# So very, very, very tired!



## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

I was so encouraged by the positive changes when my doctor put me back on 137 mcg Synthroid in February, gone overnight were the chronic anxiety attacks and nightmares and I honestly felt better. I can only explain how I felt by saying I felt more like myself but I was still chronically lethargic.

I had my first labs after two months and my results showed no dramatic changes between Armour and Synthroid as far as numbers. My most recent TSH was .013 with range being 0.37-4.55. My doctor told me to cut back 1/2 of a tablet of Synthroid on Sundays, stay on 137 mcg the rest of the week.

Last Sunday was the first time I took the lower dose - Monday was the worst day I've had in a long time and the whole week has been very little better. I cannot believe that one 1/2 dose of anything could have caused me to feel this bad but that's been the only change as far as medications.

I've been trying to force myself to fight the fatigue, to keep going when my body and soul feel utterly depleted of energy. I obligated myself to a couple of daily responsibilities outside my home so I'd get out every day. I've eaten the healthiest diet I can put together. I've done everything I can to get past this but I can't - I feel like I have every symptom of postsurgical hypothyroidism and I don't understand how cutting back on the Synthroid is supposed to ever make me feel better.

I simply do not know what else to do and I cannot tolerate much more of this. I feel like my endocrinologist would order any test I asked for except she doesn't support the adrenal saliva test. I don't know anything else to pursue. My next labs are June 20 - Renal Function Panel, T3 Free, T4 Free, TSH, Thyroglobulin Panel Tumor Marker and Vitamin D Total.

I'm sleeping soundly every night but waking up as tired as I was when I went to bed.

I don't see how month after month of testing for T4 Free, T3 Free and TSH is making one particle of difference in my energy. I am not exaggerating when I say I feel totally exhausted virtually 24/7.


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## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

> I had my first labs after two months and my results showed no dramatic changes between Armour and Synthroid as far as numbers. My most recent TSH was .013 with range being 0.37-4.55. My doctor told me to cut back 1/2 of a tablet of Synthroid on Sundays, stay on 137 mcg the rest of the week.


Sometimes you cannot see it - even though you've heard it a million times.

TSH doesn't matter for dosing when on replacement - NEVER - EVER dose yourself by TSH alone.

I'm sorry you feel bad and continue to feel bad.

My suggestion to you is to find a dose - stick with it and only adjust by FT-4 and FT-3. I'm wondering if you will need to be on a drug for a period of time - like maybe a year or longer before switching to a different drug.

Until you dose by how you feel and your fT-3 and FT-4 you will continue to feel poorly.

Knowing all I know about dosing and tests I still went over 2 years being under medicated post op. Sometimes the hypo fog we are in blocks out judgement and ability to think. Sometimes when you add a drug it takes awhile for your system to adjust to it. I struggled with Cytomel but eventually my body adjusted after the 2nd try.

Your body must be tired and confused from all the drug changes you have made since your TT. I know you are anxious to feel better - it is going to take a longer time every time you change medications - you've seen that so far.

:hugs:


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

Lovlkn said:


> Sometimes you cannot see it - even though you've heard it a million times.
> 
> TSH doesn't matter for dosing when on replacement - NEVER - EVER dose yourself by TSH alone.
> 
> ...


I appreciate your kind encouragement more than you know but I feel like I'm getting too tired to keep trying to fight this battle or even pretend I feel better. I just honestly feel little anything other than pain and fatigue. I have never, not even once, tried to adjust my dosage myself other than when my endocrinologist wanted me to try 120 mg Armour from 105 (?) and I couldn't tolerate it.

I was so thrilled when it seemed obvious that the anxiety attacks of 2012 were gone when I went back on Synthroid...but they've been replaced with arthritic symptoms that are unbelievable. Prescription pain medicine doesn't even take the edge off the pain!

I'm gaining weight while barely eating - I still have little appetite. My hair is falling out. My skin is dry and itches from the top of my head to the bottoms of my feet. My face looks swollen. It just goes on and on and on. If trying to live a relatively normal life feeling this totally off all the time isn't depressing then I don't know what is - I am worn down. I cannot see why anything should rock on going on two years now with no real progress in sight!


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## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

Your doctors stink -

What are your most recent FT-4 and FT-3 with ranges?

You cannot begin to feel better until you dose by your FT-4 and FT-3. YOU need to tell your doctor what you want to try -

Trust me on this - I speak from experience. Still under doctors care and lab follow up but dosing yourself based on your you FEEL and your FT-4 and FT-3

If you take your doctors advice - without speaking up I guarantee you will be hypo 80% of the time.


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## Cymry (Nov 12, 2012)

Have you had your iron and B-12 checked? Anemia often causes similar symptoms as hypothyroid. I was diagnosed with both in the space of about a month -- anemia first, then hypothyroid.


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

Lovlkn said:


> What are your most recent FT-4 and FT-3 with ranges?
> 
> You cannot begin to feel better until you dose by your FT-4 and FT-3. YOU need to tell your doctor what you want to try -


Lovlkn, I guess I'm totally lost in lab result numbers but it would appear to me that my T4 Free and T3 Free are very good - I don't know what to think about my TSH.

T4 Free - 1.4 (range 0.8-1.5)

T3 Free - 3.1 (range 2.0-3.6)

TSH - .013 (range 0.37-4.55)

Endocrinologist says take 137 mcg Synthroid six days a week, half a tablet every Sunday.

Incidently, my lab results when I took 125 mcg Synthroid from September through the end of December, 2011, were almost identical to what they are now. My T4 Free has been 1.4 everytime I've been tested on Synthroid. My T3 Free was 2.9 in November, 2011 then 2.5 in December, 2011. My TSH was 0.059 in November, 2011 and then 0.455 in December, 2011. Then I took Armour for one year. This past February, I went back on Synthroid because of chronic anxiety, which ceased immediately with Synthroid.

Cymry, iron is normal, B-12 was (in January) slightly above mid-range for normal. Endocrinologist says it should be at high end of normal. I take B-12 and D daily.

My recent labs are from a couple of weeks ago - I won't have new labs until the end of June.

I read last night about doing the basal body temperature test but apparently it only works with an old timey mercury thermometer and I was told earlier today that they're not being produced anymore. We only have a digital thermometer.

I dunno'! I am so frustrated and worn out. I feel like a ping pong ball being bounced back and forth but never going anywhere!

I actually have the best endocrinologist in my area, nobody here would doubt that, but we have so very few to choose from. The doctor I see isn't even in the town I live in, I drive probably 25 miles to see her.


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## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

Have you been tested for sleep apnea?

Sleeping soundly and waking up as tired as when you went to bed points to sleep apnea in my eyes.

Your labs look great - I really have to say I do not think it's your thyroid replacement causing your issues.

As far as the anxiety you have felt in the past - I believe that some of us cannot handle the higher concentration of T-3 in the Armour and that you convert a T-4 only med just fine.

I don't sleep well at all and get through my day just fine with labs lower than you. Since you have looked into everything else i would suggest a sleep study.


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

Lovlkn said:


> Have you been tested for sleep apnea?
> 
> Sleeping soundly and waking up as tired as when you went to bed points to sleep apnea in my eyes.
> 
> ...


Nope! Been there and done that less than a year ago, back when I began waking up with the horrible nightmares. I actually know the woman who owns the sleep study clinic.

When I say I'm mystified, I am 100% mystified! I have a looseleaf binder on my desk that must be almost 2" thick where I've saved all the test information since my thyroidectomy - practically every test I've had, including a heart CT scan and abdominal/pelvic CT scan have come back normal. Several months ago my endocrinologist ordered every blood test she could think of related to "fatigue", what she called her "tired tests", and the only two results noted were my D and B-12 levels.

If I believed this is depression, I'd admit it. I've been treated for depression but it made things worse, not better. The anxiety I suffered with Armour scared the wits out of my because I know what that can do to a person but I haven't had so much as a hint of panic or anxiety since getting off Armour.

The *ONLY* thing I hold onto that I can't help believing somehow plays into all this is the fact that the first day I took Armour after having been on Synthroid for three months was a totally enjoyable normal-feeling day. The first day I took Synthroid again after being on Armour for a year was identical, for approximately one day I felt 100% like I felt prior to my thyroidectomy. I've had two wonderfully normal days since September 23, 2011 and both basically the same scenario - days I switched from Synthroid to Armour and later Armour back to Synthroid. When two days make that much of an impression, you can't stop wanting to capture whatever made them happen.


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## bigfoot (May 13, 2011)

I DClaire said:


> The *ONLY* thing I hold onto that I can't help believing somehow plays into all this is the fact that the first day I took Armour after having been on Synthroid for three months was a totally enjoyable normal-feeling day.


I hear you loud & clear on this. Generally, whenever my thyroid medication is adjusted or switched, I feel pretty good for about two or three days. Then, as usual, my symptoms return with a vengeance, especially the fatigue and brain fog. What a total mystery.

Have you been tested for anything rheumatic by any chance? The specialist I recently saw has been spending decades upon decades of treating patients with chronic fatigue. When I described everything that has been going on for the last 5+ years, he pondered if something rheumatic was running interference on my endocrine system. I don't want to jinx myself here, as I am still awaiting the lab results from the tests he ordered (ANA w/reflex, IGF, SPEP, Norepinephrine / Epinephrine / Catecholamines). But if I discover something amiss I will be sure to check back in...

What puzzles me is that, like you, it's possible to have a "normal" day here and there. So I would say that our bodies are fully capable of functioning properly when everything is lined up, but something else is going on in the background or masking things. Perhaps, in a roundabout way, adjusting thyroid medication temporarily interrupts whatever process is going on behind the scenes.


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

I DClaire said:


> Nope! Been there and done that less than a year ago, back when I began waking up with the horrible nightmares. I actually know the woman who owns the sleep study clinic.
> 
> When I say I'm mystified, I am 100% mystified! I have a looseleaf binder on my desk that must be almost 2" thick where I've saved all the test information since my thyroidectomy - practically every test I've had, including a heart CT scan and abdominal/pelvic CT scan have come back normal. Several months ago my endocrinologist ordered every blood test she could think of related to "fatigue", what she called her "tired tests", and the only two results noted were my D and B-12 levels.
> 
> ...


Are you walking every day? This is essential (some form of cardio) when taking thyroxine replacement. Can you do 30 minutes of brisk walking? 7 days a week? Even if you could do 3 10 minute brisk walks through out the day..............................

You would feel a lot better! Or, do you have a home treadmill?

How is Jimbo? Better?


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

Andros said:


> Are you walking every day? This is essential (some form of cardio) when taking thyroxine replacement. Can you do 30 minutes of brisk walking? 7 days a week? Even if you could do 3 10 minute brisk walks through out the day..............................
> 
> You would feel a lot better! Or, do you have a home treadmill?
> 
> How is Jimbo? Better?


I walk Jimbo every single day and have walked dogs every day for over 20 years. Until about three weeks ago, I was also walking at least a mile a day by myself - until knee and leg pain has made that impossible. I have never known such pain and it is also in the muscles in my arms.

Everytime I've been under-medicated, I've had bouts if muscle pain in my arms and legs - right now I pretty much ache all over. The doctor gave me a prescription because he didn't want me taking aspirin or Alleve but it honestly does not even take the edge off this pain.

As of this morning, I'm going to start keeping a diary of every detail I can list that might eventually paint a cohesive picture of all this. I found an old mercury thermometer - my 10-minute, underarm temperature this morning was 97.

bigfoot, I'm 66 - I was diagnosed with arthritis in my 20's. I've lived with pain in my knees for as long as I can remember but it was never constant. Through the years I've seen a prominent orthopedic specialist and have an appointment next week. What I'm dealing with now is not the knee pain I'm more or less used to, this is every muscle in both of my legs, something like shin splints that never eases, not even lying down.

That wondrous feeling when changing from Synthroid to Armour and then back again makes me believe there is something about that combination that works - there is something residual in my body each time I change that works for a day.

I do not want the rest of my life to be compromised by this. I'm frustrated to the point that I just simply don't know what else to try? My primary care doctor doesn't know beans about thyroid disease or treatment but I'm stuck with him, I have called no less than a dozen other internists and not one is taking new Medicare patients. I also have Blue Cross/Blue Shield but nobody where I live can find a new doctor now! One of my best friends doctor DIED and she cannot find a new doctor.

Andros, Jimbo is doing spectacularly well! The prescription diet has made all the difference in the world and he utterly loves it!!


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

Right now I'm not only very tired, I'm also very worried how I'm going to make it through tonight.

Sunday before last I dropped back to half of my 137 mcg Synthroid, per doctor's orders, and the following Monday was one of the worst days I've had since all this began. The rest of that week I did not feel well but I tried to keep going.

Two days ago, this past Sunday, again I dropped back to half my regular dose of Synthroid - yesterday, trying to buy groceries I had a mild anxiety attack, the first one since going on Synthroid. I had a horrible night last night and woke up after a few hours of fitfull sleep knowing I did not feel well at all.

I've had no appetite today, every muscle and joint in my body is aching, my blood pressure and heart rate are elevated after weeks of being so good. I'm having palpitations. I seldom have headaches but my head is killing me today. I feel nauseated. In desperation, I took a half of a Xanax this afternoon.

I plan to call my doctor tomorrow morning but already know what she'll say - it's too soon to tell if the change in medication is working...then I highly suspect I'll be right back where I was with all the problems I associated with Armour.

I don't know if I'm under-medicated, over-medicated or what? I do not know. I have never in my entire life felt so totally sick. I'm just praying I can somehow get through tonight.


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## Octavia (Aug 1, 2011)

IDC, I trust you made it through the night okay?

My guess is you may be overmedicated. You were doing well for weeks, and my theory is that it took some time for you to build up the excess hormone, and now you're seeing the effects of it.

Just a guess, though. IF my guess is correct, you're going to need to back off more than just half a pill.

I sure hope you get it figured out.


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

I DClaire said:


> I walk Jimbo every single day and have walked dogs every day for over 20 years. Until about three weeks ago, I was also walking at least a mile a day by myself - until knee and leg pain has made that impossible. I have never known such pain and it is also in the muscles in my arms.
> 
> Everytime I've been under-medicated, I've had bouts if muscle pain in my arms and legs - right now I pretty much ache all over. The doctor gave me a prescription because he didn't want me taking aspirin or Alleve but it honestly does not even take the edge off this pain.
> 
> ...


Really really glad to hear that Jimbo is on track; now......................if we can only get his fur-mom on track!!

Do you use artificial sweetners? Do you consume any foods that have MSG and other chemicals? Are you taking exogenous Vitamin D which can wreak havoc (pain wise) in some individuals w/autoimmune? All these things trigger inflammation.

Do you take CoQ10 to help quell the muscle pain (good for the heart muscle big time?)

Are you on a statin or glucophage? Have you taken any Quinalone antibiotics of late such as Cipro, Fluorqinalone and many others in that family? These things cause severe muscle pain and in many, ruptured tendons.

Just playing detective here.....................


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

I thought I'd rise from the dead and say I survived the night! I don't know what's going on - I thought I'd won the lottery with the 137 mcg dose of Synthroid, then my doctor lowered the dose just a tiny bit and what happened? The first day after I took the smaller dose (last week) I felt such fatigue I could not function. I didn't want to do anything except sleep.

This past Sunday, same scenario - Monday was horrible, Tuesday was worse. The only time I've ever felt anything even similar to the way I felt yesterday and last night was when I had a flu back in the 1970's.

I use artificial sweetener usually once a day if I drink iced tea. I don't like it in anything hot and I don't drink soft drinks because of my stomach. A couple of swallows of Coke are like acid to my stomach.

I do take Vitamin D. Right now I'm taking one 10,000 IU microlingual tablet daily, which is down from a 50,000 IU prescription Vitamin D that I used to take. I honestly think I could take 1,000,000 IU Vitamin D daily and it wouldn't change the simple fact that my test results stay low and have my entire adult life.

No statins, no antibiotics - just my 50 mg generic for Toprol XL and 50 mg generic for Ultram. If CoQ10 is good for muscle pain, I'll have a bottle within the hour!

What about Magnesium? My neighbor told me she takes Natural Vitality CALM, a magnesium supplement you mix and drink, for her fibromyalgia. It's gluten free and non-GMO.

Something anecdotal to share. I read that shoes with heels would sometimes ease leg pain to I dug around in my closet to find a gorgeous pain of slip-on, elasticized, sandal-type shoes I bought last summer and I believe wore one time. I slipped them on, walked across our bedroom and was so proud, the shoes looked and felt great...then, putting them back in the box, I realized BOTH had broken totally in half on the bottom at the arch. I have never seen anything like it! The soles/heels were comfortably firm yet spongy - unfortunately the "sponge" disintegrated over the course of one year!


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## Octavia (Aug 1, 2011)

IDC, was the decrease based on lab results, or based on how you were feeling (or both)?


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

I DClaire said:


> I thought I'd rise from the dead and say I survived the night! I don't know what's going on - I thought I'd won the lottery with the 137 mcg dose of Synthroid, then my doctor lowered the dose just a tiny bit and what happened? The first day after I took the smaller dose (last week) I felt such fatigue I could not function. I didn't want to do anything except sleep.
> 
> This past Sunday, same scenario - Monday was horrible, Tuesday was worse. The only time I've ever felt anything even similar to the way I felt yesterday and last night was when I had a flu back in the 1970's.
> 
> ...


Get you some CoQ10; do your research first. You don't have to get the one w/ubiquone as your body will naturually convert it.

My husband takes that CALM. I take Magnesium Citrate capsules and I also take Electrolyte essentials for an electrolyte imbalance can cause muscle pain also.

Toprol causes chest pain; did you say you have that?
http://www.toprol-xl.com/side-effects.aspx

Ultram.......... "CNS Stimulation " is a composite of nervousness, anxiety, agitation, tremor, spasticity, euphoria, emotional lability and hallucinations

And much more.
http://www.rxlist.com/ultram-drug/side-effects-interactions.htm

Vitamin D
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-04/arf-vdm040809.php

Have fun reading and I hope you do because only you can tell if this stuff is causing some of your symptoms.

I have not been on a shelf but I have disintigrated rapidly in one year! LOL!! And that is no joke!


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## HotGrandma (Sep 21, 2012)

ID
This is aweful. I would recommend the magnesium citrate. Not carbonate. Essential fatty acids help calm nerve endings and lubricate joints. You way also want to try some omega 3-6-9 or evening primrose oil. Could it be dealing with the cronic pain that is making you so very tired? Pain has to be controlled otherwise when it gets out of control it seems nothing works. You may want to talk to your Dr. about "oxigenated stress" which is associated with thyroid. I take "Allopurinol" It stoped my GED dead in its tracks. No side effects.

Does anything relieve the pain short term, Ice, hot baths?
Can you describe the pain. Burning, numb, stabbing, electrical?

I'm sorry, pain is just plain evil.


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

Octavia said:


> IDC, was the decrease based on lab results, or based on how you were feeling (or both)?


It had to be based on labs - I haven't seen my doctor in her office since February. Her PA called with my last labs (the first I'd had after switching back to Synthroid) and then told me to cut back 1/2 tablet on Sundays.

Another point I cannot comprehend is my TSH. How/why would I be that low?

"How I'm feeling?" Very seldom does that even get discussed with my doctor. I like her immensely but she wouldn't do anything outside the book if my life depended on it.

In the year and a half since my surgery, I have had one "high" TSH result and that was 28.900 six weeks after starting 60 mg Armour last February. My TSH, irregardless of how I feel, runs test results like 0.030, 0.012, 0.010 (for four consecutive months on Armour), then 0.005 and 0.013.


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

HotGrandma said:


> ID
> This is aweful. I would recommend the magnesium citrate. Not carbonate. Essential fatty acids help calm nerve endings and lubricate joints. You way also want to try some omega 3-6-9 or evening primrose oil. Could it be dealing with the cronic pain that is making you so very tired? Pain has to be controlled otherwise when it gets out of control it seems nothing works. You may want to talk to your Dr. about "oxigenated stress" which is associated with thyroid. I take "Allopurinol" It stoped my GED dead in its tracks. No side effects.
> 
> Does anything relieve the pain short term, Ice, hot baths?
> ...


HG, I take hot baths - that seems to give my back and legs temporary relief. The pain in my knees is like bone on bone and that's probably what it is! My knees are bad!

What actually makes me hurt all over so much is in my calves, shins AND upper arms. My shins feel worse than any runner could ever know and both legs feel the same. My calves ache. My upper arm muscles ache. It's a deep, deep ache that is not made worse by exercise - I hurt as much trying to get comfortable in bed as walking.

I have NO swelling in either leg and was tested for deep vein thrombosis (sp. ?) when I was hospitalized last January. Years ago an orthopedic specialist told me my knees looked like a professional basketball player's! 
My late father suffered so much with arthritis and actually died suddenly from a blood clot during orthopedic surgery. I can't help worrying - I'd probably benefit from knee replacement but I'm terrified. I, too, have had problems with blood clots and it haunts me.


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## HotGrandma (Sep 21, 2012)

The Evening Primrose Oil is a natural blood thinner. So if you have a bleeding problem its not recommended. I had reconstructive knee surgery on my right knee in 1981 they said after it recovered they needed to do the left. Never had it done, so I can relate. It does take time to get the omega 3-6-9 and evening primrose oil in your system.

There are some exercises you might try for your calves. Google Achiles exercises. Take a bottle, put it on the floor, put the arch of your foot on the bottle and roll it across the floor using pressure from your FOOT not your LEG. There is a difference. It helps to stretch and activate that tendon. Are you wearing good shoes? Ones that support your feet? Merrell with (Q-Form Technology) (Google it) and Dansko are great brands, and you would not believe what a difference it could make on the pain in your whole body. You want a shoe that does not bend in the arch and very little at the ball of the foot. I can never go bare footed because of the pain in my calves.

With the clotting issue I would not recommend any compression type socks.


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

I'm fixing to share something that not anybody on this website will believe but I swear it is the truth, the whole truth and nuthin' but the truth! :jumping0047:

Let me set the stage. Our church's Hispanic members planned a Cinco de Mayo fellowship dinner last night and I'd been asked to furnish a dessert. Yesterday morning I baked a Pina Colada Cake to send with someone but I knew I would not feel like attending.

Sometime in the afternoon I posted here about the intense muscle pain I was having in my leg and arm muscles and several shared personal experiences. I told Andros that if CoQ10 was good for pain, I'd have a bottle within the hour. I wasn't kidding - I got up from the computer and drove to a nearby health food store where I bought Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega +CoQ10 and a cannister of Natural Vitality CALM, the granulated magnesium supplement.

Desperate for relief, I also bought a little snack size package of peanut butter/crackers and a bottle of water because the Ultimate Omega said to take it with food and I wanted to take it immediately - _in the parking lot of the store! _

I came home and piddled around a little bit, read a new magazine, etc., and by 5:30 got to thinking I felt better. My husband said he really wanted to go to the church dinner but not alone so I somewhat reluctantly got dressed and went. Even at the dinner, which was held in our fullsize gym and involved being on my feet a lot, I was increasingly conscious that my legs weren't hurting, I felt pretty good! I had a good time! Walking across a huge parking lot to our car, I pondered had getting out and going to the dinner somehow made such a dramatic difference in the way I felt?

We came home and it seemed like I continued feeling better. I usually struggle to walk my dog once in the afternoon - last night I walked him a second time after we got home!

Around 10:00 P.M., I mixed my #1 serving of CALM and drank it...then took the dog out again! I couldn't believe how good my legs felt, most specifically the excruciating shin splints were 100% gone.

I went to bed but couldn't fall asleep because I was still giddy with the realization that I wasn't hurting. I could move my legs any way I wanted to and they didn't hurt. I could lie on my side and it didn't hurt for my knees to touch each other. 11:30-midnight is not the best time to get so excited about anything but at some point I fell asleep...and slept until 4:00 A.M. when I got up to go to the bathroom and once again realized I was not hurting all over, not only did my legs not hurt but neither did my arm muscles. I went back to bed and slept until 8:00 this morning when I awoke hungry and in a great mood!

It's hard to imagine one dose of the Ultimate Omega +CoQ10 could do this but I didn't even take a pain pill last night. To say I am amazed would be an understatement, this is like a miracle! Needless to say, I've already had my next two Ultimate Omega soft gels and at 10:00 I'm going to take half a dose of the CALM.

I honestly am not in any real pain right now. HotGrandma mentioned pain causing other symptoms and I think that's what I'm looking at right now - I'm usually in such pain that I feel tired, vaguely nauseated and just generally unhappy about everything.

If I could maintain the way I feel at this moment, I think the Synthroid dosing might become a non-issue. I don't know how any of this comes together but I truly feel like I could build on the way I feel right now and keep going!! arty0006:


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## Octavia (Aug 1, 2011)

Wow, IDC!!!! I sure hope this continues to work for you!

I had a really hard time sleeping last night. Maybe I was subconsciously excited for you, too! :hugs:


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

Octavia said:


> Wow, IDC!!!! I sure hope this continues to work for you!
> 
> I had a really hard time sleeping last night. Maybe I was subconsciously excited for you, too! :hugs:


I'm doing great so far. Just to show you how exciting my so-called life is, I'm using my new found energy to clean out my closet! :anim_63:

In case this is all just a flash in the pan, I don't want to be caught indefinitely with no summertime clothes readily available.

This is weird though - wonderfully, extraordinarily weird - but I'm not even lethargic like I usually am. Cleaning out a closet is exciting stuff when you ordinarily have no energy, ache all over and just want to sleep all day.


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

God works in mysterious ways! It's amazing how much pain can wear you out mentally and physically. I hope this continues to work for you!


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

jenny v said:


> God works in mysterious ways! It's amazing how much pain can wear you out mentally and physically. I hope this continues to work for you!


Thank you, Jenny. I do pray this continues to help because the difference is like day and night. I feel a little bit jittery but my blood pressure and heart rate are absolutely perfect. My blood pressure is 120/60 - it's been running much higher the past week and I've also been concerned about that.

I've flipped from feeling lethargic to feeling a tad hyper but I'll take hyper over exhausted any day!!

I cannot imagine that anything would have helped as quickly as this BUT I'm making hay while the sun shines!! :anim_63:...and praying my bubble doesn't burst - again!


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## CA-Lynn (Apr 29, 2010)

Hot Grandma wrote: "With the clotting issue I would not recommend any compression type socks."

Could you be more specific about this? I ask because TED stockings are anti-embolism.


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## HotGrandma (Sep 21, 2012)

CA-Lynn said:


> Hot Grandma wrote: "With the clotting issue I would not recommend any compression type socks."
> 
> Could you be more specific about this? I ask because TED stockings are anti-embolism.


Well CA Lynn I have no research only personal experiences. My Grandfather drove himself to the hospital for a routene surgery. He had no prior problems with blood clots. My aunt put some sort of sompression socks on him about 15 hours before surgery. As they were prepping him for surgery a blood clot plassed through his heart into his lung. They blamed the socks.

After my auto accident I had a lot of nerve pain and couldn't feel my feet as far as movement went only felt pain in my feet. I bought some socks at the drug store and they helped. When I saw a spinal surgeon he yelled at me to get them off and that he didn't prescribe them for me.

So I went with that when I responded to I D. Expecially since blood clots were a concern and she was already having leg pain. On the other hand my best friend was type 1 diabetic and she did fine with them. So I would first talk to a doctor regarding a specific conditiion before using them and have him/her recommend them


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

I DClaire said:


> I'm fixing to share something that not anybody on this website will believe but I swear it is the truth, the whole truth and nuthin' but the truth! :jumping0047:
> 
> Let me set the stage. Our church's Hispanic members planned a Cinco de Mayo fellowship dinner last night and I'd been asked to furnish a dessert. Yesterday morning I baked a Pina Colada Cake to send with someone but I knew I would not feel like attending.
> 
> ...


Thank the Lord!!! Now you keep after that. It would not hurt to double up the dose just the first 7 days to give you a bump up.

Tell me how much Omega III and CoQ10 is in each capsule. Neither one will cause you harm but inquiring minds want to know where we are going w/this.

Honey Bunny; I am so so so glad! I truly am!!



CoQ10 deficiency can cause agonal pain in the tendons and the muscles.


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

I DClaire said:


> I'm doing great so far. Just to show you how exciting my so-called life is, I'm using my new found energy to clean out my closet! :anim_63:
> 
> In case this is all just a flash in the pan, I don't want to be caught indefinitely with no summertime clothes readily available.
> 
> This is weird though - wonderfully, extraordinarily weird - but I'm not even lethargic like I usually am. Cleaning out a closet is exciting stuff when you ordinarily have no energy, ache all over and just want to sleep all day.


Pain takes energy. Chronic pain wears you down.


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

Where I think I'm going, and may bite the financial bullet and go there sooner than planned, is to Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega +CoQ10 - but a stronger formula than what I now have. As I've learned more, I know 100-200 mg CoQ10 is a moderate beginning dose, what I have now is 60 mg. The 100 mg coenzyme Q10 ubiquinol is in extra virgin olive oil. The product I want (the *100 mg* CoQ10) says it is concentrated EPA+DHA, supports cardiovascular health, double-strength EPA+DHA for increased omega-3 benefits in fewer soft gels. One serving provides the American Heart Association's daily recommendation of EPA+DHA for individuals with heart concerns.

My only "heart concern" has been irratic, often elevated blood pressure and heart rate throughout my thyroid adventures. As God is my witness, my BP is running numbers now like 120/60, 125/70 - heartrate is normal and I have NO sensation of palpitations. I've had a totally battery of heart tests fairly recently, including a heart CT scan, and my cardiologist says my symptoms are related to my thyroid issues.

When I look at the whole picture of the way I'm feeling right now, I feel very happy. When I breakdown the individual improvements, this seems too good to be true. The shin splint pain is totally gone. The pain in my calves is gone. My arm muscles are so painfree that last night I slept on my stomach with one arm above my head wrapped around the pillow. This time last week I could barely brush my hair and was using a bamboo back scratcher! I am very slightly lethargic but can make myself not give into it by staying busy. I feel lighthearted! My mood feels normal. I feel like myself - not _off_ in anyway whatsoever.

One odd improvement - my tongue has been "coated" and slightly sore for months on end. It looks and feels normal. My appetite is back...which will probably mean gaining weight but it's so refreshing not to feel vaguely nauseated and bloated.

I'm also interested in trying Nordic Naturals' Omega Vision Concentrated DHA with Zeaxanthin and FloraGLO Lutein since it professes to support tissue moisture and tear production. Among the other symptom improvements I've listed above, I sometimes sense that my eyes are not as dry as they normally are.

I may have to put these products on my Christmas Wish List - they're expensive for me but my husband says if they bring relief, it'll be worth the cost! My only other personal extravagance is a $40 a month haircut so I may just be worth giving this a really good trial and see what happens.

One thing I'm slightly confused about right now is the difference between Ubiquinone and Ubiquinol. I wrote myself a note to look for Ubiquinone but just about everything I've found so far is Ubiquinol, including the Nordic Natural products.

I TRULY feel better right this minute than I ever imagined I could feel again. My daughter, who uses a lot of vitamins, supplements, etc., said she didn't see how the product I bought could have made such a dramatic change so quickly? I honestly don't know unless my body was so totally depleted that it responded immediately. I also know, as does my endocrinologist, that I do not have a record of processing any drugs normally - they're either in and out too quickly or get in my liver and overstay their welcome!:confused0006:

I'm enjoying one day at a time but honestly feel almost like I cannot believe all this. I've been in such a funk that nobody but Paul would have been able to endure it and now we're happily laughing about different things, making plans for tomorrow and it just all feels so good!

Andros, I haven't told you about becoming a dog nanny! The mother of one of my dearest neighbors is terminally ill with cancer. My neighbor lives alone with a blond cairn terrier, a blond toy shih tzu and the cutest cat you've ever seen. My neighbor teaches school then goes directly to see her mother and doesn't come home until late SO I check on the "children" a couple of times a day. The little cairn terrier was becoming obviously depressed and worried about her owner's absence but has done a lot better with getting out a little bit, playing, just sitting with me - anything to break the monotony of long days. I'm enjoying it so much I'm considering doing some real petsitting if my energy level continues.


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## Andros (Aug 26, 2009)

I DClaire said:


> Where I think I'm going, and may bite the financial bullet and go there sooner than planned, is to Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega +CoQ10 - but a stronger formula than what I now have. As I've learned more, I know 100-200 mg CoQ10 is a moderate beginning dose, what I have now is 60 mg. The 100 mg coenzyme Q10 ubiquinol is in extra virgin olive oil. The product I want (the *100 mg* CoQ10) says it is concentrated EPA+DHA, supports cardiovascular health, double-strength EPA+DHA for increased omega-3 benefits in fewer soft gels. One serving provides the American Heart Association's daily recommendation of EPA+DHA for individuals with heart concerns.
> 
> My only "heart concern" has been irratic, often elevated blood pressure and heart rate throughout my thyroid adventures. As God is my witness, my BP is running numbers now like 120/60, 125/70 - heartrate is normal and I have NO sensation of palpitations. I've had a totally battery of heart tests fairly recently, including a heart CT scan, and my cardiologist says my symptoms are related to my thyroid issues.
> 
> ...


You are the "sweetest" for helping this little dog through it's own depression. They are so smart and sadly, they know what is going on w/their fur humans.

Now, back to the CoQ10.....................

One pharmacokinetic study found that after a single 100-mg oral dose of coenzyme Q10, the mean peak plasma levels of about 1 μg/mL occurred between 5 and 10 hours (mean 6.5 hours).44 Coenzyme Q10 100 mg given orally three times daily produced a mean steadystate plasma level of 5.4 μg/mL; about 90% of this steady-state concentration was achieved after 4 days.39
http://www.ccjm.org/content/77/7/435.long

Everyone should read this and more. Zaps out myalgia and a whole bunch of other benefits.

IDC; it is expensive but if it keeps you from "doctoring", it is actually cheaper on the long haul.

This is thrilling to say the least!!


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

Andros said:


> Now, back to the CoQ10.....................
> 
> One pharmacokinetic study found that after a single 100-mg oral dose of coenzyme Q10, the mean peak plasma levels of about 1 μg/mL occurred between 5 and 10 hours (mean 6.5 hours).44 Coenzyme Q10 100 mg given orally three times daily produced a mean steadystate plasma level of 5.4 μg/mL; about 90% of this steady-state concentration was achieved after 4 days.39
> http://www.ccjm.org/content/77/7/435.long
> ...


Updating to say I feel like I've won the lottery! I bought the stronger dose of Ultimate Omega + CoQ10 and have been taking one gel cap three times a day with food instead of taking one 2-gel cap dose with breakfast. I never imagined I'd feel this well again!

I have no pain, no negative side effects, no anxiety, no depression, no stomach symptoms - I'm sleeping well, waking up in a good mood and enjoying being productive! Somehow I have to believe this supplement is making my Synthroid work the way it should. I feel neither hypo nor hyper - I feel calm with a wonderful sense of contentment and enthusiasm.

The best thing of all is that I actually feel awake!

As the new poster child for fish oil plus CoQ10, I'm convinced my skin even feels and looks more supple. The only drawback is my appetite is back with a vengeance but I'm hoping being active again will help keep my weight stable.


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## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

I switched my omega to Carlson Cod Liver Oil which I learned about from a motivational speaker talking about diet and nutrition.

1 tsp has 1,100 mg Omega 3 100 servings per bottle = $38
DHA 500mg
EPA 400 mg

vs

Nordic Naturals 2 gel caps 90 servings per bottle = $38
690mg
DHA 220mg
EPA 330 mg

About the same cost but 2x the Omega 3's and it does not taste bad at all.

I keep a bottl of the Nordic handy for when traveling


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## I DClaire (Jul 31, 2011)

Lovlkn said:


> I switched my omega to Carlson Cod Liver Oil which I learned about from a motivational speaker talking about diet and nutrition.
> 
> 1 tsp has 1,100 mg Omega 3 100 servings per bottle = $38
> DHA 500mg
> ...


I don't know if I could bring myself to buy a bottle of cod liver oil if someone told me it taste like honey! :anim_63: My sister and I were just reminiscing about how our mother, thinking cod liver oil would keep us well, gave us a dose every week when we were kids. I still remember the trauma of knowing it was coming! Back then it did taste bad and the harder we tried to flavor it with stuff like Hawaiian Punch, the worse it tasted.

Seriously, I never gave one second's thought to fish oil until Andros mentioned it recently. I have always wished I knew more about vitamins and supplements but this has really made me wonder what else I'm missing?

Other than my Vitamin D and B-12 and the magnesium drink (which I'm not too crazy about), my only other misadventure into supplements was the oral aloe vera GEL that nearly made me sick! I took one dose and threw the bottle away!!


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