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How long did it take for your antibodies to go down?

Posted , 4 users are following.

p12445
p12445

I know everyone is different, but looking for a general time frame to see how long it took for peoples antibodies to go down. thanks!

0 likes, 14 replies

14 Replies

  • kaitlyn13535
    kaitlyn13535 p12445

    Posted

    I'm only a month in, but still feel terrible and no improvement yet. How long have you been on medication? My doctor said it can take up to six months!

    • p12445
      p12445 kaitlyn13535

      Posted

      ive been on methimazole and atenolol for almost 2 months but switching to ptu today. i can honestly say i feel 80% better. period is coming back more normal, sweating is slowed down and the shaking has stopped. pounding heart has def stopped and i dont feel jittery anymore. 
    • kaitlyn13535
      kaitlyn13535 p12445

      Posted

      I'm on methimazole, atenolol and propanolol. How long until you felt them working? I'm still sweaty, weak and my heart hasn't gotten much better. Or do you mean the ptu worked and the methimazole did not?

    • p12445
      p12445 kaitlyn13535

      Posted

      i think for me the turning point was 1 month in. my first period after taking methimazole/atenolol came back heavier and longer ( before it was only 1-3 days and looked like spotting). sweating has def slowed as in i felt chilly for the first time in a long time and put a blanket on whenn watching a movie. before i could feel my heart jumping out of my chest but my resting HR has turned back to 80 bpm. and ive only noticed a slight tremor once since starting meds. started w 20 mg of meth and 25 mg of atenolol 
    • kaitlyn13535
      kaitlyn13535 p12445

      Posted

      Sounds like a great improvement for you! Hope you continue to feel better.
  • linda187
    linda187 p12445

    Posted

    Once my TSH rose well into the normal range, i.e. 1.5 to 2.5, my antibodies were tested and they were within the normal range.  My Endo would not discontinue meds if they were not.  Since they are not tested as often as TSH, Free T3 and Free T4, it is difficult to put a time on when it happened, other than once my labs were all normal, I asked for them to be tested.  
    • p12445
      p12445 linda187

      Posted

      thanks linda! im so glad theres someone like you on this board! i responded below but my TSH is still at <.006 while my t4/t3 have all lowered back down to a normal level. adding the supplements now and hoping for the best! 

    • p12445
      p12445 linda187

      Posted

      sorry to bother you again linda, but may I ask how much acetyl l carinitine you started off with at first? also how much did you taper down at a time? thanks! 

      added my lab values after 2 months of meds below: 

      free T4: 1.61

      T3: 157

      TSH: <.006

      TSI: 218

      Thyrotropin ab serum: 1.95 

    • linda187
      linda187 p12445

      Posted

      I started on 1,000 mg of Acetyl and 1,000 mg of Regular L-Carnitine.  I never went over the 1,000 mg of Acetyl and quickly had to cut it down to 500 mg.  I had to vary things a lot. As my TSH rose rapidly, my doc told me to take every other day meds so i took my Acetyl every day (had discontinued the Regular carnitine) and took my meds every other day.  At one point, he lowered my meds to 2.5 mg daily and I stopped the Acetyl altogether so you have to play around with this a lot and keep your values within the normal range because when combined with meds, it causes your TSH to rise rapidly.  My Frees fell to bottom of range but as long at they did not go below bottom, I was fine with that.  Then I was taking 3.5 mg 3 or 4 times a week without Acetyl.
    • p12445
      p12445 linda187

      Posted

      thanks again linda! youre always so knowledable and helpful!
  • dawn31341
    dawn31341 p12445

    Posted

    I've been on Carbimazol since March 2017 my T3 T4 are still high. Now my liver function tests are high. Alps 386 and Alts gone up to 58. I personally don't understand why, or if they'll eventually return to normal. I too feel dreadful, I have Graves which is probably fighting the drugs. I remember my endo saying it could take 18 months though.

    • linda187
      linda187 dawn31341

      Posted

      I suspect your drug dosage is quite high, especially if your T3 and T4 are still high.   For myself, when I got tested for my carnitine levels, vitamin D levels and magnesium levels and  added these supplements and others to my meds, it made the meds more effective and my Endo was able to quickly lower my meds dosage. Usually the liver problems occur at high dosages of meds.  I was fortunate that my T3 and T4 normalized right away on meds but my TSH would not budge until I added those supplements and the doc could not lower my dosage while my TSH remained at less than 0.001
    • p12445
      p12445 linda187

      Posted

      yes, within 2 months my t4 and t3 have loweed back down to a normal level but my TSH is still <.006. looking to add the supplements now and im getting retested within 4-5 weeks

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