Taking T3- fatigue and more- is this normal?

[Livingirl]

Hello all,

I wanted to see if anyone here has any knowledge or experience about T3 causing fatigue and other strange symptoms? I currently started taking sustained release T3 for the Wilsons Syndrome protocol. My doc said I definitely needed the T3. I am having some unsettling symptoms though. Number one is I can't seem to up my dose from two pills a day, 12hrs apart, which is 7.5mcg a pill. You are supposed to go up a pill each dosing a day until you start hitting 98.6 regularly and then the amount of pills you are taking is your set dose. The second one is I get heart palps after my evening dose only. When I tried to go up, I got a little anxiety and heart palps, which is why I can't go up in dose. Like I said before, it's only after my evening dose. My doc said to stay at that dose for a while, and try again. I've been on that dose for two weeks. Then there is number three, I get super sleepy in the after noon. I never used to have this issue before. I also can't keep my eyes open after 9pm and normally I have to make myself go to bed, which is usually 11pm. I have also gained 4 pounds which I believe is water because I am very puffy. Before this I was starting to go down in weight after having gained 10 pounds from the wrong hormone protocol. I had finally got my estrogen calmed down with progesterone. My appetite has gone up as well. I'm already 20 pounds overweight.

The positives are, my easy bruising stopped, my flushing went away and the redness in my skin is going away. I am assuming that I did need some T3, but I don't understand my bad symptoms and what is keeping me from going up in dose. My temp is still averaging 97.7 and goes into low 98's in the eve. Since I've been on the T3, my temps have stayed out of the 96's. I originally started it because I had almost every low thyroid symptom. One thing I did read, is if your adrenals are weak, you can have problems. I bought some raw thyroid glandular last week and I already take several adrenal support nutrients. I can't tell a difference. Still having the overactive reactions. Any ideas or suggestions? :)

 

[HDD]

Some quotes from Peat on taking t3 that might help.

http://peatarian.com/peatexchanges#thyroid_hormone

T3, by lowering stress, sometimes reveals a low basal metabolic rate, that was hidden by high stress hormones. The body produces about 4 mcg of T3 per hour, so taking more than that can interfere with regulatory processes. It's helpful to use the resting pulse rate, and the 24 hour temperature curve, along with other signs, such as mood, appearance of veins on the hands, etc. The peak temperature should be in the afternoon.

I occasionally see that happen [T3 WILL CAUSE LOW TEMP/PULSE]; sometimes people have had their pulse rate decrease 40 or 50 beats per minute. The temperature of your fingers, toes, and nose helps to interpret the balance between stress and thyroid; your fingers should be less cold as your metabolic rate comes up. In extreme hypothyroidism, the hands and feet can be very cold while the oral temperature looks o.k.; then as the metabolic rate increases, the difference between fingers and mouth decreases.

When I used only Cytomel, any little stress would make me suddenly hypothyroid, and my heart would stop several times in a minute; when I started using some thyroid, USP, that contained both T4 and T3 it stopped happening.

 

[tara]

Hi Livingirl,
I don't have experience with T3 supps, but I remembered that quote from Peat that HDD posted about needing T4 to settle heart that misbehaved on T3 only too.

If you are eating enough to recover from severe restricted eating, gaining weight is likely to be part of that. Could be a good thing. So is bloating and tiredness. You probably can't know whether you are overweight, because your weight hasn't been allowed to find its natural healthy point. I'm glad your appetite has increased. Do you think you are up to 2500+cal/day?

Did you tell your dr about the undereating, so she can take that into account when assessing what is going on with you and prescribing? I think thyroid supplements without enough food to support them may cause more stress. Or, if you are now eating enough, if you've been running on stress hormones for a long time, I wonder if the T3 + food could be giving you break from them, so your body is able to tell you when it is tired and needs rest and sleep? You might well need more rest during recovery.

 

[curious_anthro]

How long have you been taking the T3? It can take a few weeks for the body to find balance. Ray seems to generally recommend going low and slow on the dose. I know that is not the Wilson's protocol but if that is not working for you it may be worth considering a different approach. Some seem to get relief adding in T4 with the T3 but it can vary. From what I have read, its best to not make lots of sudden changes when it comes to thyroid.

Also, have you tried taking thiamine and magnesium? They can help with some of the symptoms or unresponsiveness when trying thyroid. Also, make sure to get enough salt, sugar and protein.

 

[youngsinatra]

Ray recommended pregnenolon to make thyroid use easier for weak adrenals.

 

[aniciete]

I’ve taken tyromix the last 2 days and I can feel that it’s much more potent than cynoplus. Definitely need to keep calories up..