# Does Synthroid make you sleepy?



## Tori64 (Mar 7, 2017)

HI

I was on NDT for a very long time and never felt optimal, and always had very low T4 with NDT.

in Jan I met a new endo he switched me to 100 t4 and 10t3. I had some labs

and ft4 1 (.82-1.77) ft 3 3.6 ( 2 - 4.4)

These were drawn 3 hours after taking thyroid meds.

on follow up the end of feb he gave me a 6 week sample of Synthroid 112mcg and I switched on March 1. he also wanted me to drop the T3 from 10 down to 5mcg.

I have not decreased the T3.

however it seems since taking the Synthroid I spend over half the day in a groggy foggy state.

could it really be the synthroid causing this? it isn't fun that is for sure and caffeine doesn't work to pull me out of it, either.

I didnt have this in the generic levo that i recall or according to my calender either.

any ideas or thoughts? anyone else experience fatigue/ foggy/ groggy/ deprssed on synthroid?

thank you


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## hypocrazy (Jun 30, 2013)

Tori64-


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## creepingdeath (Apr 6, 2014)

The doctors tell you thyroid hormone is exactly what your own thyroid makes.

They just say they are supplementing what's missing.

Synthetic brought me to the ER and NDT helps very much but I don't feel like I did before my thyroid started to fail.

In my opinion thyroid hormone replacement is a treatment not a cure.

I had one doctor call me on the phone to congratulate me that my ranges were exactly where they were supposed to be.

I said thanks but why do I feel like shit even worse on Levothyroxine?

"nothing but silence on the other end of the phone . He just said have a great weekend"

Never went back to that guy again........

NDT isn't perfect but it's the only alternative.

If it wasn't for Armour I would have probably taken my own Life by now.


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## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

If you are sleepy - then you are likely under medicated,

Free T-4 and Free T-3 would both fall somewhere between 1/2-3/4 of the range.

You should be having your lab's drawn prior to any medication or mid day. Consistency is key to having labs drawn when dialing in replacement medications.



> ft4 1 (.82-1.77) ft 3 3.6 ( 2 - 4.4)
> 
> These were drawn 3 hours after taking thyroid meds.


These labs are low for having taken your med's just 3 hours prior to the draw.

Beware... your FT-3 will go up by increasing your T4 medication.

Different T4 medications use different fillers which bind differently so it is important to lab 6 weeks post changing any manufacturer or dosage.

I switched to generic lilothyronine vs brand Cytomel last year and have had to reduce dosage slightly.


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## my3gr8girls (Mar 18, 2016)

It's crazy how sensitive each individual can be to the different preparations and dosages of thyroid hormones that are out there! You really have to tune in to exactly what's right for you personally. I can tell you that brand name levothryoxine made me feel like I'd been hit by a bus so I took it at bedtime which totally resolved that problem. All my symptoms didn't disappear but the drop-dead fatigue did and I slept like a baby. So you could try that.

Personally, I do best on Synthroid (name brand) but others do better with the generic or NDT. I think it's all in how your body responds to the fillers or something and whether you need T3. I also just figured out that my body doesn't like the 100 mcg Synthroid tablets as well as it does the 88 mcgs. So weird!! I increased my dose by one 88 mcg tablet per week for a month and felt pretty good, so I asked my endo to just prescribe the 100 mcg tablets since it worked out the same. Well, 10 days later I was cold and tired and my hair was starting to fall out again!! What?? So I went back to the 88 mcgs. It's so weird.


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## Tori64 (Mar 7, 2017)

thank you all for the feedback. the dr requested i take the meds B4 the lab draw, he said he wanted to see how "sensitive" i am to the medication. I dont really know what he meant by that.

I may try switching to taking the synthroid at nite- I have tried NDT for a few years and never felt good.. i did notice as my FT4 was coming up when i switced to the generic levo, that parts of me started feeling better.

I also didnt have the groggy drop dead fatigue with the generic even though my numbers are still low, as i am having with the synthroid.

so i guess i have a couple options at this point.

1. i could take the synthroid at nite- sleeping like a baby sounds good.

2. I could try to maneuver the generic meds i have to give myself the same dose 112mcg.

will i have a to wait an amount of time for what ever is in the synthroid to clear out of my system before I know if either of these are working, primarily the 2nd one.

3 how to i get this across to the dr and be heard? I suspect it will be easier if i am able to find a successful experiment that works.

also in regards to the T3 coming up from the T4 that is if I am good converter.. this dr increased the t4 from 100 to 112 and told me to decrease the t3 from 10 to 5.. but i haven't decreased, i seem to think that might make it worse for me at this point..i am afraid of feeling worse.

it doesn't help that i have some viral bug that has been hanging on for a month dragging me down too. i dont really know what is doing what at this point.. am having a hard time keeping up with what needs to be done. how did you all get through? thanks

Ps- i did find a dr (not an endo) that said he would get my ranges up in midrange, and wants me to do labs B4 taking meds.. and will do them every 6 weeks.. not sure why the new endo didnt order any labs after his suggested changes.

thanks for the support


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## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

I'm going to stick with the absorption theory as all T4 hormone preparations have the same active ingredient of T4 hormone - but all do use different fillers which can indeed affect how one absorbs the active hormone.

Trial and error - keeping good records and being consistent on medication ingestion and when you have the labs drawn.

Then toss in Vitamin D, B-12 and Ferritin levels which often are low and supplemented in thyroid patients and do indeed change over the course of time. Diet and seasonal changes on top of everything else.


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## Lovlkn (Dec 20, 2009)

my3gr8girls said:


> It's crazy how sensitive each individual can be to the different preparations and dosages of thyroid hormones that are out there! You really have to tune in to exactly what's right for you personally. I can tell you that brand name levothryoxine made me feel like I'd been hit by a bus so I took it at bedtime which totally resolved that problem. All my symptoms didn't disappear but the drop-dead fatigue did and I slept like a baby. So you could try that.
> 
> Personally, I do best on Synthroid (name brand) but others do better with the generic or NDT. I think it's all in how your body responds to the fillers or something and whether you need T3. I also just figured out that my body doesn't like the 100 mcg Synthroid tablets as well as it does the 88 mcgs. So weird!! I increased my dose by one 88 mcg tablet per week for a month and felt pretty good, so I asked my endo to just prescribe the 100 mcg tablets since it worked out the same. Well, 10 days later I was cold and tired and my hair was starting to fall out again!! What?? So I went back to the 88 mcgs. It's so weird.


I'm glad you feel well, however, your labs do reflect being under medicated at the 88mcg dose.

The change you felt increasing may have resolved if you had given it longer than 10 days. Unless you were reacting to the dye as I am sure you noticed your pill colors changed going from 88mcg to the 100mcg dose.Olive color to Yellow?


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## Tori64 (Mar 7, 2017)

why do they put that crazy food coloring in our medications anyway..it isn't good for us. but what can we do?

any thoughts as to these options?

1. i could take the synthroid at nite- sleeping like a baby sounds good.

2. I could try to maneuver the generic meds i have to give myself the same dose 112mcg. ??

will i have a to wait an amount of time for what ever is in the synthroid to clear out of my system before I know if either of these are working, primarily the 2nd one.

I do supplement vit d as it used to be low, as well as B12 and take a mulity with iron, although i know that is different from the "ferritin" last time checked it was good. that was a couple years ago.

oh also if i switch to taking a nite dose.. i guess i would skip the dose tomrrow am and just take it at nite, rather than take a dose tonite since i already had one this am. sorry for so many questions.

i am really tired of feeling like doo


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## Alyssa726 (Mar 10, 2017)

Thanks for bringing this up. I started 25 mcg generic levothyroxine 10 days ago, and yesterday I was googling to figure out if it could be making me ravenously hungry. Reading through this discussion shows me how everyone responds so differently, and different amount affect us differently. the person that feels great on 88 mcg but felt bad on 100 mcg was very interesting- thanks for sharing.

So about 10 days in, I'm feeling sleepy and hungry, but to be honest that is not very different from how I felt before I started it.

I do find myself getting up in the middle of the night to pee every night, which I didn't do before I started the levo.

Feels like a crap shoot.


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## creepingdeath (Apr 6, 2014)

QUOTE= "the dr requested i take the meds B4 the lab draw, he said he wanted to see how "sensitive" i am to the medication. I dont really know what he meant by that"

I don't either.
Synthroid or T4 only hormone takes 7 days to accumulate in your system.
Taking it right B4 Lab's wouldn't make a difference.


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## Tori64 (Mar 7, 2017)

I guess he was checking sensitivity to the T3 medication.
If we're going For labs at midrange and above I still have a long way to go. Especially if that is with not taking medication before labs.

I Am definitely feeling depressed, I think from the Synthroid for the past three weeks I just don't want to get out of bed or do anything. I switched from the generic to Synthroid on the 1st of March.

I noticed this in the beginning. When I called the doctors office they said it takes a few weeks to adjust.

I woke up at 3 AM to go to the bathroom and took the Synthroid hoping I to feel good when I woke up. I just don't feel like moving. It's really odd.

For the past three weeks I've only had two days where I felt like doing anything.


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## jenny v (May 6, 2012)

If you took the T3 meds 3 hours before your blood draw, we would expect your FT3 to be much higher, as T3 meds usually peak 3-4 hours after taking. The rule of thumb is to not take your T3 meds before a blood draw, as it can give you a false high and make it look like you're overmedicated when you're really not.


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## Tori64 (Mar 7, 2017)

thanks Jenny

the endo said he wanted me to take meds before the labs to see how "sensitive" i am. as you can see i am not on enough thryoid at this time.

a few years ago I was on NDT + t3 and did labs after meds - i forgot and my FT3 was up to 4.4 I actually was doing much better then.

I have decided i am going back to generic t4 and gonna bump up the dose from 112 to 125.. I am tired of freezing and not being able to even write in my journal.


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## Tori64 (Mar 7, 2017)

this am I took the generic levo.. and i am feeling a little better today... less foggy and depressed.. i am wondering if this really can happen so fast like this.. the synthroid fog dissipating so quickly?


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## Tori64 (Mar 7, 2017)

this is my third day off the synthroid and taking the generic T4 instead, am using the white ones without food coloring. i feel much better- i am having a hard time convincing myself the terrible feelings were from the synthroid, but it seems to be true.

I am grateful for the folks that chimed in with feedback . why is it so hard to believe and trust yourself?

also wondering since my FT3 levels were so low on the fasted lab, maybe it would be ok to add another 5mcg of T3? or maybe i should do a 2.5mcg? any thoughts? thank you !


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