Thyroid Problems

My doctor who I have to admit is pretty savvy told me to make sure I took my 51 mg daily dose of aspirin approx 1 hour before taking my Niacin and it will almost prevent (in 95% of cases) the flushing from Niacin. I do that and have not had any problems with the Niacin.

Synthroid (also called levothyroxin) replaces the T4 in your body. HOWEVER, and even my doc agrees, that I should be taking an iodine supplement too to make sure my thyroid has plenty of iodine to work with. VA doesn't supply the Iodine so I had to order it over the internet. I ordered mine from:

Natural Living
702-430-8771
help@progest50.com
www.progest50.com

I ordered their Iodine-plus2 It is the same as Iodoral with added selenium and B2 that makes it work better. The selenium helps the body to convert T4 to T3.

Once I get my books by Dr Brownstein on Thyroid and Iodine back from my Doc (he wanted to read them - might learn something) I can see about getting them to you, or at least send you a link to order them if you can. In the meantime do a search on Thyroid and Brownstein and read what is on the net.

I am a long time Hashimoto's Thyroiditis sufferer. This is the autoimmune aspect of thyroid disease. I have battled this for 25 years and only within the last 6 years have found ways to feel better. Here are some things to consider:
* Read "Solved: the Riddle of Illness" by Stephen E. Langer, "Stop the Thyroid Madness" by Janie Bowthorpe, "Why Do I Still Have Thyroid Symptoms? When My Lab Tests Are Normal:" by Datis Kharrazian. There are a bunch of books out there, but these were the most helpful to me, especially the first one.
*A good number of people do better on desiccated thyroid (Armour, NatureThroid, NP Thyroid, Erfa, etc.) than synthetic (Synthroid, Levothyroxin, etc.) because the desiccated thyroid contains T4, T3, T2, T1, while synthetic contains only T4.
*When having labs done make sure you get FREE T3 and FREE T4. They must be FREE, otherwise you don't get an accurate assessment of how much hormone is FREE and available. Also have Thyroid Peroxidase (TPO) Antibodies (TPOAb) / Antithyroid Peroxidase Antibodies tested for autoimmune levels. The TSH will not tell you how well your thyroid is performing because it is a pituitary hormone. It is one clue, but not the best one.
*If you are having trouble taking thyroid medication, chances are good that you have an adrenal insufficiency. That is another problem many people suffer from. You should also do a 24 hour saliva test for cortisol levels, if you are having this problem.
*Most endo's and MD's will not treat correctly and will dismiss many symptoms based on labs. A better alternative is to find a DO (osteopath) or naturopath. The alternative is you could try to educate your doctor, but not everyone has the energy or patience for that, especially when they aren't feeling well.

I hope you all find relief from your symptoms. Learn all you can, do what you need to do to get well, then help others

Sharmom

Read about a study a couple mo. ago that said it wasn't such a good idea to take Niacin after all...I'll try to find it...

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Interesting thread. I have been on thyroid supplements for 20yrs. I tried the armour thyroid a couple of years ago and after a few months on the lowest dose I ended up with heart problems and several expensive tests. Heart was mostly fine for someone my age it was the Armour thyroid I was over replaced even on the smallest dose. I take a large dose of the synthroid and I am not over replaced. I ran out of my meds and just didn't get them filled for a month and felt better than I had in a while. Started back and have of course been taking them like I should and now my hair is falling out in clumps,dry skin, and weight gain. I have half a mind to stop the meds and get the dr. to start me again from the bottom up. I do not take an Iodine supplelment . I think I may try that also. Anyone know if your thyroid can start working again after so many years on supplements? I just assumed since they had to keep upping my dose that mine had about quit altogether.

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Chris
http://aberryvinefarm.blogspot.com/

My cardiologist started me taking it a year or so ago, but my new family doctor wants to double and then triple the amount. Since he gets the big money I'll do what he says until it is a problem. Hopefully he knows what he's talking about. Then again somebody had to come in last in the class.

Nomad

If you take baby aspirin as all people over 50 should for their heart, be sure to take it at least a hour BEFORE you take your Niacin. It will in 95% of the cases stop any flushing from the Niacin.

I used to get flushing, but it is rare now. I take my Niacin after supper and my aspirin at bedtime.

Nomad

Sharmom, Thanks for the recommended books. I am halfway through Solved: The Riddle of Illness. I never knew that a lot of my other ailments could be due to hypothyroidism. I made an appointment with an internist to discuss my situation. I have been taking 75 mcg of synthetic thyroxine for years and still have a basal temperature of 96.8. Now I have the information to get the treatment I need.

Thank you, everyone, who posted on this thread!

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Terri

Geesh...I've thought for years that my thyroid wasn't acting right. I just took my temperature for the first time in several years a couple of weeks ago because I bought a new thermometer for the goats...it was 97.1. I tried it over and over, thinking that maybe it wasn't working right...nope, 97.1. Then, I had Hubby take his...98.6. Hmmm...so, I've been taking it every morning before getting out of bed...lowest was 96 and highest was 97.2. I had a health screening at Hubby's workplace a week or so ago. Blood pressure was 142/96 and cholesterol was 308 (I'm 42 years old, 5' 7", and weigh 166)! I'm thinking that all of these things together might just add up to thyroid issues. I was tested a couple of years ago, but fell into the "normal" range. I guess it's time to see if I can get tested again.

Do you really think that ALL people over 50 are inherently defective and should take a chemical which wasn't even invented until recently?? Whatever happened to "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"?

I agree with Snoozy. There is a lot of good information on the Internet that big pharma doesn't want us to know, like taking aspirin. Dr. Mercola has a site that presents alternatives to a lot of what we're being told. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/ar...0828_SNL_Art_1

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Terri

Anydoby with hypothyroidism have low blood pressure, too?

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Terri