For the past few months I've been taking NDT and T3 (Tertroxin here in Australia) and getting my FT4, FT3 and TSH checked every 4-5 weeks. I've had autoimmune hashimoto's for the past several years but have only needed to start taking meds around 2 years ago. And after a year or two of haphazard experimentation with T4, NDT, and T3, it was only several months ago that I finally realised that I need both T3 and T4, or T3 and NDT since I'm unable to produce either T3 or T4 in sufficient quantities, and when I take NDT by itself then I just get a buildup of T4, without a similar buildup of T3.
Initially I started off on 100mcg of T3 per day, but over time I've had to up that to around 150mcg to get my T3 levels within the upper part of the normal range.
Anyway, the main issue for me isn't the FT3, but the FT4. I've been taking the Ancestral Supplements NDT thyroid at a dose of around 8 capsules/day for the past several months. Each capsule contains 30mg beef thyroid and 470mg beef liver. Initially during the first 2 months, at the 8/day rate I was able to get my FT4 in the upper half of the normal range, which meant that along with the healthy levels of FT3 I was actually feeling quite well. However, over time (specifically these last few weeks), my FT4 levels have been dropping, despite maintaining the same dosage. Right now they're at the very bottom of the normal range and it's causing all my old hypothyroid symptoms to return (cracking skin, constipation, lethargy and fatigue, lack of mental clarity, etc.)
Now my question is, is it possible to become acclimated or resistant to a certain T4/NDT thyroid dosage over time, which would require me to constantly continue increasing it ad infinitum, or is there something else at play? I know a lot of people who start off on thyroid meds, be that T4, T3 or NDT initially feel great and then after several weeks or months, the old symptoms set in and they need to increase their dosage - but in many instances that doesn't work since an increased dosage provides symptom-relief for another few weeks and then it stops working again.
In my case, I've narrowed it down to the FT4, so I know it's not the T3 medication that I'm becoming used to. If it is a case of becoming resistant to NDT/T4, would the best course of action be to stop taking NDT for a certain period of time so that sensitivity to it is restored, or just increase the dose again?
Would there be any underlying issues (e.g. chronic infections, etc.) that could cause the body to severely downregulate FT4 levels whilst consistent levels of T4 medications are still being taken?
Initially I started off on 100mcg of T3 per day, but over time I've had to up that to around 150mcg to get my T3 levels within the upper part of the normal range.
Anyway, the main issue for me isn't the FT3, but the FT4. I've been taking the Ancestral Supplements NDT thyroid at a dose of around 8 capsules/day for the past several months. Each capsule contains 30mg beef thyroid and 470mg beef liver. Initially during the first 2 months, at the 8/day rate I was able to get my FT4 in the upper half of the normal range, which meant that along with the healthy levels of FT3 I was actually feeling quite well. However, over time (specifically these last few weeks), my FT4 levels have been dropping, despite maintaining the same dosage. Right now they're at the very bottom of the normal range and it's causing all my old hypothyroid symptoms to return (cracking skin, constipation, lethargy and fatigue, lack of mental clarity, etc.)
Now my question is, is it possible to become acclimated or resistant to a certain T4/NDT thyroid dosage over time, which would require me to constantly continue increasing it ad infinitum, or is there something else at play? I know a lot of people who start off on thyroid meds, be that T4, T3 or NDT initially feel great and then after several weeks or months, the old symptoms set in and they need to increase their dosage - but in many instances that doesn't work since an increased dosage provides symptom-relief for another few weeks and then it stops working again.
In my case, I've narrowed it down to the FT4, so I know it's not the T3 medication that I'm becoming used to. If it is a case of becoming resistant to NDT/T4, would the best course of action be to stop taking NDT for a certain period of time so that sensitivity to it is restored, or just increase the dose again?
Would there be any underlying issues (e.g. chronic infections, etc.) that could cause the body to severely downregulate FT4 levels whilst consistent levels of T4 medications are still being taken?