# Hashimotos, now adrenal insufficiency, help! Have questions!!!



## nms1981 (Apr 10, 2015)

Hello!

I've had Hashimotos for 10 years now. Finally my doc change me from Synthroid to Nature-throid recently and I finally have my first set of labs back. (I was on Synthroid 100 mcg, was then switched to Nature-throid 97.5 mg---went back a week later feeling CRAZY and she lowered the Nature throid to 81.25mg and felt great--she doesn't believe in the Synthroid/Naturethroid conversion chart---but she's the best doc I've had in 10 years so I need to keep her.) She also ordered some other hormone levels because I complained that after feeling great on Nature-throid 81.25 mg for a couple of weeks, my PMS ruined it all and have felt extreme fatigue and irritability since. (I was on birth control to control the PMS symptoms but realized it make my fatigue worse so I stopped it a couple months ago).

So when all the labs are back I get a call from her medical assistant saying the following "Adrenal insufficiency, DHEA will help. You can purchase a trial of DHEA we sell at the clinic. Your T3 is a little high but your TSH is the same. Call us if you have any questions.....". :sad0049: :sad0049: :sad0049: So I looked at the results on the patient portal, but there was NO email explaining anything. I understand the thyroid labs but it's still hard to grasp the other labs and how they all interrelate to one another. Here are the following labs I had done with the reference ranges:

free T3 4.56 HIGH (ref range: 2.5-3.9)

TSH 0.08 LOW (ref range: 0.34-5.60) ---my TSH has been low for at least a year after lowering Synthroid dosage 3 times, now on Nature throid

T4 0.69 NORMAL (0.58-164)

Total testosterone 45.5 (10-70)

free testosterone 0.3 (0.3-1.6)

sex hormone binding globulin HIGH 140.9 (18.2-135.7)

RANDOM Cortisol 12 (2-25)

DHEA: <30 LOW (39-232)

So I call the clinic back and ask to speak to the nurse. I ask exactly what it all means. I ask how I am adrenal insufficient if my cortisol is normal. She tells me the DR looks at the whole picture (which is why I haven't changed DRs since I found this one). I asked about how necessary the DHEA supplement is because the way the medical assistance explained it in her voicemail message, it sounded to me as though I could try it if I wanted to but it wasn't an actual prescription the DR wanted me to have. She said, well the DR "said it would help", so that is her recommendation. I also asked if the DR really wanted to wait 3 months to recheck my labs, she said she would ask her. (So no one can really explain to me what's going on with my body and my DR has since left for vacation and won't be back for several weeks). About the DHEA supplement, she nurse told me she would transfer me to another clinic in the building where they sell it and I could ask about the cost and where to pick it up. I talk to that receptionist and am told the price (which sounds reasonable) but I won't be able to pick it up for 5 days because whoever is responsible for that department isn't in until then.

So I do some research and here is what I understand (i'm not even sure if i'm right). What I do know for certain i'm clearly I'm hyperthyroid right now. (I do have Hashimotos so I can swing to hypothyroid tomorrow and back so I can understand why she is leaving the Naturethroid dosage the same for now--BUT I refuse to wait 3 months to recheck the levels). I understand the DHEA governs the cortisol and the basically all the other hormones. I understand the DHEA supplementation can help the adrenals rest and improve energy levels, libido, and general sense of well being. Also if I get too much of it I can start getting too much testosterone and growing facial hair...GOOD TIMES!. So it's not something to take forever, labs need to be monitored and when levels are back to normal it needs to be tapered off. You guys I've been an RN for 9 years and still have trouble understanding the endocrine system.

I have gotten my period and am still VERY tired, irritable, hair is shedding more than normal. I'm so frustrated, especially since I had a little taste of feeling great for a couple of weeks (hadn't felt that way in years!). My DR won't be back for a couple of weeks. I am glad that there has been light shed on the adrenal problem but I'm frustrated because I don't understand what it all means. I kind of wonder if my thyroid dosage does need to be lowered, and If it is lowered would the other problems go away? Or if I take DHEA supplement will it kick my thyroid lab back to normal range? Is my hair falling out because i'm hyperthyroid or because my body is adjusting to being off birth control. I am just tired of the roller coaster. I'm just want everything in balance, I'm tired of my body swinging back and forth and feeling crazy!!! I feel like I have to control the situation and suggest the right treatment for me. I can't just sit back and trust medical professionals to ask the right questions, order the right labs, prescribed the right treatment, it doesn't work that way. If I didn't advocate for myself for the last few years I'd be in worse shape. I still have my other DR's telling me to go to the ER because there's nothing they can do!!!!

Can anyone help shed some light on anything for me? Any feedback of any kind is welcome. Thanks for taking the time to read this lengthy message!!!!


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

I'm going to lock this thread and direct people to the exact same post here: http://thyroidboards.com/forums/topic/11963-starting-nature-throid-feel-anxious/#entry99773

We try to avoid duplicate posts and duplicate threads here to help keep the answers in one spot.


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