Problems with Levothyroxine

Do you know what your actual TSH numbers are?  If not, you should ask.   If you are not extremely out of range possiby other alternatives to boost your energy would be better. Just listen to your own body...and be your own advocate for your health.   Doctors are quick to perscribe medication.   However, if you are extremely hypothyroid, and hormone levels are way out of range then that is a different story.  There are other thyroid medication alternatives out there if Levothyroxine is not agreeing with you.    

Hello DWW- Thanks for sharing your story!  You're a great example because you were so healthy prior to the levo. It helps me sort out which problems of mine are remnants from the levo and which ones are caused by the low thyroid.

If you've been diagnosed with low thyroid, I wouldn't recommend not taking thyroid medication. Mainly because the thyroid function is so key to every aspect of the body. If your body isn't making enough, things slow down, causing you to basically, age prematurely. Thyroxin is similar to insulin, it's a substance your body makes and without it, you're kind of screwed. There are a lot of natural thyroid products out there. Unfortunately doctors don't like the completely natural OTC ones.  The regulating of the thyroid medication is extremely difficult and takes three months to level out once you've started a dose. Because you're new to the meds, I would try a NDT (natural dessicated Thyroid) prescription from your doctor and see if that works any better for you. Since you're having stomache problems, no sense in aggrivating them, so either get one that is gluten-free and corn-free without dyes, or do a compounded to avoid any possible allergens. Also, because you've developed stomache problems go on a gluten-free diet for 6-12 months. I could give a dissertation on this. Trust me and just do it proactively. Back to the prescription NDT-  Naturethroid worked OK for me prior to the levo,  but now I'm on the compounded since I've been so sick from the levo. If you want, once you've been on the NDT a yfor 6 months to a year, and you have  a sense of what your body needs and what works, you can later wean yourself off the NDT prescription while transitioning to an OTC NDT, which is completely natural. I have not tried these (OTC NDT)  because my condition requires a very high dose and the OTC ones are not as concentrated, so I'd have to take a ton of them. Plus, I'm such a mess, I"m not sure I want to go through the trouble to try and get the dosage right. I can guarantee your doctor won't like this idea. Arguments are that it isn't regulated, blah blah. Well, even the prescriptions are allowed a 10% error in the dosage, which means from prescription to prescription, there can be as much as 20% difference in the dose. So the argument that Prescription drugs are more regulated as far as dosage consistency doesn't really fly.

Bottom line, you're at a low dosage and you seem to have been feeling well prior to getting diagnosed, which means you can probably stay with a low dose, which makes you a good candidate for the OTC natural if you'd like to try it.

Good luck and keep posting!

Catherine