper off, or are they permanently damaged? :uhoh21:

My most recent lab work shows that my TSH is 3.84 and my free T3 is 1.95. Previously, my TSH was 1.89 and my free T3 was 1.0. So, since taking the Cytomel the last four months, my levels have increased slightly, and my TSH is now on the high side, so the doc wants to add the Synthroid with the Cytomel. I wish I could recall more about this area, but now I'm having to relearn it since it is now something affecting my health.

mattsmom81 · Sep 1, 2005

I am hypothyroid from a thyroidectomy due to a huge 'auto-immune thyroiditis goiter' that the surgeon took out in panic, he was so sure it was CA by its appearance on scans. So now thanks to HIM, I will be on lifelong thyroid meds. My TFT's were always normal, but I had all the ss of hypothyroidism including gaining 50 # in one year!!!

My doc is a DO and believes natural is best...so I take Armour Thyroid (natural pig thyroid) 120 mg daily. I feel my best with my TSH very low.

Many are very happy on Synthroid so do what's best for you Renee...and good luck!

susiq · Sep 1, 2005

I thought armour thyroid was old school medicine. I was hyperthyroid and then had radioactive iodine. I am now on 200 mcg of synthroid, I get labs about once a year now and have been stable on just that for about 10 years now. I have been told by several doctors that they like synthroid (not generic forms) the best because it seems to keep the blood levels stable. I am not sure about cytomel though I have never taken that or been recommended that medication.

live4today, RN · Sep 1, 2005

Thanks for the additional poster's sharing of their use of thyroid meds with me. I had my lab drawn this a.m. prior to taking my new regimen of combo meds for my hypothyroidism. We'll see how the meds work.

I'm still reading and learning about the use of soy products and how they negatively effect the thyroid as well as the negative effect soy has on other organs in the body, including causing breast cancer. Read the links about soy on www.about.com for further information. They are even worried about the effects of soy on infants -- soy formula -- and how it effects infants and toddlers thyroid function.

No more soy for me. I love the taste of Silk Soy Milk, too, but it isn't worth drinking if it may be causing my thyroid to malfunction. :uhoh21: What is safe to ingest these days?

truern · Sep 1, 2005

I have two Rx for Synthroid because sometimes my levels fluctuate slightly and rather than go in for blood tests my MD allows me to adjust the dose according to my s/s...most days I take 175 mcg and every now and then I take 200 mcg for a day or two (mostly when my feet and hands get so dry that they HURT and wake me up at night)

I have great luck with Synthroid

flashpoint · Sep 3, 2005

Don't know anything about taking two meds at once. My TSH in October was 87.5...dropped to 41.8 after starting 25 mcg of levoxyl...am at 5.1 on 50 mcg of levoxyl and after changing my dosing time. I was taking it first thing in the morning like the pharmacist recommended, but figured out that it works much better on an empty stomach...since I work nights, that means around 4:00 PM.

I just can't stand the thought of taking Armour...it's is completely illogical, but I would much rather take the synthetic...:)